Danny Dirks and the Heir of Pendragon

by S.A. Mulraney

Danny Dirks wants nothing more than to play baseball in his father's orchard now that school is out, but he's finding out that he is no ordinary boy. With the approach of his fifteenth birthday, Danny's begun hearing voices and seeing visions of his dead mother. He's also fairly certain that the cute girl next door is really a shape-shifting dragon. All of these things lead Danny to the discovery that he is the heir of the legendary Arthur Pendragon and the linchpin in a pact established between man and dragon centuries ago. Now, rogue dragons threaten that pact and the peace that comes with it. They aim to reopen the portal through which they originally came to Earth in order to bring back a rebel dragon army. It's up to Danny to learn to channel the power that is Excalibur and, with his new friends, prevent the portal from being opened.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

279 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2014

About the author

In second grade, Scott Mulraney wrote a series of comic strips called Peanut (a peanut with arms and legs) and Stickman (self explanatory) because those were the two things he could draw with some consistency. He ripped off every story line from Garfield, but his family thought it was cute. In high school, he wrote a ripoff of Red Dawn, changed the location to his NJ home town, and essentially made himself the lead character. It involved finding a super-secret helicopter with a strategically placed instruction manual. How convenient. During high school, he devoured Stephen Kind novels, but never pursued writing anything of substance. Then, in an event that would shape the rest of his life, Scott found himself kicked out of college, jobless, and relatively friendless. He turned to writing poetry and eventually short stories followed. Writing had brought him back from the brink and he pursued and eventually earned a degree in Literature with a focus on creative writing.

He completed his first novel (not ripped off from anyone) after five years, in 2010. After waffling about what to do with it, he self-published the suspense thriller under the pen name Andy Rane. A moderate success, for independent standards, Scott then followed with the first draft of Danny Dirks. Completed in about six months, he knew he had something special and wasn't quite prepared to self publish the novel. Fast forward to 2014 and the changing markets convinced him that he could provide everything to his stories that traditional publishers could. Danny Dirks and the Heir of Pendragon is his first full-length young adult novel and one of many stories he hopes to tell.

Scott lives in NJ with his wife and son.

Reviews

[Shelby *trains flying monkeys* · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm done. I think I chipped a tooth from gritting them so hard.

The kids dead mom is now a ghost..and guess how she talks? Dannnnnyyy....Dannnny. Really? Beat me up-side the head with a tree.



Yes, I'm rating this one too. Bite me if you don't like it. I've read enough to know this is a bad book. The kid is 15 and talks like he is 8. Then everyone in the book keeps telling him that something is about to happen. IT DOES NOT!!!! I can't take anymore.

The writing is pretty bad, but I'm being nice and not tearing into it...I'm farting rainbows and spreading cheer.

I received an arc copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Lydia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Imagine being fifteen and having your whole world brought upside down.

Well, this is what happens when Danny Dirks gets to celebrate his fifteenth birthday. His grandfather tells him he's the heir of Arthur Pendragon, his neighbor's daughter - who seems to hate him despite his crush on her - is a dragon and his guardian, and there are enemies waiting for just the right moment to kill him and open a portal to the dragon world, with the intention of bringing humanity to its knees. Guess that means less baseball and more training for summer, huh?



I suppose one can say I'm a sucker for dragons and all things Camelot. Which often brings me to the point of choosing to read a book entirely because it might mention one of those things. Now, this can be either good, or bad. Most times the chance is 50-50.

In this book's case, I believe I got something in the middle. Didn't quite luck out, but didn't throw up in my mouth, as well. Yeah, I know, gross, but it really can happen when I get mentally disgusted with a book. Thankfully, Danny's story wasn't that much of a disappointment.



It was actually pretty well-thought when it came to the plot. It explained most of the things a reader needed to know in order to get sucked in the story, had many funny and witty lines in dialogue, and tons of magic and fights. It also balanced the suspense factor quite well to keep the pages turning.

No, the real problem lies with the pace. It took like forever to finally get to the part where Danny was taking action, and then, it was like Mr. Mulraney got a stroke and left his foot on the gas, accelerating towards the finish line with dizzying speed - and I'm not talking about the roller coaster dizziness, I'm talking about that feeling you get when you're in a car that races like the devil himself is after it. I'm not comfortable when my dad or bro drive like that, and I'm not comfortable when a book does the same, either. It makes the story-telling sloppy, and rushes towards a much-too-convenient end. Now, admittedly, Mulraney's story-telling didn't get sloppy - thank God! - but the end did seem forced. It didn't have the same impact it would have had otherwise, and left me wanting.

