The Dragon Hoard

by Tanith Lee

The enchantress Maligna casts an evil spell over the king's children when he forgets to invite her to their birthday celebration

Genres: Fantasy, Dragons, Fiction, Childrens, Humor, Middle Grade, Magic

162 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1971

About the author

Tanith Lee was a British writer of science fiction, horror, and fantasy. She was the author of 77 novels, 14 collections, and almost 300 short stories. She also wrote four radio plays broadcast by the BBC and two scripts for the UK, science fiction, cult television series "Blake's 7."
Before becoming a full time writer, Lee worked as a file clerk, an assistant librarian, a shop assistant, and a waitress.

Her first short story, "Eustace," was published in 1968, and her first novel (for children) The Dragon Hoard was published in 1971.

Her career took off in 1975 with the acceptance by Daw Books USA of her adult fantasy epic The Birthgrave for publication as a mass-market paperback, and Lee has since maintained a prolific output in popular genre writing.

Lee twice won the World Fantasy Award: once in 1983 for best short fiction for “The Gorgon” and again in 1984 for best short fiction for “Elle Est Trois (La Mort).” She has been a Guest of Honour at numerous science fiction and fantasy conventions including the Boskone XVIII in Boston, USA in 1981, the 1984 World Fantasy Convention in Ottawa, Canada, and Orbital 2008 the British National Science Fiction convention (Eastercon) held in London, England in March 2008. In 2009 she was awarded the prestigious title of Grand Master of Horror.

Lee was the daughter of two ballroom dancers, Bernard and Hylda Lee. Despite a persistent rumour, she was not the daughter of the actor Bernard Lee who played "M" in the James Bond series of films of the 1960s.

Tanith Lee married author and artist John Kaiine in 1992.

Reviews

[Karl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tanith Lee's first book. Published in 1971 when Ms. Lee was twenty three years old.

And what a delightful book this is. The book is a fairy tale containing princesses, princes, Kings, evil aunts, talking animals, sea voyages, giants, dragons, lost treasure, magic trees, mermaids, and everything but the kitchen sink - yet it works on a grand scale.

This is one of the few books by Ms. Lee that I had never read, this is where it all started for one of my most enjoyed authors for the last forty years.

The interior illustrations by Graham Oakley add image and depth to the story.

Recommended for anyone who likes a good story and a lot of fun.

[Raymond Elmo · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite stories to read the kids. Fun, that this was Lee's first novel.

[⚔️ Mythica ⚔️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve been wanting to read Tanith Lee for a while so why not start with her first novel? It’s very short and although it’s YA (not usually my thing) I found it to be a very sweet fairytale with humour that put me in mind of the Discworld novels. Good to read to your kids or let them read it to you 📚🧚🧌🐉

[Pam Baddeley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although the blurb does not state it, this story seems to be aimed at young children. It is a fairy tale style story in which a wicked sorceress arrives at the birthday party of the twin son and daughter of the local, remotely related, king and in a fit of pique curses them both for a year - in the style of 'Sleeping Beauty'. In their case, the daughter becomes so good she gives away all the wealth of the king to beggars and other needy folk, whereas the son turns into a raven for an hour every day but can never predict when this will happen. His father tasks him with going off to find his fortune and somehow restore theirs before the curses expire.

This provides the very thin excuse for the travels of the prince. Along the way he becomes friends with the prince of another kingdom who is seeking an unknown treasure which once belonged to his ancestors, but the two princes were so little differentiated that I sometimes mixed them up. They meet other stock fairy tale characters including mermaids, some who seem to come from Aladdin or the Arabian Nights, and a beautiful princess who at least is fairly bright and is training to be a (good) sorceress and lends magical aid. Dragons don't feature very much despite the title - the unknown treasure is supposedly guarded by a dragon. The best bit for me was the cover, but sadly the story does not relate to it at all. At least it was a very quick read, finished in a day. I can only bestow an OK 2 star rating in the light of the above.

