I’m Afraid You’ve Got Dragons by Peter S. Beagle

Publication Date: May 14, 2024

Gaius Aurelius Constantine Heliogabalus Thrax (just call him Robert) is a dragon exterminator who hates his job. His dream is to work for a prince as his valet and he’s burdened with the incredible guilt of killing dragons which, in his home kingdom of Bellemontagne, infest homes like vermin. He trained with his father and now 18-year-old Robert has his own apprentice. When Robert is called by the King to exterminate the dragons in the walls of the castle, Robert is thrust into an adventure which will either be the end of him or the beginning of a new life.

 

 Back in July, I stopped in at River Bookshop, my local indie bookstore, and asked the young person working the till for a book recommendation telling them that I am a big fan of Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett and am always looking for authors like them. They recommended I’m Afraid You’ve Got Dragons by Peter S. Beagle. While technically falling into the YA category, this book is spot on to the whimsical spirit of Pratchett. This is why you patronize your local Indie booksellers’ folks; I never would have picked up this book without the recommendation.  

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Caelie After The Massacre by Wendy Fisher

Publication Date: February 2, 2017

 

Caelie After The Massacre by Wendy FisherIn Caelie After The Massacre by Wendy Fisher, Caelie’s family has been betrayed by a trusted confidante and she is the lone survivor. She wanders through the frozen tundra looking for healing and safety. Caelie After The Massacre is a short story and the first book in the Moosewolf series. 

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The Dark Citadel (Green Woman) by Jane Dougherty

I’m cross-posting this review from Rabid Readers Too because I believe it’s more of an adult novel than a YA novel.

Publication Date: October 3, 2013

 

The Dark Citadel (Green Woman) by Jane DoughertyIn The Dark Citadel (Green Woman) by Jane Dougherty, Deborah Givenchild, was taken from her parents when her mother fled and given to a family without a daughter. She has been reviled but has grown up not to cave as her gender is supposed to do but to fight back. At the age of fifteen, she’s about to be married off to the man of the elder’s choice. He’s a purposeful brute meant to put her in her place and Deborah simply isn’t going along with the plan. When she’s taken to the House of Corrections she meets Zachariah, a boy with dreams. He wants to be an engineer, but the career path is at the whim of the elders, and he knows that things simply aren’t right. Can Deborah escape her fate and find her mother, the one woman who knows what Earth was like before everyone lived his or her bleakly planned lives in a dome?

 

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Asterion by Kenneth Morvant

Publication Date: February 6, 2013

 

Asterion by Kenneth MorvantIn Asterion by Kenneth Morvant, Taylor Scott and Christine Summers are scientists in a not-so-distant dystopian future that have created a hybrid beast of burden to work in the fields and grow crops. The government sees great potential in the beast as a weapon and the scientists find themselves hunted by their own creation.

 

 

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Suicide City: A Love Story by Julie Frayn

Publication Date: February 13, 2013

 

jf_sucide_cityAugust Bailey is a 16-year-old living by the rules of an old-fashioned society — one where she has to wear hand-me-downs and her mother won’t let her date. When her mother slaps her face during an argument, August knows that it’s time to head into the world and make a life for herself. When August discovers that the big city isn’t quite what she thought it would be, Reese finds her. He’s sweet and handsome and wants to take care of her and build a general affection. But life on the streets isn’t all August thought it would be. Living in a society of kids who sell their bodies for enough money to live for a day, and where drugs flow like water, can she survive with them or will every day simply lead her further from home? [easyazon-link asin=”0991851013″ locale=”us”]Suicide City, a Love Story[/easyazon-link] is a Young Adult novel, but more suitable for older readers.

 

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The Highlander by Zoe Saadia

Publication Date: September 16, 2012

 

ZS_The_HighlanderCoytl and Kuini are 10-year-old boys when they meet. One is the oldest son of a minor wife of the Emperor (and on the cusp of becoming the primary heir), and the other is a presumed enemy of the city—a savage Highlander. The boys build a strong friendship, and 5 years later they’re still meeting. When Coytl suggests that Kuini come with him into the city to get a closer look at the treasures he’d only viewed from afar, the excursion seems dangerous but manageable. Little does Kuini know the true scope of what he’ll experience visiting the lowland city—or even how long he’ll be able to survive.[easyazon-link asin=”B009CCBCU4″ locale=”us”]The Highlander (The Rise of The Aztecs Series, book 1)[/easyazon-link] is the first book in the Rise of the Aztecs series.

 

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Secrets of Ghosts by Mardi Orlando

Publication Date: June 19, 2012

 

Secrets of Ghosts by Mardi OrlandoIn Secrets of Ghosts by Mardi Orlando, seven children with extraordinary gifts who are living on the outside of society are brought to a school for gifted children. Their mission, they discover, is to try to save ghosted children trapped in the church and dead for more than a century. The church protects them from an ominous shadow but they know that time is running out. Led by Daffodil, the children will have to work together and face their own pasts to save the forgotten children.

 

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The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde

Publication Date: October 2, 2012

 

The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper FfordeIn The Last Dragonslayer by Jasper Fforde, Dragons and the people of Hereford have lived by the Dragonpact for 400 years. When 15-year-old Jennifer Strange, the acting manager of a magical employment agency, hears that the seers are predicting that the last dragon will die at the hands of the Last Dragonslayer, she has no idea that she is indeed that Dragonslayer. She’s determined not to carry out the prophecy but something big is coming and no one, not even the Last Dragonslayer, may be able to stop it.

 

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Sparks Ignite by J.A. Gouthro

Publication Date: August 30, 2012

 

Sparks Ignite by J.A. GouthroIn Sparks Ignite by J.A. Gouthro, Elves fight an epic battle against the darkness and then go into hiding. Over the centuries they mix with humans making a hybrid race. The catch is that a lot of those part-human folks don’t know that they have any elf in them at all and never realize that they have magic burning inside of them. Owen, a modern day 18-year-old, has known for years that he had a special power — he once burned a wolf to crisp but not soon enough to save his friend. When Owen’s girlfriend is kidnapped he embarks on a journey to discover his own usefulness, power and ability to save humanity.

 

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Golgotha and Gameland: Deep Into the Game by Saul Tanpepper

Publication Date: April 29, 2012

 

Golgotha and Gameland: Episode 1 – Deep Into the Game by Saul TanpepperGolgotha and Gameland: Deep Into the Game by Saul Tanpepper is a futuristic story in which New York City has been cordoned off as an infected zone. A group of teenagers plot to break into the zone … but just the outer shell of it. They seem to have no real intention breaking into the area where the Zombies probably are (they must all be dead by now, right?). Will the teens be able to break into Gameland and, if they do, will they come out alive?

 

 

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