What do you think?
Rate this book
Dragoneer Academy #1
Novice Dragoneer
In the first book in an exciting and charming new coming-of-age fantasy series from the author of the Age of Fire series, an impoverished girl enters into a military order of dragonriders, but her path won't be as easy or as straightforward as she expected.
Fourteen-year-old Ileth grew up in an orphanage, and thanks to her stutter was never thought to be destined for much beyond kitchen work and cleaning. But she's dreamed of serving with the dragons ever since a childhood meeting with a glittering silver dragon and its female dragoneer. For years she waits, and as soon as she is old enough to join, Ileth runs away to become a novice dragoneer at the ancient human-dragon fortress of the Serpentine.
While most of her fellow apprentices are from rich and influential families, Ileth must fight for her place in the world, even if it includes a duel with her boss at the fish-gutting table. She's then sent off to the dragon-dancers after a foolish kiss with a famously named boy and given charge of a sickly old dragon with a mysterious past. But she finds those trials were nothing when she has to take the place of a dead dragoneer and care for his imprisoned dragon in enemy lands. . . .
Fourteen-year-old Ileth grew up in an orphanage, and thanks to her stutter was never thought to be destined for much beyond kitchen work and cleaning. But she's dreamed of serving with the dragons ever since a childhood meeting with a glittering silver dragon and its female dragoneer. For years she waits, and as soon as she is old enough to join, Ileth runs away to become a novice dragoneer at the ancient human-dragon fortress of the Serpentine.
While most of her fellow apprentices are from rich and influential families, Ileth must fight for her place in the world, even if it includes a duel with her boss at the fish-gutting table. She's then sent off to the dragon-dancers after a foolish kiss with a famously named boy and given charge of a sickly old dragon with a mysterious past. But she finds those trials were nothing when she has to take the place of a dead dragoneer and care for his imprisoned dragon in enemy lands. . . .
644 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 5, 2019
143 people are currently reading
7782 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 285 reviews
January 26, 2020
Bloody hell, I loved this book!! I love Ileth so much and wish I was as strong as she is! I cried a bit too!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
November 14, 2019
ARC provided by the publisher (Ace Books) in exchange for an honest review.
Back in the summer, I had a mighty need for something light and above all, nostalgia-inspiring. Something that would give off the same general vibe as the books that first got me into fantasy. Then I saw this. It seemed absolutely perfect - dragons, magic schools, plucky underdog orphan girls, fuck yes, give me all of it. And it delivered on that. If I read this book when I was a kid aroung the time I read Eragon, I'd be singing it nostalgic praises to this day.
There is only one problem that keeps me from enthusiastically recommending it to everyone in sight. A rather large one. It's simply not that well-written.
In some ways, this is an age-old fantasy story. Ileth, an orphan with a severe stutter, becomes inspired to join dragon riders after one of them was kind to her as a child. Initially turned away from the academy for being an hour too late, she wins entrance through sheer determination and so her training can begin.
The first impression admittedly wasn't good. The writing was awkward, clunky, and graceless; the sentences overlong and oddly phrased. Take examples like "it was a device that she knew was a crossbow" or the opener (taken from the kindle preview):
That is, I started skimming hardcore.
As I went on, my relationship with the book kept swinging between love and hate. As I got used to the prose, a clumsily executed maybe-maybe-not sexual assault scene at about a third in (in which the 14 y/o protagonist is kissed/groped by an older guy, consent is ambigous, and she is then slut-shamed by everyone and punished by the head teacher for it because "a woman risks much more with this sort of debasement") nearly made me DNF. The plot was in general the saving grace, since it delivered what I came here for, but there were still plot twists and turns that made me go "well okay then" and opportunities to do something interesting wasted. For example, when some students complained that it's basically a labour camp and not a school I thought "oh this could go somewhere interesting," but then it never came up again. The rather mundane and slice of life approach to a magic school was wonderful, and the episodic plot arc made me think of The Name of the Wind, but there were so many flaws and plain bafflingly bad writing it was, at points, quite hard to go on.
It was doubly frustrating because I could clearly see the makings of a nostalgic masterpiece underneath and aspects of it were genuinely great. Ileth's stutter was handled incredibly well, and I liked how at the same time it was a deconstruction of magic schools (more shovelling dragon shit than glamour and glory...) and in general very downplayed yet still had the old-school nostalgic charm. I love how she initially fails quite a lot in very realistic ways - a small 14 y/o girl did, for once, not beat a man far larger and stronger than she just by the virtue of being the protagonist. She makes through everything eventually, but she's not a chosen one, or the top of her class, or in any way Special™. That is, neither the best nor the worst. Just determined. It was awfully refreshing to see.
It made me think: do the virtues of a book make up for its flaws? Or is it the other way around and flaws ruin what would otherwise be a great book? Or can both simply coexist side by side, near-independently? Because honestly, in a strange way, I would perhaps like to read on and continue with the sequel. If I don't find another book that scratches the same itch before.
Enjoyment: depending on the point in the book, anything, and probably averages out to 2.5/5 or 3/5
Execution: 2/5
Recommended to: those who want nostalgia distilled or are hungry for old school books, and can get past the awkward writing
Not recommended to: prose fans, those who prefer a traditional plot structure with a clear buildup and antagonist, content warning: loads upon loads of slut-shaming, probable sexual assault
More reviews on my blog, To Other Worlds.
Back in the summer, I had a mighty need for something light and above all, nostalgia-inspiring. Something that would give off the same general vibe as the books that first got me into fantasy. Then I saw this. It seemed absolutely perfect - dragons, magic schools, plucky underdog orphan girls, fuck yes, give me all of it. And it delivered on that. If I read this book when I was a kid aroung the time I read Eragon, I'd be singing it nostalgic praises to this day.
There is only one problem that keeps me from enthusiastically recommending it to everyone in sight. A rather large one. It's simply not that well-written.
In some ways, this is an age-old fantasy story. Ileth, an orphan with a severe stutter, becomes inspired to join dragon riders after one of them was kind to her as a child. Initially turned away from the academy for being an hour too late, she wins entrance through sheer determination and so her training can begin.
The first impression admittedly wasn't good. The writing was awkward, clunky, and graceless; the sentences overlong and oddly phrased. Take examples like "it was a device that she knew was a crossbow" or the opener (taken from the kindle preview):
The slight girl swinging an empty bucket hiked down the seaside ruts in the early morning, only her shadow, the sun, and the breeze keeping her company.I was here for dragons and fun, I wouldn't have minded plain prose. Not every book needs to be a poetic masterpiece. I was willing to forgive many sins as long as I got what I came here for - hell, I reread the first three books of Eragon in the summer, one of the most criticised fantasy series, and I was fine with it. But the point of windowpane prose is its unobtrusiveness, and the broken flow made this very obtrusive indeed. Still, after much complaining, I decided to persist. Eventually, I did get the hang of how to read it so that I could at least focus on the story.
That is, I started skimming hardcore.
As I went on, my relationship with the book kept swinging between love and hate. As I got used to the prose, a clumsily executed maybe-maybe-not sexual assault scene at about a third in (in which the 14 y/o protagonist is kissed/groped by an older guy, consent is ambigous, and she is then slut-shamed by everyone and punished by the head teacher for it because "a woman risks much more with this sort of debasement") nearly made me DNF. The plot was in general the saving grace, since it delivered what I came here for, but there were still plot twists and turns that made me go "well okay then" and opportunities to do something interesting wasted. For example, when some students complained that it's basically a labour camp and not a school I thought "oh this could go somewhere interesting," but then it never came up again. The rather mundane and slice of life approach to a magic school was wonderful, and the episodic plot arc made me think of The Name of the Wind, but there were so many flaws and plain bafflingly bad writing it was, at points, quite hard to go on.
