Zahara's Gift

Bond of a Dragon #1

by A.J. Walker

A young man forced into action. A juvenile dragon alone in a new world. Whispers of a terrible evil returning to power.

Perfect for fans of epic YA fantasy hits like Christopher Paolini’s Eragon and Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time, A.J. Walker’s Bond of a Zahara’s Gift is the thrilling kickoff to a coming-of-age sword and sorcery saga packed with adventure, magic, and courage.

Nineteen-year-old Anders is your average village fisherman, spending his days at sea and nights surrounded by the people he loves. Then, an attack from raiders changes everything forever, making the last of his living family hostages and throwing his village into chaos and destruction. Forced to embark on a journey to rescue his family, Anders quickly discovers that there is much more to the world than he was once told. Potent magical forces are revealed, and dangerous creatures like elves, orcs, and goblins lurk at every turn. Most intriguing is a young dragon named Zahara, with whom Anders has formed an unusually fast and strong bond.

Along his journey, Anders begins to uncover shocking information regarding his family’s past, specifically the roles they may have played in The War of The Magicians and the circumstances surrounding the attack on his village. Not to mention Anders’ possible involvement in an ancient prophecy, one that speaks of dragons, powerful magic, and a terrible evil that threatens to destroy all. As more information comes to the surface, Anders must make a difficult decision – shall he follow the path laid out for him, or can he find a way to carve out his own destiny?

Fast-paced and full of fierce dragons, powerful magic, and a hero fighting for justice, adventure-seeking readers are sure to love the Bond of a Dragon series. Start the adventure, and click “Add to cart” today!

Genres: Fantasy, Dragons, Young Adult, Adventure, Audiobook, Ebooks, Magic

263 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 23, 2018

Reviews

[Nic Wainwright · Rating 2 out of 5]

Props to the author for putting together a coherent novel, but honestly a lot of this book just felt very juvenile. I can see it being an awesome book for a voracious reader in elementary school, but as an adult, a lot of the plot felt too easy and the interactions and lucky encounters were just too obvious. I listened to this book on Audible and thought the voice actor was phenomenal at getting different accents depending on race and gender.

[ParityOdd · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not interesting, or original. A poor retelling of Eragon series. I couldn't muster a single care for any of the characters.

[Tomas Grizzly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pretty much one-day read, which is automatic 5* for me. In numbers, ~90%

Quite a gripping, fast-paced story, if the quick read wasn't enough indication. If there's new in it for me, it's that the story starts a bit closer to adventure than the typical dragon fantasy, with Andres about to compete in a tournament of both physical and mental skill - and stuff only goes down when you're ready to cheer on him to win the final race.
And then all hell breaks loose. The town comes under attack and while he does his best, he gets knocked out. Then, he wakes on a ship with those lucky enough to escape instead of being captured, and the story gets into overdrive: chasing the bad guy's minions who captured Andres' family.
As usual, he's learning what's going on as he goes (and, as usual, doesn't really learn much).
And, unlike the other dragon fantasy books I've read, the 'first contact' happens only half-way through the book.
Without spoilers, there's combat, action, learning about the world, and a major battle to end the book and set it up for the sequel.

Review on my blog

[C.M. Rutherford · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this story and the characters the author created.

[Blue Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fasten your seat belts to go on an epic adventure.
There are dragons in the book what else you want?
Fast paced book that slips through your hands with creatures from dragons to goblins. The world building is immersive in this book that expands with the progress. .
You feel present in the situation happening. The writing style is absorbing. Our main character Andres along with Zahara are well developed.
From "a stranger and a thief" to "battle at the fortress" the book captivates you. And with all the questions lurking to be answered, it keeps you at edge.
If at any point you get lost in the world you can always find yourself in the beautiful map in the book.
I would definitely give this adventurous kick start book to a series (which is going to be even more magical, i know) shinning 5 stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟.
Definitely recommended to readers who love engaging fantasy with fun throughout .
Looking for more adventures and to continue the journey.

