The Prince of Dragons: Song of the Swords Book one

Song of the Swords #1

by Tameri Etherton

He made a vow. He’ll go through hell to keep it. Rhoane always knew he was destined to protect the savior of his people, a woman prophesied to restore balance to his world. The promise he made as a child proves difficult to honor as a young, impetuous man. Cast out as an exile from his family and home, he wields his rage like a well-honed dagger. Beyond the borders of his kingdom he discovers a world filled with violence and beauty. With carnal temptations before him, Rhoane struggles to reconcile his fate. If he doesn’t uphold his oath, his future love will fail before she’s even born. The Prince of Dragons begins the Song of Swords epic fantasy adventure about honor, family, and unconditional love in the face of mortal danger.

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Ebooks, Fantasy Romance, Romantasy, Fiction

246 pages, Paperback

Published April 13, 2018

About the author

Tameri Etherton is the USA Today Bestselling Author of fierce scorching fantasy and magical ever afters.
As a born storyteller, Tameri grew up inventing fictional worlds where the impossible was possible. It’s been said she leaves a trail of glitter in her wake as she creates new adventures for her kickass heroines, and the rogues who steal their hearts.
She lives an enchanted life traveling the world with her very own prince charming and their mischievous dragon, Lady Dazzleton.

Tameri loves to chat with readers! You can find her online at Facebook.com/TameriEtherton, Instagram @TameriEtherton, or tweet her @TameriEtherton.

To discover more about the author, visit her website at TameriEtherton.com and delve into the Aetherverse - Tameri's fantastical realms that are full of magical consequences. You can uncover maps, glossaries, and a complete cast of characters to further your reading experience.

Want to receive exclusives like advanced notice of upcoming releases, secret scenes, cover reveals, cool contests, and other enticing tidbits about Tameri's books? Join Tameri's VIP Dragons and receive the Dragon Dispatch newsletter today.
https://geni.us/DragonDispatch

Reviews

[Coco.V]

🎁 The complete Song of the Swords Series (4 book series) is FREE on Amazon today (5/10/2020)! 🎁

[Sheila Samuelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 4 Stars!!
Review:
Thank you to Tameri Etherton for picking me to win this FREE ARC COPY in a giveaway she hosted in her email newsletter she sent me a few months ago.

This isnt a normal Fantasy read for me so even tho im excited to win this book i was leary starting it since it's Epic Fantasy and im still new to the Subgenre so i wasnt sure if i'd like this one or not but surprisingly i did like most of this book for the most part even tho im not a big Medieval Fantasy reader.

The Characters were interesting to read about. I dont necessarily have a favorite character since this was my first time reading this book in this series and by this author but i did start to like Jinnipher with her wiseness and wisdom.

The Setting was what really got me into the storyline especially with All 3 World Maps in the beginning of this book that left me wanting to know more about those worlds.

Overall a Good Book 1 in this Epic Fantasy Series by Tameri!! I hope to check out the other books in this series in the near future!!

[Andria Potter · Rating 3 out of 5]

DNF @ 25 percent. Nothing against the writing, I just couldn't get into it.

[Fee Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Prince of Dragons by Tameri Etherton (previously published as The Darathi Vorsi Prince) is the first book in the Song of the Swords series. When Rhoane defies his mother of an oath he made as a child he is exiled from his home.

Plot 5/5: An intriguing plot.

Characters 5/5: The characters are well fleshed out and interesting.

World building 4/5: An interesting world.

Pacing 3/5: The pacing is slow, but steady.

Writing 5/5: The writing is great with vivid descriptions.

Overall 4.4

[Paperbacks · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Take Risks, make mistakes, and get messy. Be brave, and do what frightens you most, but always, always have hope”

I was very kindly gifted a copy of this book by the author and as a new to me author I’m so so glad she did! Firstly any book that starts with 4 different maps is a winner, it shows commitment to the reader in helping to visualise every aspect of the vast reaches of the story. It also has a prologue, which I’m always a sucker for and that set the tone that this was going to be an epic fantasy.