[S.A. Hunter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a complete 180 from Lee’s dark, twisty novels. The Dragon Hoard is a light, humorous fantasy featuring a comical, evil enchantress hell bent on making one innocent prince’s life miserable. Many of the names in the story are symbolic such as Prince Fearless (though he isn’t really), King Purple, and the enchantress Maligna. The innocent prince that Maligna is after is called Jasleth, and the first thing Maligna does to him is fire off a curse that randomly turns him into a raven for an hour every day. He goes to seek his fortune and meets up with Prince Fearless and with 48 other princes go on a quest for the dragon hoard. Only about four of the princes are given actual names. The rest are referred to by their number.

I have to admit I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop and for things to get very bad and horrifying, but everything remained happy and innocent throughout. I’m a little conflicted on this. On the one hand, I wanted the story to stay light and funny, but after I finished and sighed in relief, I felt a little cheated that some crazy horror hadn’t happened.

This was Lee’s first book published. I think if anyone had read this when it first came out, they would’ve envisioned Lee’s writing to go in a very different direction that in it did. While I’ve found humor in many of her books, especially the YA books, none of them have been this silly and light-hearted. I’m really glad I read this book.

[Shan Sivell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A classic tale of a witches curse on a Prince and a Princess, and a quest, with a subversive humour that permeates the whole story. Great for any age group, and I have bought it for a number of young people in recent years.
I read it for the first time when I was about 9. The first book I ever read that wasn't Enid Blyton. And I adored it so much that I bought it from Amazon, second hand, and if I could get it as a download I would do that, too. Lee started me on my lifelong love of fantasy fiction, though I have to say I prefer her books for children/teens to her adult works, which are much darker, and I sometimes feel (the secret books of Paradys being a case in point) are shocking for the sake of shocking.

[Hilary · Rating 5 out of 5]

One from back when Tanith Lee had a sense of humour. If only someone would re-release 'Princess Hynchatti'!

[R.A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this one so much. Not that surprising. My love for Tanith Lee knows no bounds. The humor throughout made me laugh out loud especially random details.

[Ана Хелс · Rating 5 out of 5]

Една кикотеща приказка за рожден ден, разказана от магьосницата на фантазиите и божествената сила на думите Танит Лий. Всичко запозва като добре познатата Спяща красавица, но вместо невръстна девойка, многопочитаемата кралска двойка има два броя наследници от мъжки и дамски пол, плюс една доста кисела братовчедка – вещица с прилепи в косата и вълци по петите.Поради неспособността на фентъзийните отвъдземски пощи, една кралска покана не пристига навреме – или по-точно някой доста мързелив писар си е избърсал носа с нея, и хоп-троп-тралала – имаме взривоопасната комбинация между рожден ден и вещица в менопауза, та повече от естествено почват да валят проклятията като плодовете на избухнала външна тоалетна на 4 юли в кротко американско предградие. .Принцът се сдобива с превръщането си в гарван веднъж на ден, за един час, на неравни интервали, а принцесата става толкоз тъпа, колкото красива и добра, което значи много, много тъпа, до степен не просто да подари златотканите си гащи на първия молещ за милостиня бедняк, ами да му предложи височайшото бельо и на цялата си рода за компенсация на грижите человечески.

Докато принцесата бързо и свръхефективно разорява кралството си, принцът решава да се поразходи малко наоколо и да изпробва кога какво може да му се случи, ако се превръща в черно пиле веднъж на икиндия. Леля му вещерката с врасналите нокти и люспещите се циреи обаче го погва през вълшебното си огледало и се опитва да му направи живота по-черен и от перата на анималистичната му същност, като хвърля по някоя и друга буря, насъсква приятелчетата си от цял свят или подкиселява обитателите на морската шир, за да се получи едно огромно класическо приключение с много хумор, заиграване със всички постулати на жанра, и в крайна сметка задължителния добър финал на три дена яли, пили и се веселили. Но не и преди да се включат джинове, агресивни канарчета, вегани – далечени братовчеди на Ктхулу, комарджийски настроени демони, кози мастършефове, русалки с лош речник, и несклонни да помагат на случайни минувачи селяни, свикнали да ги грабят и бият в името на завързването на сюжета.

Малка очарователна книжка, спомен за безсмъртния талант на богиня Танит, която и от най-простичките истории може да сътвори чисто забавление от красота и смях, без текстови излишества и писаческа алчност.