Hopefully the second book will not develop in the same way...

***I was given an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinion stated in this review is solely mine, and no compensation was given or taken to alter it.***

Read this and other reviews at: http://cupcakesandpopcorn.wordpress.com/

[Book Gannet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did someone mention dragons? Okay, I’ll admit it, that’s why I picked this book up. To be honest I’m not all that fond of Arthurian legend re-tellings and usually avoid them, but the idea of the girl-next-door being a dragon piqued my interest – and I’m mostly glad I did.

Danny’s a good main character – average and ordinary, he could be anyone – and he handles the changes in his life with a mixture of excitement, anger, bravery and confusion. Building slowly as various secrets are unfolded, the story gathers momentum as it goes and ends in high dramatic style. The Arthur link is pretty tenuous, taking some of the names but pretty much ignoring everything else and replacing it with dragons. Not that this is a bad thing, as far as I’m concerned, but it might disappoint some King Arthur fans.

Along with Danny there are a bunch of interesting characters helping the story along, from his mysterious grandfather to his fun kid sister, not to mention the various dragons he meets along the way. At the heart there’s an ancient fight between good and evil, a power that must be protected, and bravery to be discovered. There’s also Danny’s relationship with Kara, which doesn’t start off particularly well, but twists and changes throughout. I really didn’t like how childish she was at the beginning, and I would have liked for Kara to have been able to explain her reasons a little better. Things changed way too quickly for me, almost as if she’s replaced with a completely different person, which I did find annoying.

Mostly, though, this is a good read, with a plot full of revelations, dragons and a fight to save the world. There’s also plenty of scope for the next installment. If you like your tales full of ordinary people doing extraordinary things, some of which involve old myths and mythical creatures, then you should find plenty to like here. I look forward to the next one.

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.)

[Lou · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Wow!... WOW!!!

Lately GoodReads giveaways have been good to me for I have come to know some cool authors and their great books.

I usually don't read anything with dragon as a main theme, but this one was... awesome!



I could do a list with all the things that I liked of this book but it'd be too long because I loved EVERYTHING of this novel!

The characters are really great and the story is page-turned so I could barely take my eyes off the book.
The story is original and I couldn't predict what would happen next... Every page was a total surprise!

I only have one problem: the ending...

I mean, it's not really a problem it's just that I hate to wait for the next book, because I'm totally out of my mind trying to guess what's going to happen in the next book.



So, please dear author, don't make me suffer any longer and publish Danny Dirks and the Heir of Mordred very soon... Please!

I won this book through GoodReads and I thank to the author for providing me this copy but this fact didn't influence the review.

[Bee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Istyria book blog ~ B's world of enchanted books

3.5 stars

This book wasn't perfect. Far from it. Actually, I had quite a few issues with it. But in the end... I still enjoyed it a lot. I mean... It's dragons, guys. DRAGONS!

Now that school is out for the summer, Danny just wants to play baseball in his father's orchard. But with his fifteenth birthday approaching, Danny finds out he is no ordinary boy. He hears voices and sees visions of his dead mother. He's also pretty sure the cute new girl next door is a shape-shifting dragon. Danny soon discovers that he is the heir of the legendary Arthur Pendragon and the key in a pact made between man and dragon centuries ago. Rogue dragons are threatening that pact and aim to reopen the portal to their world to bring a rebel dragon army. And it's up to Danny to stop them.

Sure, we've seen this kind of story a million times before. Boy finds out he's no ordinary boy, but an extremely powerful (even more than others before him) [insert magical/supernatural/... being here] and he's destined to save the world from some great evil. But if I'm being honest, I never really get boring of this formula, as long as the execution is good enough. And in this case, it is. That doesn't mean it's perfect, because it's not, but I didn't really care most of the time. The myth and legends behind the dragons were really interesting and I loved all of that! The dragons in this book were awesome too, seriously.

I think the reason why I enjoyed it as much as I did, was because I went in expecting exactly what I got. The writing was good, not great, just good. The characters were pretty standard but still likeable. I didn't really buy the romance, if you can call it that? But it wasn't really that big of a part in the story so it doesn't really matter. Sometimes this book does try to be more than it is. Can't really explain it, it's a feeling I got. But overall the story was pretty original and the last couple of chapters had me on the edge of my seat.

In the end I'd recommend this book to people who like this formula and want to see a pretty original new version of it with dragons. I personally really want to read the next book in the series because I have to know what happens next. Which, I guess, is saying a lot.

