I’ve read another dragon book. No one is surprised.

I received an advance reader’s copy (ARC) of Lightningborn by Julie Kagawa. Since this version is just a proof and not the final version, I won’t quote directly and will keep my comments general.

In Lightningborn by Julie Kagawa, Remy is a thief barely scraping by on Cutthroat Wedge, an island of pirates and pickpockets. It’s also one of the islands farthest from the capital of civilization, and is very close to the Maelstrom, a swirling vortex that promises death to any who fall into it. But Remy is too busy to worry about that, mostly concerned with his own survival. So when a baby dragon falls into his lap, he is startled to say the least. But he can hardly leave the little one to fend for himself, and so he names it Storm and tries to keep it hidden from the vicious pirate captain searching for it. Meanwhile, across the kingdom, the crown princess Gem is struggling to prove herself as a real mage, constantly facing dismissal. Because surely she’s only at this school for mages because of her father. However, she’s a capable mage in her own right, so when she learns a secret that threatens the survival of not only this kingdom but every person on the planet, she sets off to stop it. Her path points her in Remy and Storm’s direction, and the three of them will need to team up to save the world.

This is such a fun story! I loved the worldbuilding; the idea of floating islands, barely avoiding being sucked into a whirlpool-like force is so cool. Well, not cool to be sucked into a whirlpool, but you know what I mean. I also enjoyed hearing some of the stories about dragons, and the distinctions between the “true” dragons of yore, long gone now, and the more domesticated type that’s common across the kingdom. And obviously, Storm the baby dragon was a delightful character. He reminds me of Zym from the show The Dragon Prince. In fact, fans of that show would like this book.

As for Remy and Gem, they are great protagonists, a little archetypal, but still sweet and relatable. Kids will latch onto them, rooting for Remy to survive in the tough world he’s stuck in, and for Gem to be able to prove her mettle. There are also pirates, some mostly just opportunistic mercenaries and others ruthless villains. It’s like Kagawa made a list of some of the things I most like (cool magic, dragons, and pirates) and shoved them together. She rocks.

I do wish that these two had been brought together sooner in the story, though. A lot of the book serves to establish the world, and their separate situations, before even introducing the main problem, and well before beginning to get them to the same location. Not to say that all this wasn’t interesting, but I think it would have been better to allow them to get to know each other better, before having to embark on a world-saving quest together. That said, I know this is the first of a series (a trilogy, I believe), so I imagine that there will be more bonding moments later.

The best relationship between characters, however, is definitely between Remy and Storm. You get a very good sense of their affection and loyalty, even after a short time. They are all each other has in this world, and you become easily invested in the two of them making it. I also liked Remy’s friend, NAME, and look forward to seeing more of him, as well as the pirate captain Cutlass.

In the end, Lightningborn is a very promising trilogy opener. It has good characters and a wonderful setting, plus exciting action and high stakes. I think the pacing could have been better, but middle grade readers will devour this. Now all I have to do is wait for book two…

Lightningborn is available now!