Review: Dragonwatch: Master of the Phantom Isle by Brandon Mull

MASTER OF THE PHANTOM ISLE

DRAGONWATCH #3

by Brandon Mull

Shadow Mountain

Middle Grade Fantasy

around 500 pages

ages 9 to 12

COMING...

OCTOBER 1st, 2019!!!

Cursed by the Key of Forgetting, Seth has lost all memory of his past—his relationships, his experiences, and who he really is. For now he will align with his new mentor, Ronodin, the dark unicorn, who takes him to the Phantom Isle, the secret gateway to the Under Realm. Though Seth is not formally a prisoner, Ronodin wants to use him and his shadow charmer powers for his own dark ends.

Kendra is frantic to find her missing brother, but the quest will take her and her companions, including Warren, Tanu, and Vanessa, far from Wyrmroost to Crescent Lagoon—a recently fallen dragon sanctuary made up of many islands and underwater domains. Its caretaker has regained a foothold on one of the islands. If Kendra and her friends can save that sanctuary, they might uncover the answers they need to rescue Seth.

With each sanctuary the dragons overthrow, Celebrant, the Dragon King, comes closer to the dawn of a new Age of Dragons. With the forces of darkness on the march, can Kendra and her allies gather enough power to win the epic dragon war?

MY TIDBITS

Fantasy takes an edge-of-the-seat, roller coaster ride in this exciting adventure, which doesn't let up until the last page...and then, with the promise of more.

(Note: This can be read as a stand-alone, but I wouldn't recommend that. The story takes off where book two ended and without reading the rest of the series, much background information is missing, which makes this book that much more enjoyable)

Seth finds himself in the darkness of the Under Realm as the student of the dark unicorn. After saving the day in book two, he's lost his memory and doesn't know who to trust or what he's really done. He only knows that there is a darkness of sorts with him, and although he has no reason to mistrust the unicorn, he's sure he isn't evil. Kendra, on the other hand, is determined to find Seth, but with dark forces on the march and being the sole remaining protector of Wyrmroost, she has quite a bit of other things to deal with as well. Although the last battle was won, darkness has not given up and is coming back more relentless than before.

Fantasy fans are going to love this series. It has dragons, magic, fairies, phantoms, unicorns, trolls...basically, everything the fantasy heart can desire. And it has heroes, ones that are easy for the age group to connect to. Seth and Kendra might be the heroes, but they aren't perfect and have a lot to learn. Still, their determination and desire to get things right make them easy to stand behind and root for.

The plot twists and turns, making it impossible to guess what those evil villains have up their sleeve. Not only that, but some aren't as evil (or as good) as they might appear. This is a very layered story with many unexpected moments and even more that keep the reader glued in the pages, wondering what will happen next.

The tale is told from various points of view, but mostly settles on Kendra and Seth. While their adventures only have them intersecting with a dab, the stories intertwine masterfully. The writing style is very easy to read, sticking heavily to dialogue and skipping over anything 'frilly'. It makes for a fast read even at 500 or so pages. The length did make me hesitate. Even afterwards, I'm not sure it couldn't have been tightened up a bit since this tale does have the heroes shooting all over the place with tons of side characters in tow. But it is a fun tale and one I'm sure kids will enjoy.

Review: Wrath of the Dragon King by Brandon Mull

WRATH OF THE DRAGON KING

Dragonwatch, Book Two

by Brandon Mull

Shadow Mountain

Middle Grade Fantasy

416 pages

COMING...

OCTOBER 23rd, 2018!!!

War has come to the dragon sanctuaries of the world and nowhere is the danger more intense than at Wyrmroost. After a humiliating defeat at the hands of Kendra and Seth, Celebrant, King of Dragons, prepares to unleash his fury and take control of his native preserve. Armed with information from a new ally Ronodin, the dark unicorn Celebrant seeks a legendary talisman the dominion stone.

However, the powerful stone is protected by a cursed castle. Upon entering the castle fortress, an unyielding power strips all magical beings of their power and forces Celebrant to take his human avatar form. Kendra and Seth must enter the cursed castle as well. The race is on. Will the two young caretakers rally enough support from the creatures of Wyrmroost against the greatest threat the magical community has faced in ages? Can they foil Celebrant's plan and beat him to the mighty dominion stone? Or will all hope be shattered by the wrath of the Dragon King? 

MY TIDBITS

Note: I did not read the first book in the series, which was a mistake. The story in book two takes off from where book one left off, and without reading book one, there is too much missing information to easily slide into the second one. In other words, read this one as a series.

Also, I only received the first 100 or so pages of this title to review. So, I can only review this first section. Whether or not the rest of the book holds up to these first pages, or whether or not the many upcoming twists and turns hold all they should/could, isn't something I can judge or comment on.

Seth is determined to overcome the magical and instant fear which strikes him and all other humans when faced with a dragon's stare, but things are going so well. Kendra might be doing better with her position with the fairies, but she's more than aware of the approaching war, which she and Seth must try to thwart off before it destroys the world. But there is not an easy way to hold off dragons, who have been living in, what they consider, prisons and now, want their freedom...and possibly to rule the world. When Seth and Kendra receive an invitation to the Dragon King's palace, they can't refuse but they can't agree either, since they know it is a trap. For the Dragon King wants to see Kendra dead.

This is a fast-paced, exciting adventure which lets dragons, fairies and magic flow with rich imagination. Each and every character is facing their own dilemmas, ones which make them sympathetic and easy to connect to. And it's these well woven sub-plots which support the main story and give it so much depth and intrigue. This is not a book to easily put down, but each page brings something new and adds to the excitement. There's hope, but it's only a shimmer which makes the characters to cheer for. They have their faults and they have determination as well as wonderful moral compasses. They know what's right and they will fight for it even when the odds are stacked against them.

While the danger is ever present, the author has built in a touch of humor and fantastical moments to keep it from growing to dark and to waken the imagination. The scenes are never overly described, but allow the reader to dive into the fantastical realm. There's moments of wonder, discovery and fascination, making this a tale found in dreams. 

These first pages definitely grab and set the stones for a great adventure. Whether the rest of the book holds up to it's introduction, I can't say. But I'd be more than willing to read the rest to find out. 

Want to meet Brandon Mull live?

Here's the tour:

 http://brandonmull.com/tour/

And here he is...

Brandon Mull is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Fablehaven series and Beyonders series. He travels the country visiting schools, promoting literacy, and sharing his message that "Imagination Can Take You Places." He lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, with his family.

Dragonwatch, Book 2: Wrath of the Dragon King (Shadow Mountain Publishing) will be available everywhere books are sold on October 23, 2018.