[Milliebot · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Dragon Hoard is a fairy tale following Prince Jasleth on his quest to win his family a fortune and maybe break the curse set upon he and his sister by the wicked witch, Maligna.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I’m making a better effort to read more of my Tanith Lee collection and I decided to start with the first novel she published. The Dragon Hoard is a children’s book, but I had fun reading it and would recommend it for fans of fairy tales (or Tanith Lee), regardless of age. Maligna puts a curse on Jasleth (love his name) and his sister Goodness on their birthday, which will last for one year – he will turn into a raven for an hour each day, but he will not know when it will happen, and his sister will be too good. Goodness immediately begins giving away all the king’s wealth to the servants and poor people of his kingdom. The king sends Jasleth on a quest to win them back their fortune before Goodness leaves them begging.

There are many familiar fairy tale elements mixed together in this story and Tanith weaves them with vivid simplicity. I had no problem imagining her world and its goings on, despite the shorter page count. I loved her characters too – Maligna could be your cliche fairy tale witch, but she has some original elements, like the bats living in her hair and her penchant for riding evil, winged chariots without paying her bills for previous rides. I wish I could draw, or find fanart for this book, because her characters are so wild and fun that I’d love to see them animated. There’s quite a bit of wit in here too – I found myself chuckling more than once.

It’s a quick read and I think it would be a good start for children who are learning to master chapter books and enjoy magical tales. Could also be a great bedtime story to read to your little ones.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Incredibly silly, but fun. Reads like a chaotic fairytale. Yes, I did get and read this just because the cover was cool; I'm a simple person.

[ayanami · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tanith Lee's debut novel and a real surprise! Contrary to the lush prose that she's known for, this is a children's story written in a very quirky and whimsical manner, kind of in the vein of Diana Wynne Jones but with far more general wackiness.

As far as the story goes, it's a fairly standard tale of a young prince named Jasleth being cursed by a witch, Maligna, on his birthday to turn into a raven for an hour each day, at a random time that he cannot predict. His twin sister Princess Goodness received a curse that makes her live up to her name by being so good that she constantly gives away the royal family's wealth to the poor, leaving their kingdom quite bankrupt. In order to save the kingdom, Jasleth sets off on a journey to win back a wealth of lost treasure called the Dragon Hoard and restore his kingdom to its former glory, and hopefully relieve himself of his curse. He faces various trials on his journey as the witch who cursed him keeps throwing obstacles in his way.

A highly enjoyable read and a fun story overall, and my edition came with some lovely illustrations as well.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

VERY amusing!
It reads like an old fairy tale, with cute, witty language, and silly characters facing clever trials.
This one is definitely written for children. However, I am of the opinion that some of her best works were written for children or young adults.
Her characters are surprisingly well rounded for a children's book. The evil sorceress Maligna is somewhat inept, but has enough power and cruelty to genuinely worry the heroes. Prince Fearless is by no means actually fearless, but neither is he a coward, he has a very realistic amount of nervousness in him. Our main character, Jasleth, is smart, but not too smart, handsome but not overtly so, and suffers from a frustrating enchantment that hampers him just enough to be interesting.
And UNlike many other fairy tales, our heroes encounter many different situations, over the course of their journey. Their one goal is hampered many times, instead of just once. (Fun!)

[Mary Catelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are familiar with her work, I will say that this one is -- atypical. Jason and Medea dropped into a Fairy Tale world and made comic.

Prince Jasleth and Princess Goodness's seventeenth birthday party is crashed by a relative, Maligna, who curses Goodness to be so good it's silly, and Jasleth to turn into a raven one hour a day. Their parents kick Jasleth out to find his fortune while they deal with their impoverishment while Goodness keeps giving things away.

After some episodes where Jasleth can't find a fortune to be made and turns to looking very unprincelike, he hears of a quest to find the Dragon Hoard, which was stolen from a kingdom. In his raven form, he tells them they can't possibly succeed without him, and in his human form, they take him on, and off they sail.

Evil sorcerers! Evil sorceresses! Sea monsters! Mermaids! A princess trying to do her best for her kingdom! Bad luck in drawing lots!

It's very funny.

