Monday, December 10, 2012

Holy smokes Batman, it’s a Puffin’ Lizard!


Merlin's Dragon, by T. A. Barron, 2008.  Basil, a small, flying lizard who is searching for others like himself, discovers that there is more to him than he knows, as he becomes engaged in Avalon's great war between the evil Rhita Gawr and the forces of good.  Book 1 in Merlin's Dragon trilogy.

Dragon's Keep, by Janet Lee Carey, 2007.  In 1145 A.D., as foretold by Merlin, 14-year-old Rosalind, who will be the 21st Pendragon Queen of Wilde Island, has much to accomplish to fulfill her destiny, while hiding from her people the dragon's claw she was born with that reflects only one of her mother's dark secrets.

Dragonswood, by Janet Lee Carey, 2008.  In 1192 A.D. on Wilde Island, Tess, the daughter of a cruel blacksmith, is accused of witchcraft and must flee. She meets the enigmatic warden of Dragonswood, who offers her shelter, and does not realize that he too harbors a secret that may finally bring about peace among the races of dragon, human, and fairy.

The Fire Within, by Chris D'Lacey, 2005.  When college student David Rain rents a room in an unusual boardinghouse full of clay dragons, he has no idea that they, along with some lively squirrels, will help jump start his writing career.  Book 1 in Last Dragon Chronicles
The Last Dragonslayer, by Jasper Fforde, 2012. 
As magic fades from the world, Jennifer Strange is having trouble keeping her magician employment agency business afloat, until she begins having visions that foretell the death of the last dragon and the coming of Big Magic.
Eon: Dragoneye Reborn, by Alison Goodman, 2008.  Eon has disguised herself as a boy in order to study Dragon Magic and become a Dragoneye, one of a select group that forms a conduit to the power of energy dragons, but if the secret of her sex comes out, she will be killed.
 
Seraphina, by Rachel Hartman, 2012.  In a world where dragons and humans coexist in an uneasy truce and dragons can assume human form, Seraphina, whose mother died giving birth to her, grapples with her own identity amid magical secrets and royal scandals, while she struggles to accept and develop her extraordinary musical talents.

Dark Lord of Derkholm, by Diana Wynne Jones, 1998.  Derk, an unconventional wizard, and his magical family become involved in a plan to put a stop to the devastating tours of their world arranged by the tyrannical Mr. Chesney.



Dragonflight, by Anne McCaffrey, 1968. At a time when the number of Dragonriders has fallen too low for safety and only one Weyr trains the creatures and their riders, the Red Star approaches Pern, threatening it with disaster. Book 1 in Dragonriders of Pern



The Dragons of Darkness, by Antonia Michaelis, 2010. Two boys from very different backgrounds are thrown together by magic, mayhem, and a common foe as they battle deadly dragons in the wilderness of Nepal. (Translated from the German.)

 
The Hero and the Crown, by Robin McKinley, 1984.  Aerin, with the guidance of the wizard Luthe and the help of the blue sword, wins the birthright due her as the daughter of the Damarian king and a witchwoman of the mysterious, demon-haunted North.
Fireborne, by Rosaria Munda, 2019. When a brutal revolution opens dragonrider classes to everyone, two orphans from very different backgrounds become rising stars in a new regime that is challenged by violent survivors of the former government. First book in the Aurelian Cycle series.

Burn, by Patrick Ness, 2020. A story of revenge, redemption and dragons from the twice Carnegie Medal-winner Patrick Ness. "On a cold Sunday evening in early 1957, Sarah Dewhurst waited with her father in the parking lot of the Chevron Gas Station for the dragon he'd hired to help on the farm." This dragon, Kazimir, has more to him than meets the eye.

A Wizard of Earthsea, by Ursula K. Le Guin, 1991. During a spell recalling the dead, the boy Sparrowhawk, a sorcerer's apprentice, unwittingly unleashes evil on the land. He grows to manhood while attempting to subdue the evil he unleashed on the world. Book 1 in Earthsea series.


Eragon, by Christopher Paolini, 2003.  In Alagaesia, a fifteen-year-old boy of unknown lineage called Eragon finds a mysterious stone that weaves his life into an intricate tapestry of destiny, magic, and power, peopled with dragons, elves, and monsters. Book 1 in Inheritance Cycle.
Dragonspell, by Donita K. Paul, 2004. When Kale, a slave girl, finds a dragon egg, she is freed and sent to the city of Vendala, but her journey there is interrupted when she becomes involved in an attempt to recover a meech dragon egg stolen by the evil wizard Risto.

Wild Magic, by Tamora Pierce, 1992.  The mage Numair, the knight Alanna, and Queen Thayet enlist thirteen-year-old Daine's help to battle the dreadful immortal creatures that have recently begun to attack the kingdom of Tortall.  Book 1 in Immortals series.
Dealing with Dragons, by Patricia C. Wrede, 1990.  Bored with traditional palace life, a princess goes off to live with a group of dragons and soon becomes involved with fighting against some disreputable wizards who want to steal away the dragons' kingdom. Kazul's story!  Book 1 in Enchanted Forest Chronicles.

Dragon's Blood, by Jane Yolen, 2004.  Jakkin, a bond boy who works as a Keeper in a dragon nursery on the planet Austar IV, secretly trains a fighting pit dragon of his own in hopes of winning his freedom.  Book 1 in Pit Dragon Chronicles.