Donita K. Paul, Dragonquest

Dragonquest

Donita K. Paul

WaterBrook, Jun 2005, $13.99, 352 pp.

ISBN: 1400071291

Kale was once a slave, but was freed by her village elders when she found a dragon's egg; they sent her to study at Hall, but on her trek there she found more eggs and battled an evil wizard (see DRAGONSPELL). Eventually she made it to the Hall where she expected to be in service, but instead is a student, a difficult adjustment for one who has always been in servitude.

The Wizard Fenworth learns of the exploits of the dragonkeeper of Paladin as Kale is known; he sends for her to come to The Bogs as his apprentice and to nurture his youngling a recently hatched meech dragon-infant. Her teachers at the Hall send swordsman and fellow student Bardon to accompany her. Kale dislikes Bardon, but the journey is long and dangerous and he seems to always be there when she needs him until the evil Wizard Risto makes his latest move. He has attained a new meech dragon that makes him nearly invincible; he plots vengeance on the slave girl who defeated him recently before conquering Amara.

This spectacular sequel stars a delightful young heroine still struggling to understand the change in her circumstances from servitude to student. Bardon is a fabulous sidekick as he irritates and fascinates Kale, whose just discovering the attractive non-mischievous side of boys. The evil villain Risto is the perfect adversary in DRAGONQUEST as he obsessively needs to defeat the little girl who humiliatingly defeated him before and then conquer the world. Donita K. Paul provides a delightful fantasy that both the Potter and Tolkien crowds will treasure.

Harriet Klausner