[Joseph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lee's first novel -- short and aimed at a younger crowd (like, maybe middle school or teen? YA as a category didn't exist when this was first published). A charming, light adventure -- after King Minus forgets (or "forgets") to invite the thoroughly unpleasant enchantress Maligna (a distant relative of one degree or another) to his twin children's birthday party, Maligna takes it upon herself in classical fashion to crash the party and give them the sort of "gift" that will result in one of the twins, Prince Jasleth, having to go off on a quest in search of the Dragon Hoard, during which he'll encounter interesting people and some light peril.

Definitely not the worst way you could spend a couple of hours on a weekend afternoon.

[Katharine Herndon]

This was one of my very favorite books as a child. I remember it made me laugh out loud and run into the other room to share bits with my mother. I recently read it to my son, and he was not quite as enchanted or amused. It's nothing particularly original and smacks a bit of the Golden Fleece without the dark parts. Really just fun and silly, which I've got to say made for a bit of a disconnect when I tried to pick up Tanith Lee later in life. It will always have a place in my heart, though. And I do think I see traces of this lighter, more frivolous Lee in the peeve in her unicorn books.

[Seikaiha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I dug this up in my collection of Tanith Lee's out-of-print books. After many years, I can't remember why I wanted to get this.

It reminded me of George MacDonald's The Light Princess. I guess that's because I read it recently. This one is very silly and funny, and again so silly, I warn you. This book makes you often wonder, is it really Tanith Lee? I actually like the enchantress better than anyone. She's so mean, of course, but almost cute in some way. And that is at least the one thing that makes you it's Lee after all. And the last is just great.

[Pete · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read Lee's short story collection Red as Blood immediately before this book. Both are variations on fairy tales, but the pair make a stark contrast. The Dragon Hoard is a humorous fairy tale written for children. It would make a great story for my boys, but they are a bit too old. In contrast, Red as Blood can be quite explicit and horrific. I prefer the later book, but many of Lee's talents are already present in The Dragon Hoard.

[Serena W. Sorrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful and lighthearted bedtime story appeal. The Dragon Hoard was a welcome interlude to some of my heavier reading. Jasleth and Onga were delightful to read and the imaginative world which was overflowing from the pages. It seems the sort of book I'd very much like to read aloud to children.

[Georgene · Rating 4 out of 5]

A silly, delightful fairy tale in which a semi-enchanted prince goes off to seek his fortune and the salvation of his own kingdom. Told with humor, this is a fun little story that reads quickly. Very suitable for all ages.

[K. Axel · Rating 2 out of 5]

A children's book. It didn't really say me much. I do love the more adult tales of Tanith Lee's later writing career.

[Arlene Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I usually love Tanith Lee but this didn't do it for me.

[Samuel Lubell]

I couldn't tell if this a failed spoof or if Lee was amusing herself by seeing what she could get away with. This is far from the lyrical quality of her other writing.

[Mara Starlight · Rating 4 out of 5]

My overall feeling about this book is positive. I'm keeping it on my shelf because I could envision reading it again at some point. It's a fun and light-hearted fantasy, the kind that just makes you feel good!

The story begins in the kingdom of King Minus on the occasion of the seventeenth birthday of his twin children, Prince Jasleth and Princess Goodness. Maligna the evil enchantress is a distant relative of the king and wasn't invited to the celebration. She's so hopping mad that she decides to crash the party and deliver some curses as gifts for the twins. For the duration of a year, Prince Jasleth is cursed to transform into a raven for one hour each day, and the timing is completely random so he can never be prepared for it. Princess Goodness is cursed to be the living embodiment of her name and shower generosity on everyone she meets, even to the ruin of her family and herself. Prince Jasleth decides to walk away from this train wreck to seek his fortune. He begins alone, but later joins the quest of another royal, the cowardly Prince Fearless, to seek the long lost treasure of his kingdom, the Dragon Hoard. This is when the silliness of the story really ramps up, in my opinion. The 50 princes on the quest encounter many colorful characters including a genie, a sea monster, merfolk, and one of Maligna's evil friends, before they land on the island where the Hoard is kept.

