Axinstone

The Destiny of Dragons #1

by J.F.R. Coates

When Haeraig Anzig of Clan Laxtal is sent to a council of the leaders of the forty-two draconic clans to warn them about the impending invasion of human forces, the last thing the young dragon expects is to be sent on a suicidal mission into the heart of human lands. At the advice of an outcast seer, Anzig sets out across the mountains with seven drakes for companions. He has been tasked to retrieve the legendary artefact, the Axinstone, for without it, dragonkind seems doomed to fall.

Book 1: The Destiny of Dragons, and the first entry in the Farenar Series.

Genres: Dragons

301 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 19, 2013

About the author

J.F.R. Coates is a speculative fiction author, focusing in fantasy and science fiction. Her work tends to focus away from the human characters of the setting, instead giving life to the creatures that dwell alongside the familiar. From dragons and gryphons, to creatures of her own creation - like the ailur or starat - these story worlds are full of fascinating creatures to get to know.

Born and raised in picturesque Somerset, England, J.F.R. Coates moved to Brisbane in Australia as a teenager. She grew up reading from a young age, starting with Enid Blyton's The Famous Five and Secret Seven, before finding her calling with J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit. Fantasy has gripped her ever since, and now she calls amongst her favourite authors Maggie Furey, Philip Pullman, and Robin Hobb.

Reviews

[Pierre · Rating 5 out of 5]

Here we go. I should have reviewed when I read the first edition back in 2021, because I did really enjoy these books, they've been a wild ride.
But I've been lazy. Now I'm punished, trying to write a review of the first book without interference of my knowledge of the next ones. Procrastination seemed fine back then.

As used as we are of seeing dragons big and powerful, it was a surprise to see them so small and comparatively vulnerable. This makes the enemy they face, a nearby human nation determined to enslave or eliminate them, all the more challenging. Not helping, they are split in clans not exactly prone to disinterested unity (that being a more common take, humans do that just fine, too).
Dragon PoV is well handled and they feel like they should, which can be a number of things but specifically not humans in disguise. There is a fairly good amount of specific body language and social postures, more than enough to flesh them as different species, and that is appreciable.
Enjoyable characters, wether the PoV ones or other front characters I quickly engaged with. They each have their own backstory and identity, their strengths and weaknesses, their own desires and fears that will play a significant role in their trajectories.

The backstory of the frontmost characters seems to connect to a larger, mysterious history that is not yet known, only foreshadowed but will likely play a significant role along with their quest.
All along, there is a lingering impression that this stunted state of the dragons is the remains of a former kind, now waning.
And the quest they embark on may lead to a recovery, but only if they succeed.
Which will not be easy, between the strength of their opponent itself, possible traitors among their own, and the potential that lingering secrets have to wreck their beliefs.

[GuineaPigFalconer · Rating 4 out of 5]

There’s a lot to appreciate about this fantastical world: unique (little) dragons and a complex dragon society, a modernized yet magical human culture butting up against the dragons’ lifestyles, and mystery shrouding every moment of what’s going to happen. I liked the characters, especially Ellian, and I’m curious to know what comes next. Really my only concern was that the pacing was a bit slow at times, but based on the fast-paced ending, I’m hoping it’s action and drama from here on out.

[Dragoniel Silverwing · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite an enthralling read. I enjoyed the slightly alien dragon's perspective and the unique take on the dragons as creatures in general. The story seems to be written in a way that leaves the reader guessing at many details and backround of the world, turning those in to little lowkey surprises/reveals along the way instead of laying it all out upfront. All in all, this was a good story and I am looking forward to reading the whole series now.

[Michael Miele · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantasy adventure with political intrigue that stars dragons center stage. I'd heard of Axinstone for years within furry writing circles and despite being a dragon myself, never got around to reading it. I'm reading the revised edition for the 10th anniversary and wanted to mention that since there were small edits made between the old version and the most current version. The book primarily focuses on the three main characters, Anzig, Ellian, and Azlak. Each chapter is told from the point of view of one of these characters and the book flips back and forth between perspectives to show the important events.

The plot of the book centers a quest for Anzig, Azlak, and a group of dragons going to a human stronghold to recover a magical artifact known as the Axinstone. A lot of the book is focused on the journey they take and what happens as they travel. Ellian's side of the story is used as a way to introduce the reader to the dragon clan social hierarchies and the inter-political factions at play in the war between dragons and humans.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit, though it did take a bit for me to get invested. There's not a lot of onboarding to the reader at the jump and so I was working through figuring out dragon specific terminology while getting pulled into the overall world. I'll also say that it took me longer than I'd care to admit to realize that the scale of the dragons is much smaller than I thought. They're essentially the size of a dog or close to it and that threw me off during scenes. I think if I had paid more attention to the small hints that the author was dropping I would have picked up on that sooner. I do think that their size allows J.F.R. Coates to put them into more interesting situations and make solving their problems more of an exercise in not using immense size to win the day.