This review is also (or -soon- will be) posted on Istyria book blog

[Marjolein (UrlPhantomhive) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read all my reviews on http://urlphantomhive.booklikes.com

2.5 stars

When Danny's maternal grandfather arrives suddenly, more things are going to change than he could have ever imagined...

I don't really know what to say about this book. Whilst reading it felt like nothing was happening. A lot. The story seemed to be based mostly on the father and grandfather arguing and promising to tell Danny things that could come in very handy, but always postponing actually telling these things. What needs to be told isn't even that much, but it's broken up in so many (unnecessary) different parts that it just felt like an easy plot device.

It could of course just have been me. When I was reading this I was quite stressed out for my upcoming exam and this book just wasn't giving me enough of an escape from that. Perhaps another time I'd liked it better. I could see there was a potential, but now it wasn't working for me. Not enough dragons (in the dragon-form anyway) either. Shame.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

[Martina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book thanks a Goodread giveaway Abd i couldn't be more grateful of it.
The cover is just attractive and lovely, the colours catch the eye and at touch it is adorabile.
The plot isn't really originale, in truth: there is a guy with something powerful in him, an other kid who acts strange when they are around him and have wonderful nature( in this case the girl is a dragon! Wow!), someone older who has important information for the main character and a good old-fashioned villain.
Nothing new, you think, and it's right.
But the narration and the style are totally awesome and i beg for more adventures of Danny Dirks and Kara, because i love all the characters and i look forward next year because the second book of the series will coming out!
Maybe Olly and the story of Guinevre and Arthur will stand out more because they look really interesting and intriguing.
Unluckily i live in Italy and here it will be published at the doomsday. :(

[Sheetal Dash]

Wow! Seems interesting. Wanna read it.

[Jolien · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Review on my blog, The Fictional Reader

I’ve had this review book for far too long, and I’m ashamed. So I finally decided to pick this book up last week! I’m actually glad I did. I thought it was an enjoyable read. It’s a YA fantasy novel about DRAGONS. Yay!

PLOT

The story revolves around Danny, a boy about to turn fifteen. Not only his father and sister are there to celebrate, his grandfather is coming to visit as well. Danny doesn’t see him very often, because his mother -so his grandfather’s daughter- passed away. Crazy stuff is happening suddenly, surrounding his birthday. I quite enjoyed the plot of this book! It isn’t the first book in which a boy/girl discovers they are special. In this case, Danny is a descendant of King Arthur!

What I enjoyed most about the story line is that it was not rushed. It wasn’t like someone told him: “you’re a descendant of King Arthur and dragons are real!” and he was like “oh okay, let’s save the world!”. I really find that interesting. Let’s be real, if someone from your family told you this, you’d probably think they were a lunatic. So I appreciated that the discovery and acceptance of those facts went slowly here.

It’s no secret that I love dragons. The world Danny discovers here is quite intriguing, although I wish I knew more about it? Basically, dragons accidentally came to our world and can change into humans. I’ll leave the rest for you to find out on your own, and I’ll just say: like humans, not every dragon is peaceful and kind.

I really enjoyed the story of this novel, and I read it in about 3 or 4 hours! I only put it down once, because it was dinner time. If you like YA and dragons, maybe give this a chance! I have to admit that I “only” gave it 3.5 stars because although I enjoyed it, I don’t think it was anything remarkable or special. It was just a fun, enjoyable read.

CHARACTERS

Danny is the main character in this book. Like I said, he finds out he is a descendant of King Arthur. I quite enjoyed Danny as a main character! I liked him, the way he treated his friends, how much he loves his family… Those aspects of a novel are important to me. Real life is about friendships and family, so I don’t understand why books often leave them out? Especially family. I have to admit that the one thing I didn’t like was the romance. It just came out of nowhere! I was so confused, and went back to check I didn’t miss a few pages or so. So that was a definite no-go. But other than that, I quite enjoyed Danny.

You know who I loved most in this book though? Danny’s sister. She’s 2 years younger, and they are so close. She even picks out his clothes in the morning. I absolutely loved their bond. Maybe I identified with her more because I have an older brother too? Although he’s 5 years older and I have never been allowed to pick out his clothes.

Like I mentioned, family and friends are so prevalent in this novel, which makes me happy. It’s important to have friends and family you can rely on in life, and I feel like that should be reflected in books.

I quite enjoyed this book. It’s a fun YA fantasy with dragons, which is straight up my alley to be honest. Aside from the dragon aspect, I loved the fact that Danny’s family and friends are so important to him, and appear constantly throughout the book. The only thing I really didn’t like is the romance. Where did it come from? Oh no, that’s not true. There is one other thing I’m really upset about: WHY IS THERE NO INFORMATION ABOUT THE SEQUEL? I must know more, that can’t have been the ending!

