Dragon-Born: The Dragon-Born Saga Books 1-3, Half-Blood Dragon, Magic-Born Dragon, Queen of the Dragons

Dragon Born Saga #1–3

by K.N. Lee

Behold, the Dragon-Born Trilogy Boxed Set, a spellbinding collection featuring three tales of adventure and Half-Blood Dragon, Magic-Born Dragon, and Queen of the Dragons. Traverse Draconia's treacherous terrain alongside Rowen, a half-blood maiden whose journey from outcast to legend will ensnare your heart and mind.

As time slips through Rowen's fingers, her heart is torn between two princes of the Dragon Court, while her nights are plagued with ominous visions foretelling of her own demise. Her fears are realized when she is unjustly accused of murder and sentenced to death, with no hope of survival in a kingdom ruled by full-blooded dragon shifters.Yet, fate has a mysterious stranger lurking in the shadows, ready to unravel a truth that could shake the very foundations of the realm. Rowen must confront her deepest fears, traverse perilous lands teeming with magical creatures, and ignite her inner flame to fulfill her destiny and ignite the world.

Praise for Dragon-Born! "I'll start to say that I don't actually enjoy fantasy all that much - especially epic fantasy that's often slow to start and hard to get into. This book was the exact opposite. I was into it from the first page and my interest just never dwindled. A masterpiece." May Sage- USA Today Bestselling Author of Strands of Starfire and To Catch a Prince."Beautifully written you will devour every page in one sitting. I know I did!" -Erin Bedford, USA Today bestselling author of Grinding Lightning."I have been reading science fiction since I was 11 (Ursula K LeGuin - Dragon Riders of Pern the entire series, I had finished before I was in high school) and this story is AMAZING!" -Top Amazon Reviewer"Oh my goodness! This book was amazing! I LOVED all the plot twists that kept me guessing what would happen next. I read it so fast I was sad to get to the end. Can't wait for the next one!"- Top Amazon Reviewer"K.N. Lee has brought us dragons in a way you've never seen them before. I can't wait to read the rest of the series!"- S.J. Cairns, bestselling author of Soul Discovery***Amazon Top 150 Bestseller. #1 in Pirates & Arthurian.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Epic Fantasy

409 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 11, 2017

About the author

K.N. Lee is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who resides in Charlotte, North Carolina. When she is not writing twisted tales, fantasy novels, and dark poetry, she does a great deal of traveling and promotes other authors. Wannabe rockstar, foreign language enthusiast, and anime geek, K.N. Lee also enjoys helping others reach their writing and publishing goals. She is a winner of the Elevate Lifestyle Top 30 Under 30 "Future Leaders of Charlotte" award for her success as a writer, business owner, and for community service.

She is signed with Captive Quill Press and Patchwork Press.

K.N. Lee loves hearing from fans and readers. Connect with her!

www.knlee.com

www.WriteLikeAWizard.com

www.Facebook.com/knycolelee

www.twitter.com/knycole_lee

www.wattpad.com/user/KNycoleLee

Reviews

[Damian Southam · Rating 5 out of 5]

The following review is the purely opinion/comment components of my individual reviews on each of the three books. I've included links to Amazon's K.N. Lee Page, the three individual book review links, and the review links to the other books in her library that I've read thus far.

Amazon's K.N. Lee Page - https://www.amazon.com/K.N.-Lee/e/B00...
Review - https://www.amazon.com.au/review/R29O...
Review - https://www.amazon.com.au/review/R3E6...
Review - https://www.amazon.com.au/review/R1XO...
Review - https://www.amazon.com.au/review/RD7N...
Review - https://www.amazon.com.au/review/R3AK...
Review - https://www.amazon.com.au/review/R8AG...
Review - https://www.amazon.com.au/review/R30N...
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Book 1: Half-Blood Dragon

Intrigue and mystery are the most obvious and evident aspects of the storyline in this first book of the Dragon Born Trilogy, Half-Blood Drsgon. In revealing the plot there's a steady pace that keeps each chapter and page moving toward the enlightenment of knowing what's going on. Characters have the trickiest qualities making it hard to determine friend from foe, heroes and heroines from villains. And the more complicated cases where they're both. The people who you love to hate and those you hate to love. The ones you love but probably shouldn't. Those you hate but for whom you don't know enough about.