[rachel d dawson · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s alright...

The book was short and lacked good pacing. Everything, in my opinion, moved too quickly. I never found myself lost in the author’s world. There was also a massive amount of lore dumping. I’m a sucker for Dragons, though, so what can I say? Hopefully the writing improved with the second book.
The characters seemed a little flat too. Honestly, the book isn’t bad, but these flaws become glaring when it is so short.
If you want to read a well done dragon-fantasy story, I recommend Flannery’s Battle mage book. It fixes all these problems and more.

[Kurami Rocket · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a bit torn on whether to give this book a 2 star or 3 star rating.

It's sort of your standard run of the mill fantasy book - adventure, action, elfs, orcs, dwarves and magic. There isn't really too much that differentiates it from other fantasy books. The plot is entertaining, but some parts also felt kind of dull.

Anders' is a likeable character as well as the others, but again most of the characters are your standard archetype pretty one dimensional characters you would find in other fantasy books. Again though, they are likeable enough and this doesn't necessarily bring down the enjoyment of the book. Though, I would have liked less focus on Anders' cousins when they became enslaved. But this may be me being nitpicky of - Needs More Dragons!! So, naturally as a dragon lover I would have loved more dragons and focus on dragons in the book.

Speaking of characters, however, I'm pretty iffy on how the Rollo people were written. They are a native people who do not get along with the elves due to trying to steal from them despite their hospitality and saving them before the book began. The Rollo people also seem to distrust and want dragons in chains or dead while also not trusting magic. In this book, Anders initially thinks Red is all muscle, but no real brains during the Grandwood games. And idk. The other characters don't seem to be written as native so it seems the Rollo people are the only ones. Maybe I'm wrong, but it's just the way these native people are written rubs me the wrong way. As if they were savages and a warrior people who don't know any better. It's just not good in terms of how native people are written. It's stereotypical and as an indigenous person myself, just all the no.

I did like the world building in this book though. Enough to get an idea of what this world is like, but not so much as to make it overwhelming or dull.

I was surprised by how quickly battle came and how quickly Andres' fought and killed the person that killed his uncle. Usually stuff like this takes more time, I feel, but, I guess, it makes sense since Merglan is the real enemy in this series. No complaints about this though.

Now, my favorite thing about this book and what I really enjoyed is the description of bonding with a dragon - a rider and the dragons soul intertwining, becoming one, that electrical warmth and comfort. All of the yes!!! I love tropes like this!! Lol

So, with that said I hope that here on out we get to see more dragons and that Zahara will have more scenes in the book now that she has officially bonded with Anders

Overall, not a bad start to this series. Let's see what happens next and what this series will bring.

[Riley Brooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anyone else a sucker for a great adventure story? Especially one that has magic and dragons involved?? I am all for those stories! And here is a great one to add to your reading list. The writing is smooth and, if you have the time, could easily be finished within a day or two despite it being a nearly 300 page book. It was an easy page turner. Walker managed to always keep my attention despite the distance the character were traveling in between locations. And there was a LOT of traveling happening. There is a map included in the book for those who like to follow where people are coming and going from. You will definitely need it. Walker's world is quite large and we're only seeing a section of it in this first book.

While reading, I really got the Eragon feelings. The fact the A.J. Walker's book is similar is not a bad thing for me. Takes me back to the moments I wanted to escape into those magical realms when I was younger. This book is for that same age of readers that Eragon is in my opinion. That Young Adult group that is stretching out into the New Adult sections testing the reading waters. There are a far amount of similarities when it comes to these two stories, but Walker absolutely has his own flair to this coming-of-age dragon rider story.

One complaint I did have for the story, we didn't get to see a dragon until the halfway point! When that first one pops up in the writing I have a big sticky note going "WOOT! Finally!" because I was excited to get a glimpse of one at last! This is the first one in the series and based on where we are left at the end, there will certainly be more dragons in the upcoming book. Which is going to be awesome!

