Ava's Legacy of the Dragons

Of Dragons, Love, and Destiny #1

by Jenny Swan

A forgotten dragon egg
An ancient prophecy
And a forbidden love that will change everything...

Series complete!

Ava is a loner, which makes working in her aunt’s shop the perfect escape. Her aunt, however, has other plans—she wants Ava to finally do something with her life. But fate has its own agenda and is ready to shake Ava’s world to its very core.
When she discovers a dragon egg, her ordinary life is thrown into chaos. Suddenly, she finds herself in a world filled with ancient secrets and dangerous magic. Hunted by the king’s soldiers, Ava must fight for her life while protecting the secret of the dragon egg. Her only chance is to find someone who can keep the egg safe, so she can return to her old life.
Her one hope is Kilian—the most powerful dragon fighter in the realm. Just one glance from him and her heart races like never before. He’s dangerously attractive and awakens feelings in her she didn’t want to have. But Kilian has a secret of his own—one that could be her downfall.
Enter the forgotten realm of dragons and follow Ava on a journey of courage, destiny, and impossible choices. Witness an ordinary woman rise above herself as fate strikes and the impossible becomes reality.

Start reading now!

Genres: Fantasy, Dragons, Fantasy Romance, Amazon, Romantasy

312 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 1, 2025

About the author

Do you think women want to read fantasy books with adult characters?
If your answer is “Yes”, you are in the right place.

My name is Jenny Swan and I love to write fairy-tale and fantasy books about women over 30. We all want to find a magical portal to another land, sail with a pirate over the sea, unleash our witch powers, and find the love of our lives. These exciting, heart-pounding fantasy stories feature heroines who are just like you and me — normal women who lead normal lives until something magical happens.

The first series you can dive into is called “Charms & Chocolate.” Mayla, who believes in chocolate but not in magic, discovers that she is a witch and has to escape violent young men who are out to get her. A mysterious stranger helps her, a charming police officer cautions her against him, and a cat just appears in time to help her.

Reviews

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️ // DNF at 74%

If you’re looking for a soft YA vibe with dragons and don’t mind insta-feels, maybe this is for you.
But if you crave stakes, tension, and emotional weight—this isn’t it.

[Luis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una lectura ligera, adictiva, y con dragones ideal para leerte en dos tardes.

[Gemma · Rating 5 out of 5]

RECENSIONE a cura di Strana Family Book Blog
Avete mai creduto all’esistenza dei draghi o maghi? Ecco, nemmeno la nostra protagonista, Ava, ci ha mai creduto. Per lei esiste solo aiutare sua zia nel lavoro al negozio. Ma il destino ha in mente altri piani per lei. Infatti, quando trova un uovo di drago e un portale che collega il nostro mondo a quello di un regno magico, la sua vita cambia. In quel mondo, tutti vogliono catturarla e impossessarsi dell'uovo. Ma grazie all'aiuto di Lilly e del più grande cavaliere dei draghi, Killian, Ava riesce sempre a scappare. Ora le sue priorità sono cambiate: deve proteggere l'uovo e il drago che si trova al suo interno, con il quale non solo riesce a comunicare, condivide anche un forte legame. Tra intrighi, lotte per il potere, combattimenti, nuovi alleati e nemici inaspettati, riuscirà la nostra protagonista a proteggere il piccolo drago e a far sì che la profezia che la riguarda si compia? Scopritelo in questo volume fantasy pieno di avventura, dove una semplice ragazza abbandona la sua quotidianità per l'ignoto, scoprendo finalmente il proprio destino.
Ho ammirato la crescita di Ava e il suo coraggio nel difendere il drago, di cui vi innamorerete, così come della dolce e indomita Lilly.
In questo viaggio, la protagonista troverà il suo posto nel mondo e una famiglia. Ma non vi dirò altro. Dico solo che attendo con impazienza i prossimi volumi.
Valutazione:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Spicy: No Erotic
Emozioni:💘💘💘💘💘
Recensione a cura di Gemma.

[Kiera · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring.

If you would like an incompetent female lead and a story that drags on about details you don't care about (including a specific restaurant with a specific dish for 3 chapters) and will never be mentioned again, this book is for you! I think what really killed this book for me was not only the way it dragged on about nothing but the female lead was intolerable. She literally thought a child's hand and soft feminine voice somehow was potentially a buff male savior... Did I mention the dragon egg also talks... It warns the female lead about potential threats that she does not see well beforehand, but for some reason doesn't bother to tell her about hiding it in the very beginning to avoid being chased by guards throughout a city. Every character also thinks it's a great idea to follow a child's plan of seeking out someone to help the female lead and egg that none of them have actually met or know anything about. But he's a dragon fighter and he gave the child a silver coin once so he must be great!

This all happens in the first 5 chapters so I'm not exactly giving anything away. But I thought I would warn anyone I can that this book is beyond horrible.

[Mihaela Vîrje · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to love this book, but unfortunately it just wasn't for me. The writing felt quite basic and took me back to my teaching days, when I was encouraging my year 5 students to vary their sentence openers and use different writing techniques. It felt as though the author was so focused on endlessly describing things and showcasing those techniques that depth of character and plot development were neglected.

The relationship between the main characters never made me feel invested, yet I was constantly being told they were deeply in love. This may well be a suitable book for younger readers, but it lacked the character development and emotional depth I was hoping for.

[Valerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Decent beginning of a series. This book establishes characters, and sets up for the main storyline going forward. I feel it is not a complete contained story in this one book, so I am giving it only 4 stars for that fact, otherwise, the writing, and development is spot on, and for that I recommend. However, I am ready to dive right into the next book, and recommend you have the next one ready when you finish this one. I am doing it via Kindle Unlimited, so if you are a member, this series would be a good one for you since you have them all in this service.

[G.Z. · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars. The story is unique, but the FMC seems to fall in love with everything and everyone she meets in the new world she discovered. Whereas she was totally fine being a loner in the the old world.

Definitely could use better editing; for example first she's in pants, but while being chased they grabbed her dress.

The story is intriguing enough I'll read the second book and hope the FMC gets more interesting.

[Shelley · Rating 1 out of 5]

This could have used an editor to guide the writing. It’s very amateurish with its abundance of over-explaining. I am uninterested in this world or its politics, which are only surface level and mostly derived from the info dump by a character who is supposedly 10 years old. The voices are inconsistent and the characters do not have much personality. Even Ava is vague. I kept trying but I finally just returned it to Kindle unlimited without finishing it.

[Rebekah Macdonald · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely has some promise, but the characters' actions weren't always reasonable, and relationships developed way too quickly. The language was clunky from time to time, but I forgave this once I learned that it's translated from German.

Ava has the beginnings of a good character, so hopefully she keeps developing in strength and confidence, and Lily is cute and fierce.

I'll read more to find out what happens.

[La Moglie di Thorn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Carino, se non ci fosse stato l’insta love sarebbe stato sicuramente bello peccato…poi personalmente trovo l’espediente per costringere i due personaggi al trope dell’amore proibito piuttosto banale oltre che privo di senso per come è stato concepito, spero che ava mi sorprenda scegliendo un altro ML (tipo Marcus amore mio bellissimo ) perché killian è proprio il tipico eroe tormentato non si sa bene da cosa e senza il minimo spessore, molto banale anche questo.

[Jacque Brandt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ava's Legacy of the Dragon(book 1)

I was glued to the book. It's twists and turns, the enchanted forest and dragons. Was left with a cliff hanger ending, hopefully book 2 can fix that problem

[The Literary Chimera · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adventure, forbidden love, and dragons!

Ava is such an interesting FMC. I love that we get to discover this new world, magic, dragons, and secrets with her. The characters are interesting, and the world building is good. I absolutely can't wait to read more.

[Unleishd_reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Ava's Legacy of the Dragons* is packed with rich lore, intriguing characters, and some jaw-dropping twists. Ava's journey is both emotional and thrilling, and the dragon mythology adds a fresh take on the usual fantasy fare. The story is gripping and satisfying. If you're into dragons, destiny, and a bit of rebellion, this one’s worth picking up!

[Shannon's Reads · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dnf’ed, just couldn’t get into it.

[Amanda Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed tho book, a new twist and a new world, no heavy world building so the story just flows really well.

[mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Better than I expected a great book

Absolutely loved the book very gripping well described scenarios. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Great escape from every day life.

[Holli G. Harper · Rating 5 out of 5]

great book

Loved the story. Very intriguing. Kept me on my toes. Had to finish it. So ready for the next one.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfectly delightful

This story from Jenny Swan is light, loving and perfectly delightful. Looking forward to reading the whole series.
Thank you JSwan!

[Heather Campbell-Crayton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this series read after reading her Charms & Chocolate series, this would be great as a movie or tv series

[pfenton741btinternet.com · Rating 5 out of 5]

So far so good

This book had me after the first two pages
The story keeps hold of your attention and contains all the things needed for a good tale.

[Ashlin Moran · Rating 2 out of 5]

Idk. I wanted to like this. I kind of did. I liked the story, part of me wants to read the second book because I want to know what happens to the dragon, but the whole book is just lacking depth. It feels childish , and the most likeable characters are the child and the baby dragon. The main female and male like.. nothing happens, they meet and give each other eyes and all of a sudden there’s feelings and they can’t be together and are devastated. It feels like they’ve known each other for an hour. Blah

[Rhiann Teal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute book to read with my 12 year old. More for young readers. Not sure how this ended up on book talk under adult fantasy. But it does have Dragons so that kept me going to book 2.

[Rebecca Allen · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a little slow to start out, but by the end I was hooked

[Fabiola · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 ⭐

[Miss F · Rating 4 out of 5]

L’inizio di una leggenda: tra draghi, destino e amori proibiti

Un uovo di drago dimenticato. Una profezia antica. E una ragazza qualunque che si ritrova al centro di un mondo più grande di lei.
Così inizia L’eredità di Ava, primo volume della Saga della Custode dei Draghi di Janny Swan — un fantasy classico nell’impianto ma sorprendentemente moderno nel tono.

Ava è una protagonista credibile: una ragazza sola, intrappolata nel senso del dovere, che viene trascinata in un’avventura senza averla scelta. La narrazione, tutta dal suo punto di vista, permette al lettore di scoprire il mondo insieme a lei. È un approccio che evita spiegoni e rende la lettura scorrevole, anche se lascia molte domande aperte — il che, per un primo volume, funziona benissimo.

Kilian è il cuore romantico della storia: cacciatore di draghi, tormentato, ma capace di emozioni sincere. La tensione fra lui e Ava cresce gradualmente, con la giusta dose di desiderio e ostacoli. I personaggi secondari — in particolare la piccola Lily e il cucciolo di drago — arricchiscono la trama, portando ironia, dolcezza e qualche lacrima.

Se devo trovare un limite, direi la gestione del pericolo: Ava è spesso salvata per miracolo, ma è una scelta coerente con il tipo di eroina in costruzione. Non è ancora la “Custode”, è una ragazza che impara a sopravvivere, e questo la rende autentica.

Il worldbuilding è vasto, affascinante e pieno di potenziale. Alcuni elementi restano sfumati, ma mai confusi. La scrittura è chiara, dinamica e coinvolgente — una piacevole sorpresa nel panorama self italiano.

Quattro stelle perché L’eredità di Ava fa esattamente ciò che un primo volume dovrebbe fare: apre un mondo, ti lega ai personaggi e ti lascia il desiderio di tornare.
E alla fine, come ogni buon fantasy, ti fa chiedere solo una cosa:
Quando ricomincerà il volo dei draghi?

✒️ Recensione di Miss F – Tra Nebbie e Inchiostro