Magic plays a big role in the story, both in the ways that it manifests and the ways in which the characters and factions use it. I'm curious to see how that will develop over the course of the series. I also appreciated how the dragon societies and social graces were described. The use of head height to determine how respectful a dragon is being in a conversation was very cool to see. It felt like something plausible that a large group of lizards might use to denote status.

Excited to see what the next book in the series has in store.

[Harriet G · Rating 4 out of 5]

Axinstone by Jaye F.R. Coates

Axinstone is an excellent and unique fantasy story set in a world where tensions rise between various dragon clans and humanity. The main plot revolves around three characters:
Anzig - the young Haeraig (prince) of Clan Laxtal, who embarks on a journey to recover the legendary Axinstone talisman from a human fortress after his mother is killed by humans.
Azlak - An outcast of Laxtal who recieves scorn from his clan for his magical powers of foresight, which should only be possible for a Nixan dragon. He uses his mysterious powers to help Anzig on his quest.
Ellian - A female dragon who Anzig puts in charge of Laxtal as his substitute. Ellian tries to prove herself as a strong leader, while investigating a potential conspiracy against Laxtal...

The dragon's culture is well-fleshed out and believable, with dragons making strong use of body language for communication, and conforming to their strict social heirarchy.
The story has lots of intrigue, especially with a mysterious dragon who begins appearing in Azlak's dreams, some dragons seemingly conspiring with the humans against dragonkind, and the reasoning behind humanity's interest in the Axinstone itself.

While Axinstone was excellent, the pacing was a bit slow at times. Especially towards the start, but by page 100, this aspect improves greatly. It could also be difficult to remember who some of the various side-characters were, as many of them are introduced at once early on.

Another thing to note is that while J.F.R. Coates is known today for writing stories with lgbt themes, this book is pretty different in that regard, with little to no depictions of queer characters (Although I have read that more lgbt representation appears further along in the series).

Overall, if you like dragons, great worldbuilding, unique fantasy settings and intrigue, I'd definitely recommend giving Axinstone a read!

[Chase · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very interesting book with a focus purely on the perspective of the dragons, and how they see the world around them, especially things that they don't know and don't understand what they are because they're made by humans. Characters were surprisingly quick to catch my attention, especially Azlak and Ellian, and they were all so very interesting in regards to how unique their personalities were and behaviors were. I must also point out how much I enjoyed the more physical and body language oriented way of communicating and expressing emotions (flaring wings to appear bigger to assert dominance, staring down at each other, avoiding eye contact amongst different rankings of dragons, etc) - it did a fantastic job of conveying personality types (submissive, dominant), emotions (fear, apprehension, uncertainty, anger) without having to directly describe what the character was feeling or thinking at the moment. It made them feel that much more real and relatable, simply because of how expressive each character was.

I also really liked the level of intrigue and mystery, especially with Azlak's visions of the future that left me wondering how exactly were certain events going to play out and at which points. Overall, by the end, I wasn't able to put the book down because it became very enthralling and it kept making me want to read more and more to find out about the world that the dragons and humans inhabit, and to see how the dragon's quest in the book would culminate.

Very good first book and it has me very excited to read the rest of the series!

P.S - Azlak best dragon! <3

[Mel Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little clunky at the beginning with lots of characters introduced without much characterization (but the first-person narrative makes that balance difficult for a writer, I understand). But once the action starts it never lets up, and the characters develop satisfyingly while stakes and mystery build. A definite for dragon fans, and a new take on dragons and humans.

[Dragonwise · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful novel that won me over in the first chapter. Coates gives an excellent view from the eyes of dragons as they work to keep their place in a changing world.

[Payson Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I backed the kickstarter for the audiobook of this, and those audiobooks are coming slowly, but they are magnificent. Really enjoyed this throughout, and can't wait for book #2 next year!

[Shiloh Skye · Rating 5 out of 5]

You might like this book if you enjoy:

-Fantasy
-Dragons
-Non-human main characters
-Multiple viewpoints
-The ability to see the future but with all the reliability of a broken slot machine

Axinstone is the first book in the Destiny of Dragons series by J.F.R. Coates. Coates has written books in several genres for several age ranges (I’m dying to get around to reading Reborn), and I find this book to be geared more toward young adults. Fans of other dragon-focused books, like Wings of Fire, will find a lot to like here, as Axinstone is full of fun draconic characters and curious worldbuilding.