The Prince of Dragons totally throws you in at the deep end, and I felt quite sink or swim whilst I navigated understanding the magic system, hierachy’s, and dynamics, I don’t necessarily find this a bad thing but I do like a little hand holding at the start. It’s a minor gripe and doesn’t detract from how much I ultimately adored this book! I enjoyed though that each time a new place was introduced the story spent a fair bit of time there, establishing the characters and surroundings before moving on. The world building is wonderful and creates environments which are pretty special, gorgeous attention to detail makes even the most barren of areas come alive. There is a lot of brutality in the world with some really quite violent moments both vivid and cunning, but this is balanced well and is never mindless.

I honestly loved the characterisation across the book, Rhone is a great protagonist, his evolution a joy to read. His steadfast commitment to his oath is wonderfully endearing. It was truly refreshing to have a male protagonist who’s purpose wasn’t to go around bedding maidens until he found the one to tame him. That’s not to say that there aren’t a couple of blushworthy pages. Rhone being schooled in the art of flirting (purely for acting purposes of course) is particularly heartwarming and I think one of my favourite interactions in the book. Faelara as well was similar in her devotion to her cause, never letting her heartbreak define her. She is the perfect balance to Rhone and I loved their banter. None of the characters felt redundant or overplayed and some of them hold delicious secrets that will have your jaw dropping at the end. Plus, that epilogue!!!

I especially liked how the author had no qualms with covering large passages of time within chapters, this was a brilliant move and allowed the story to drive forward without unnecessary waffle, seasons pass within a sentence and much like Rhoane’s time bending abilities, allowed us to reach a goal more satisfactorily because of it. The Prince of Dragons may only be 221 pages but my word does the author pack every page. There was no drag to the story, the pace was steady which gave time to savour the prose, to really get to know the magics and the dynamics and ultimately I was more absorbed in the world for it.

The Prince of Dragons is an amazing fantasy read, I couldn’t put it down – much to the detriment of other books scheduled for review, but I have been struggling of late to rise above 3 stars, so to find a book which overtook me so completely deserved to have all my attention – I have no reservations about giving this 5* and I’m immensely grateful that I was also gifted book 2 as well!

[Leisl Cope]

Its my own fault

I got this book during stuff your kindle and did not realize it was BOOK SIX. The description I read called it a prequel so I thought I could start here. DO NOT START HERE haha I was incredibly confused a lot of the time and my biggest complaint was that there was not enough within this story for me to build a relationship with these characters. Well apparently that's because there are five other books where you're supposed to do that. So That's on me.

That being said, it is not a series I think I will go read. This little window into the series did not really pique my interest enough to need to know the full story. The writing was not really my style with lots of major time jumps in the narration and too little dialogue.

[Jill Gauger · Rating 5 out of 5]

A prophecy is foretold to unite and balance the world. Rhoane as a young boy swears an oath to serve and protect the Eirielle, the savior when she is born. This book tells the story of Rhoane and how he grows from a boy to the man who is promised to the Eirielle. His interactions with the other kingdoms and the goddess Verdaine strengthens his beliefs in the prophecy.
I enjoyed this book and the backstory of Rhoane.

[Gayreth Walden · Rating 5 out of 5]

A terrific book!

Tameri Etherton is a new author for me and I'm so glad I found her. This book is terrific! Dragons exiled by treachery. A prophecy to save them and this World or destroy it. Can this be possible? The story follows Rhoane, an Eleri prince. He is prophecied to be the protector of the Eirielle, the one who will come to save save them. An extraordinary story that fully engages the reader. The complex and engaging characters are brought to life. A thrilling plot that is totally unpredictable. Magic, love, regret and sorrow is all here. I believe it's the characters that propel everything forward very smoothly. I enjoyed this book tremendously and highly recommend it. Note: this is book one of four. Also, there are some wonderful maps at the end, in color, for those who enjoy maps like I do.

[Glenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!

What a wonderful book. I couldn't put it down, I read it in one sitting. Now I'm going to get the next book because I need to find out what's going to happen next!😊 Do yourself a favor and but this book, you'll love it.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kinda slow. I was confused by bells, moonturns and seasons. Took me time to figure the first 2 out, never figured the last one out. Also the weird names made it difficult for me. Other than all that, it was all right.

[Natalia · Rating 2 out of 5]

It started great, but it did not catch my attention, I did feel like the author tried to explain and add too much to the history, but in the end, nothing happened. Maybe in the next books, everything will go faster and more smoothly, but I think that in this one everything was soo slow.

