published: August 2008 by Viking Books
pages: 544
genre: YA fantasy
series: This is the 1st book in a 2 book series.
I wanted to like this book. I really did. I was so excited to read it, but I just couldn’t get enthralled in it. I think this book will be easiest to describe in a pro and con format.
The Pros:
The world the author creates in this story is fantastic. There are 12 ancestral dragons that protect the country, and Dragoneye leaders that help wield the dragon’s power. The author does a wonderful job of painting a picture of the land and its culture.
There is also the politics of this world and the issues it faces. This is again, wonderfully done and very intriguing. I could really imagine this place and what’s happening like I was there. The sentence structure and word choice are very done.
The Con:
The only problem with this book, and unfortunately a big one, is the character development. Eon, the main character, is a girl disguised as a boy, seeking to be chosen by one of the dragons to train. Only men are allowed to become Dragoneye. This plot had me excited and ready for more. However, I found I could not relate to the main character.
I like a main character who makes intelligent decisions. One who, when she makes a mistake, learns from it. I like a main character who perseveres and keeps trying when she finds she is not good enough. I like a character who is independent, or when she isn’t strives to become so. For these reasons, I had a really tough time trying to relate to Eon. When she’s can’t do things, she complains and mopes a bit. When she makes a mistake, she feels only a bit of guilt and doesn’t learn from her choices. When things go wrong, she blames herself but doesn’t try to fix it. She doesn’t take steps to do better next time. 400 pages in she still wasn’t a character whose choices I could understand or one that I respected. She didn’t seem to be growing into a better person. That’s a problem for me in a book.
There was, however, a ray of sunshine near the very end of the book. Eon seems to finally come over a change I can appreciate. I started to finally respect her choices and root for her. It might be enough for me to try the second book after all, in hopes of seeing more of this new Eon.
Rating
I’d give this book a 2.5 out of 5.The ending redeems itself from being a 2. The world is wonderful, but because of how hard it was for me to get through this book I can’t rightfully recommend it to anyone.
If this is a book you’ve been excited to read, by all means please read it! I wish you the best of luck and hope some of the characters capture your heart more than they did mine. If the second book turns out to be amazing, this book might be worth reading for the rich backstory. If the above aren’t true, please don’t waste your time. Read something better.
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