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Merlin #7
Doomraga's Revenge
BASIL'S ENCOUNTER WITH EVIL...
No longer an unknown little lizard, Basil is now a powerful dragon. His majestic wings, gigantic tail, and jewel-bright eyes fill the sky as he and his loyal friend, Merlin, defend Avalon and strive to save their world. But Avalon is falling into chaos as battles erupt among the dwarves, the fire dragons, and the normally peaceful faeries. Basil suspects the troubles are all linked, but he must find out how. Unfortunately, the answer lies deep within the haunted marsh where Doomraga, a shadowy beast, plots his revenge.
"No one can compare to Barron when writing about Merlin or Avalon...His many fans will gobble up this new offering."
-School Library Journal
No longer an unknown little lizard, Basil is now a powerful dragon. His majestic wings, gigantic tail, and jewel-bright eyes fill the sky as he and his loyal friend, Merlin, defend Avalon and strive to save their world. But Avalon is falling into chaos as battles erupt among the dwarves, the fire dragons, and the normally peaceful faeries. Basil suspects the troubles are all linked, but he must find out how. Unfortunately, the answer lies deep within the haunted marsh where Doomraga, a shadowy beast, plots his revenge.
"No one can compare to Barron when writing about Merlin or Avalon...His many fans will gobble up this new offering."
-School Library Journal
256 pages, Hardcover
First published September 17, 2009
32 people are currently reading
2150 people want to read
About the author
T.A. Barron
72 books1,312 followersT.A. Barron grew up in Colorado ranch country and traveled widely as a Rhodes Scholar. He is the winner of the de Grummond Medallion for “lifetime contribution to the field of children’s and young adult literature” and many other awards. T. A. Barron is the author of more than 30 highly acclaimed books, many of which are international bestsellers. They include The Lost Years of Merlin (now being developed into a feature film), The Great Tree of Avalon (a New York Times bestselling series), The Ancient One (the tale of a brave girl and a magical tree), and The Hero’s Trail (nonfiction stories of courageous kids).
Though he’d dreamed as a young man of becoming a writer, he couldn’t find anyone to publish his first novel. He joined a successful business, eventually became president, then decided to try again. So in 1990, he surprised his business partners by moving back to Colorado to become a writer and conservationist.
In 2000, he founded a national award to honor outstanding young people who help their communities or the environment: the Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes, which honors 25 highly diverse, public-spirited kids each year. He recently produced a documentary film, Dream Big, profiling seven winners of the Barron Prize. When not writing or speaking, T. A. Barron serves on many boards including Princeton University, where he helped to create the Princeton Environmental Institute, and The Wilderness Society, which recently honored him with its highest award for conservation work. His favorite pastime is hiking, camping, or skiing in Colorado with his family.
Though he’d dreamed as a young man of becoming a writer, he couldn’t find anyone to publish his first novel. He joined a successful business, eventually became president, then decided to try again. So in 1990, he surprised his business partners by moving back to Colorado to become a writer and conservationist.
In 2000, he founded a national award to honor outstanding young people who help their communities or the environment: the Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes, which honors 25 highly diverse, public-spirited kids each year. He recently produced a documentary film, Dream Big, profiling seven winners of the Barron Prize. When not writing or speaking, T. A. Barron serves on many boards including Princeton University, where he helped to create the Princeton Environmental Institute, and The Wilderness Society, which recently honored him with its highest award for conservation work. His favorite pastime is hiking, camping, or skiing in Colorado with his family.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
March 9, 2013
Book Review: i think this was a great book. I really enjoyed how everybody cooperated to complete one goal, which was to save Avalon. In the book the dragon and Merlin have a strong connection due to precious events. This connection allowed them to save Avalon and restore peace. During their journey Merlin and his dragon friend really got to know each other. I would recommend this book to anyone and it was just amazing.
Plot summary: The plot was amazing. The setting was in Avalon and the opening exposition was just great. In the exposition Basilgard the mighty green good dragon fought a bad dragon and gave back hope to the dwarves. During the rising action Basilgard reunites with hos friend Merlin. So then they begin to travel and start to help cities regain their strength after dealing with fire dragons. The climax is when Merlin finds his sister and beings to restore peace everywhere. And in the end everything turns around and things are wonderful.
Plot summary: The plot was amazing. The setting was in Avalon and the opening exposition was just great. In the exposition Basilgard the mighty green good dragon fought a bad dragon and gave back hope to the dwarves. During the rising action Basilgard reunites with hos friend Merlin. So then they begin to travel and start to help cities regain their strength after dealing with fire dragons. The climax is when Merlin finds his sister and beings to restore peace everywhere. And in the end everything turns around and things are wonderful.