This was a really fun read and I am really looking forward to continuing on with the series! I would highly recommend this story to all of you. Especially to my wanna be dragon riders out there. If you ever enjoyed Christopher Paolini or Anne McCaffery's dragon series this one will absolutely be up your alley in stories. Yes, it is for the young adult readers, but I'd argue that anyone could truly enjoy this story.

I received an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for a voluntary honest review.

[Susan May · Rating 5 out of 5]

A new author for me and all I can say is wow, I am hooked. This book was right up my alley. It's a perfect example of fantasy. It has all the elements and is very well written. There are wonderful characters, both good & bad and I absolutely love Zahara. She is an awesome dragon especially in the scene where Anders recruits some children to help him. Their reward is to be able to sit on Zahara, that scene made me laugh out loud.
Anders is 19 and from a small fishing village. He lives with his uncle and cousins on the outskirts of their village. One night, he finds his uncle speaking with a mysterious figure and from that moment on, something is different about his uncle. And things are about to change for the simple farm life Anders lives, he just doesn't know it yet. He decides to enroll in a biannual athletic competition held in his village and one he is pretty certain he can win. As he finishes the final event of the competition, a mysterious force attacks his home of Grandwood, this mysterious figure comes to his rescue, and Anders soon discovers the world is way more complicated than he thought. He will soon realize that dragons, elves, orcs and goblins are very real. As Anders realizes that some of his family members were captured by the enemy he discovers more about his family’s past, he learns of their involvement in The War of The Magicians and the circumstances leading up to the attack of his hometown. When Anders is told about his potential involvement in a prophecy involving dragons and their powerful magic, he will need to make a difficult decision. Will he continue to follow the path that is laid out for him or can he make his own destiny? Will he ever be reunited with his family again? And if he succeeds, will he ever be able to return to the life he once knew?

[Sajecha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book and I agree with many readers that says this is a very easy plot and read. This is a YA book so I went in reading this book knowing that a convoluted plot, adulting, mature conversations, character development, world building, and a strong reader character relationship was going to be weak or non existent.

Keeping that notion in mind, my expectation as I read it, were spot on. This is why I rated this book 3.5

The story line moved at a face pace compared to the many books in this genre that I’ve already read.

I found myself daydreaming as I read it because it was at times juvenile and there many cliches. The story was predictable.

Anders was too good and you sort of knew that he was going to end up doing something really bad that gained that goodness. His love interest Maya was okay and their relationship blossomed too quickly. They were the only ones that had a “connection “ as far as romantic relationships goes.

Ivan was the typical father figure in disguise. I knew he was the dad.

I did like Kirsten, Thomas, Max, Brit, and Bo when they left Anders to go back to their homeland Granwood. I found myself waiting for the author to go back to this storyline as opposed to reading about Anders. I thought their adventure was more entertaining and interesting because they were curious, acting like kids, and working together.

I’m not sure why Merglan was the way he was and maybe it was explained but I think I was daydreaming in that chapter.

I knew the Queen of the elves was the evil one that killed the entire royal family except for one the Prince. I knew who killed the Queen at the end because it was super obvious.

I’m glad that Kirsten didn’t die and I’m giving this series a break for now but it was a nice read.

[Anais (atrailofpages) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anders and his family travel to the Grandwood Festival where he will take part in the Grandwood games. During the games, they’re attacked by soldiers who are looking for someone that Anders’ uncle seems to know but his uncle denies everything. In the end, his uncle dies saving them, his cousins are taken captive and Anders is on a boat with the stranger who Anders had seen speaking to his uncle before and now has to find out what his uncle was hiding while also trying to save his cousins.

I appreciate the world and story in this book. I love books with adventure and a quest, which is basically what this book is which is a quest to find the cousins and others that are missing and also to stop an evil sorcerer.