Axinstone primarily follows Anzig, the heir to leadership of his dragon clan who volunteers to lead a mission to retrieve the titular Axinstone—a stolen magical artifact that may doom the dragons if it remains in the hands of their human enemies. Forming a team, Anzig sets out on a seemingly suicidal mission, only assured of their success by a seer who has seen the future. But the seer’s visions are not absolute, and there are sinister forces at work against them that threaten not only their mission, but the entirety of dragonkind.

One of my favorite parts of this book is how it treats the very nature of humans and dragons as a sort of indirect, slow-burn mystery. For me, it’s what distinguishes the book most from similar dragon stories. The exposition here is almost entirely shown rather than told, meaning that the reader learns even the simple facts about the two species and the world only when they become relevant. I can’t give examples for fear of spoilers, but I can say that it amazed me how simple reveals of seemingly mundane details entirely recontextualize the story halfway through, or even late in the game. It certainly kept me on my toes.

I also listened to Axinstone on audiobook, and I think Nico Janssen is the ideal narrator for this story, bringing a lighthearted sense of adventure with his voice. It’s a bit difficult to follow which characters are speaking at any given time, as he doesn’t use different voices, but he still brings fantastic energy to them all. For instance, Azlac is the seer who has prophesized that Anzig’s party is the only one which can succeed at retrieving the Axinstone, but more importantly he’s a big scaley ball of anxiety and insecurity. Janssen’s voice brings out an endearing jumpiness to the character that really helped him stand out.

In fact, much of what I like about this story revolves around Azlac. I like how his visions of the future come randomly, almost like a sneeze. Half the time when the narration switches to describing one of his visions for a few paragraphs, he moves on without even acknowledging it happened, because he’s just so used to suddenly having visions of the future. Imagine that. Seeing the literal future and shrugging it off like seasonal allergies. He’s a standout character, and because of that his chapters are some of the best parts of the book.

As a guy in my 30s who doesn’t read many books geared toward young adults, I do find myself a bit underwhelmed by the story. However, if I strain to think back about 15-20 years (ow, my head), I think I would have enjoyed this book immensely as a 10-15 year old, so I definitely recommend it to younger readers. It’s also nice to have a book in my own arsenal of recommendations that’s suitable for those wishing to avoid sexual content or intense violence.

So, while I’m not the intended demographic for Axinstone, I enjoyed it and can see why fans of the series love it. The slow reveal of exposition kept me guessing, and a few standout characters made the book memorable. I haven’t read the sequels yet, but I can imagine the story will get a whole lot more interesting as it expands from here.

[Nyvus · Rating 5 out of 5]

As an avid dragon reader, I have read anything I can with dragons in it. While other dragon books contain gore, sex, profanity and various adult elements, Axinstone contains none of these. I was at first hesitant to read such a novel, because dragon novels that lack these elements seem to be geared toward children. After reading the book, the lack of these elements is one of the strengths of the series, in my opinion. The author has truly shown that such things are not needed to tell a story effectively. Axinstone and its sequel now sit in my top 5 favorite dragon series.

Anyhow, onto the story and my reaction to it.
The story has a pace that gives a feeling of progress and sense of reward. There are plot twists that rock the boat and political conflicts that add depth to the story. One of my favorite aspects of the book is the subtle romance. While some books contain romance for the sake of romance, the romance in Axinstone is quite effective in that it helps readers relate and feel for the characters in a realistic manner.


All in all, I loved the series and recommend it to anyone who even remotely likes dragons. Its just one of those books you feel compelled to share with anyone who will listen.

[Andre · Rating 5 out of 5]

JFR Coates has produced a fantastic first novel with Axinstone. I found myself unable to put it down because it was so exciting! The story was well-paced and had a fair few surprises along the way, and I found the main characters very likeable (not just because they were dragons!).

One of the things I liked most about Coates's writing style is that he doesn't just give you descriptions straight up but reveals details when they are relevant. This led me to have some "aha" moments that made the story really enjoyable. One thing to note - they're not your "usual" dragons! There's clearly a solid base of lore behind the story and I can't wait to see how this plays out during the following novels.

I highly recommend this book so go and buy it!

[Kysis · Rating 5 out of 5]

The writing of this novel was easy to understand, after getting hints as to how certain things are pronounced, the flow of the story went rather well!

The Authors decision to change between two different stories added intrigue to the end of an arc, and left me wanting to rush through to see what happened next! only to get suckered in the next chapter with the same results happening.

The Author appeared to leave out certain details that encouraged you to actively imagine how things look and feel. And towards the end, things began to fall into place and some assumptions were true.. others not!

A very good read that I recommend to anyone!