December 22, 2020
Cette série me déçoit de plus en plus et je suis pourtant déterminé à la mener à terme. Le ton très infantile, les nombreuses répétitions, la lenteur, les dialogues vides, la présence de l’élément magique toujours plus puissant et toujours au bon moment, ainsi que la trop faible présence de Merlin dans une série qui porte pourtant son nom, tous ces éléments font que mon intérêt diminue de tome en tome récemment. Puisqu’il s’agit d’une série jeunesse, je lui pardonne et j’accepte certaines failles, mais il commence à en avoir beaucoup.
C’est une série séparée en cycles, trois je crois, le premier cycle fonctionnait relativement bien, mais dans celui-ci, tout tourne beaucoup autour du dragon et tout semble plus grossier, moins peaufiner, plus facile et j’avoue être déçu. J’espère que le troisième et dernier cycle saura rattraper le tout et conclure en beauté, parce que pour le moment… c’est une série qui manque d’éclat!
C’est une série séparée en cycles, trois je crois, le premier cycle fonctionnait relativement bien, mais dans celui-ci, tout tourne beaucoup autour du dragon et tout semble plus grossier, moins peaufiner, plus facile et j’avoue être déçu. J’espère que le troisième et dernier cycle saura rattraper le tout et conclure en beauté, parce que pour le moment… c’est une série qui manque d’éclat!
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August 1, 2019I just couldn't finish
So I've slowly been getting through the Merlin saga, just one book at a time. The first few were pretty entertaining I will say. However, there are so many books in this so called saga that I've lost the point to the series and I regretfully say that I just don't enjoy it anymore. I feel like something else is lacking as well, but I'm just lost in the sheer number of books one has to read in order to finish. I'm sure the rest of the books are fine and dandy, but it would have been nice to break the saga apart into sequel series. This would tell someone when to stop at the end of a storyline, and when to begin a storyline that's related to the first. It's kinda disappointing to be honest. I do recommend the first 4 or 5 for everyone though. I suggest to stop once Merlin's position as main character ceases.
So I've slowly been getting through the Merlin saga, just one book at a time. The first few were pretty entertaining I will say. However, there are so many books in this so called saga that I've lost the point to the series and I regretfully say that I just don't enjoy it anymore. I feel like something else is lacking as well, but I'm just lost in the sheer number of books one has to read in order to finish. I'm sure the rest of the books are fine and dandy, but it would have been nice to break the saga apart into sequel series. This would tell someone when to stop at the end of a storyline, and when to begin a storyline that's related to the first. It's kinda disappointing to be honest. I do recommend the first 4 or 5 for everyone though. I suggest to stop once Merlin's position as main character ceases.
January 20, 2024
At this point, it felt like the series fell off. If this is book 2 of a three book arc then nothing much happens. If it's book 7 of a longer saga then it's not compelling enough to be a good next installment.
May 7, 2024
Alright, Thomas Archibald: I’m going to sit down and DEMAND you develop the characters and world you’ve built. Basilgarrad is a big honking dragon, and his sister is the Queen of Dragons, and yet the story’s not very interested in dragons other than as obstacles to the heroes? I kind of thought that Basilgarrad’s first book would set that up those ideas, and this book… isn’t about them. The fire dragons appear as antagonists, other dragons show up to do stuff, but very little is really elaborated on.
I mean, heck, Gwynnia, Queen of Dragons, daughter of the Last Great Dragon Emperor, thinks Basilgarrad is going to eat one of her kids, and she just cowers. For reference, in the last series her father Valdearg thinks his hatchlings are all dead and decides to burn all of Fincayra to the ground.
Really, it seems like the “Merlin’s Dragon” trilogy is less about showing us a new side of things, and more about telling us about Merlin’s life (and also big events in Avalon) in between the original series and “Great Tree of Avalon”, from the point of view of the dragon. Which is… eh, I guess? It means that Basilgarrad doesn’t get to have much of his own story in the trilogy that’s supposed to be about him.
This SHOULD be Basilgarrad having his own moments that tie in a bit to the Merlin story. Instead, it’s like Basilgarrad pops in on key moments of Merlin’s life.
Also, Merlin acts kind of dumb? A lot of the old characters do, actually. Merlin’s kind of a crappy dad, and makes other questionable decisions. Rhia bails on the community she founded in the middle of a crisis because she needs some space. Hallia is apparently upset that her husband doesn’t take her into dangerous situations because she thinks it means he doesn’t believe she’s as important? And said husband can’t apparently mount any sort of defense, when “I don’t want you to get hurt in a combat situation” is RIGHT THERE.
You can guess how that last one goes. What’s worse is that when Merlin caves and brings Hallia along, everyone’s like, “Ah, yes, Merlin, you should listen to your wife, you silly goose.”
These kinds of mistakes work (or at least, are more forgivable) in “Lost Years of Merlin”, because the characters are all very young. Now, Merlin’s meant to be a full-grown wizard. He doesn’t have to be perfect, but people can be flawed in ways that don’t amount to ‘being bad parents’ or ‘Not being able to articulate why bringing a spouse into a dangerous situation is not the same as thinking she’s not important.’
