I finished another dragon book recently. This one is pretty standard dragon rider fantasy fare, although the last 3 pages of the book really elevated it for me. I hope it's going where I think it is. I think I'll try the next, if for no other reason than I have nothing else lined up.

Comparing it to the last dragon rider series I've been reading, Songs of Chaos, Realm Breaker really nails the Protagonist Moment of Clarity where the other series falters. Holt is nothing compared to Skalda as far as main protagonists go... A comparison I realize now you'd only get if you're exactly me and have read both series. Hmm.

But once again, not enough dragons... They make it irritatingly ambiguous how intelligent the dragons not named Bale are, and any dragon without said name might as well not be a character. Very irritating, but also absolutely standard for dragon rider books. When will they get it?

I don't care for the book's Nordic theming. Ever since Skyrim it's become obnoxious. On the other hand, I think the magic system has potential. It feels a bit "secretly sci-fi", which piques my interest. Maybe I'm seeing things though. I'm probably seeing things.

I'm still searching for another book that's great rather than just good. But this one is good. As I said, the ending cinched it together perfectly, which fills me with hope for the next book, but we'll see if it can be better than "just good". I think the book was a bit short, but I'll pick up the next one. But for now, I continue to search for that one book that truly resonates with me.

Here's the second book in the Songs of Chaos series, by Micheal R. Miller. Check out my opinion on book 1 here. I think it delivered a lot more good things than the first book but had some entirely infuriating bits. It didn't really address the problem with the primary protagonist, but it also introduced us to some new secondary PoVs that were very good.

So yeah, that's the big change in book 2. It went and split up the point of view to multiple characters this time. Three of them! I think that worked well, especially for getting the secondary antagonist's perspective. He was great. He mad me rooting for the bad guys in some spots, to be honest, even if the primary antagonist was... Well, as bad as you would expect from a primary antagonist!

Our poor main character kinda tries to find a voice in this book, but he ultimately still isn't allowed to have strong beliefs, perhaps save for the protection of disabled dragons, which is noble and all, but even then the antagonist spends most of the book being better at that than him! (Not ALL the book, just enough of it to matter.) It's wildly funny watching the bad guys be better at the good guy's one true radical stance.

The latter parts of the book were a lot about the protagonist's new ally and mentor, who by the end of the book I HATED. He's a villain as much as the Dark Evil Bad Guy, and everyone sees nothing wrong with him. It was infuriating to watch!

Let me explain. So like the Big Bad is the sort to at face value believe in a cause (and quite frankly, he's still pretty justified on that cause), but really is just a selfish power hungry loser. Standard fare. Fine and good, I suppose. However, on the other hand, this mentor figure is also helping the protagonist and assembling a Band of Plucky Misfits to defeat Big Bad, but really he's a selfish, manipulative bastard who endangers everyone around him, for what is ultimately just himself. The antagonist says this to his face and he's right! He's so right and it hurts!! By the end of the book? The protagonist thanks him for his behavior and agrees to help him further. BASTARD. I hate that guy.

(A Twitter user read this bit and told me that it kinda sounds like a Rick and Morty sort of deal. That asshole's name sounds suspiciously like Rick, too. I don't know what to think about that.)

Really, the book shines with the other PoVs, of the secondary protagonist and secondary antagonist. The secondary protag's story ends with a twist I was very happy to see, and very excited to see out. She does the unthinkable and actually changes the status quo, too! Wow! The series really has a status quo problem, and I really hope the series doesn't end with a lame "finally we can return to before".

I know all you sick freaks only care about the dragons, so let's go over them. There were more dragons in this book than the last! That's good! I think most of them are still underbaked characters compared to the humans, though. That's bad! In general, I feel like the dragon bonds don't feel terribly genuine and characters generally don't have much chemistry with each other. That's... Okay, I guess. What I do like about the book is the plot and individual characters, even if the worldbuilding and interactions are middling.

I'm still curious as to where the theme of the series will end up. I think I can see what they're going for now, although the main character isn't supporting it well, if you ask me. The surrounding characters are propping up this novel. Here's hoping the author can cinch a good book 3, regardless. My opinion of the series kinda depends on it. I think the author could really knock it out of the park if he doubles down on characters doing radical things and believing in things, and solidifying his nascent themes. We'll see!

I was going to post about the latest dragon book I just finished reading, but I realized about 90% of the way through it that I was just reading it out of bile fascination, and I could never in good faith recommend it to anyone, or even give it publicity via sharing its name or author. I think this is the first dragon book I've read that is truly morally repugnant to me, rather than simply boring or trite.

I won't say much on it, but it was about a dragon prince who ascends to the throne. The world he lives in sucks, and by the end of the book, he is thoroughly broken by it, and becomes a happy and willing participant in its injustices. Ultimately, its morals are so steeped in incel reactionary thought that all it can muster to say is that "men exist to be manipulated by women", and little else. It accomplishes this through a lot of dragon pornography that quite frankly I've never been more blood-curdled, more blood-chilled, by in its presentation in my life. And that's coming from me! Me!!

The ending was so far past a downer ending that I think I need therapy now to undo reading that. I think a good lesson to take from this is: Don't see a bad book through, don't give into bile fascination, if the vibes are truly that bad, hit the bricks.

A better lesson to take is: Please, love others with all of your heart. Other people think it may not be possible, or good, but trust me, it is. It's imperative to live a life worth living to love all that you can every day. Use your heart. Don't let it die.

Time for another Dragon Book Review! This one is Ascendant, by Micheal R. Miller. It's a dragon rider book. Not the worst one I've read, by far! I thought it had its good parts but was also a bit frustrating.

In short: Our protagonist lives in a deeply unjust society. He is a serf in service of the world's dragon riders, almost all of them unpleasant people. Nonetheless, he saves a disabled dragon's life and bonds with them. Saving the World from Evil ensues.

For all y'all sick fucks who only care about the dragons: they're much more a part of the story than, say, Fourth Wing, but for a book that harps on how bonding with your dragon is important, I would expect more of that. A lot of time is spent on human relations instead.

The action was good, the magic system was a bit strangely codified and rigid for being a non-litRPG, the characters were fine enough. I like the protagonist a great deal, and appreciate what he stands for, but now I have to get into the themes. Oh boy.

(Light spoilers ahead.)