It was doubly frustrating because I could clearly see the makings of a nostalgic masterpiece underneath and aspects of it were genuinely great. Ileth's stutter was handled incredibly well, and I liked how at the same time it was a deconstruction of magic schools (more shovelling dragon shit than glamour and glory...) and in general very downplayed yet still had the old-school nostalgic charm. I love how she initially fails quite a lot in very realistic ways - a small 14 y/o girl did, for once, not beat a man far larger and stronger than she just by the virtue of being the protagonist. She makes through everything eventually, but she's not a chosen one, or the top of her class, or in any way Special™. That is, neither the best nor the worst. Just determined. It was awfully refreshing to see.
It made me think: do the virtues of a book make up for its flaws? Or is it the other way around and flaws ruin what would otherwise be a great book? Or can both simply coexist side by side, near-independently? Because honestly, in a strange way, I would perhaps like to read on and continue with the sequel. If I don't find another book that scratches the same itch before.
Enjoyment: depending on the point in the book, anything, and probably averages out to 2.5/5 or 3/5
Execution: 2/5
Recommended to: those who want nostalgia distilled or are hungry for old school books, and can get past the awkward writing
Not recommended to: prose fans, those who prefer a traditional plot structure with a clear buildup and antagonist, content warning: loads upon loads of slut-shaming, probable sexual assault
More reviews on my blog, To Other Worlds.
November 7, 2019
Check out more reviews @ Perspective of a Writer...
The Buzz
Dragons always get me buzzing and I've read E.E. Knight in the past and remember enjoying his creativity when it came to dragons. I was excited this was for teen readers though because I was looking forward to a lighter writing style from him.
Love the title Novice Dragoneer! It brings to mind lances, war and dragons in flight! I like the cover art too. I love the dragon being the star and the lonely blue color. The girl and the mountain make it seem like this is a modern setting, which it isn't and muddies the graphic. It would have been better to stick with the dragon outline, something simple and graphical to draw us to the dragon.
The Premise
A military order of dragon riders where girls are welcome too! An orphan who has to bust a gut to stay at the academy and gets into all sorts of trouble and angst. I just loved all the ideas here. You don't really realize from the premise though... this is seriously medieval. Which isn't bad, dragons hale from medieval times and come on we're talking dragoneers (a rather old fashioned term) and fortresses. But since the word "academy" was used as part of the series title I expected a setting that was more fantasy than historical.
It didn't really feel like an academy at all. It felt more like a monks' order (very popular during medieval times!) Of course, there were other students of different levels but no regular classes and everyone was assigned a duty. There was tons and tons more world building though. These were just a few things out of step with what I expected. I enjoyed the partnership with the dragons and how they were accepted as a creature that was reasoning (i.e. on level with humans rather than animals).
Ileth was a grand character. She didn't feel 14 years old to me but I liked her nevertheless. She gets into diverse situations and stirs up trouble and I really liked that about her. She was someone who knew what she wanted and would do what she thought was right. I can certainly see her as someone any teen reader could and should emulate. And the Lodger is someone I loved and cried over and he totally stole my heart like he did Ileth's.
Despite some things I didn't enjoy Novice Dragoneer is set in a strong dragon world with a character I rooted for every step of the way. There are several secondary characters that populated the world and made every interaction with Ileth a joy.
My Experience
Soooo reading Novice Dragoneer wasn't perfect. I did quite enjoy how creative it is, as I said E.E. Knight has always impressed me with his ideas... However the writing left a lot to be desired.
Right away the pacing of the beginning was quite slow. The first chapter was soooooo long. Once it got going though the pacing didn't really improve. There was too much description and too many pages before something happened. And this pattern continues like this. It equals a lot of world building. You know what things look like, even rooms and little details that can be fun to visualize if you really want to know everything. However it slows the story down quite a bit.
I eventually started to skim the extreme description setup in each scene. It’s long and tedious. I wouldn’t suggest this to middle grade readers because of it though it’s not unreadable just too adult of writing. There is a lot of telling too but not middle grade and teen telling. It's a lot of excruciating detail of day to day happenings. Things that I didn't need to know in a teen dragon story. Like you could tell an old man wrote this as she goes off about digestive issues in a letter. A 14 year old isn’t likely to do that.
I did enjoy everything that happened to Ileth in Novice Dragoneer. Every one of her big events was intriguing and unexpected. I loved the twists and turns her time at the Serpentine took and all the different experiences we got to enjoy through her. I just wish this were truly written for a middle grade to teen reader.
Novice Dragoneer is crammed full of dragon world building. It's a touch exciting and a bit of a drag all at the same time. Ileth is a girl you'll be glad to meet and happy to follow anywhere, on any adventure, even if the odd bit is a little dull. She always makes up for it with adrenaline filled moments. 4⋆ for adult readers, 3⋆ for teen readers.
Adult Audience
⋆ ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Authenticity
⋆ ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Writing Style
⋆ ⋆ ⭐⭐⭐ Plot & Pacing
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ World Building
Teen Audience
⋆ ⋆ ⭐⭐⭐ Authenticity
⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⭐⭐ Writing Style
⋆ ⋆ ⭐⭐⭐ Plot & Pacing
⋆ ⋆ ⭐⭐⭐ World Building
B+ Cover & Title grade
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review. It has not influenced my opinions.
______________________
You can find this review and many others on my book blog @ Perspective of a Writer. Read my special perspective under the typewriter on my reviews...
Please like this review if you enjoyed it! *bow* *bow* It helps me out a ton!!
November 25, 2019
3.5 of 5 stars at The BiblioSantum https://bibliosanctum.com/2019/11/25/...
Novice Dragoneer feels like a book I’ve read before, in one incarnation or another. And if you’ve read a lot of coming-of-age fantasy, books feature magic or warrior schools, or stories about dragon riders, then there’s a good chance this is going to feel very familiar to you too. But that’s certainly not a criticism. I for one love a good adventure that has a bit of everything, and even with its more derivative elements, I found this novel delightfully entertaining.
Our story follows Ileth, a fourteen-year-old orphan who has always dreamed of soaring the skies as a dragon rider. Unfortunately, due to the small stature and stutter, nobody ever thought she would amount to much, and our protagonist often found herself relegated to the kitchens for serving or cleaning work.
But then one day, Ileth is given the chance of a lifetime. After gaining acceptance into the prestigious Dragoneer Academy, she spends the next few years training at the fortress and moving up the ranks. But due to her lowly status in a school mostly attended by cadets from rich and powerful families, it is an uphill battle for Ileth to prove she deserves to be a dragon rider as much as any of them. Trouble, however, keeps finding her, and soon in a political move she is sent to a neighboring kingdom as a dragon-dancer where she makes the acquaintance of an old but venerated dragon with a mysterious past.
All told then, there’s nothing earth-shattering or highly original in Novice Dragoneer, but boy, was it a lot of fun. I was especially enchanted by its early chapters in which we follow Ileth through her dragon rider training. As you know, I love a good fantasy school trope, and this book checks off all the right boxes. We have the scrappy underdog protagonist who is fighting for a coveted position against students who are more privileged, and I also love that the training scenes that involve the requisite unpleasant tasks that all lowly initiates must do as a rite of passage. All the typical roles you would expect were present, including the hard-ass instructors and nasty bullies. Like I said, this is the type of novel where you pretty much know what you’re getting into from the get-go, but nevertheless it offers up a fair amount of enjoyment.
Strangely enough, it was when the story started exploring new territory that it started losing me. Personally, I would have been perfectly happy with more time spent at the academy, but understandably the plot must move on, and so we entered into the later parts of the book that did not appeal to me as much. Pacing was something of an issue, as we experience a slight slump in the middle sections, but bottom line, where the plot saw Ileth dispatched to a foreign land simply was not as interesting to me as the drama in the school setting. That said, one major advantage this part of the story was that it had more dragons!