It’s… disappointing, is all, and it doesn’t even resolve. At the end, after we’ve breezed through the details of a war (also a bummer) Doomraga’s still doing his thing, and it’s a dangling thread for the next book to deal with. Man, I don’t really like these two-part trilogy things.
One last thing: again, Thomas Archibald, I want to know what the heck you think a dragon looks like? One dragon’s described with a beard. That’s not a bad addition, just… give me some kind of illustrations other than book covers, which aren’t all consistent.
I mean, heck, Gwynnia, Queen of Dragons, daughter of the Last Great Dragon Emperor, thinks Basilgarrad is going to eat one of her kids, and she just cowers. For reference, in the last series her father Valdearg thinks his hatchlings are all dead and decides to burn all of Fincayra to the ground.
Really, it seems like the “Merlin’s Dragon” trilogy is less about showing us a new side of things, and more about telling us about Merlin’s life (and also big events in Avalon) in between the original series and “Great Tree of Avalon”, from the point of view of the dragon. Which is… eh, I guess? It means that Basilgarrad doesn’t get to have much of his own story in the trilogy that’s supposed to be about him.
This SHOULD be Basilgarrad having his own moments that tie in a bit to the Merlin story. Instead, it’s like Basilgarrad pops in on key moments of Merlin’s life.
Also, Merlin acts kind of dumb? A lot of the old characters do, actually. Merlin’s kind of a crappy dad, and makes other questionable decisions. Rhia bails on the community she founded in the middle of a crisis because she needs some space. Hallia is apparently upset that her husband doesn’t take her into dangerous situations because she thinks it means he doesn’t believe she’s as important? And said husband can’t apparently mount any sort of defense, when “I don’t want you to get hurt in a combat situation” is RIGHT THERE.
You can guess how that last one goes. What’s worse is that when Merlin caves and brings Hallia along, everyone’s like, “Ah, yes, Merlin, you should listen to your wife, you silly goose.”
These kinds of mistakes work (or at least, are more forgivable) in “Lost Years of Merlin”, because the characters are all very young. Now, Merlin’s meant to be a full-grown wizard. He doesn’t have to be perfect, but people can be flawed in ways that don’t amount to ‘being bad parents’ or ‘Not being able to articulate why bringing a spouse into a dangerous situation is not the same as thinking she’s not important.’
It’s… disappointing, is all, and it doesn’t even resolve. At the end, after we’ve breezed through the details of a war (also a bummer) Doomraga’s still doing his thing, and it’s a dangling thread for the next book to deal with. Man, I don’t really like these two-part trilogy things.
One last thing: again, Thomas Archibald, I want to know what the heck you think a dragon looks like? One dragon’s described with a beard. That’s not a bad addition, just… give me some kind of illustrations other than book covers, which aren’t all consistent.
July 4, 2024
T A Barron rises to the occasion with his novel, Doomrager’s Revenge, Book Seven in his creative retelling of the evolution of the great wizard Merlin. The novel demonstrates solid understanding of elements of Celtic lore, weaving together aspects of sacred-sound tradition, and awen or ceol sidhe, not often seen in fiction or modern mythology. Yes, Sufi teachings and tales of Saraswati in Hindu and Tibetan lore also cover the material, along with Surat Shanda Yoga, and the ancient tales of Orpheus and Dionysus. See the works of Prof Jocelyn Godwin for comprehensive surveys and translations of ancient, medieeeval, and modern works on the mysteries of sound and music.
I strongly recommend the series, although books 5 and 6 were too formulaic, this offering hits all the marks for good storytelling, integration of sacred tradition, adding to the larger stories of Camelot and the Fair or Good Folk. Plot development is strong and progressive through the novel, the best of the first seven in the Merlin series IMHO Five Stars *****
I strongly recommend the series, although books 5 and 6 were too formulaic, this offering hits all the marks for good storytelling, integration of sacred tradition, adding to the larger stories of Camelot and the Fair or Good Folk. Plot development is strong and progressive through the novel, the best of the first seven in the Merlin series IMHO Five Stars *****
April 3, 2023
Middle school appropriate. This would be a good story for reading aloud because the chapters are written in such a way that the story feels very episodic based on those chapter breaks. This story itself feels a bit like filler laying the groundwork to explain how the world falls into such a terrible state leading up to future heroes. Things also feel like they will be getting much worse before those heroes appear. A definite downer without the little bits of humor we’ve seen from this author in the past.
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February 15, 2024Enter Basil, again. He is now a full grown dragon and the most powerful dragon in Avalon. This is a bit darker tale than Basil’s previous story. In trying to be careful not to provide spoilers, this will be a short review. There is an evil loose and Merlin and Basil are working hard to stop it, but are unsuccessful. The story ends abruptly at the start of the great battle. There is loss of life in this book, but also some budding love stories. If a young child is reading this, you should be ready to comfort.
