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Rise of the Dragons #1
Awakening
She wants a quiet life. Then they kidnap her friend. Can she survive an encounter with a cult and a dragon or will it end in fire and blood?
Amethyst is a half-dwarf jeweler and weaponsmith who just wants to improve sales in her shop in a popular Cardiff arcade. When her best friend gets kidnapped, she's dragged into a world of cults and dragons. Not to mention hate at first sight with an arrogant elf. Who wants a quiet life!
Gemma loves creating worlds and writes both urban fantasy and children's books. This is her debut urban fantasy series set in Cardiff.
Note: this is in UK English
Amethyst is a half-dwarf jeweler and weaponsmith who just wants to improve sales in her shop in a popular Cardiff arcade. When her best friend gets kidnapped, she's dragged into a world of cults and dragons. Not to mention hate at first sight with an arrogant elf. Who wants a quiet life!
Gemma loves creating worlds and writes both urban fantasy and children's books. This is her debut urban fantasy series set in Cardiff.
Note: this is in UK English
179 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 15, 2021
116 people are currently reading
608 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
November 5, 2021
2.5
I liked the idea of this book. You don’t see a lot of female half-dwarves. Fae, faeries, witches, vampires—pretty willowy things, sure—but not often dwarves. And that appealed to me. I like the idea of trying to stop a crazy cult from bringing dangerous dragons back into the world. I like that the book was set in Cardiff. I like it.
But the whole thing is disastrously let down by the execution. Nothing is developed, there is no tension. The writing is perfectly readable (and fairly well edited), but such that the whole book just feels like a recitation of events with no emotions. I felt no attachment to anyone or investment in the drama. Things just happened. Meh.
I will compliment the cover though. I often complain that the characters on covers don’t match the character in the book. I can’t say that here. The cover feels very much like Amethyst. The narrative makes a big deal of her big boobs in the beginning of the book, and I wouldn’t say that cover character is busty (a detail I’m happy to skip, but I mention because it was made such a point of in the book). But other than that, it feels pretty dead on.
All in all, I’m calling this a failure for me. But I think I might be willing to give Clatworthy another chance in the future. There is potential here.
I liked the idea of this book. You don’t see a lot of female half-dwarves. Fae, faeries, witches, vampires—pretty willowy things, sure—but not often dwarves. And that appealed to me. I like the idea of trying to stop a crazy cult from bringing dangerous dragons back into the world. I like that the book was set in Cardiff. I like it.
But the whole thing is disastrously let down by the execution. Nothing is developed, there is no tension. The writing is perfectly readable (and fairly well edited), but such that the whole book just feels like a recitation of events with no emotions. I felt no attachment to anyone or investment in the drama. Things just happened. Meh.
I will compliment the cover though. I often complain that the characters on covers don’t match the character in the book. I can’t say that here. The cover feels very much like Amethyst. The narrative makes a big deal of her big boobs in the beginning of the book, and I wouldn’t say that cover character is busty (a detail I’m happy to skip, but I mention because it was made such a point of in the book). But other than that, it feels pretty dead on.
All in all, I’m calling this a failure for me. But I think I might be willing to give Clatworthy another chance in the future. There is potential here.
May 23, 2023
A great book
I loved the FMC she was alive and quirky. All the characters were well described and totally came alive in my head as I was reading. Good story too.
I loved the FMC she was alive and quirky. All the characters were well described and totally came alive in my head as I was reading. Good story too.
April 30, 2022
Sorry team I couldn’t get into this book.
The audio was a little odd I couldn’t really tell the difference between voices.
I can’t see me continuing this series.
2 stars
The audio was a little odd I couldn’t really tell the difference between voices.
I can’t see me continuing this series.
