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Book Cover |
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Excerpt |
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Jace steadied himself.
The ground below him spun, and the chimera
was swinging close, ready to attack, close enough to reach. Gripping the
silken frill at the dragon's neck, Jace planted his feet on the silver
scales at Belen's shoulder. He didn't have time to count to three as he
usually did before stepping out onto a tightrope. He had time only to
make sure Belen saw him, and then he jumped.
Jace ran out onto the dragon's wing, keeping
his weight light against the fore bone. The wing bone under his feet was
wider than a tightrope, but slicker and rounded where the rope always
felt solid and hard. Nevertheless, walking on shifting slopes was Jace's
forte. He had no moment to balance or prepare himself, but hurtled down
the dragon's wing toward the chimera as if he were racing beneath the
big top's heavy canvas. Step after step, Belen's wing tensed under his
weight. He was nearing the first joint now. After that the bones became
much thinner and less capable of carrying his weight. He was going to
have to jump.
Images of his last time on a tightrope
flashed through his mind. Faces spun again beneath him, and the sick
jolt of the rope as it slid under his foot. Jace pushed it all away. If
they were going to have any chance of defeating the chimera, he had to
reach it. He had to leap from the dragon's wing to the chimera's and be
aboard the beast before it knew what was happening.
Jace looked up into the chimera's horrible
dragon maw, the flames licking around its gums and teeth, and launched
himself into the air. Wind rushed past, tugging at his hair, his
clothes. Jace tried not to think of the ground swooping past far beneath
him. One second. Two. Three, and there was the chimera's outstretched
wing!
He landed lightly, barely tapping it with
his toes before pushing off toward the creature's back. The chimera
screamed, gouting flame where Jace had been and nearly scorching its own
wing in the attempt. Jace was already three feet farther in, almost to
the creature's shoulder. Luckily, Jace thought as he reached out to grab
the lionlike mane, the creature was almost certainly too stupid to
just--
Roll.
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Synopsis |
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Jace Pettier is in his
late teens and a tightrope walker in Worver's Amazing Celestial Circus
of Light. His father attempting a quadruple tuck flip five years ago and
fell to his death. Before Jace takes to the tightrope this night, he
watches Belen, a silver-haired woman in her early twenties dance in the
center ring. He had been infatuated with her since she mysteriously
arrived five years ago while suffering from memory loss.
Soon, when Jace
attempts his first quadruple tuck flip, a voice rings out and Jace
begins to fall. As he plummets toward the ground, magical forces take
hold of him and his death is averted because a mage named Mysos, of the
White Robes of Palanthas. Mysos is there to accuse Belen of being a
dragon and destroying the village of Angvale five years ago. Belen
states that she has no memory longer than five years ago but feels that
she must know what happened to the village and prove her innocence.
Promising to return to
the circus in three days, she sets out with Jace, Cerisse - a juggler
and half Qualinesti elf, and Ebano Saham - the Mysterious Mystic and the
Prince of Sayf. When the four arrive at what is left of Angvale, the
find a gutted town that is slowly being reclaimed by the Fairbranch
Forest. After night falls, when they settle down to sleep in the only
remaining building, they are attacked by werewolves. The old hag who
leads the werewolves spots Belen and names her Belengithar, the silver
dragon that attacked the town. The old hag explains that the town has
been put under a curse and all of the residents of the town have been
turned into werewolves.
Later, after Belen
realize that she is a silver dragon, the four trek to her tower. There,
they find a room that used to house her egg. Memories come flooding back
to Belen and she remembers attacking the town because she though that
they had taken her dragon egg. Realizing that her egg was taken and her
baby had been turned into a draconian, Belen understands that town was
innocent. She is determined to find a way to lift the curse and turn all
the werewolves back into humans again.
Returning to the
circus, Belen faces and even greater evil that threatens the lives of
her friends, Jace and Cerisse. Greed has prompted the evil to spread and
only Belen has the power to crush it. That is, if she can escape from
the trap she has fallen into.
Silver Dragon Codex
is the stand-alone fantasy book and is written by Ree Soesbee as R.D. Henham. This is the
sixth book in the Dragon Codex series, a companion
series to the book A
Practical Guide to Dragons. This
book is intended for young readers 10 and up.
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Review |
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Silver Dragon Codex
another wonderful book in the Dragon Codex series. I must say that I am
greatly enjoying these book and always look forward to reading the next
book in this series. Each book focuses on a different type of dragon, of
which there are ten, and each story involves totally different
characters and situations.
In this book, we have a
silver dragon that has suffered from memory loss. Not only can she not
remember who she is, she doesn't even remember that she is a dragon.
When Belen does finally remember everything, she is hit with horrible
pain and anguish over the loss of her child. She understands why she
attacked the village, but now comprehends that it was wrong of her for
her to do this. She jumped to a conclusion without the proper evidence,
and an entire town suffered because of her misguided anger.
I found it interesting
that this book has circus performers at its main characters. This
is something I never expected to read about in a Dungeon & Dragons
fantasy novel. Still, I was quite pleased with the story and found I
really liked all of the main characters. And as for the bad guy in the
book . . . ohhhh, he is a nasty one. I didn't like him at all!
Ree Sousbe has created
another entertaining book in the Dragon Codex series and I find that I
really enjoy her writing style. Dragons are one of the most interesting
creatures in the realm of fantasy and I love that I am getting to know
more about them. I am really glad that Mirrostone is publishing these
companion novels to A
Practical Guide to Dragons. The
series is just plain ol' fantastic.
Overall,
Silver Dragon
Codex is a great story with an interesting twist or two that
will keep a young reader engrossed until the last page is read. Now that
I know about six different types of dragons, I cannot wait to find out
what happens in the next stand alone novel entitled
Gold Dragon Codex.
It should be another fun ride.
I rated this book an 8½ out of 10. |
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