I unfortunately had to DNF Shadows of the Realm. I found there were large information dumps for the first several chapters that weren't even that related to what was going on with the characters. The one chapter that focused on the dragons showed them in a ridiculous light. I had images of dragon kings sitting on benches (just try picturing that in your mind and tell me you didn't chuckle), overly dramatic language mixed with very informal (the dragons apparently like to speak in "fancy" terms like thee and thou), and hugging. I'm not against dragons being used in a comedy, but I thought I was reading high fantasy.... The villains have so far been portrayed completely flat since they are apparently a race of evil killers. I did think the premise of magic being based on channeling power from a Second Realm interesting, but throw in animal companions that sound just like humans in their mind-speech and actually journeying to and meeting in this Second Realm and the magic system was getting a bit cluttered. Finally, the two younger protagonists I was introduced to were petulant and moody. They would be spitting mad just because they're guardian wouldn't tell them something or said something they didn't like, not really an unforgivable offense ya know? Oh and using commas correctly would have helped my reading experience.In summary, Shadows of the Realm had potential but combined far too many fantasy oddities together for my taste. Once the annoying characters and flat villains were thrown in, I just couldn't take it. ( )

Dragon's are one of those creatures of fantasy I have always had an attraction too. I drew them, collected cards with images on them and instead of reading Judy Blume at the age of 11 I was reading Anne Dragonrider series right along with my horror books. Sure, an odd duck for a preteen girl, but than again ... I also played hostel take overs with my brother's GI JOE with the Barbie collection with the occasional Jedi Mind trick of having Barbie serve GI JOE tea (again odd duck=me). I played Dungeon and Dragon's at lunch with the chess nerds and did not bother worrying THAT much about lipgloss (I did but I was more excited about the new sparkly set of purple dice I found at the comic shop!).

"Here be Dragons".~ Early European map makers' warning

There have always been dragons, and not just on the pages of fantasy books. I would like to think that someday we will discover bones of a real dragon which make the early map maker's warning be true. But in the case of Dionne Lister's books, these dragons are both terrifying as well as loveable.

One critic claimed she thought she was reading high fantasy and found she wasn't. Obviously does not know the definition of high fantasy. Dionne Lister complies to all the aspects of what high fantasy is suppose to do. It has characters who are young and not worldly. There are wise mentors with mysterious pasts raising and guiding the youths into the future. A way of life and world is in need of saving and only a few can do it and are prophesied too. There is magic all around and in every part, not just with a wave of a wand or a wiggle of a nose but in the prose. Mystery and darkness, good and evil are present and at odds. Honor, dishonor and a past event which changed the world and paths of all, happened at one point affecting the main players. And the big part?? DRAGONS!! This time they are not just hanging on a wall or in legends, the story is steeped and truly centers around them! How does it make it any different and why should you try this series out?

...these same dragons had also started rumours that some of them occasionally liked to eat people. Zim, however, was not one of these dragons." - Shadows of the Realm - on the prince of the dragons.

I would like to say Dionne waved her magic wand and sent a big bad Dragon to threaten to clear my McDonald's of workers and prevent my occasional feasting on nuggets, but the truth is she wrote an epic fantasy that was not an 800 page tome with so many convoluted names and so many different storylines my 13 year-old, as smart as he is would be put off! Don't get me wrong, I occasionally live for those tomes, I am a huge fan of David Eddings and Robert Jordan and Zelazny but the themes are not approachable for all the ages. Then she comes up with these absolutely beautiful images, the descriptions are not that of a police blotter. She is able to say how someone looks and how they are as a person all in a couple sentences.

"...had a short white hair; a long white beard adorned his lined face. He exuded the calm and mystery of a still lake. His dark, intelligent eyes were full of life, twinkling with the promise of jokes yet to be told, mischief yet to be unleashed." Shadows of the Realm - on Agmunsten

Dionne's story and characters are written into a realm that is approachable and readable for anyone from the age of 12 to 99. Everything which is taken to be the conventions of an epic fantasy novel is here but written with the young adult in mind. She has woven the characters and stories in with humor and given her readers real people to believe in and cheer for. Her teens in this coming of age are real, they are moody, snarky, occasionally rude and in need of discipline and guidance all the time. They are not savants in the realm of propriety and manners, they are like the same gifted children you have in your house, their appetites are bottomless, they huff and puff and think the world revolves around them They grow, learn and realize as the stories go on the world revolves around everyone and more than that, especially in this series. Like any good fantasy, there is much more than meets the eye. These things alone makes the story a wonderful read for young adults! She makes the dragon's a little over the top, superior and full of pomp and circumstance, but best of all, she makes them funny and likeable.

There are some very real and serious situations that come up that are intense and frightening. I found myself holding my breath at times waiting to find out what the story held for the characters I was so invested in. From the very first sentence I fell in love with a young boy who was interested in catching frogs yet who dreamt of a frightening creature threatening his life and following with the introduction to our female teenager who was going to throw herself off a cliff because of being forced to leave the only life she had known.

Epic is right, over the top and yet at the same time real. A teacher once told me a reader does not get invested in the story, they get invested and care about the characters, the story just follows behind them. This was certainly true with both of these books. I can't even put my finger on one specific thing she has done, it is everything from her wonderful colorful writing to her believable loveable and despicable characters. I laughed out loud, I sobbed with grief and sighed with relief all the while unable to stop reading (I am not kidding, go check my sharing on this book). The magic system is original and touching, the evil is dark, the good are not perfect and even though there are gruesome scenes of real horror these just lead to it all being an amazing tale.

This is the first book, and it has an incredibly intense cliffhanger. I was so glad I had book two. You will find a place in your heart for so many of these characters, I wonder though, which one is yours?

Dionne has managed to take all these lovely ingredients, bringing them together in this series to create a n incredible feast. These books are not a box of chicken nuggets more like a love pair of roast pheasants.. or goat.. or the whole cow slaughtered in award winning BBQ. My only issue? She has not written book three yet...

((I received this book as a gift when I was sick last year from the author, I ended up buying it on Kindle because I wanted to own both as a pair after reading 15% of this one and falling in love. I never promised a review but I am so glad I did read and review it, it is an amazing fantasy read!) ( )

I unfortunately had to DNF Shadows of the Realm. I found there were large information dumps for the first several chapters that weren't even that related to what was going on with the characters. The one chapter that focused on the dragons showed them in a ridiculous light. I had images of dragon kings sitting on benches (just try picturing that in your mind and tell me you didn't chuckle), overly dramatic language mixed with very informal (the dragons apparently like to speak in "fancy" terms like thee and thou), and hugging. I'm not against dragons being used in a comedy, but I thought I was reading high fantasy.... The villains have so far been portrayed completely flat since they are apparently a race of evil killers. I did think the premise of magic being based on channeling power from a Second Realm interesting, but throw in animal companions that sound just like humans in their mind-speech and actually journeying to and meeting in this Second Realm and the magic system was getting a bit cluttered. Finally, the two younger protagonists I was introduced to were petulant and moody. They would be spitting mad just because they're guardian wouldn't tell them something or said something they didn't like, not really an unforgivable offense ya know? Oh and using commas correctly would have helped my reading experience.

In summary, Shadows of the Realm had potential but combined far too many fantasy oddities together for my taste. Once the annoying characters and flat villains were thrown in, I just couldn't take it. ( )

I won a copy of this book and yes, I was lucky. The story is steeped in imagination, magic and enchantment, with characters that bring it alive in the most realistic way.

The writing is superb, with wonderfully rich descriptions, creating fantastic detailed worlds. The building of characters was excellent, so that readers have no choice but to care about what happens to them...rooting for the good and hating the bad - and with the right degree of uncertainty.

I also found the story original in parts and was fascinated by the ideas of several realms and how they could be used for 'magic'. The 'bonding' sequences were particularly intriguing and were portrayed amazingly well.

The only downside was that I will have to wait until the next book to find out what happens!

I do not give spoilers, but will say that overall this book hooked me from start and I didn't want to put it down - an excellent tale that I highly recommend.

Please hurry with the next installment :) ( )