2 stars
February 4, 2022
I really liked the premise of this book. The characters are interesting and well described, and the writing is descriptive, but I found it lacked some tension . It is not a bad book by any means but such a good idea needed something a bit extra special. I understand from the notes this is a relatively new author and she shows definite promise. The narration is good easy to listen to, however the narrator had a problem with the accents, some characters kept losing their Welsh accent and a 'broad' Scottish character had no accent at all. Still I found this a worth while listen and a 3.5 star book that I have rounded up as it is better than a 3 star book. I received a complimentary copy from the narrator and am leaving a honest voluntary review
August 6, 2022
Excellent novel!
I recommend to anyone who likes urban fantasy. I was frequently interrupted while reading it, but it was easy to get back into the flow when I got back to it. Good plot. I like the FMC, and the other characters are interesting too. The professor is delightful. I was glad to see there are more in the series.
I recommend to anyone who likes urban fantasy. I was frequently interrupted while reading it, but it was easy to get back into the flow when I got back to it. Good plot. I like the FMC, and the other characters are interesting too. The professor is delightful. I was glad to see there are more in the series.
May 17, 2021
Dragons, elves and dwarfs in a race against time
A really fun, interesting read that I devoured in a couple of days. I can’t wait to read the next one in the series to find out what happens next!
A really fun, interesting read that I devoured in a couple of days. I can’t wait to read the next one in the series to find out what happens next!
August 26, 2022
This was a fun read! All sorts of magical beings (Dwarves, Elves, Gnomes, etc) set in a modern environment. The author does a good job with the world building and character development. The storyline was great and kept me turning the pages. I’ve bought the next two books in the series.
March 24, 2022
Pretty decent
Enjoyed the story and plot. A touch heavy on reinforcing the female touches. Quite enjoyable though and definitely intrigued me to read the second.
Enjoyed the story and plot. A touch heavy on reinforcing the female touches. Quite enjoyable though and definitely intrigued me to read the second.
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June 10, 2023Hi everyone! I'm super excited about this book - it's the first full length novel I wrote and I had tons of fun mixing the magical with the mundane in a irreverent way.
The Rise of the Dragons series is mainly set in Cardiff, a city close to my heart and I got the idea for the novel from a Dungeons & Dragons session where a close friend played a barbarian character who just grew in my head to this half-dwarf whose motto is 'Don't even worry about it!'.
Plus I had to put in a slow burn romance with a certain arrogant elf and that was so satisfying to take from first meeting to...well I don't want to spoil it but there is a wedding in book 6!
Can't wait to hear what you think of this one!
The Rise of the Dragons series is mainly set in Cardiff, a city close to my heart and I got the idea for the novel from a Dungeons & Dragons session where a close friend played a barbarian character who just grew in my head to this half-dwarf whose motto is 'Don't even worry about it!'.
Plus I had to put in a slow burn romance with a certain arrogant elf and that was so satisfying to take from first meeting to...well I don't want to spoil it but there is a wedding in book 6!
Can't wait to hear what you think of this one!
February 2, 2024
A Good Start, but....
This was a good starts to a new series, but there were a couple of sticking points that prevented it from being a 4* book.
Firstly, there was the FMC's mad search for vegan food to make for the elf's breakfast, then she fed him an omelette.
Eggs come from animals (obviously), and are definitely not vegan.
Secondly, the author's persistent use of "Spring Solstice". There's no such thing.
Solstices are the longest and shortest days of the year, while equinoxes occur when the day and night are of equal length.
The term that should have been used is "Vernal (or Spring) Equinox".
Other than that, it was an OK story and I'll read the next in the series, if only to see where she gets the vegan eggs from. 🤷🏻♀️
This was a good starts to a new series, but there were a couple of sticking points that prevented it from being a 4* book.
Firstly, there was the FMC's mad search for vegan food to make for the elf's breakfast, then she fed him an omelette.
Eggs come from animals (obviously), and are definitely not vegan.
Secondly, the author's persistent use of "Spring Solstice". There's no such thing.
Solstices are the longest and shortest days of the year, while equinoxes occur when the day and night are of equal length.
The term that should have been used is "Vernal (or Spring) Equinox".