[Elena · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sigue hacia abajo para encontrar la reseña en español.

I got this review copy from NetGalley.

First of all, I have to say that this book was ok and that it was a nice story, but I was wondering while I was reading, if it would be part of a series and it turns out that it is. The reason is that over half of the book is just the introduction and things don’t get interesting until the last quarter of the book. It’s not boring and it works well, because Danny gets some clues that not everything is as normal as he thinks in a more natural way and not as a sudden big thing, but it doesn’t leave much of the book left for the “action” part of the plot, which made this second part too rushed. For me, the best part were the last three chapters (out of about twenty) and the cliffhanger at the end, that suggests a more interesting second book.

About the characters, the main problem in these kind of books is that they sound older than they really are. In the case of this book it’s the complete opposite. Danny and the other people who are his age sound much younger than they are. He’s supposed to be fifteen, but he talks and behaves as if he’s twelve at most.

The relationship between Danny and a female dragon (it’s not as weird as it sounds; she has a human form, as she lives among humans and a dragon would be noticed) was a bit forced. They’re teenagers and they don’t like each other very much when they first meet. This is not strange, but I felt that their behaviour was a bit exaggerated and the change too sudden.

I’m curious about how the story continues and the title of the next book sounds interesting, so I may read it in the future.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Lo primero, tengo que decir que este libro estuvo bien y que es una historia bonita, pero mientras iba leyendo, estuve pensando si no sería parte de una saga, y resultó que así es. La razón es que más de la mitad del libro es sólo una introducción y no se vuelve interesante hasta la última cuarta parte. No es aburrido y funciona bien porque Danny va recibiendo pistas de que no todo es tan normal como cree de manera muy natural y no como algo grande y precipitado, pero no deja mucho espacio para la parte de más “acción” del argumento, lo que hizo que esta segunda parte fuera demasiado acelerada. Para mí, la mejor parte fueron los tres últimos capítulos (de unos veinte) y el final que acaba en suspense, que sugiere un segundo libro más interesante.

Sobre los personajes, el problema principal en esta clase de libros es que suelen parecer mayores de lo que son en realidad. En el caso de este libro es justo lo contrario. Danny y el resto de personas de su edad parecen mucho más jóvenes de lo que son en realidad. Se supone que tiene quince años, pero habla y se comporta como si tuviera doce como mucho.

La relación entre Danny y un dragón femenino (no es tan raro como suena; ella tiene forma humana, ya que vive entre humanos y un dragón llamaría demasiado la atención) fue un poco forzada. Son adolescentes y no se llevan demasiado bien la primera vez que se conocen. Esto no es raro, pero me pareció que su comportamiento estuvo un poco exagerado y el cambio fue demasiado repentino.

Tengo curiosidad de saber cómo continúa la historia y el título del siguiente libro suena interesante, así que puede que lo lea en el futuro.

[Sully · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 / 5 stars rating

This review is also posted at http://readingnookandcranny.blogspot....



I received a free galley copy of this novel from the publisher for an honest review.

I love stories of King Arthur, especially now that I've seen the BBC series of Merlin (and, of course, Monty Python and the Holy Grail). I have seen the entire series at least twice (the movie too many times to count), and it made me fall in love with both Merlin and King Arthur, only deepening my love for medieval styled stories. When I saw this story of Danny Dirk, a modern descendant of Arthur Pendragon, I had to give it a try.

Perhaps I am just too much older than the target audience for this novel, but I couldn't get into the story. First of all, the story has almost nothing to do with King Arthur legends, apart from being able to talk to dragons (which I do believe was Merlin's forte, not Arthur's) and from the appearance of Excalibur.

Not only can Danny Dirks communicate with dragons, but he falls in love with one too. Granted, this lovely lady dragon can take human form, but still. It's a dragon. Doesn't that violate bestiality laws? Perhaps such a question would not even arise for a middle school reader, but it gave me the creeps throughout this novel, and I could never get past it.

While Danny Dirks and the Heir of Pendragon isn't a terrible novel, there is nothing that sets it apart in its genre. Its use of the Pendragon name is shady at best (Gwen was a dragon that Arthur fell in love with and thus that is why Danny can talk to dragons?), and the plot and the characters are thin and under developed. The plot is often slow paced, and it felt as if it dragged on while I read it (it took me a month to read). Maybe younger readers (middle school aged) would enjoy it, but definitely not for older readers or fans of Merlin & King Arthur. In fact, a modern descendant of Merlin doesn't even arrive in the story to help Arthur's heir. This is the first novel in a series, but it's the only installment I'll be reading.