[Jamie]

DNF at 20% not bad I just couldn’t get into it. The author introduced so many named people, places, and concepts within the first couple chapters I couldn’t track anything that was actually happening.

[Pamela Nash · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Prince of Dragons

This book was exciting. It has adventure, life drama and mystery. I like the characters. I am looking forward to the next book.

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story. It was just okay, it is part of a series that I may or may not continue.

[Anthony R Woods · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written story about the prince of dragons and his many adventures and training. He has to learn many new skills to be worthy to find his princess and save his country.

[Myra Wray · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this mostly good. This was part of the Anthology 'Magic & Monsters'.

[Cassie Benjamin · Rating 2 out of 5]

It felt like a prequel you are supposed to read like second or third in a series - short and just background stories

[Victoria Hoey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting idea.. I just feel like too much happened and not enough explanation to go with it. I did like the writing style though.

[Wulfwyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. I confess. Fantasy and SciFi are not my strong genres. For both, I need to be in the right mood to read them. I usually enjoy them but only on my terms. The Prince Of Dragons, though, enchanted me. I started it in the proper mood. Then had a crisis in real life that stopped my reading for a couple days. When I got back to reading, my mood had changed. But I was already under the author’s spell. This is one of the rare fantasy books that I enjoyed even though I wasn’t in fantasy mode! Truly, if you know me, you know how significant that is.
I love Rhoane. I loved watching his growth. The author ripped my heart out early on with Rhoane. I’m not telling you how. My other favorite character was Faelara. I am hoping to see more of her in future books. I want to know all of her story. There are other characters that I liked and a few, not so much, (pretty sure that was planned).
The author did a decent job with world building. I felt like I could close my eyes and see the story unfold in my mind. I do wish I had noticed the maps, at the end of the story, earlier. Be sure to check those out.
The author, thoughtfully, also has a cast of characters, (with pronunciation of names), and a glossary of unfamiliar words and places. Both can be found at the end of the book. I did well with the pronunciation using my experience with Celtic names and words. I knew the rules to those, (thank you deceased family members who passed that to me). If you aren’t familiar with them, you might want to keep in mind that you can easily look them up or you can choose to read through them before reading the story.
I recommend this series to young adults and up, (for some mature themes). My recommendation is to read the book. If you aren’t certain about buying it, I encourage you to ask your library for it and/or check your favorite library app.

[Carly Odonoghue · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have just finishing The Darathi Prnce: A Song of the Swords Novella by Tamari Etherton. This book can be read anywhere in the Song of the Sword series, but it does makes a great induction if you haven't read the Stones of Kaldaar or the Temple of Ardyn first. I can guarantee that if you haven't read them, once you've read this novella you will. And if you have read the above two books, The Darathi Prince will add more depth to the series.

This book is Prince Rhoane, First Son of the Eleri's story. He is exiled after the tragic death of his mother, Ashlinn and he must accept his fate and his oath of being promised to the Darennsai before she is born otherwise the prophecy of the future will not be fulfilled.

What I loved about this novella is two things 1. it gave me a better insight to Lliandra and all the heartache that she has encountered. I have a lot more sympathy for her now than I did reading book 1 & 2. And 2. The character development of Rhoane, we see him grow into the lovable character he is today but I am very intrigued about the last part of his dream that he had with a water dragon, will he really kill Taryn after he betrays her twice?

As with all of Tameri Ethertons books the writing is flawless while her creativity and imagination still amazes me with how in depth the series is, she will grab your attention from the start and you won't want to let go.

The only flaw I can find is that because Rhoane has his own story I now need to hear Valterys and Zadkeals story. These are stories I need to hear and now!

5 stars for this novella, I'd love to be able to give it more but I can't. Enjoy!

[Susanti · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Prince of Dragons (previously The Darathi Vorsi Prince) has become one of my favorite books! If you like fantasy with swords and dragons, this is the perfect book for you.

Rhoane is exiled from his own family and home to fulfill the oath he had taken when he was still very young. It's about a prophecy that only he and his mate who can save Aelinae. Rhoane shows disdain for the prophecy at first since he dislikes the idea of mating with a woman outside from his clan, but can't do anything about it.
He goes for every places to find his mate only to learn she hasn't been born. After some advices, requests and illusions, he realizes that he will do anything to make sure he will make the prophecy becomes true and he'll protect his mate until his last breath.

