The Book of Water

Dragon Quartet #2

by Marjorie B. Kellogg, Jody Lee (Illustrator)

IT WAS WATER'S CALL that summoned the dragon Earth and his human guide, the girl called Erde, on a flight through time, transporting them from the war-torn German principalities in the year 913 to the African coast in 2013. And though the land from which they came was beset by the perils of war and religious fanaticism, this future offered them no safe haven. For the passing centuries had seen the world plunged inot a downward spiral of environmental devastation from which there would soon be no possibility of recovery.

Earth's sister, the shape-shifting dragon Water, waited to greet them in this strange new land, offering the travelers the momentary belief that they had found the answer to their quest. But Water and her guide, the streetwise boy known as N'doeh, had as many questions and fears as Earth and Erde. Pursued by enemies in both eras, they soon realized their mission was only beginning and their only hope lay in finding the remaining dragons--Fire and Air--before it was too late...


Description from back cover

Genres: Fantasy, Dragons, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Adventure, Science Fiction, Time Travel

335 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published September 1, 1997

Reviews

[Isabel Garay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three stars in no way means I didnt enjoy this book at times. In fact, I did. However there are so many holes in this story that make it feel less like a series of books, complete with a beginning, middle and end, than a long story. I know, I know this is confusing, but it feels like a very long story that would have made more sense as one big book. N'Doch is the main focus and while he has his charming moments, he is characteristically flawed in a way that gets tiresome. I understand that he has lived in a difficult time, however he is selfish, self serving and as horny as a 15 year old boy. Seriously, there are some inappropriate thoughts about a dragon. Im certain if he found a tree with cut branches that resembled boobs he would be imagining just how he could have sex with it. Im not sure the author understands men and it shows in the way she presents them. Either they are rapey fathers and priests, wise old men, over sexed or wholly uninterested and distant.

These books are a guilty pleasure however, and Im going to have to finish them off.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first one was much better. I don't think the author knows what a 20yo man is actually like. It was pretty difficult to read because of that.

[BookAddict ✒ La Crimson Femme · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a water lover, I couldn't wait to read the 2nd book in this series. Dragons, water and magic, what more could I ask for? Unfortunately, this book didn't do it for me. It was just meh. Not even memorable just okay. I still hold fondness for this book because I purchased it at Uncle Hugo's in Minneapolis. I am sad to say the store is no more. Those FUCKING rioters burned down his store back in May 2020. When I went to the website, this is what I saw.

"As many of you are already aware, Uncle Hugo's Science Fiction Bookstore and Uncle Edgar's Mystery Bookstore were burnt to the ground by rioters in the early hours of Saturday, May 30. I'm going to give you a GoFundMe update, an update on what items I am currently selling, a long-winded explanation of possibilities for the future of Uncle Hugo's / Uncle Edgar's, and then the story of how we reached this point."

The heinous act of burning books is unforgivable.

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book as much as I did the first one, but I just couldn't. It seemed much more disjointed and too complex in its worldbuilding. Perhaps if we had not been told specifically it was 2013 but that it was in the future when mankind had ravaged the world almost to destruction, I would have found it more enjoyable. As I read it 20 years after publication (and four years after its setting), I found it hard to accept the technology as written. Your mileage may vary.

I do want to find out about Fire and Air, so I will continue the series.

[Braxton Church · Rating 4 out of 5]

FANTASY
The second installment of the Dragon Quartet picks up right where The Book of Earth left off. Erde and Earth, having traveled to the distant future of 2013 Africa (the book was written in 1997), find themselves paired with the Dragon Water and her dragon guide, N'Doch. IN an unfamiliar land, Erde and Earth must rely on this young man to be their guide; a man who isn't interested in destiny or dragons at all. The two dragons and two dragon guides must work together to try and figure out just what their purpose is, before the world ends. I thoroughly enjoyed the pacing of this novel much more than the first one, and getting to read Erde's confusion being a thousand years in the future was fun to read, and Kellogg did an amazing job of portraying it.
However, my biggest complaint of the book was N'Doch. In the book, he was never interested in helping the dragons, only saving his own skin, and he came off as annoying to me. It may just be because I've read too many YA fantasy novels about the chosen one and wish my life was like that, so seeing someone not want that when it's handed to them is annoying. But come on dude, you get a freaking shape-shifting dragon to call your own dude! Enjoy it a little!

[Rari Marks · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the overall story but I disliked the main character in this book, I started to skip parts with him and his thoughts. He really sucked the magic out of the story. I really hope he is minimized in the next books.

[Val · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to my friend Lindsey who first introduced me to this series more than twenty years ago. It’s an amazing re read all these years later, and very relevant to the times. On to the Book of Fire.

[Caliropa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Continued the story with another great character and dragon. I did enjoy the time jump into the future to give it another world to build upon.

[Barbara ★ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Earth's quest has taken Erde forwards 1100 years in time to the African coast where in 2013 she meets N'Doch N'Djai and Water. Water is a dragon but not the reason they have traveled to 2013. The Summoner of Earth (and Water apparently) has yet to be found. After lots of mis-steps and mis-communications (Erde only speaks German after all), Water and N'Doch join Erde and Earth on their great quest which is still a mystery to all.

Erde has visions of 913 where Priest Guillemo (the baddie in the first book) is still on his witch hunt and now he's trying to depose the King and have his heir murdered so he can crown his own pawn. Erde dream walks back to 913 (more than once) and right into Adolphus Kothen (Guillemo's pawn) life. She watches Guillemo terrorize the people and have traitors and witches killed while Kothen is doing his best to keep the prince alive.

I didn't enjoy this as much as the first book (The Book of Earth) and found a good portion rather rambling and boring. N'Doch is not a good hero. In fact he's living in a future time (2013) which is incredibly dangerous and a hand to mouth existence without real family. His deal is just to take what he can and sell it for food. So his first inclination is to "sell" the dragons to a movie studio (the owner just happens to live in town.) It takes a long time for him to grow up and get with the program. They spend most of the book just running from one form of trouble to another before they actually get down to the purpose of the quest.

This is classified as YA but N'Doch is sex crazed and always talking about sleeping with every female he sees. Heck he even thought about having sex with Water. Erde also has weird sexual ideas about Kothen (and she's only 14, while Kothen is 30). It just seemed inappropriate in this series.

[Crystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars if I could. The second installment of the Dragon Quartet was good, but I felt it was a bit drug out. The dragon Water and her guide N'Doch are enjoyable enough characters, but I'm glad that Erde and Earth from the Book of Earth were in this story to help move it along. N'Doch is a product of his time and surroundings, so he can be hard and pessimistic at times. This doesn't make him a bad character at all, but it's good that Erde and Water are there to help him see his own importance.

The beginning of this book was exciting and fast paced, but after the first section it began to drag for a while, and I felt some parts were repetitive, especially the parts including N'Doch's inner thoughts. In several parts you think he is going to be completely accepting of his situation and that he will move away from his previous goals, but then something happens and he goes back to wanting nothing but fame and fortune. He is circular in his thoughts and actions, but I think it shows how hard times have made him believe in only certain things like money and comfort.

I look forward to N'Doch's development over the next two books, and even though I would read this again, I probably wouldn't without reading The Book of Earth first. I would recommend this book to a friend.

[Cathi95 · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Fantasy 1997) Second book is in another place\time on this planet, this time with a young man called N'doch (meaning water) and another dragon called Water. Also drawn into this story are the Earth duo from book 1. Another set of adventures, growth and leading to book 3. Interesting enough to read, not sure if I mind that I don't have the next two books to complete the quartet. Unfortunately I cant' remember where I got them, so not sure who to ask for the other two.

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Erde and Earth meet up with Earth's sister, Water and her guide N'Doch in the year 2013. Erde tries to get used to the time change, and N'Doch tried to understand Erde and comprehend that he's been chosen as Water's guide. This is a really good continuation of the "Dragon Quartet". It had me wondering what was going to happen next, and was a real page turner. A very enjoyable read.

[Juliana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Erde, but N'Doch wins the award for most hated proagonist- literally all he can think about is himself and um... Well read any other review. But i did love the book, just hated N'Doch. I think this book might have a REALLY bad case of "The author cannot write from the other gender's perspective"itis.

[Laurla2]

"he's been taught to want only what is good business to sell him, assuming he ever gets rich enough to be able to afford it. the real power brokers dont want him to want freedom. they want him to want things, comfort, fame. they'd rather he didnt have a true awareness of how fucked up things really are, so they trained him not to want it. because knowledge is power."

[Tanya Beaton · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story was good, but I didn't like N'doch as a character. I imagine that's what the author wanted, but I still wanted to like him. Ah well... perhaps in the next one he'll redeem himself, or be redeemed.

[Corvidae · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was interesting. It really tears the series away from its ostensibly fantasy-based routes into fantasy-scifi. It had interesting messages of culture, class, consumption, and entitlement.

[Lu · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't like this one nearly as much as the first one. I did like how she modernized the storyline though. That was cool.

[Tia · Rating 4 out of 5]

very good

[Natalia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Dragon Quartet-Bk 2