I like the found family between the boys in this book. I especially adore Max! He’s the comic relief but also is just such an endearing character. I also adore the dragon we meet in here!

There’s two POVs in this book that took my by surprise, but I also liked to see the sides of different characters and their situations.

This reminded me of Eragon with the chosen one and dragons and even the potential love interest, pretty similar, but still its own book.

This is a 3.5-4 ⭐️ read for me. It was a good book that was a quick read for me. I just didn’t really enjoy the romance that was sudden in here. It honestly made no sense to me, but other than that it’s a pretty good story! I received a free gifted copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[anie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for any kind of magical creatures, especially dragons (I blame Eragon :)), so I was very excited to pick up the book. While I had a bit of trouble getting into the story at first, I ended up loving it in the end. it's filled with magic and adventure and lots of action. Bond of a Dragon is a classical fantasy story in every sense, there is an adventure on every corner, a new mystery waiting to be solved. And in the midst of all that is Anders, who lived a fairly normal life, until he was thrown into the adventure of a lifetime.

My favorite part of the story was the world created, the magical creatures, the setting, I like reading about it. What I wasn't the biggest fan of, was the writing style, especially in the beginning, however, I have to say it got a bot better as the story progresses.
💛

received from Silver Dagger Book Tours

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zahara’s Gift is overall a really enjoyable book, I found it a bit slow at the start but it begins with a young man living in a small fishing village so I didn’t expect a lot of excitement. As the story progresses I couldn’t put it down, Zahara is a wonderful character and with all the travelling and fighting that the MC, his friends and and the small army he’s with does, trying to rescue the people that were taken from his village, there is plenty of action. I voluntarily reviewed this book and for anyone who enjoys a good epic fantasy with DRAGONS, that has action, magic and a bit of romance, this series is definitely worth reading if your a teen or adult.

[Destiny Bridwell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book for a fair and honest review. This is the first book in a series called Bond of A Dragon. Ander is raised by his aunt and uncle after an accident takes the lives of his parents. When the village comes under attack and Ander's family is taken captive. This forces Ander on an adventure of a lifetime. He meets Zahara a young dragon who he forms a bond with. Some of the characters were enjoyable but others did not feel fleshed out. There was a bit too much lore dumping for how short the first book was. It is a quick read. I wanted a bit more from this book. That could a be worth it in the other three books to come in the series.

[Robin Ginther-Venneri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Robin's Review: "Bond of a Dragon" is book one in this epic fantasy series.
I was thoroughly impressed with "Zahara's Gift," the first book in the series, written by the talented author J.D. Walker. The way in which he seamlessly blends action, adventure, and mystery is truly remarkable. What sets this book apart from others in its genre is the incorporation of multiple fantasy elements and creatures. Walker's descriptive writing is so rich that I found myself completely engrossed in the story and couldn't put it down. I highly recommend this author and his series.

[Meg787 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Start to a series!

If you are a fan of the “Inheritance Cycle” series, aka the “Eragon” series, by Christopher Paolini, then this is a promising series for you. I just finished book 1 (I got the first book free on Amazon) and am starting book 2 right away. It has a very intriguing plot line, and can’t wait to see what happens next. The audiobook (available on Audible) is very well done, and I enjoyed it as well. FYI, Book one and two are in a combo pack, available on Audible if interested.

[Ann Friedman · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn't finish

Back when i was in middle school my English teacher told me rhat when reading scifi/fantasy there had to be a "willing
suspension of disbelief," I found myself unable to do this with this book. The world building could have been good but the use of words like caffeine, hydrate and psychopath by characters broke the disbelief for me. The characters were stiff and had a tendency to speak like pscyhotherapist. All and all could have been a decent book with better editing.