With a cast and storyline such as these its east to get lost in your reading. Turning the best page only to realise it's the last. Wondering how long the torturous wait will be until you know how this will play out, and that will get what's coming to it. If those sneaky burgers are what they seem, and who's not what they seem. Its the well written storylines that keep you guessing without confusing you to what is still happening that often captivate the most. Set in the more traditional worlds of fantasy where the creatures are varied and the magic is more subtle, conflict often encompasses tooth and claw, sword and cannons. Once started I never stopped, never a truer characteristic in deciding how to rate it. This is only my second K.N. Lee book. Had that I'm not up with the times of her writing, but great in the way it means I can still binge.
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Book 2: Magic-Born Dragon

K.N. Lee has woven an intricate puzzle of various webs seeking to trap the flies upon which to be fed. One centrepiece undoubtedly knows why they're coveted, whilst the other only truly knows their own covetous. With the game now much more firmly defined, along with the bulk of key figures, the final installment will be the actions and consequences that cause the houses of cards to fall. A wind ranging from a slight breeze all the way to a tornado has begun to blow. It'll show in the final book for whom the right cards will fall. If the early prophecy of one of the prophets introduced in book one, now reconfirmed in book two is anything to go by, then the clearest picture of possible outcomes is the flood of blood from the dying and dead that bathes the field in red for as far as the eye can see.

Intriguing and entertaining, the storyline develops at a feverish pace. No events aren't inherently linked in some way to the plot unfolding. Further still, the imagery, character and world construction aren't lacking either. There's always that fine line between context and needless information. Walking a blistered mile in Rowan's shoes makes her plight the easiest to empathise with and to support to its hopeful conclusion. But there's still the timely changes in points of view that beckon sympathies for what other characters are hoping to achieve. With the exception of a few, there's the naturally occurring good and bad in nearly everyone. This makes the grey bigger whilst reducing the black and white. Even if you have a favourite determined by your own nature and preferences, its impossible to not at least understand where others are coming from, or hoping that some of their goals succeed while others fail. We've hit the next perfect place for a recess that'll allow the cliffhanger to simmer before the final act is delivered. Its not always possible to reach a conclusion that is still awaiting whilst its temporary conduit keeps you happy; but this is realised herein.
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Book 3: Queen of the Dragons

The Queen of the Dragons is one of those books where so much has come to a head during the respective stories, that it takes off (quite literally) flying from the first page, holding that furious pace until you've reached its completion. In typical trilogy form, books one and two establish the story (book one) and the context of what's to come (book two). The collective trilogy would likely be about the total length of an epic tome, those books with word counts ranging from one-hundred-and-twenty to one-hundred-and-fifty thousand, that are rather weighted bricks literally or imaginatively. By being broken off into three smaller chunks, each with their own start, middle, and end, the overall effect is enhanced by attaining premise, reasoning, and conclusion, in each and every chunk. Thus, instead of wading through each section presented in much larger portions, the presentation alters the feel of the story.

Rowan is a great choice for providing a steady order, with growth that reveals a continual incline at a constant pace of development. She permits the other characters to wow and dazzle with barely hinted at secrets and lightbulb moments. This last aspect is a particular strength, as there's more than one character and outcome that comes out of left field; that is, the hints are present but some only more so with the benefit of hindsight. The number of things that get by you to reach the gotcha or lightbulb moments, are better experienced and appreciated if you still recognise the clues at the end. If you can't see where they've come from at all then you're inclined to blame an author for pulling the wool over your eyes. Whereas if they're reached and you can see how you missed it, then you praise an author for being sneaky. It's one actuality with two (or more) possible approaches, and getting this fine-tuned enough to be the latter is a definite technical skill.

K.N. Lee's series ranging across the possible subgenres of fantasy are inexorably proving that like the title of this book, she's a queen of something too; a queen of fantasy. Some authors find their proficiencies by exploring one subgenre until they've exhausted their supply of ideas, the stories that create a significant library providing both recognition and appreciation through the medals and achievements they're awarded. At such stages they're then likely to look for things that renew their ideas. They undoubtedly become known and sought after by readers, but to a point, there's inevitably going to be only a portion of the reader market that can be swayed because in that prospective market there's only ever going to be so many who read just one subgenre to the exclusion of all others. Whether their new ideas turn to increases in the same genre or a different one comes after they're already known for one style of storytelling.

Then there's those that take a single genre like the broad umbrella of fantasy, and instead of starting in one subgenre of it they pick out the respective multiple ones and use this to keep their ideas going. From my own observations I see K.N. Lee as a queen of fantasy, even though she does have publications that come from different major genres, she's attacked the subgenres of fantasy with gusto. Epic fantasy, urban fantasy, paranormal, paranormal romance, or straight fantasy, the list just keeps getting bigger; plus young or new adult that focus on fantasy themes. Between this large snapshot, the wickedly artistic covers, the speedy release times, companion and prelude stories in collections and boxed sets for scrippance expenditure, and a few more incidental components, she's developed herself as a brand name or marketable logo/label that ensures readers are going to purchase her books almost without bothering to read the descriptions.

