House of Dragons - Book Review

When the Emperor dies, the 5 houses of the Empire send a representative to try to win the throne. Usually, it's the first-born, but for some reason, the Great Dragon has called others: Emilia, who has been hidden away for her magic powers; Lucian, who was days away from becoming a monk; Vespir, a servant and dragon handler; Ajax, a bastard of his kindgom's Lord; and Julia - or rather it would be Julia except her older sister, trained for this battle from birth, kills Julia thinking that she is saving her younger sister from a less courteous death. Hyperia is the only warrior among the group, and it's clear that she's there to win and not play nice. But each character has useful skills, and Hyperia's not the only one who wins a challenge.

But will she win the whole thing?

I predicted the end of Jessica Cluess' young adult novel House of Dragons way in advance, but there was at least one element of the book that I didn't guess. And that element seems to set this book up for a sequel.

But this book first. I had trouble keeping track of the characters' last names and their dragon names. Maybe that's because I just wasn't that invested in the story. It was an interesting read, but I think it felt like build-up for what was to come in future books. I've also never been a dragon person - never watched Game of Thrones - so I might not be the intended audience for this book.

House of Dragons is published by Random House Books for Young Readers and is on bookstore shelves now. I received a free e-ARC in exchange for a review.