[Helena Regan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was such an exciting read I really enjoyed following Anders’ journey from being just a simple fisherman to someone caught up in a much larger destiny. The bond he forms with Zahara, the young dragon, was one of my favorite parts t felt both heartwarming and powerful. The story has a good mix of action, magic, and adventure, with plenty of twists that kept me turning the pages. If you like coming of age fantasy stories with dragons, battles, and a touch of mystery, this one is definitely worth picking up.

[Norman Hirschman · Rating 5 out of 5]

fully an enteresting and fascinating read. What startedoff as a innocent yearly competition and up in deadly battle where the participantss Max and Anders are separated from their brothers sisters and cousins by elements of the black magician Merglan. A force of Rollo and the small group composing Ivan. Anders and Max hope to find the elves and try to rescue those captured. . Plenty ofaction and emotions in this fast paced book. well worth the read.

[Devanshi Mehta · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 70%. Too boring. I fell asleep every single time i started this book that I started using it as my night time ritual. Great book to go to sleep. But since I already restarted each chapter several times because I missed listening to half the chapter by falling asleep (was listening to it on audible), I decided it's not worth finishing. I couldn't relate to anything, didn't enjoy any plot, and somehow even the dragon was boring.

[Deborah O'Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

Glad I read this

I liked the story, and the writing was not as juvenile as several of the new authors I have tried. I am old school, I guess, so was not enthused with the present day phrases and language used. However, this will not put me off from reading the next book in the series. I will recommend this book and appreciate that it was not vulgar and filled with sexual innuendo.

[Kina Monster · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worth reading

I really enjoyed the plot and am looking forward to reading the next in the series.

That being said, there are a bunch of inconsistencies that don't make sense, or maybe parts of the story that were edited out?

It detracts from the story. There are many parts that need editing and grammar issues to be fixed.

It's still a story with great promise, I just feel it needs to go back to editing and would really benefit from having pre-readers.

[Mark Hill · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted a dragon read so picked this book up. It is a good YA (Young Adult) Fantasy book that is also appropriate and easily enjoyed by adults. The author writes a a good action and adventure book.

The story unfolds slowly. Which can feel to slow in places. I just felt it was a bit predictable. I will probably continue with the next book.

[Mrs. J.P. Cantle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A terrible war

In Kartania there are several lands each inhabited by different races some of whom have magic powers. Humans,,elves,goblins, orcs, ogres and dragons make up a fantasy world. Anders,Ivan,Max and others go off to rescue friends and relatives captured by the evil Merglan. Along the way Andres meets a baby Dragon and reunited her with her family.

[Mary Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well written fantasy book. AJ draws you in with well created characters and their relationships. I couldn't put the book down and look forward to completing the series. I was super excited to get the prequel by signing up for his newsletters and I'm really enjoying learning about what came before.

[Mark J. McArthur · Rating 5 out of 5]

A new epic fantasy has been unveiled!

AJ Walker has taken the first step towards becoming one of the greats of dragon writers. This first book of Zaharia’s Gift is outstanding. The protagonist faces adversity early and often, though he pushes on through for the love of his family.

I received a no cost copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving this review.

[Marie Campbell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anders bonds with a young dragon, Zahara, and becomes close with her especially during battle. He gains magical powers with the help of his bonded dragon.
Took a little bit to get into this read, but turned out good. Starting book two now for more of the story and to see where their bond takes them.

[Quilting Tangent · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fast paced action adventure!
A young man separated from his family, forced into war to free them, from creatures he didn't know were real. Read the prequel, 'Dragon Wars', then this story. These two books are setting the stage for a wonderful magical adventure series.

[Laurie Robertson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would have preferred to read the prequel first but it is not necessary.
A well told story with plenty of mystery still to be revealed in the next of series.
Enemies unite against the greater foe, so plenty of scope for a few more twists.

[Glenda Dykstra · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it.

Dragons are real but even the protagonist didn't believe. An evil tried to take over the work and just in time. The and to a prophecy is doing. Trite, I know but all together an enjoyable book