Hopes that this series has planned followup efforts became so the moment my reading app. suggested how long it'd take to read this book, gratification being written in author notes at the rear of the book. Instead of treating this as criticism though, the comments are intended to provide reassurance and anticipation. Rowan is after all just coming into her own. As this is a trend in fantasy series it reinforces the need to see that such outcomes aren't inherently linked to critical perceptions. I dare say that in some ways I look forward a little more to the follow up. I had done the same with the books that brought this trilogy to a close, but the prior statement about Rowan gives me an impression of how much more gritty the next book, trilogy, or series will be.

It's definitely a mood setter, in that the expectations regarding where events can go to from here, are right up the alley of what is considered on par for fantasy series like this and K.N. Lee's other series that involve higher levels of conflict: not to suggest though that this trilogy suffers in anyway from its own design. Given my own top favourite subgenre of fantasy is urban fantasy, it was also pleasing to see how author notes right at the back of the book broke up each series (or book) of her library into subgenre types. As the continuance of this thread is to become clearer from August onwards, it looks like I'll get to explore those more targeted references in the meantime.

This is the first time I'm going with 4 stars, mostly because I have no issue with direction or even a continuance, it's more because I would've liked to have see more come about from the final battle scene. That is, despite my preference for a snappy pace that could be misinterpreted as always wanting things to be fast reach their allotted end, it felt like the final battle was rushed. I won't go into details for fear of spoilers: but of the seven books from K.N. Lee's library that I've had the pleasure of reading thus far, this feels like it was the least explored finale out of the respective titles. Even just a few more pages would likely have been enough. Hoping not to give anything away I would say that given the lengthy history of a certain critical component I feel as though it needed more to bring it to a closure, temporary or otherwise.

However, please don't consider my scoring or final comment in the mood of a disliking as this would be harsh, it's more aimed at being constructive criticism. Fantastic trilogy, and even in the face of the four stars I've gone with, my average rating of the trilogy as a whole is 4.67 stars. Given the option is available I unreservedly recommend purchasing the complete trilogy boxed set for any who are perusing the complete reviews without having bought any book out of the three, and a must read if you've read books one and two.

[Mandy (MP Book Reviews) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Half-Blood Dragon:
Rowen is a lady in waiting and trying to execute her stepfather's plan for her to marry the crown prince and improve the family's status. However she keeps having dreams that warn her that she is going to die in an unpleasant way. Then the dreams come true as she is framed and sentenced to death for the murder of the very prince she was going to marry. She has nowhere to run as the power is all in the hands of the full blood dragon shifters. Can the stranger save Rowen from execution and can she work with her gift and find the courage to set the world on fire?

I loved this story. I can imagine politics in a royal household being like she encountered and I definitely felt for her as the story unfolded and she was forced into situations through no fault of her own. The story was well written and I could definitely feel the emotions for the characters involved in the story.

Magic-Born Dragon:
Rowen is a fugitive and must avoid being captured by the Dragons by hiding in the human realm. All she has is a treasure map to find the Red Dragon and her two powers of persuasion and prophecy. She finds help from a new friend and has to hide from a pirate who is concentrating on vengeance. Then a man from her past warns her and questions this whole journey.

Wow - the plot definitely thickened in this book. I LOVED the story and the way it developed. It was very well told and the writing was easy to understand but also meant that I felt all the complex thoughts and emotions involved in the story. The ending was just WOW!!! I can't wait to find out what happens next in this complex story. You have got to read this.

Queen of the Dragons:
Rowen is a half-blood dragon who was taken by the Red Dragon and seems to have lost her memory. But she finds out some ancient secrets and her memory after a strange black dragon tries to free her (and gets injured in the process). Now they are both captives while he recovers. Elian Westin is a Captain and he and the remnants of his crew are travelling to Withrae where a war between dragons and humans is brewing - and it's not clear which side they will choose when he meets the woman who broke his heart years ago and suddenly the fate of both her and his daughter are at stake.

There was lots of action in the story as a the threads of the story were woven together to come to some fairly explosive conclusions. There were lots of surprises and twists and turns on the way. The story was well written and easy to understand. A very enjoyable read that transported me off to a land of dragons, magicians and humans.

[The Mysterious Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve always had a weakness for stories involving dragons, and KN Lee’s The Dragon-Born Trilogy does them to perfection. Anyone who is remotely interested in top notch fantasy (and especially anyone interested in stories with dragons) need look no further. You’ve found your nirvana.

Here are my reviews of each of the trilogy’s books.

Book 1: Half-Blood Dragon

Ok I will admit to being half in love with this book because of its truly beautiful cover alone. Then I actually read it and ... just: wow. It grabbed me and held on forcing me to continue without breaking to the end (sadly past 3am - work was NOT fun the next day). Magic, adventure, intrigue, fantastic characters, great plot ... I could go on and on. I've read KN Lee before and know to expect quality writing. I found it, along with a new addiction. Now I need my next "fix" (aka, book 2)

Book 2: Magic-Born Dragon

I truly enjoyed Half-Blood Dragon and fully expected to enjoy book 2 of the Dragon-Born Trilogy, Magic-Born Dragon. I was wrong. "Enjoy" is too much of an understatement. This book is, quite frankly, simply wonderful. KN Lee has done an amazingly great job of world building and filled her world with superb leading and supporting characters in a great adventurous plot. What sets her books apart is how "real" her characters are and how well they interact with each other. Trust me, if you start this series (and you really should start with book 1), you'll get invested in those characters and hooked on the series - and by the time you finish this book you'll be obsessively addicted. "Highly recommended" is a tepid term for how much I recommend this book.

Addendum: since writing the above I've seen other early reviews that are slamming the author because of a screw up by Amazon kindle in delivering the wrong document. I think it's totally unreasonable to punish an author for something she had absolutely no control over. I'm sure she's even more frustrated than those reviewers. I say shame on them. They're obviously entitled to their opinions but, to me, a book should be judged in its own merits (or at least something the author has control over, such as choice of cover) and not because of an e-merchant mess up.

Book 3: Queen of the Dragons

This is a well written book that's relatively short but somehow manages to tie up all of the most important loose ends in the Dragon-Born trilogy. Full of adventure and some characters I've come to love, this is a great capstone for the trilogy. (There are enough makings for a book 4 if KN Lee discuses to do it. I certainly hope she does.

Highly recommended.

[Patti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Half blood dragon:
Half dragon, half human, Rowen's future is shaky. This main character is no stranger to bad luck, and this writer does an excellent job taking me down Rowan's path. There are mysteries around every corner complete with dragon's, pirates, and even quite a hateful mermaid. Rowan uncovers one striking element of her unknown heritage, but so many other unanswered questions are left to discover. Superb read! So looking forward to Magic born!

Magic born dragon:
My oh my! After a bit of a snafu with release day downloads, all is well. actually, all is better than well. Book two of this trilogy...amazing! The 4 chapter mistake of a file totally did not do this book justice! I am ever so glad to be able to give this book its proper rating! Our main character, Rowan, is on the run again and this writers brilliant writing truly allows you to feel all of the characters angst. The storyline is quite compelling and pages will definitely fly! I am once again a very pleased fan totally looking forward to book three!
Queen of the Dragons:
The final book for this trilogy, many mysteries were resolved as well as some unexpected surprises! This storyline moved swiftly which made it seem short but I actually love fast paced stories! My eyes tend to go cross eyed whenever there are too many stalls in a storyline. Our main character, Rowan, finally has a clear picture as to who she is and where destiny is leading her. The love she finds will surprise you. Unveiling the secrets of her heritage kept me glued to this pages. This trilogy about her life has been highly entertaining and I am really pleased there will be a continuing storyline covering the next phases! Looking forward to more

[Valerie Ackley · Rating 1 out of 5]

How does this book series possibly have good reviews? First of all it’s not a book series, it’s a bunch of chapters sold as separate books. If the entire book takes 30 minutes to read, it’s not actually a book it’s a short story. Second of all, there are so many glaring errors it’s almost impossible to continue to read. At one point it’s a red mist at other points it’s a green mist - it flip-flops back-and-forth, the human kings suddenly turn into dragons but then a chapter later they’re back to being human and questioning why the girl has scales. Initially one wizard created the dragons that change into human form, and the next book it’s suddenly a whole secret organization that did it. It’s like nobody bothered to edit this book and check for consistency. Not to mention the gaping holes in the plot lines. First couple of books no mention of a sister yet once the sister comes up shes suddenly the most important thing in her world. Never thought to mention her before hand? The evil king and prince show up as characters in maybe in two sentences in the whole series but we’re supposed to know and believe that they’re truly evil and trying to take down the world, that entire plot line comes out in one paragraph, no build, no explanation no background no reason to believe it as a plausible story line. There’s a mermaid that has legs but no explanation as to why she’s a mermaid but with legs, she supposedly tied to an evil wizard but no explanation about why she’s tied to an evil wizard (that she also just happens to love, even though he’s cursed her)z we’re just supposed to accept everything as given. Ugh, this was a waste of two hours of my life (because that’s how long it took to read the entire “series“)