[Hazel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This ebook was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Danny Dirk is and ordinary fourteen year old boy with a passion for baseball, however as he approaches his fifteenth birthday peculiar things begin to happen.

Beginning with the arrival of the new foreman for their apple farm, Danny begins experiencing the impossible. Eventually, Grandfather Pendrake, a surname not unlike Pendragon, reveals that Danny comes from a special lineage, one typically assumed to be a myth; and explains that a particular mythical beast is, in fact, very real.

S. A. Mulraney begins his young adult novel with an interesting prologue that leaves the reader with a range of questions. Firstly, the characters are referred to as 'they' resulting in a feeling of suspense as the reader has no idea whether they are good or bad. It turns out that 'they' are Mr Brennan and his standoffish daughter Kara. However the original use of 'they' leaves the question as to what they are, which is heightened by words such as 'scales' and 'wings' as well as the suggestion that they can communicate with dragonflies.

Danny Dirk and the Heir of Pendragon is an exciting novel. Although it felt a little slow to start, the story picks up towards the end and concludes on a cliffhanger leaving the reader eager for the next book.

Although the main character is in his mid teens, the writing style is suitable for boys and girls in their earlier teens and upwards, however there are some scenes that are more appropriate for readers with a maturer outlook.

This novel will attract a range of interest particularly for those who prefer a book that is quick and easy to read. It should also attract the attention of those with a preference for the fantasy genre, especially about dragons, and also those who enjoy myths and legends, in particularly the legendary king of England, King Arthur.

Mulraney's adaptation of the history of King Arthur is original and intriguing, and his version of dragons are very creative.

This review uses a rating on the basis on personal preference but it is sure to be loved by the intended target audience.

[BookLoversLife · Rating 4 out of 5]

Danny thinks he is going to spend his summer like he normally does, playing baseball and hanging with his friends, but this is no ordinary summer! This is the summer that Danny turns 15. His grandfather pays him a visit and what he tells Danny will change his life forever!

I'm a sucker for a Dragon book and will try anything with them in it, I'm also a sucker for an awesome cover and this is an awesome cover!!

Danny is told that he is the heir of Arthur, yes THAT Arthur and it's his job to fight the bad dragons and keep the family line in tact. He is also told that his new neighbours are Dragons and are his guardians. He is to learn to ride one of the Dragons and learn to fight. There are bad Dragons who want to open a portal to where all Dragons live and basically take over the world.

Now I liked this but it wasn't great. The main thing for me was the pacing! It was quite slow, with no much happening till the end. I know that it's the first and is setting the scene for the books but there could of been more action and more Dragons! I was going to set this aside because nothing had happened by the 50% mark.

Also what I didn't like was that at the start, for some reason, I thought Danny was younger. His voice was that of a child of 10 and it wasn't till they were on about him being 15 that I got that surprise! The author made him sound very young and that threw me a bit!

Apart from the pacing, the overall story was good. I liked the Arthur references and liked finding out how Danny was a descendant. I also liked the idea of the Dragons opening a portal. I liked the use of the birds and dragon flies too. It's a well thought out story, just not enough action.

The characters were easily likable and relatable. They were well developed as well. Danny has a sort of romance which was sweet!

Overall, I liked The Heir of Pendragon. It's an enjoyable Dragon book and one a lot will love. After that ending, I will definitely be picking up book 2 to see who the girl was, I have my suspicions though!! Lol.

[Nyze Gremio · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing actually crawled. To be honest, I could just stop reading it when I can, but I’m so curious where the dragons came from and how the author would present them so I continued. The book lacks the energy I’m looking for. Like nothing significant is happening all throughout. The world building was also vanilla. It didn’t really give me something to talk about for this review. Sigh. Anyway, I’ll try. Okay so Danny is related to King Arthur. Yes. That King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Apparently, he needs to stop those bad dragons in opening a portal and invading Earth. That’s the gist. I think the story would be awesome if there were less unimportant things like the forced romance part and the bickering among characters. More on the action and world building part.

For my full review:
Book Review: Danny Dirks and the Heir of Pendragon

[Bari · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book but at times it was hard to figure out what the story was about. On the eve of his 15th birthday something starts happening to Danny that no one will tell him about. To be honest it drags on a bit about what is happening to him before the story gets to the point.

I recieved an advanced reader copy from NetGalley.

I'm not sure if I would recommend this. The book did finally pick up and I enjoyed it after that but as I said, it took a long time to get there.

[onceuponatimeareview · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley for letting me read this in exchange for a review.

DNF