Other than that, it was an OK story and I'll read the next in the series, if only to see where she gets the vegan eggs from. 🤷🏻♀️
May 3, 2024
An interesting tale of a group of adventurers on a quest to save Cardiff in Wales from a dragon being summoned back to life. I liked the author's style of detailed world building and creating interesting characters. It clearly is a first book in the series and I liked it enough to see what happens to our jewellery & weapons crafter, half dwarf Amethyst.
Fav Quote:
“So, a gnome, an elf and a dwarf walk into my office…it’s either a joke or the start of a fantasy novel,” he smiled to himself.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - I can't stop daydreaming and telling everyone about this book.
⭐⭐⭐⭐ - A great read with all the feels. I would read again.
⭐⭐⭐ - I liked the book but wouldn't it read again.
⭐⭐ - Usually in the DNF pile or I suffered until the end for whatever reason.
⭐- Just no.
Fav Quote:
“So, a gnome, an elf and a dwarf walk into my office…it’s either a joke or the start of a fantasy novel,” he smiled to himself.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - I can't stop daydreaming and telling everyone about this book.
⭐⭐⭐⭐ - A great read with all the feels. I would read again.
⭐⭐⭐ - I liked the book but wouldn't it read again.
⭐⭐ - Usually in the DNF pile or I suffered until the end for whatever reason.
⭐- Just no.
January 4, 2024
A fun start of a series.
The author says that the idea came from a D&D campaign, and, yeah, is shows. "A half-dwarf, a goblin, and an elf walk into a bar...".
The book is basically a romp. The world is our current world, but with elves and dwarfs. And maybe dragons. Most setups like that *are* the current world and the magical races are kept secret (the masquerade). Not this one. So you get sort of cute scenes like an elvish professor named Elrond who had been a friend of JRR Tolkien. Yeah, like that.
I was pleased that the people who wound up in the battle were not very good at it, because they wouldn't be.
Anyways, a fun read. I will continue the series. Lighthearted.
The author says that the idea came from a D&D campaign, and, yeah, is shows. "A half-dwarf, a goblin, and an elf walk into a bar...".
The book is basically a romp. The world is our current world, but with elves and dwarfs. And maybe dragons. Most setups like that *are* the current world and the magical races are kept secret (the masquerade). Not this one. So you get sort of cute scenes like an elvish professor named Elrond who had been a friend of JRR Tolkien. Yeah, like that.
I was pleased that the people who wound up in the battle were not very good at it, because they wouldn't be.
Anyways, a fun read. I will continue the series. Lighthearted.
January 18, 2024
2.5 stars
Now that was .... something.
I usually prefer tell over show, but here the tell doesn't actually tell all that much either. The characters still give no explanation for how they end up doing what they do or feeling what they feel and most of it comes out of nowhere.
Also the book needs a bit of editing.
ALSO: There is no fricking Spring Solstice. The spring thing is an equinox. That is NOT the same thing. ARGH! (Yep, that drove me up the wall every time it was mentioned. I even checked if maybe in some niche science field the equinox is considered a special type of solstice. NOPE!)
Now that was .... something.
I usually prefer tell over show, but here the tell doesn't actually tell all that much either. The characters still give no explanation for how they end up doing what they do or feeling what they feel and most of it comes out of nowhere.
Also the book needs a bit of editing.
ALSO: There is no fricking Spring Solstice. The spring thing is an equinox. That is NOT the same thing. ARGH! (Yep, that drove me up the wall every time it was mentioned. I even checked if maybe in some niche science field the equinox is considered a special type of solstice. NOPE!)
July 8, 2024
Since I so enjoyed Gemma Clatworthy’s Omensford series, I decided to read her Rise of the Dragons series also. And it was a bonus to have Books 1, 2 and 3 in a box set at an economical price point.
Although Fi and Lady Cressida remain one of my favorite duos, MC Amethyst was a character to savor…strong-willed yet not quite sure of herself, adorably awkward and thoroughly loyal to her friends and family. There is humor and action and intelligent dialogue and a smidge of slow-burn romance.