[Wade · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read book 1 as a free offer from kobo. I'll admit it's a good short story and well written but unfortunately it is a short story, not a book, not a novel. I burned through it in about 30 minutes and was left dumbfounded at how short it was. Then I found out these short stories were selling for $4CAD(discounted from 12.99!!!). What a scam! I've read short books(solid 8 hour read) better than this for $4.

I've read up to book 5. If all 6 stories were combined in 1 I would call it a solid book or novel worth reading and get 5 stars from me. Otherwise it's just frustrating. I won't be reading book 6 unless I can find a free copy. Just don't care at this point. I won't even look at any other books from this author if this is what she publishes for books.

Can't say I'd recommend this simply because it is so short and you're expected to fork out more $ for another 30 minute read. The value just isn't there.

[Roger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Half-Blood Dragon, my second read from author K.N. Lee, and the first in a new series. A fast-paced story with well-developed characters in a well-developed setting. Enough said, no spoilers from me, be sure to read the book
Magic-Born Dragon, as good as the first book in the series was, this one is better, leaving you panting for more. My third read from author K.N. Lee. A fast-paced story with well-developed characters in a well-developed setting, and the twist at the end. Enough said, no spoilers from me, be sure to read the book.
Queen of Dragon, as good as the first two books in the series were, this one is better, leaving you panting for more. A fast-paced story with well-developed characters in a well-developed setting, the culmination of The Dragon Born Trilogy. Enough said, no spoilers from me, be sure to read the book.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall this set is 3.5 stars. This box set includes the first three books in the Dragon-Born series (Half-Blood Dragon, Magic Born Dragon, and Queen of the Dragons). These books are not standalones, as books two and three starts off right where the previous book ended. And each one ends in a cliffhanger. This set makes it easy to read them all in order without trying to find the next book. There is violence.

The book blurb adequately describes the storyline so I'm not going to repeat that all of that info here. There are clues in the storyline that keep you guessing what will be revealed next. It definitely kept me reading. Overall it is an interesting storyline and worth taking the time to read.

[Brandy Dalton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this Epic Boxset!

If you like fantasy be it epic,swords and sorcery, action\adventure or even if you simply love the concept of dragons I can guarantee you will love this boxset! The plot is fantastic and as you travel with Rowan throughout the books you will watch her character development and feel anticipation to learn what scrape she's going to encounter next. It's fun and fresh and I thoroughly wouldn't mind if the author kept this storyline and its characters going in new books

[Linda Levine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recommend this set. It is a story that keeps you guessing and has a great mix of romance, action and adventure. The characters are very intriguing and have lots of secrets that you find as the story progresses. It doesn't go in the way you suspect and I liked that I was continually surprised by the actions of the characters.

[Lisa Eiff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great fantasy set!

I loved reading this set in it's (almost) entirety. Rowen meets so many people and encounters new experiences in each book. I'd recommend this book for fans of epic fantasy that love dragons and exploring colorful supernatural worlds.

[Cary · Rating 5 out of 5]

You wont be able to put it down

I started this trilogy last night and couldn't put it down... The way dragons and magic are entangled in this books is one that will captivate your soul

[Pam Funke · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my first encounter with the author and I must say that I'm LOVING this series. I recommend this book for anyone looking to read a good book. It's full of dragons, kings, princes, and other realms. It is an amazing fantasy with a touch of romance.

[Cynthia R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dragon-Born

I have read this series, and I'm sad that it has come to an end. It was so intriguing. It kept me reading from one book to the next. The characters and the challenges they met. An excellent series. I highly recommend.

[Hsu Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have the books separately, but I could not pass on this bundle.
I loved the storytelling + the characters.
The author takes you on a journey + you don't want it to stop.

[Jackie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding trilogy of three amazing books. Something else altogether. No one should miss out, happy to be able to read them.

[Sue MacKenzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, just wow!

I don't read a lot of fantasy but thoroughly enjoyed this.
An intriguing storyline that keeps you guessing right to the end.

[Carroll Pitts · Rating 5 out of 5]

great as usual

I enjoy all of k.n. Lee's books. They are well developed, if a little short. The stories are reader inclusive. I always identify with one of the characters.