By: Bethany Wiggins
Published: February 21, 2017 by Crown Books for Young Readers
304 pages
Source: ebook, Netgalley ARC from publisher
(Goodreads / Amazon)
Summary:
Fans of Julie Kagawa’s Talon and Renee Ahdieh’s The Wrath and the Dawn will devour this action-packed fantasy adventure about a girl who chooses to surrender herself to a deadly dragon rather than marry an enemy prince.MY REVIEW:
When two warring kingdoms unified against a deadly menace laying waste to both their lands, they had to make a choice: vow to marry their heirs to one another, or forfeit their lives to the dragon.
Centuries later, everyone expects the sheltered princess Sorrowlynn to choose the barbarian prince over the fire-breathing beast—everyone, that is, except Sorrow, who is determined to control her own destiny or die trying.
As she is lowered into the dragon’s chamber, she assumes her life is over until Golmarr, the young prince she just spurned, follows her with the hopes of being her hero and slaying the dragon. But the dragon has a different plan. . . .
If the dragon wins, it will be freed from the spell that has bound it to the cave for centuries. If Sorrow or Golmarr vanquish the dragon, the victor will gain its treasure and escape the cave beneath the mountain. But what exactly is the dragon hiding?
There are no safe havens for Sorrow or Golmarr—not even with each other—and the stakes couldn’t be higher as they risk everything to protect their kingdom.
I can't recall another series about dragons that I've read, though I know there are some popular ones out there. For me though, this was a new theme. I very much enjoyed it! Not knowing which direction the story would go, given the title, I was intrigued to know exactly what "the dragon's price" actually was. The cover combined with the synopsis was a win for me to request this title.
The story is about a Faodarian Princess, only 16 years old, being forced to either a) accept a marriage proposal to a prince from a barbarian kingdom that her own kingdom has a peace treaty with or b) deny the union should she be chosen and instead sacrifice herself to the fire dragon that is bound in a mountain by magic. Being abused her entire life by her father, the King, she can't accept having to return home with her parents either. So she chooses sacrifice. Only, the young prince of the Antharian kingdom, so intrigued by Sorrowlyn's bravery and reckless nature, comes to her aid as she is lowered into the mountain. What awaits them is beyond what they could've comprehended and starts them both down a path they never could've imagined. A path that in only a matter of 7 days bonds them together in a deep way.
One of my greatest entertainments of this story was watching how Sorrowlynn, trained in propriety as a Princess, is pushed beyond her comfort levels and teased mercilessly by Golmarr. What he views as silliness or naivety in her reactions, she views as barbaric in his. Until eventually they learn to understand one another, and compromise, and do what is necessary to survive.
As most stories have often told of dragon's treasure, the question begs, exactly what use is gold to a dragon? What Sorrowlynn and Golmarr come to discover is that the true treasure of a dragon is something much different than what a human would value as treasure.
This story has it all really - sacrifice, love, battles, dragon's, warring kingdoms, a princess and a prince who balk at the idea of being forced into a union. It even had me tearing up at the end. Add in a bonus for clean content. Sign me up for book 2!! I MUST know what happens next.
Top 5 Favorite Quotes (and a bonus):
"I don't know how they do it in your kingdom, Princess," he says, "but in mine, the man typically leads."
"But when necessary and proper battle it out, necessary always wins."
"Sometimes our lives turn out in ways we never imagined they would,"
"In one week you've bewitched me with your magic, Princess Sorrowlynn."
But the most important piece of knowledge stores with the many thousands of things is that love is precious, priceless beyond all treasure, and not to be forsaken.
Fighting to protect the greater good is more than simply necessary. It is noble, honorable, and self-sacrificing.
Language Rating: 0 (none)
Mature Content Rating: 1 (light)
Final Rating: 4 stars
I've been super curious about this book, and your review made me even more excited to read this book! So glad you found it to be enjoyable :)
ReplyDeleteBrittany @ Brittany's Book Rambles