January 11, 2023
The writing is so frustrating at this point. Characters keep on forgetting things and the author has filler info that really has no business being there. Some sections get drawn out for no reason, while others are cut so short - even when it's an important plot point and much more interesting than the drawn out sections. I understand this is a kids series, but sheesh. Kids are smarter than you think.
I will finish the series because I do like the story and because it's a simple read.
I will finish the series because I do like the story and because it's a simple read.
May 27, 2021
Don't you hate it when characters forget things - like a little leech that had an angry red eye? Also, magical objects that are one-offs. How magic can it be if it can only be used once? Basilgarrad is doing his best to hunt and fight the evil that keeps growing in Avalon. While this title doesn't come to the end of that battle, it does set up nicely for the next book!
February 25, 2022
The end of this definitely had me gasping and shouting at the cliffhanger!! It was a terrifying ending! I definitely am still enjoying the series. Again, always been a sucker for Arthurian legend. Basil is such a fun character. I love his humor, and I love his loyalty and his brave and true heart. I can't wait to start the next book!
August 29, 2018
The last chapter of this book made me shudder. Totally, disgustingly evil.
December 5, 2018
Much better than the first book in the series, a good second book to the trilogy.
December 24, 2021
I liked the tiny green dragon better somehow.
April 15, 2022
My favorite of the series so far.
June 8, 2012
The 7th book in T. A. Barron's Lost Years of Merlin saga, "Doomraga's Revenge", finds our friends Basil & Merlin exploring Avalon to find out the causes of various problems within Avalon. We also have the slow rise of the evil Doomraga who remains mostly a background force that is slowly lingering. Barron's tale is a quick moving enjoyable one which shows us more of the varying aspects of the kingdom & the decisions which have Merlin headed toward Earth. For Basil, though, this story is again his as we the reader get a chance to witness his continued growth & progress into a knowledgeable & brave dragon who is aware of what he has to do. Overall a very enjoyable entry in this series.
June 16, 2013
This book was even better than the last one and I found myself on the edge of my seat. However, my main problem with this book is that the search for Doomraga was far too drawn out. I also didn't like the fact that Merlin's wife died in this story. I think that was a pointless move and it didn't make me sad, just angry. I think that she should've lived. I want to see how the romance between Krytallus and the Queen of the Elves played out in another book series because it was just a tidbit of what it became. The book was good overall, but I was still made that Merlin's wife died.
May 14, 2010
One of my biggest pet peeves about reading fantasy books is that they spend so much time extending the series, a lot of times nothing really happens between the covers. I guess, since this is a Y.A. title, there has to be a lot of action. There is, and it's pretty good. Also, Barron's Avalon is a bit compelling.
July 2, 2010
Excellent book, but the ending leaves the reader annoyed with the author: just as we finally find out who/what the heck Doomraga is, wham! white space. The next book better be coming soon, for the author's sake. But all in all, a good book.
January 31, 2011
This is the second book in the Merlin's Dragon trioligy. This is where Basil is trying to protect Avalon from the fire dragons. The fire dragons were tormenting the dwarves. They wanted all their gold. Basilgarrd the biggest dragon in all of Avolon is trying to defeat them.
January 4, 2014
Does Doomraga Prevail?
I enjoyed Doomraga's revenge. The hardest part is being a bystander as Merlin and his son sever their familial ties. Basilgarrad does his best to save Avalon, but will it be enough?
I enjoyed Doomraga's revenge. The hardest part is being a bystander as Merlin and his son sever their familial ties. Basilgarrad does his best to save Avalon, but will it be enough?
August 10, 2016
HAHAHA! So... I didn't know that this was part of a series when I started reading it. Despite that, however, even though I was a tad confused in spots, it was a pretty good book. Now I'm a go find the first book...
February 3, 2010
I love Basil! This book is so much about responsibility and choice. And it's an exciting story. I can't wait for the third book to come out.
July 5, 2011
This story was great. The family drama was pretty sad, but it gave the characters more depth. I enjoyed reading about the history of Avalon from the Great Tree series.
December 30, 2010
Some interesting humor at the end, specifically when it talks about dentists... It was a good read though.
February 16, 2015
Better than the last one. Be sure to have the next book on hand, this one ends in a cliffhanger.
February 1, 2012
...Disappointing. I love T. A. Barron, this just didn't cut it. :/
July 10, 2012
I love the Merlin stories, but not a lot happened in this one and it felt very short.
January 4, 2013
This book got going much quicker than the last one. It felt more like the original five books in pace and character. I enjoyed it.
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September 30, 2013Love the Merlin series of books. Read this one in 2 days September 2013.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews