5 Stars.
🐉 The vibes:
- YA romantasy
- Social classes
- Dragons
- Rivals
- Forbidden love
- Closed door
🐉 My thoughts:
I loved this so much. There are some books that have me so giddy, excited, and on the edge of my seat the entire time; books that I cannot put down and pain my soul when I can’t be reading it. This was that book for me. There’s rivals, pining, yearning, and dragons. Say less. It’s standalone which makes it the perfect read to consume and not get involved in a huge commitment.
🐉 The dynamic between Farren and James gave me all of the feelings of first love, but the depth of the characters individually and also together was everything. Farren and James are the most precious little things ever.
🐉 The class system involving metals was really cool. The social classes gave this story such an angst all throughout that I loved. It created a forbidden love situation that had me screaming and wondering how these two would make it work. The dragon veterinary moments were some of my favorites. Farren’s family was such a good part of the story.
🐉 And the action scenes involving the dragons was great. It’s been such a long time since I’ve read a book with dragons that connected for me that didn’t feel overly cheesy or silly. The dragons in this book gave me exactly what I look for in a dragon book. They’re big and strong beasts, but we also see a heartwarming side also.
🐉 This is definitely fantasy because we have dragons, but also there are cars and phones, and the way they talk feels modern. So I guess maybe urban fantasy is what I would classify this as based on that.
🐉 Overall, this is a favorite for me. It had so many elements that just worked so well. The friendships, the romance, the family, the dragons, and the action. I LOVED THIS.
Note- closed door; brief mentions of sex
Release date: June 30, 2026.
Thank you so much to Dana Swift, St. Martin's Press | Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for the gifted copy.