Reviewed: April 19th, 2021
Release Date: March 1st, 2020
Genre: YA Fantasy
The brave, burning with fire, harnessed the Dragon’s Rage….
As the Dragon Heir, seventeen-year-old Kaia inherited the power of flame to protect her homeland from a godlike necromancer’s undead army. But after centuries of peace, the necromancer has faded to myth, and the Dragon Heir is feared by the people. Persecuted and cast out, Kaia struggles to embrace and control her seemingly useless gift while confined to her family’s farm.
But when the necromancer’s undead terrorize the land once again, Kaia runs away to join the battle.
With the help of her childhood rival, the handsome Shadow Heir, and a snarky, cursed cat, Kaia must figure out how to control both her fire and her confidence in time to save Okarria. If she fails, she will sacrifice her family, her new friends, and the enchanting world she has only just begun to see.
And time is running out.
A talking cat! What more can I say? But seriously, Chow has created a complex world full of magical creatures and cultures, and an interesting magical system.
Within this world there are three heirs, one has control of fire, another controls shadows and the ability to disappear and the third has control over Time and healing. They are stronger as a triad, each complementing the other. But one is missing.
Kaia has always been ostracised because of her power to conjure flames, as the dragon heir. She was only six minutes older than her twin brother, but six minutes is all it takes. She has to battle her own demons, those of insecurity and never being good enough. Being the youngest of the heirs and female, she believes she always has something to prove. The villagers are scared of her, but when the Lost, horrible zombies like creatures raised from the dead, attack their village, their only hope is Kaia. The realisation that the terrible mage Nifras has returned, and is creating a legion of dead soldiers means that ancient legends are true.
News that the third heir, Jago is delayed and overdue with the mage Everard is superseded by even worse news that Kaia’s father is missing along with the Shadow heir, Klaus. Kaia is left to venture off into the world on her own to find them. When her rescue attempt goes terribly wrong and she is only able to save her childhood nemesis, Klaus, who is badly injured, she has to find help.
Along with Shad, the talking cat, and Gus, her rage hound, they set off to find the Okkaria warriors. They face untold horrors as they journey to gather help, and learn more about themselves and each other as they travel.
Keeping the enemies and the tribes straight can be a bit of a challenge for younger readers as so many different names are thrown at you, and I kept confusing them, but then maybe that’s just my memory!
This is an enemies to lovers trope as Kaia and Klaus have to learn to rely on each other to succeed. It takes them a while to overcome their constant bickering and they slowly begin to appreciate the others skills as they gather the warriors they need to overcome their enemy. A war they have been training for all their lives and probably never thought was real.
An enjoyable adventure which builds into a satisfying finale, with some engaging characters, some of whom you just want to knock their heads together, but they get there in the end.
And have you seen the cover? I just love the cover. Dominique Wesson’s artwork is amazing!
About the Author:
Hayley Reese Chow is the author of Odriel’s Heirs, the 2020 winner of the Florida Author Project. She also has short and flash fiction featured in Lite Lit One, The Drabble, Bewildering Stories, Teleport Magazine, and Rogue Blades Entertainment’s omnibus, AS YOU WISH!
Until recently though, she’s mostly done a lot of things that have nothing at all to do with writing. Her hat collection includes mother, wife, engineer, USAF veteran, reservist, four-time All American fencer, 100 mile ultramarathoner, triathlete, world traveler, voracious reader, and super nerd. Hayley currently lives in Florida with two small wild boys, her long-suffering husband, and her miniature ragehound.
You can find her on her on:
You can purchase the book here:
Link to book on Amazon UK: ebook | Paperback | Hardback | Audiobook
Link to book on Amazon US: ebook | Paperback | Hardback | Audiobook
Link book on Amazon Canada: ebook | Paperback | Hardcover
As an Amazon Affiliate, I may benefit from qualifying purchases.
If you enjoy fantasy books then you will love my book which is available in eBook or paperback: Sentinals Awaken. My second novel Sentinals Rising is currently on pre-order and releases March 17th 2021. Sign up to my newsletter and download a free novella called Sentinals Stirring and get notified when my next books are published.
Helen Garraway 