I was lucky to find a copy of this book in perfect condition at my local used bookshop. The stunning dragon cover art of the Magic Quest edition attracted me instantly (although it does not reflect anything that happens in the story) as well as the fact that Tanith Lee is the author. Years ago I read her Unicorn trilogy, Black Unicorn, Gold Unicorn, and Red Unicorn, and was impressed with it. I didn't realize at first glance that The Dragon Hoard is a comic fantasy and was Ms. Lee's first published novel, in 1971.

I think the humor in this story is varied, which keeps it fresh throughout. It makes fun of fantasy stereotypes, but at the same time the world has an original feeling to it. I had no idea what to expect at the turn of each page. The humor doesn't crutch on spoofing fantasy stories, which I think is important. Too much of that gets tiresome very quickly. There are bouts of random slapstick comedy and silliness here that are not specific to the fantasy genre.

I enjoyed the villain, the witch Maligna. She is the stereotypical cackling, literally batty madcap witch, and her antics and thwarted plots made me laugh many times. She reminds me very much of Mad Madam Mim from the animated film version of The Sword in the Stone. The way she was presented was a combination of dangerous and silly. I found myself feeling apprehensive about what type of havoc she could wreak next, but her character was definitely fun as well. I also genuinely liked the main character, Prince Jasleth. His daily predicament concerning his raven curse was amusing, and was used inventively throughout the story.

I think The Dragon Hoard is a gem for anyone who enjoys both fantasy and a good laugh. I would say it's appropriate for kids as well. (Slight spoilers ahead for the ending.) The reason I'm giving it 4 stars instead of 5 is because I found the climax to be a bit disappointing. I felt like an actual battle for the Hoard could have taken place in a way that was still silly and in keeping with the established tone of the book. But having a big old nothing at the climax, not even an appearance from the dragon, was a let down. However, I did enjoy the way in which Maligna gets her just desserts! That portion of the resolution was very satisfying.

[Dom Abbott · Rating 3 out of 5]

A delightful and charming story. Very fantastical - obviously aimed at children, but enjoyable nonetheless. Its absurdity is its charm. It is remarkably cute, funny, and enchanting! It reminds me of the Odyssey, in a few ways.

The only negative thing I have to say is that it has aged rather poorly. It feels quite odd, in 2024, to read that someone’s beauty comes from their blondness and their negative traits come down to being fat. The fat (and *therefore* ugly) = evil trope is prevalent, which is rather gross at this point, and feels lazy. I realise it was written in 1971, though! As I say, it has aged poorly in that regard, to the point that such characterisations are quite distracting from enjoying the book, similar to how Lovecraft’s racism makes his works unreadable. Naturally, the only unnamed princess in this book is the black one, who exists only so the black prince has someone to marry back home…

The notion of being “too good its silly”, entailing a redistribution of wealth, speaks to a rather classist understanding of any kingdom, but, again, the fact it was written in 1971 in England probably fuels this!

Overall a fun, cute novel, but somewhat lazy, and very of its time.

[Ronald Weston · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Dragon Hoard was the first of Tanith Lee's books. A children's fairy tale, filled with many familiar tropes, is a bit silly but is also a pleasant read which, I'm sure, most children would find a delight. All in all a fun, quite humorous short novel with several nudge-nudge, wink-wink moments. It's quite interesting to see how her career began. She kept the fairy tale instinct as her writing matured and darkened and the fantasy reader should certainly be grateful.

[Shane Noble · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tanith Lee is most known for her dark, exotic fantasy stories, but this one, her first novel is a charming light-hearted fairy tale. It's got evil enchantresses, talking animals, dragons, mermaids, and adventurous princes. I'm surprised an animation company hasn't made an adaption as it's perfectly suited for one. It's not deep or profound, but it is enjoyable, especially for younger readers.

[A. J. Frances]

I'm not going to rate this, because it's a children's book that I didn't read as a child, but! It's a very charming story that I think would be perfect for a child who's starting to read chapter books.

[Sara Harrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Serious contender for one of the silliest books of all time. I've lost track of the number of times I've read this book since I first encountered it in grade school.

[hannah boniface · Rating 4 out of 5]

probably a 3 star book but I found it cute and whimsical and no one can take this away from me. also tanith lee is so funny, very terry pratchett vibes