Recommended!
Although Fi and Lady Cressida remain one of my favorite duos, MC Amethyst was a character to savor…strong-willed yet not quite sure of herself, adorably awkward and thoroughly loyal to her friends and family. There is humor and action and intelligent dialogue and a smidge of slow-burn romance.
Recommended!
February 26, 2024
Too Young for Me
A strange feeling of Deja vu occurred reading this tale. Very similar to the books by Lindsay Buroker tales but this time set in Cardiff the capital city of Wales. My main gripe is the shortness of the tale that with good editing would be even shorter. A good story to distract yourself from everyday goings on.
A strange feeling of Deja vu occurred reading this tale. Very similar to the books by Lindsay Buroker tales but this time set in Cardiff the capital city of Wales. My main gripe is the shortness of the tale that with good editing would be even shorter. A good story to distract yourself from everyday goings on.
March 7, 2025
This was a fun story with a bit of unsure romance, a bit of adventure, and a lot of Dragon. The characters are vivid and interesting, the plot is easily followed, and the premise is the two main characters and a group of others trying to stop a group of Elves, before they were foolish enough to actually raise a Dragon. The outcome is predictable. I definitely highly recommend this book.
June 7, 2023
A nice book - the protagonists were easy to like and get on with.
It was an enjoyable read that was over too quick. There are some loose ends, but that is to be expected with the first book in a run of six.
It was an enjoyable read that was over too quick. There are some loose ends, but that is to be expected with the first book in a run of six.
November 1, 2023
Enjoyable
I liked the characters and the premise of the book. A few editing errors, but nothing too bothersome. I'd be interested in seeing where the story goes and how things develop between the characters.
I liked the characters and the premise of the book. A few editing errors, but nothing too bothersome. I'd be interested in seeing where the story goes and how things develop between the characters.
December 31, 2023
Fun!
(love that cover art)
This feels like a teaser rather than a full story, but it was a fun romp and introduction to the setting.
Dragons in Cardiff I can believe.. but days without rain sounds true fantasy
(love that cover art)
This feels like a teaser rather than a full story, but it was a fun romp and introduction to the setting.
Dragons in Cardiff I can believe.. but days without rain sounds true fantasy
February 9, 2024
Great characters, setting, and an enjoyable quest
The characters were introduced in such fun ways right from the beginning. Loved Errol! Loved being immersed in Cardiff! Rooted for Amethyst every step of the way.
The characters were introduced in such fun ways right from the beginning. Loved Errol! Loved being immersed in Cardiff! Rooted for Amethyst every step of the way.
July 28, 2024
Basic writing but still catching. It paints an interesting world where magic exists along with what would be normal. Characters are just developed enough to make them interesting. Over all a pretty solid urban fantasy YA series. I look forward to reading the next two.
May 18, 2025
Five stars all the way
This book isn't very long but it reads easily with an interesting plot with great characters. No graphic sexual content and nothing overly gory. I recommend and will be starting the next in the series.
This book isn't very long but it reads easily with an interesting plot with great characters. No graphic sexual content and nothing overly gory. I recommend and will be starting the next in the series.
April 17, 2024
A spectacular example of what happens when a writer doesn't know how to use commas properly. Or at all.
January 6, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️It was ok, Pretty Good ! ☺️😊
This is a good book. It is quite enjoyable.I wasn’t thrilled by it, but it wasn’t a book that I disliked entirely
This is a good book. It is quite enjoyable.I wasn’t thrilled by it, but it wasn’t a book that I disliked entirely
February 9, 2025
Nicely done. Enjoyed it. On to the next.
May 3, 2024
loved it soooo much
This was really do very good. Not what I expected but really a fabulous ride can’t wait for the next one
This was really do very good. Not what I expected but really a fabulous ride can’t wait for the next one
May 29, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews