Review - Dragon's Dawn by Sam Burns and W.M. Fawkes

Genya has been raised mostly by his mother. The slightly built young man spends his time having tea with the ladies of the court rather than in the “manly” pursuits preferred by his older brother and father. Genya has learned that it’s better to stay out of his father’s scheming sights. At nineteen years old, it can’t last. Genya expects to be married off one day, but is surprised when his father agrees to a plan by the king’s brother to have Genya wed Prince Mikhail. The king’s nephew is known for his volatile temper and total disinterest in court intrigues. Mikhail, “Misha”, knows he can’t defy the king and is just as sure that Genya is meant to spy on him by the paranoid ruler.

It’s well-trodden ground for fantasy stories - arranged marriages between enemies, court intrigues, and, of course, dragons. Nothing is wrong with that, as long as the story pulls you into the fantasy and gives you reason to stay there. This book definitely delivers on that front, with some strong characters and compelling storytelling.

Misha and Genya couldn’t be more opposite. Misha fights the king’s battles while Genya has tea with the ladies of the court. They clearly have a strong physical attraction to each other, but that’s often not enough to bridge the gap in their temperaments. The story relies heavily on the “men don’t talk about their feelings” cliché, but given their lack of trust in each other, it’s believable and understandable.

Genya is your typical fantasy “twink” - beautiful, boyish and constantly undervalued. Still, we do get a very vivid picture of the young man and I, for one, really felt his frustration at the situation he’s been maneuvered into. Misha is a bit more difficult to like. In strong counterpoint to Genya, Misha lacks all the social graces. He may not be a very sympathetic character, but we learn enough about Misha to understand why he is the way he is. There’s a rich cast of secondary characters around Genya and Misha, some of whom will play key roles in the additional books of the series.

“Dragon's Dawn” is available from Amazon (commissionable link).