Speaking of which, hands down the dragons in this book were some of the best highlights. They talk, they fly their riders into battle, and they love to watch human females dance! The ones we get to meet are absolutely charming, and the book definitely picked up in the last third as the story shifts gears once more to follow Ileth as she embarks on a quest to help a dragon.
Indeed, the transitions in Novice Dragoneer are quite distinct. They follow our protagonist as she grows with each section of the novel, so while the early parts feel very Young Adult, by the end of the story we reach a point where adults might find more crossover appeal, since it explores some darker and more mature themes. I was happy with Ileth’s development, the way she grows not only physical but also mentally and in confidence. As she forges new friendships, her interactions with other characters also became more compelling.
All in all, I had a good time with Novice Dragoneer. It’s pretty standard as far as coming-of-age fantasy goes, featuring themes and tropes that won’t be anything new for the experienced genre reader, but it was a solidly enjoyable read in spite of that. Fans of magic school stories will especially take great pleasure in it, and while parts of the story ran overly long, E.E. Knight reined things back in and regained control before the meandering can get too out of hand. Most importantly, the plot and characters have my attention now, and I’ll be looking forward to the sequel.
Novice Dragoneer feels like a book I’ve read before, in one incarnation or another. And if you’ve read a lot of coming-of-age fantasy, books feature magic or warrior schools, or stories about dragon riders, then there’s a good chance this is going to feel very familiar to you too. But that’s certainly not a criticism. I for one love a good adventure that has a bit of everything, and even with its more derivative elements, I found this novel delightfully entertaining.
Our story follows Ileth, a fourteen-year-old orphan who has always dreamed of soaring the skies as a dragon rider. Unfortunately, due to the small stature and stutter, nobody ever thought she would amount to much, and our protagonist often found herself relegated to the kitchens for serving or cleaning work.
But then one day, Ileth is given the chance of a lifetime. After gaining acceptance into the prestigious Dragoneer Academy, she spends the next few years training at the fortress and moving up the ranks. But due to her lowly status in a school mostly attended by cadets from rich and powerful families, it is an uphill battle for Ileth to prove she deserves to be a dragon rider as much as any of them. Trouble, however, keeps finding her, and soon in a political move she is sent to a neighboring kingdom as a dragon-dancer where she makes the acquaintance of an old but venerated dragon with a mysterious past.
All told then, there’s nothing earth-shattering or highly original in Novice Dragoneer, but boy, was it a lot of fun. I was especially enchanted by its early chapters in which we follow Ileth through her dragon rider training. As you know, I love a good fantasy school trope, and this book checks off all the right boxes. We have the scrappy underdog protagonist who is fighting for a coveted position against students who are more privileged, and I also love that the training scenes that involve the requisite unpleasant tasks that all lowly initiates must do as a rite of passage. All the typical roles you would expect were present, including the hard-ass instructors and nasty bullies. Like I said, this is the type of novel where you pretty much know what you’re getting into from the get-go, but nevertheless it offers up a fair amount of enjoyment.
Strangely enough, it was when the story started exploring new territory that it started losing me. Personally, I would have been perfectly happy with more time spent at the academy, but understandably the plot must move on, and so we entered into the later parts of the book that did not appeal to me as much. Pacing was something of an issue, as we experience a slight slump in the middle sections, but bottom line, where the plot saw Ileth dispatched to a foreign land simply was not as interesting to me as the drama in the school setting. That said, one major advantage this part of the story was that it had more dragons!
Speaking of which, hands down the dragons in this book were some of the best highlights. They talk, they fly their riders into battle, and they love to watch human females dance! The ones we get to meet are absolutely charming, and the book definitely picked up in the last third as the story shifts gears once more to follow Ileth as she embarks on a quest to help a dragon.
Indeed, the transitions in Novice Dragoneer are quite distinct. They follow our protagonist as she grows with each section of the novel, so while the early parts feel very Young Adult, by the end of the story we reach a point where adults might find more crossover appeal, since it explores some darker and more mature themes. I was happy with Ileth’s development, the way she grows not only physical but also mentally and in confidence. As she forges new friendships, her interactions with other characters also became more compelling.
All in all, I had a good time with Novice Dragoneer. It’s pretty standard as far as coming-of-age fantasy goes, featuring themes and tropes that won’t be anything new for the experienced genre reader, but it was a solidly enjoyable read in spite of that. Fans of magic school stories will especially take great pleasure in it, and while parts of the story ran overly long, E.E. Knight reined things back in and regained control before the meandering can get too out of hand. Most importantly, the plot and characters have my attention now, and I’ll be looking forward to the sequel.
October 30, 2025
I flat out loved Novice Dragoneer! Novice Dragoneer is an extraordinarily vivid fantasy with amazing characters, outstanding world building and the enthralling ability to sweep the reader straight into Knights fantastical tale.
The story follows a young orphan girl who dreams of becoming a Dragoneer. Penniless, Ileth, embarks on a journey that will change the lives of all around her, including the dragons.
When this novel ended, the book hangover immediately issued leaving me bereft that the words ended and the reintroduction to reality must begin. This might be my first read by E. E. Knight, but it won’t be my last. And my solace, for now, E. E. Knight has 2 more fantasy series I can devour. In the meantime, I will be anxiously awaiting book 2 in the Dragoneer Academy series.
I received this ARC copy of Novice Dragoneer from Berkley Publishing Group - Ace. This is my honest and voluntary review. Novice Dragoneer is set for publication Nov 5, 2019.
My Rating: 5 stars
The story follows a young orphan girl who dreams of becoming a Dragoneer. Penniless, Ileth, embarks on a journey that will change the lives of all around her, including the dragons.
When this novel ended, the book hangover immediately issued leaving me bereft that the words ended and the reintroduction to reality must begin. This might be my first read by E. E. Knight, but it won’t be my last. And my solace, for now, E. E. Knight has 2 more fantasy series I can devour. In the meantime, I will be anxiously awaiting book 2 in the Dragoneer Academy series.
I received this ARC copy of Novice Dragoneer from Berkley Publishing Group - Ace. This is my honest and voluntary review. Novice Dragoneer is set for publication Nov 5, 2019.
My Rating: 5 stars
November 1, 2020
Thank you to Penguin Random House for the ARC!
This book has been an extremely great read. It
follows a fourteen-year-old orphaned girl with a stutter who dreams of becoming a dragoneer. I know some people would read that she has a stutter in the synopsis of the book and I'm begging ya'll don't let that get in the way of you reading this book. She doesn't have a constant stutter and its not even a big thing I think it's cute, to be honest. I feel like even if she did have a constant stutter it wouldn't ruin this book for me I mean its fantastic! It goes into depth with the storyline and I feel like this book is unique. All the characters are entirely different in terms of personalities and looks. Which I find is a nice change from a lot of books that always have similar characters. E. E. Knight did what he does best with this book and I'm beyond ecstatic to read the next one! I truly enjoyed Ileth's character as a main female lead and I enjoyed how she wasn't distracted by men and she kept her head focused on her goal rather than the book starting with a headstrong female lead that is going for her dreams and instead gets sidetracked by a guy and falls in love. This book kept me interested all the way through and to me never got boring! I like the world of the Vale Republic and the Galantine Lands I got so immersed in the world it was like I was there! E. E. Knight did a great job of describing everything without dragging it on and being overly descriptive. I can't wait to get my hands on the next book in this series and find out what happens next! If your looking for a book with dragons, action, diverse characters, a little bit of war politics, mixed with a small girl overcoming the disadvantages of her life to reach her dreams then this is the book for you! It is going to be released on November 5th if you want to grab a copy or pre-order yours today!
This book has been an extremely great read. It
follows a fourteen-year-old orphaned girl with a stutter who dreams of becoming a dragoneer. I know some people would read that she has a stutter in the synopsis of the book and I'm begging ya'll don't let that get in the way of you reading this book. She doesn't have a constant stutter and its not even a big thing I think it's cute, to be honest. I feel like even if she did have a constant stutter it wouldn't ruin this book for me I mean its fantastic! It goes into depth with the storyline and I feel like this book is unique. All the characters are entirely different in terms of personalities and looks. Which I find is a nice change from a lot of books that always have similar characters. E. E. Knight did what he does best with this book and I'm beyond ecstatic to read the next one! I truly enjoyed Ileth's character as a main female lead and I enjoyed how she wasn't distracted by men and she kept her head focused on her goal rather than the book starting with a headstrong female lead that is going for her dreams and instead gets sidetracked by a guy and falls in love. This book kept me interested all the way through and to me never got boring! I like the world of the Vale Republic and the Galantine Lands I got so immersed in the world it was like I was there! E. E. Knight did a great job of describing everything without dragging it on and being overly descriptive. I can't wait to get my hands on the next book in this series and find out what happens next! If your looking for a book with dragons, action, diverse characters, a little bit of war politics, mixed with a small girl overcoming the disadvantages of her life to reach her dreams then this is the book for you! It is going to be released on November 5th if you want to grab a copy or pre-order yours today!
October 12, 2019
I won this in a Goodreads giveaway. Very interesting and enjoyable read. I liked the main character a lot
November 6, 2019
Thank you so much Ace (Penguin Publishing Group) for providing me a free copy through Edelweiss in exchange of an honest review.
Where are the dragons?
CHARACTERS:
The main character, Ileth, starts as a rather naive young girl and although she matures quite a lot, she still retain some of that naïveté (which was both cute, because she saw the best in the people she met, and maddening, because when aforementioned niceness bit in the ass she didn’t learn the lesson, at the same time).
It was difficult to getting invested in them because their personalities were a bit too flat for my tastes and even if the main cast was colorful and well differentiated I couldn’t connect enough to care about their adventures and their troubles.
WORLD-BUILDING AND PLOT:
The plot was very slow, with multiple subplots that add some spice to the story.
The world building was a bit thin to my tastes: we are given just enough infos to not be stumbling in the dark and yet it feels like there was so much more that could’ve been said without risking to trigger the info dump.
Especially lacking was the dragon side of the story: for a book about dragon riders you would think there was going to be a lengthy explanation about how those creatures fit into that world (especially since they are the talking kind) and if there are different kinds and what their abilities are.
I like the tradition of dragon dancing (in which females perform complicated dances for the dragons), it was a nice touch and I was glad that such emotional art was given that kind of deep meaning.
WRITING:
The writing mostly smooth with well developed dialogues and straight to the point inner monologues. It did miss to deliver some gravitas in certain points which did hurt the overall narration quite a lot,
The pacing was a bit messy: too many lulls and parts that lacked to deliver the sense of urgency that the story required.
FINAL NOTE:
Extremely slow paced, multithreaded plot, “quiet” characters.
I wish the dragons did have a more center stage role.
Where are the dragons?
CHARACTERS:
The main character, Ileth, starts as a rather naive young girl and although she matures quite a lot, she still retain some of that naïveté (which was both cute, because she saw the best in the people she met, and maddening, because when aforementioned niceness bit in the ass she didn’t learn the lesson, at the same time).
It was difficult to getting invested in them because their personalities were a bit too flat for my tastes and even if the main cast was colorful and well differentiated I couldn’t connect enough to care about their adventures and their troubles.
WORLD-BUILDING AND PLOT:
The plot was very slow, with multiple subplots that add some spice to the story.
The world building was a bit thin to my tastes: we are given just enough infos to not be stumbling in the dark and yet it feels like there was so much more that could’ve been said without risking to trigger the info dump.
Especially lacking was the dragon side of the story: for a book about dragon riders you would think there was going to be a lengthy explanation about how those creatures fit into that world (especially since they are the talking kind) and if there are different kinds and what their abilities are.
I like the tradition of dragon dancing (in which females perform complicated dances for the dragons), it was a nice touch and I was glad that such emotional art was given that kind of deep meaning.
WRITING:
The writing mostly smooth with well developed dialogues and straight to the point inner monologues. It did miss to deliver some gravitas in certain points which did hurt the overall narration quite a lot,
The pacing was a bit messy: too many lulls and parts that lacked to deliver the sense of urgency that the story required.
FINAL NOTE:
Extremely slow paced, multithreaded plot, “quiet” characters.
I wish the dragons did have a more center stage role.
November 19, 2019
It’s safe to say that I’m obsessed with Novice Dragoneer. The dragons talk, the world has an intensely developed history, and the central character is the kind of badass hero I wanted to root for. Check out my four favorite things about this wonderfully done novel!
First and foremost: TALKING DRAGONS!
I realize there are probably hundreds of books out there featuring dragons who talk to humans. For some reason, I haven’t read much dragon fiction and man, do I love it! This is a world that reveres dragons and those who train to ride them. There’s a whole dragon culture underlying the history of mankind and it’s just fascinating to read through the eyes of a young protagonist who doesn’t know much of the world. We see the awe and excitement of joining this elite group of dragoneers. We see how wise and insightful dragons can be with each conversation and interaction. It’s an exciting ride, to say the least.
Second (and I was obsessed with this guy): the ancient, worldly wise dragon, known as the Lodger.
As I’ve said, I’m all about the dragons in Novice Dragoneer. They’re deeply developed characters with their own society and belief system that’s ingrained through centuries. The Lodger is introduced fairly early in the book and he’s a delight. Picture the most ancient being you can imagine and add a thousand years. Ileth forms a special bond with him, leaving her with a rare introduction to the dragon world. It’s like becoming best friends with Yoda and just casually getting to hear the history of the entire world. Yes, she’s cleaning wounds and feeding him enormous livers, but he’s just too worldly wise not to love.
Third: Ileth, a protagonist whose journey of growth inspires from start to finish.
Ileth makes the perfect focal point for our introduction to this fascinating world. She’s an orphan from meager beginnings who risks her life to get to the Serpentine and train as a dragoneer. From the start, things seem impossible for her, but she overcomes every hurdle. People try to bring her down but she says ‘nope, out of my way fools’ and gets the job done. I quickly became fully invested in her character and was excited to see her epic story progress.
And finally: the Serpentine itself.
Fantasy novels featuring schools and academies are plentiful, filled with teenage angst and drama. They can be quite predictable, though still a good time to be had. Novice Dragoneer goes beyond the formula, presenting a tough-as-nails fortress that treats rich and poor the same. Amenities at the Serpentine are few and far between, and a novice learns through hard, back-breaking work that weeds out those unwilling to toil for a future atop a dragon. Ileth meets more than her fair share of hardships and dirty jobs, all of which she takes head on with determination and grit. You can just feel the thousands of years of history with each action taken inside these ancient walls.
First and foremost: TALKING DRAGONS!
I realize there are probably hundreds of books out there featuring dragons who talk to humans. For some reason, I haven’t read much dragon fiction and man, do I love it! This is a world that reveres dragons and those who train to ride them. There’s a whole dragon culture underlying the history of mankind and it’s just fascinating to read through the eyes of a young protagonist who doesn’t know much of the world. We see the awe and excitement of joining this elite group of dragoneers. We see how wise and insightful dragons can be with each conversation and interaction. It’s an exciting ride, to say the least.
Second (and I was obsessed with this guy): the ancient, worldly wise dragon, known as the Lodger.
As I’ve said, I’m all about the dragons in Novice Dragoneer. They’re deeply developed characters with their own society and belief system that’s ingrained through centuries. The Lodger is introduced fairly early in the book and he’s a delight. Picture the most ancient being you can imagine and add a thousand years. Ileth forms a special bond with him, leaving her with a rare introduction to the dragon world. It’s like becoming best friends with Yoda and just casually getting to hear the history of the entire world. Yes, she’s cleaning wounds and feeding him enormous livers, but he’s just too worldly wise not to love.
Third: Ileth, a protagonist whose journey of growth inspires from start to finish.
Ileth makes the perfect focal point for our introduction to this fascinating world. She’s an orphan from meager beginnings who risks her life to get to the Serpentine and train as a dragoneer. From the start, things seem impossible for her, but she overcomes every hurdle. People try to bring her down but she says ‘nope, out of my way fools’ and gets the job done. I quickly became fully invested in her character and was excited to see her epic story progress.
And finally: the Serpentine itself.
Fantasy novels featuring schools and academies are plentiful, filled with teenage angst and drama. They can be quite predictable, though still a good time to be had. Novice Dragoneer goes beyond the formula, presenting a tough-as-nails fortress that treats rich and poor the same. Amenities at the Serpentine are few and far between, and a novice learns through hard, back-breaking work that weeds out those unwilling to toil for a future atop a dragon. Ileth meets more than her fair share of hardships and dirty jobs, all of which she takes head on with determination and grit. You can just feel the thousands of years of history with each action taken inside these ancient walls.
August 8, 2022
[FIRST TIME RATING AND REVIEW] 4,25⭐
Okay, I will admit, this rating has a little trust credit in it. "Novice Dragoneer" is written in absolutely astonishing way, from beautiful language, through amazing world-building to probably the best character development I have ever seen. This is not a next story about academic adventures of chosen one, absolutely - it's slow and leveling journey, where main character learns how to be confident and strong. There are no magical powers that makes her better, there are no prophecies nor plot twists that would put her higher than the rest of characters. No, there is just character development, the brilliant and touching one.
The trust credit is that unfortunately the language used here was really advanced. Astonishing, but hard to read for not-native speaker. I feel like I missed so many things because of it. Maybe I will come back to this story later, if it will ever be translated or when my language will be better. But this is the only "bad" thing I can say about "Novice Dragoneer". In every other aspect it is marvelous book and I adore it.
[SECOND TIME RATING AND REVIEW] 3,75–4⭐
I wasn't planning on rereading this book so soon (if you can name a year and a half "soon"), but everytime I looked upon my bookshelf it stared at me back. I absolutely didn't remember anything, besides that language in which it was written was... troubling.
Oh, and that there are dragons.
From the first reading I remembered feeling of enchantment. Not understanding what's happening, but feeling emotions behind the plot. So this time I put weight on focusing what am I reading and what's happening.
The story itself is still interesting, and Ileth's character development is something that makes the foundation of "Novice Dragoneer" solid. I very much liked that she is no chosen one, she does not have any awakened powers discovered during training nor happens to be a daughter of the Very Important Person™. She's there to be around dragons, and it doesn't matter what role she has to play to achieve thay. She accepts what fate gives her, and that's a great way to make her character.
The language is what made this adventure hard. Oh, how many times I wished it was translated into Polish, because gods dammit I really thought I would never get to an end. It's stylised and poignant, which aren't disadvantages, yet they are not helping, either. I don't think I will ever have strength in myself to go through this for the third time.
It's definitely a solid book about dragons, not the typical academy-type of fantasy – despite looking like one. Am I astonished like after the first time? Not really. Probably because I caught myself at remembering a lot more actions than I gave myself credit in the first place. Or perhaps because this story enchants only the new comers. But I'm pretty happy because of this reread, as now I can consciously talk about it.
Okay, I will admit, this rating has a little trust credit in it. "Novice Dragoneer" is written in absolutely astonishing way, from beautiful language, through amazing world-building to probably the best character development I have ever seen. This is not a next story about academic adventures of chosen one, absolutely - it's slow and leveling journey, where main character learns how to be confident and strong. There are no magical powers that makes her better, there are no prophecies nor plot twists that would put her higher than the rest of characters. No, there is just character development, the brilliant and touching one.
The trust credit is that unfortunately the language used here was really advanced. Astonishing, but hard to read for not-native speaker. I feel like I missed so many things because of it. Maybe I will come back to this story later, if it will ever be translated or when my language will be better. But this is the only "bad" thing I can say about "Novice Dragoneer". In every other aspect it is marvelous book and I adore it.
[SECOND TIME RATING AND REVIEW] 3,75–4⭐
I wasn't planning on rereading this book so soon (if you can name a year and a half "soon"), but everytime I looked upon my bookshelf it stared at me back. I absolutely didn't remember anything, besides that language in which it was written was... troubling.
Oh, and that there are dragons.
From the first reading I remembered feeling of enchantment. Not understanding what's happening, but feeling emotions behind the plot. So this time I put weight on focusing what am I reading and what's happening.
The story itself is still interesting, and Ileth's character development is something that makes the foundation of "Novice Dragoneer" solid. I very much liked that she is no chosen one, she does not have any awakened powers discovered during training nor happens to be a daughter of the Very Important Person™. She's there to be around dragons, and it doesn't matter what role she has to play to achieve thay. She accepts what fate gives her, and that's a great way to make her character.
The language is what made this adventure hard. Oh, how many times I wished it was translated into Polish, because gods dammit I really thought I would never get to an end. It's stylised and poignant, which aren't disadvantages, yet they are not helping, either. I don't think I will ever have strength in myself to go through this for the third time.
It's definitely a solid book about dragons, not the typical academy-type of fantasy – despite looking like one. Am I astonished like after the first time? Not really. Probably because I caught myself at remembering a lot more actions than I gave myself credit in the first place. Or perhaps because this story enchants only the new comers. But I'm pretty happy because of this reread, as now I can consciously talk about it.
December 7, 2019
DNF 10%
Никакой мидл-грейд с ведром воды и неудачной попыткой в чернуху.
Ну че, сбылись мои дурные предчувствия «прикидывает на глаз толщину кирпича в 512 страниц».
Посредственный миддл-грейд, в который бухнули ведро зубодробительной объясняловки. После Winterwood тутошний язык просто пздц. Автор как бэ пытается в грязное средневековье с превзмоганиями и эпическим становлением героини, но сюжета кот наплакал, героиня – одноногая собачка, драгонеры попахивают нафталиновым пафосом... А ведь это героиня еще даже в академию не попала.
Никакой мидл-грейд с ведром воды и неудачной попыткой в чернуху.
Ну че, сбылись мои дурные предчувствия «прикидывает на глаз толщину кирпича в 512 страниц».
Посредственный миддл-грейд, в который бухнули ведро зубодробительной объясняловки. После Winterwood тутошний язык просто пздц. Автор как бэ пытается в грязное средневековье с превзмоганиями и эпическим становлением героини, но сюжета кот наплакал, героиня – одноногая собачка, драгонеры попахивают нафталиновым пафосом... А ведь это героиня еще даже в академию не попала.
Read
January 30, 2021DNF’d at 25%
This was just incredibly sexist. Also it didn’t pass the Bechtel test, even with the main characters as women. So.
This was just incredibly sexist. Also it didn’t pass the Bechtel test, even with the main characters as women. So.
November 4, 2019
True Grit!
One thing I can say about Ileth is that she has determination, almost to the point of foolishness. Ileth is a Cinderella figure in her village with the emphasis on Cinders. She knows little but had work and nothing about kindness. As an orphan without a known paternal name and a person with a stutter, she's not only the butte of jokes, she's labeled as the daughter of a whore due to her affliction.
Having idolized dragons by the actual meeting with a dragon as a seven year old child, at fourteen Ileth leaves her village and journeys to the Serpentine gate at the Accademy, to put herself forward for training as a potential Dragoneer. She needed to arrive by Midsummer's Day. Her late arrival has her having to seek other means of being noticed. I did feel for her.
After this quite solid beginning, I was disappointed at the slower pace of the novel.
All Ileth wanted to do was become part of the Accademy. Unfortunately trouble kept finding her, but yet those challenges also took her into places she might never have gone. Ileth it seems is one of those people who's a lightning wand for disturbances, things just keeping happening to her. From her entering the dragon hold to becoming a dragon dancer and more, Ileth was never still.
Apart from Ileth's first encounter, dragons seemed to take forever to appear. When one did take up Ileth's time it was in a completely unsuspected way. I loved Lodger, the wise older dragon. The way he and Ileth bonded was natural and became something precious. Some thought dragons were more like pets, but a couple of small references made me discount that.
Ileth is an exceptional hero, made the more enjoyable for her straight thinking and hard headed northern ways. There were moments when I felt teary. The ending is perfect.
I look forward to seeing her future unfold.
A Berkley ARC via NetGalley
One thing I can say about Ileth is that she has determination, almost to the point of foolishness. Ileth is a Cinderella figure in her village with the emphasis on Cinders. She knows little but had work and nothing about kindness. As an orphan without a known paternal name and a person with a stutter, she's not only the butte of jokes, she's labeled as the daughter of a whore due to her affliction.
Having idolized dragons by the actual meeting with a dragon as a seven year old child, at fourteen Ileth leaves her village and journeys to the Serpentine gate at the Accademy, to put herself forward for training as a potential Dragoneer. She needed to arrive by Midsummer's Day. Her late arrival has her having to seek other means of being noticed. I did feel for her.
After this quite solid beginning, I was disappointed at the slower pace of the novel.
All Ileth wanted to do was become part of the Accademy. Unfortunately trouble kept finding her, but yet those challenges also took her into places she might never have gone. Ileth it seems is one of those people who's a lightning wand for disturbances, things just keeping happening to her. From her entering the dragon hold to becoming a dragon dancer and more, Ileth was never still.
Apart from Ileth's first encounter, dragons seemed to take forever to appear. When one did take up Ileth's time it was in a completely unsuspected way. I loved Lodger, the wise older dragon. The way he and Ileth bonded was natural and became something precious. Some thought dragons were more like pets, but a couple of small references made me discount that.
Ileth is an exceptional hero, made the more enjoyable for her straight thinking and hard headed northern ways. There were moments when I felt teary. The ending is perfect.
I look forward to seeing her future unfold.
A Berkley ARC via NetGalley
October 3, 2022
I loved this!!! I loved the setting, the plot, the characters, everything!! Looking forward to reading the sequel!
August 21, 2021
This was just okay.
While I liked the main character, there were enough irritating things about her to put me on the fence about continuing to read more of the series.
It often felt like this wasn't a cohesive story, but a novel made up of smaller short stories that were joined together to appear cohesive. There were a few minor discrepancies that might be explained if this is truly what happened. Either way, it felt like Ileth never really learned anything about her own behavior. She would repeat the same mistakes without any indication that she realized what the consequences might be. And there always seemed to be a miraculous coincidence in the wings to bail her out of trouble should it get too close.
I found these things irritating enough that I probably won't continue the series. If I do, it'll only be borrowing the remainder through the library, as I think I'd kick myself for buying these.
2 out of 5 stars.
While I liked the main character, there were enough irritating things about her to put me on the fence about continuing to read more of the series.
It often felt like this wasn't a cohesive story, but a novel made up of smaller short stories that were joined together to appear cohesive. There were a few minor discrepancies that might be explained if this is truly what happened. Either way, it felt like Ileth never really learned anything about her own behavior. She would repeat the same mistakes without any indication that she realized what the consequences might be. And there always seemed to be a miraculous coincidence in the wings to bail her out of trouble should it get too close.
I found these things irritating enough that I probably won't continue the series. If I do, it'll only be borrowing the remainder through the library, as I think I'd kick myself for buying these.
2 out of 5 stars.
May 26, 2025
Note: Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC
I found it very slow-paced and not the good kind. For a book this size, I wouldn't mind spending time reading about the world building and/or the development of the characters if it was written in a way that I find enjoyable. I didn't care for most of the characters and to be honest, I can't even remember most of them even when I was reading the book. I did enjoy the times Ileth spent interacting with the dragons but overall, it was a frustrating read.
Unfortunately, I won't be continuing with the series.
BLOG | INSTAGRAM
I found it very slow-paced and not the good kind. For a book this size, I wouldn't mind spending time reading about the world building and/or the development of the characters if it was written in a way that I find enjoyable. I didn't care for most of the characters and to be honest, I can't even remember most of them even when I was reading the book. I did enjoy the times Ileth spent interacting with the dragons but overall, it was a frustrating read.
Unfortunately, I won't be continuing with the series.
BLOG | INSTAGRAM
November 16, 2019
There are stories, and then there are Stories. Tales full of action, adventure, heroes, and villains. Add in Dragons and you have yourself perfection in print. This is one of those fine and rare examples that will keep you up late into the night reading and dreaming of great dragon filled adventures.
July 19, 2024
The Novice Dragoneer is your average dragon-riding academy novel (minus the dragons and the classes) rife with misogyny, ableism, and choppy prose. Unfortunately, it is unlikely that I will continue this series, nor will I be compelled to pick up another book by E.E. Knight any time soon, but to each their own. If you are interested in this one, read the Goodreads synopsis instead, it covers about 75% of the plot.
CW: misogyny, sexism, ableism, racism, mentions of SA, dubious consent, slut-shaming, fatphobia
RECOMMENDATION: While this is not my cup of tea, and you may need more determination than Ileth to make it through, I would recommend this series to anyone who would enjoy reading about a girl who overcomes literally all odds (her disability; her gender; the circumstances of her birth; the demonization of sex work- I mean, dragon dancing; etc.) to achieve her dreams.
THE GOOD:
● Ileth was a strong, female character, who was interesting enough to fail time and time again and keep pushing through. If she were in literally any other book, I bet she would become a favorite of mine.
● The story was fine enough to keep me entertained, and most of the conflicts were resolved by the end. The ending had a twist I did not see coming, but I have not read the original series, nor was I aware it existed at the time. Overall, it satisfied an itch for something familiar, as long as you can look past some of the gross, sexist bits.
THE BAD:
● As soon as I started reading, the prose stuttered my reading to crawl. It was choppy, with too many commas and/or short sentences. It took a few chapters to get acquainted with it, but I stopped noticing it eventually.
● I said it before, and I’ll say it again: the misogyny in this novel is heavy-handed and completely over the top. Ileth’s character faces so many conflicts that knock her down that using a systemic one to force her down over and over felt unnecessary, cliché, and really antiquated. This is a world where dragons exist, why is it so unbelievable that sexism does not need to? Even the dragons themselves are sexist! Also, if this society hates women so much, why did they let them into the dragoneer academy in the first place?
● The villains of the story were so easy to pick out, as they were the most ableist, misogynistic, and predatory. At one point, another country is introduced only to be MORE misogynistic just to prove that the original is not that bad.
● At one point, Ileth was nearly taken advantage of by an older novice and is punished for it by being reassigned to a job where she was told that she was more likely to be taken advantage of by even older men. I did not quite understand the thought process here. (Also, the purity culture is nasty and outdated too.)
● I think the humor was lost on me, and I am worried that I am growing out of the Young Adult genre. Was that whole page explanation about maintaining regular bowel movements supposed to be funny?
● Finally, where were the dragons?? For being a book about a dragon riding academy, there is barely any training or dragon riding. Sometimes, classes are mentioned, but Ileth never seems to have time for them. She’s too busy working or doing chores or accidentally ending up in another mess that was not her fault or, worst of all, being preyed upon by just about any male character that happens to show up at the time. Why did they all have to be so creepy?
Also, did anyone happen to read the author’s afterword? Lol.
CW: misogyny, sexism, ableism, racism, mentions of SA, dubious consent, slut-shaming, fatphobia
RECOMMENDATION: While this is not my cup of tea, and you may need more determination than Ileth to make it through, I would recommend this series to anyone who would enjoy reading about a girl who overcomes literally all odds (her disability; her gender; the circumstances of her birth; the demonization of sex work- I mean, dragon dancing; etc.) to achieve her dreams.
THE GOOD:
● Ileth was a strong, female character, who was interesting enough to fail time and time again and keep pushing through. If she were in literally any other book, I bet she would become a favorite of mine.
● The story was fine enough to keep me entertained, and most of the conflicts were resolved by the end. The ending had a twist I did not see coming, but I have not read the original series, nor was I aware it existed at the time. Overall, it satisfied an itch for something familiar, as long as you can look past some of the gross, sexist bits.
THE BAD:
● As soon as I started reading, the prose stuttered my reading to crawl. It was choppy, with too many commas and/or short sentences. It took a few chapters to get acquainted with it, but I stopped noticing it eventually.
● I said it before, and I’ll say it again: the misogyny in this novel is heavy-handed and completely over the top. Ileth’s character faces so many conflicts that knock her down that using a systemic one to force her down over and over felt unnecessary, cliché, and really antiquated. This is a world where dragons exist, why is it so unbelievable that sexism does not need to? Even the dragons themselves are sexist! Also, if this society hates women so much, why did they let them into the dragoneer academy in the first place?
● The villains of the story were so easy to pick out, as they were the most ableist, misogynistic, and predatory. At one point, another country is introduced only to be MORE misogynistic just to prove that the original is not that bad.
● At one point, Ileth was nearly taken advantage of by an older novice and is punished for it by being reassigned to a job where she was told that she was more likely to be taken advantage of by even older men. I did not quite understand the thought process here. (Also, the purity culture is nasty and outdated too.)
● I think the humor was lost on me, and I am worried that I am growing out of the Young Adult genre. Was that whole page explanation about maintaining regular bowel movements supposed to be funny?
● Finally, where were the dragons?? For being a book about a dragon riding academy, there is barely any training or dragon riding. Sometimes, classes are mentioned, but Ileth never seems to have time for them. She’s too busy working or doing chores or accidentally ending up in another mess that was not her fault or, worst of all, being preyed upon by just about any male character that happens to show up at the time. Why did they all have to be so creepy?
Also, did anyone happen to read the author’s afterword? Lol.
November 23, 2019
I can't resist boarding schools when magic or paranormal stuff is involved. I barely read YA these days, but an academy where people learn to ride dragons seemed so intriguing! Ileth made for a sympathetic heroine with her stutter, her past as an orphan, and her determination. There were a lot of side characters, so I sometimes got a bit confused as to who was who, particularly Yael Duskirk and Hael Hun Duss. The plot got a bit confusing after a while. It switched from following a girl trying to make it through her first days at school to imprisonment, to stolen dragon eggs. And it was all written in a very slow, overly descriptive, convolluded manner. Ileth kept me reading, as I wanted to see how she ended up at the end of this novel. I didn't hate it, but I did struggle with this book. I even contemplated quitting a couple times. Despite my mixed feelings, I'm glad I stuck it out. The world of the dragons was interesting, there was a scene that made me super emotional, and the heroine was someone I rooted for.
August 2, 2019
What an amazing story! I literally couldn't put this book down as I had to find out what happens to Ilith, the main character. Compelling story, great characters and dragons, what more could you want? I have to admit I was surprised that the author was male. He did an amazing job of writing a 14 year old girl. I loved Ilith, her courage and her perseverance in the face of obstacles. And what a great message, to keep going no matter what and you can overcome anything. My only small criticism is in the second part of the book. Way too much description of customs etc. of the new country. I admit I skipped over a lot of it. I hope we will get more of Ilith in the future. Highly recommended.
September 2, 2021
I won this through a Goodreads giveaway. I love the depiction of dragons in this story. The character of Illeth was likable and I love the school setting. Although it took a while to get to actual dragons, it was very enjoyable. I'm looking forward to reading the sequel.
May 7, 2023
I was very excited to start this series after finishing Age of Fire, and while it wasn't exactly what I was expecting after coming off of AoF, I still found it to a very good book, even though it didn't really scratch an itch that I had going into it.
Set in the world of Age of Fire but 1000 years in the future, I was super curious to see how much of that world that I've grown to love so much from AoF remained. And the answer is... well, not [i] that [/i] much. Granted, we're talking about a time jump off 1000 years, things are certainly going to be different - new nations rose, humanity triumphed above other races (dwarves, elves, blighters, etc, seemed to have been lost to history), new politics came to be (a republic was formed for one thing, compared to monarchies) and things got a little bit more modern. The world does retain some of the terms (and now mythos) from AoF, such as the mention of Hypatia and such, but what I was kinda disappointed by was the fact that, while the world building here was decent, it was nowhere near the amazing level that it was in AoF. The world still felt rich, but the world building was done in a much more subdued way. And I think that's in part because this book was way more character focused than Age of Fire.
Which brings me to my next point - the main character, Ileth, is a human girl, not a dragon, unlike in the previous series. Of course, I would've preferred a dragon POV again, but despite that, I really liked Ileth. She is a great female character that grew throughout the story and was well developed and distinct from others. I quite enjoyed reading about her ascent from an orphan to someone of importance at the academy.
Speaking of characters, throughout the whole book, I was very giddy to see how many of the dragons from AoF still remained a part of the world. I was scouring the book for every single detail that could tell me more about what happened to the AuRon, Wistala or the Copper during the 1000 years. Alas, I didn't get what I was hoping for, and most of the age of dragons from AoF lives on in mythos, history and maxims.
That being said, there were a few details that I found very interesting, like the very specific name of a certain young, scaleless gray dragon called Aurue, or the random name drop of a female green dragon called Jizara, which was very intriguing, because I was not expecting such a rare name (due to the unfortunate circumstances that befell those who previously held that name in AoF... :c) to make an appearance in the story, after, most certainly, being lost to history for 1000 years, unless Wistala decided to keep the name going. However, my favorite call back to AoF was certainly Lodger. Despite his real name never being mentioned, his very specific red/orange coloration with black, tiger-like stripes had me nearly shouting "I KNOW WHO THAT IS, I RECOGNIZE HIM!" I was so happy to see such a direct reference to Age of Fire in this book, I just wished he had more exposition and more place in the story to allow us to at least learn a little bit of what went on in the span of a 1000 years for our favorite Sadda Vale resident. I'm very hopeful that his story and the stories of other great characters from AoF get further expanded upon in book two.
As for the plot, it was pretty good. The one issue that this book fixed that was heavily prevalent in Age of Fire is the pacing. Compared to the breakneck speed at which certain events would happen in AoF (especially towards the end of the books...), this one felt the exact opposite - the plot was slow, VERY slow at times. And honestly, I much preferred it. It wasn't the most intriguing or interesting plot that I've ever read, it didn't have any real twists or terribly exciting moments, but it was engaging and fun to read, and progressed and developed the characters quite nicely.
All in all, I went into this book expecting a lot more Age of Fire than I've gotten, which was a little disappointing, but I've learned to accept while reading that this is a start to a new series, with a much different world compared to what I read before, and a different focus on storytelling that was much more character heavy. I wish there was more of that fantastic world building that I've grown to love, and more callbacks to the dragons and plot threads from AoF, but again, this simply isn't AoF, and that's completely fine. It didn't quite scratch the itch that I had, but it was still a very pleasant and enjoyable read, and I remain hopeful that the next book in the series will scratch that itch for me.
If you loved Age of Fire and are looking to dive back into that world with this series, just be aware that it isn't nearly as much of a "dive back in" as you'd probably hope for it to be, but a great book it is, nonetheless.