I give this book 5 stars because I really enjoy reading this and I like all the characters, but I have to admit I had a hard time memorizing the names, the places and the terms😂. Thanks to the Characters Guide and the Glossary of Terms you provide, I can finally know all the names and the terms. That's a huge bonus thumbs up from me .

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The promise made in childhood didn’t feel real to Rhoane so when the time came for him to honour it, he refused. But the ire of his goddess as well as his mother, and then the unexpected and tragic death of his mother meant Rhoane was immediately exiled from his people. Sent over the borders into other lands, Rhoane had to learn acceptance and strength. He also had to learn to control his anger and rage.

Rhoane’s journey was long and hard – his skills were such that he could better most, but with the temptations laid out in front of him, would he win his inner battles and let fate take its course?

The Darathi Vorsi Prince by Tameri Etherton is a novella which leads into the Song of the Swords adventure showing Rhoane as a youth and how he must mature quickly if he is to embrace his destiny. It’s a fast-paced fantasy story which I enjoyed – apart from the difficult-to-say names! For fans of the genre, I highly recommend you give this series a go – I’ll be reading #1 soon!

[Caprice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before the return of the savior/destroyer

I have read The Stones of Kaldaar and The Temple of Ardyn, and wondered what had taken place while the world was waiting for Taryn to be born. This is the book that explains what went on. It should be read before starting the other books in the series.

Tameri Etherton has done another wonderful job of bringing her world to life with this well written story. The characters are very well developed, and it's very easy to become attached to them. I had a very hard time putting the book down.

This series is a terrific read, and this particular book would be suitable for mid to late teens, but I recall that the rest of the series is geared more towards older teens and adults. If you love fantasy, you really should give this series a chance!

[Lillian Cummings · Rating 4 out of 5]

Your destiny awaits. Rhoane doesn't want to leave his home he wants to stay and help his people but this isn't his destiny. Too many are counting on him and his future life mate. He will become the man that he needs to and he will learn many hard lessons and at times he will want to give up but he knows that he will need to be strong to be able to save the kingdoms. But what if the gods got it wrong and he was never meant to save the kingdoms? The child will need to be hidden as many will want to make sure to kill her and Rhoane knows that he has waited all this time and he will wait until she is older to continue on his path. But will they be too late?
A good read.

[Rebecca Larsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Stars


A great novella that fills in the few gaps that were in 'The Stones of Kaldaar. The book explains more about the prophecy and Rhoane's place in it. It also explains more about how Rhoane came about some of his knowledge and skills that he shows later on.


A well wrote story with great character interaction. I highly recommend the entire series to everyone. I can't wait for more form this author.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won a copy of this book in a Goodreads giveaway.
This was an enjoyable story. It was a quick, easy read and a good introduction to the Song of the Swords series. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys fantasy tales. At times, I was confused with the unfamiliar terms and the characters but the glossary in the back helped a great deal in clarifying the relationships and marking the plot clearer. Makes me want to follow the story with the other books that follow.

[Chandra Fry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was a very lucky winner through Goodreads! I won both "The Darathi Vorsi Prince" and the "Stones of Kaldaar". I have to say that I am very impressed with this author. She draws you in and captivates you. I fell instantly in love with the characters and the world they live in! This is a must read! I can add this author to my "Fave Author" list. I look forward to reading more of her books!

[Belinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great quick read to get immersed into the beginnings of The Darathi Vorsi Prince, Rhoane, and everything that brings him to the book #1. For a novella, there was a great amount of Rhoane's history covered in the book (although I always want more when the book is this good!), well worth the money if you enjoy this series.

[C. Mercie M Crystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dragon prince...how long must he wait?

A prince is to born, that will then pave the way for his true love. Together they will save the 7 kingdoms, or destroy it in the process. But first the prince must come into his own, while waiting for his princess to be born. Easily read fantasy, that does, at times, leave you waning for more complexity.

[Tianne Shaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this from giveaways and found it a nice light book to start the series. For those who are GOT fans this does give little hints similar. Very easy read and possibly best read first if you had not started the series