Set in the world of Age of Fire but 1000 years in the future, I was super curious to see how much of that world that I've grown to love so much from AoF remained. And the answer is... well, not [i] that [/i] much. Granted, we're talking about a time jump off 1000 years, things are certainly going to be different - new nations rose, humanity triumphed above other races (dwarves, elves, blighters, etc, seemed to have been lost to history), new politics came to be (a republic was formed for one thing, compared to monarchies) and things got a little bit more modern. The world does retain some of the terms (and now mythos) from AoF, such as the mention of Hypatia and such, but what I was kinda disappointed by was the fact that, while the world building here was decent, it was nowhere near the amazing level that it was in AoF. The world still felt rich, but the world building was done in a much more subdued way. And I think that's in part because this book was way more character focused than Age of Fire.
Which brings me to my next point - the main character, Ileth, is a human girl, not a dragon, unlike in the previous series. Of course, I would've preferred a dragon POV again, but despite that, I really liked Ileth. She is a great female character that grew throughout the story and was well developed and distinct from others. I quite enjoyed reading about her ascent from an orphan to someone of importance at the academy.
Speaking of characters, throughout the whole book, I was very giddy to see how many of the dragons from AoF still remained a part of the world. I was scouring the book for every single detail that could tell me more about what happened to the AuRon, Wistala or the Copper during the 1000 years. Alas, I didn't get what I was hoping for, and most of the age of dragons from AoF lives on in mythos, history and maxims.
That being said, there were a few details that I found very interesting, like the very specific name of a certain young, scaleless gray dragon called Aurue, or the random name drop of a female green dragon called Jizara, which was very intriguing, because I was not expecting such a rare name (due to the unfortunate circumstances that befell those who previously held that name in AoF... :c) to make an appearance in the story, after, most certainly, being lost to history for 1000 years, unless Wistala decided to keep the name going. However, my favorite call back to AoF was certainly Lodger. Despite his real name never being mentioned, his very specific red/orange coloration with black, tiger-like stripes had me nearly shouting "I KNOW WHO THAT IS, I RECOGNIZE HIM!" I was so happy to see such a direct reference to Age of Fire in this book, I just wished he had more exposition and more place in the story to allow us to at least learn a little bit of what went on in the span of a 1000 years for our favorite Sadda Vale resident. I'm very hopeful that his story and the stories of other great characters from AoF get further expanded upon in book two.
As for the plot, it was pretty good. The one issue that this book fixed that was heavily prevalent in Age of Fire is the pacing. Compared to the breakneck speed at which certain events would happen in AoF (especially towards the end of the books...), this one felt the exact opposite - the plot was slow, VERY slow at times. And honestly, I much preferred it. It wasn't the most intriguing or interesting plot that I've ever read, it didn't have any real twists or terribly exciting moments, but it was engaging and fun to read, and progressed and developed the characters quite nicely.
All in all, I went into this book expecting a lot more Age of Fire than I've gotten, which was a little disappointing, but I've learned to accept while reading that this is a start to a new series, with a much different world compared to what I read before, and a different focus on storytelling that was much more character heavy. I wish there was more of that fantastic world building that I've grown to love, and more callbacks to the dragons and plot threads from AoF, but again, this simply isn't AoF, and that's completely fine. It didn't quite scratch the itch that I had, but it was still a very pleasant and enjoyable read, and I remain hopeful that the next book in the series will scratch that itch for me.
If you loved Age of Fire and are looking to dive back into that world with this series, just be aware that it isn't nearly as much of a "dive back in" as you'd probably hope for it to be, but a great book it is, nonetheless.
November 14, 2019
I really, really enjoyed this book!
This is the first book in what I dearly hope is a new series. Ileth lives in what amounts to an orphanage when we first meet her, although it is stated she is NOT actually an orphan.
At age seven, she meets a dragoneer and her dragon. At fourteen she runs away to apply to the Dragon Academy. She arrives on the correct day, unfortunately after the gates had closed for the night. The annual posted Academy call for recruits, regrettably, had not included the time of day at which the front gates were locked. Oh, Ileth!
She grew up in poverty but certainly with honor intact. I so enjoyed her Novice adventures and cannot wait until I can read about her Apprentice adventures!
Highly recommended for all dragon lovers and character-driven fantasy fans!
This is the first book in what I dearly hope is a new series. Ileth lives in what amounts to an orphanage when we first meet her, although it is stated she is NOT actually an orphan.
At age seven, she meets a dragoneer and her dragon. At fourteen she runs away to apply to the Dragon Academy. She arrives on the correct day, unfortunately after the gates had closed for the night. The annual posted Academy call for recruits, regrettably, had not included the time of day at which the front gates were locked. Oh, Ileth!
She grew up in poverty but certainly with honor intact. I so enjoyed her Novice adventures and cannot wait until I can read about her Apprentice adventures!
Highly recommended for all dragon lovers and character-driven fantasy fans!
January 6, 2021
A fairly good book. Besides being obsessed with most of the fantasy genre, Ive never acquired the taste of books that contains dragons in it but A dragoneer Academy did dragon related books justice. My favorite aspect of the novel is in its lack of romance, although the aquantaince formed between Ileth and astler tugged at my heartstrings.
Whenever reaching the end of a book in a series not yet completed, I'm always left feeling lost. There are so many questions and excitement for the next installation like who Illeths father is and how the war with the Gallantines might transpire soon and Illeths progression to wingman and who will choose her once she becomes a dragoneer and plenty of other things. I hope we get the new installment very soon
Whenever reaching the end of a book in a series not yet completed, I'm always left feeling lost. There are so many questions and excitement for the next installation like who Illeths father is and how the war with the Gallantines might transpire soon and Illeths progression to wingman and who will choose her once she becomes a dragoneer and plenty of other things. I hope we get the new installment very soon
December 23, 2019
Do you need talking dragons? Dragon riders? DRAGONS?!
This is a book on dragons, with dragons, and has dragon riders. Despite there not being enough dragons in the first third of the book, the story moved quite quickly into the realm of dragons. Ileth, despite not having much development at first, does develop alongside the other dragons. The Lodger turned out to be one of my favorites and I wish there had been more time for his and Ileth’s relationship. If you’re looking for dragons, look no further than Novice Dragoneer.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This is a book on dragons, with dragons, and has dragon riders. Despite there not being enough dragons in the first third of the book, the story moved quite quickly into the realm of dragons. Ileth, despite not having much development at first, does develop alongside the other dragons. The Lodger turned out to be one of my favorites and I wish there had been more time for his and Ileth’s relationship. If you’re looking for dragons, look no further than Novice Dragoneer.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
November 13, 2019
I can't wait for the next book to come out! A lot of questions were left answered, and I imagine those will be answered in the next book or two.
I was surprised how attached I got to the characters. One of the events that happened actually made me tear up, which is uncommon for me. There are only one or two characters that are completely bad, so when characters who were both good and bad did something bad, it hurt my heart.
My only problem with the book is that there was so much exposition and definition of world-specific terms that it made the beginning of the book a slog for me.
I was surprised how attached I got to the characters. One of the events that happened actually made me tear up, which is uncommon for me. There are only one or two characters that are completely bad, so when characters who were both good and bad did something bad, it hurt my heart.
My only problem with the book is that there was so much exposition and definition of world-specific terms that it made the beginning of the book a slog for me.
February 28, 2022
I liked this. It was cute and light. The protagonist is very naive and innocent to a frustrating level at times, but overall she was enjoyable to follow. I think too much happened in this book and it covered too much time without giving any of the events enough time to really flush out. This caused the pacing to feel off and fast and left me wishing that the author would have gone into more detail on some of the aspects of the world building and the supporting characters. Other than the pacing this was great would have been 5 stars.
November 15, 2019
This book was pretty incredible, and one of the few kinda dense fantasy books, though not in a traditional way, per say, but that there's 19 chapters and 500 pages. You do the math! Really great read, I can't wait to see where this series goes!
June 17, 2020
3.5 stars
Displaying 1 - 30 of 285 reviews