I mean I didn't hate this book. I didn't really care for it either. It was like Un Lun Dun; it was just kind of boring and lacking something. Like the sense of adventure and vivid descriptions usually accompanying fantasy. However I realize that this is a children's book so I give it kind of a pass on this. Unlike Un Lun Dun I wasn't expecting something unique and amazing. So I give it a two because I did end up putting it down a bit more than halfway through.

This is a very promising and fun start to a series which is all about one thing I love - dragons. The characters are typical of this type of middle grade fantasy, children who are witty and intelligent and Dr Drake who is a mad kind of dragonologist. The style of writing is witty and easy to comprehend and the storyline is happy and enjoyable to read through (I read this in an hour and a half) and very short, but a lot happens and is set up and explained. I believe that the books will only continue to improve as I continue the series and I shall certainly be moving onto the next one soon as possible as this is so light-hearted and fun, my only complaint being I wish there was more, but I suppose the next book will solve that problem!
Recommended! :)

I enjoyed the feisty sister.

This book was fun and very nostalgic! It reminded me a lot of the days when I was really really interested in this line of -ology books and everything that came with them! A solid middle-grade story well worth taking the time to read! I'm very interested to keep going with this series and see where it goes. Sometimes the writing can seem a bit frustrating, primarily because it's aimed at younger children, but I love dragons enough that I don't care!

It was exciting, quick-moving, adventure packed, and full of dragons.

I’m not sure how well it would work just as a fantasy novel, for kids unfamiliar with the Dragonology world. I think they would enjoy it, but not as much as Amber did. You really have to be a dragon lover to like it, I think. And the dragons can be powerful, intelligent, dangerous, but the SASD’s mission is to protect them, not exploit them, which goes along with Amber’s feelings quite well.

Noice

I have to be honest, I absolutely loved this book and I can't wait to hunt down the rest of the series and get stuck in with my dragonology education. Steer's style reminds me of the Lemony Snicket series (which btw I also loved) with its easy humour and lighthearted take on life and the way its adapts real life to fit into the story. The story itself is very well written and thoroughly engrossing and I just couldn't put it down once I read the first line, never mind the first chapter. Steer writes with vivid and descriptive words that conjure up amazing images that even the most mature reader will want to believe (and many will...me included). I can't wait to get my hands on the rest of this series.

Having re-read this, it is just as good and has reminded me that I really, really, really need to hunt down the rest of the series.

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Plot

The plot of this book is pretty simple and would be very easy for children to read, but adults will enjoy it as well. Daniel and Beatrice are siblings who, when their parents cannot come home after 4 years as expected, they are taken under the care of Dr. Drake (a family friend). Daniel and Beatrice have no idea what they are doing there and are not sure about it first, but a short time later they realize they are going to be going to school (taught by Dr. Drake) to learn about dragons! How exciting! I wish I could go!

The first 120 pages or so spends time with Daniel and Beatrice before and during classes. We learn about dragonology as they learn about it, first by going out into the field and doing some observations. All of these observations must be kept in their journal. There are plenty of other things that the children get to learn, but I don't want to give it all away. Even though this consumes half the book it is still very interesting because we get to meet a couple of interesting dragons while learning all about dragonology. It moves at a great pace and I never found any part to be uninteresting because it was so fascinating. Any child you adores dragons will love this!

The second half of the book begins their adventure! Daniel, Beatrice, and Dr. Drake have to stop Ignatius from recovering the Dragon's Eye. There is plenty of action, interesting scenes, lots of dragons, and they encounter many problems along the way. For a children's book it moves at a great pace, but I would have preferred it to be a bit more detailed and move more slowly but children may not prefer this.

I thought the ending was great! It wraps up pretty nicely so you don't actually have to read any of the other books if you don't want to. However, there was one character who got away with some things and this could lead to problems later. I would assume this would be their next adventure.

Characters

The reason why I am not giving this book five stars is because of the characters. Throughout the entire book, even though their were plenty of good opportunities, we know next to nothing about Daniel and Beatrice. Because of this I wasn't able to connect with them and care about them they way I should have been able to. They just weren't developed enough. With other books left in the series I hope I get to know them a little more.

Dr. Drake was my favorite character. What we learn about him isn't much either, but it is more than the children. At first I wasn't sure what kind of person he was because when first encountering the character he seems harsh and rude, but then we learn that he is a loving and caring person. He adores dragons and does just about anything to ensure their safety and he knows a lot about dragonology. By far my favorite character so far in the series, though there are not many to choose from. Dr. Drake could have been more interesting.

Though their are glimpses of the evil characters in this book we don't know too much about them other than what Dr. Drake has told us. Ignatius Crook believes that the Dragon's Eye is rightfully his and that he should be the next Dragon Master but many others think otherwise. He is an evil, horrible person and there doesn't seem to be any good in him whatsoever. He is your run of the mill bad character. I wish he would have been a little more interesting.

Writing

I loved the writing of the book! I don't have any complaints! There were even some charts provided so we could see what the children were writing in the journals, and I loved the illustrations even though there were only a few. Perfectly written and I believe that younger children won't have a hard time reading it.

Overall Thoughts

This is an interesting book and a great beginning to what looks like an amazing series. Anyone who loves dragons will love to read this book and it can be enjoyed by both children and adults alike. Although some parts weren't detailed enough for me and I wish others would have moved more slowly, and the lack of character development, it is still a great, interesting story that will be enjoyed by all.

this was an interesting read! I found the main boy and Dr. whoever to be a little annoying, and the sister to be a little cool but mostly annoying. I didn’t care for the fascination with origin of species either. I liked the illustrations overall, but not the way that the people were drawn. I’m not sure who the target audience was for this book, but I am relatively confident that it was written for pretty young kids quite a few years ago. the book itself was well made (dust cover, bindings, paper type, etc). overall it was enjoyable enough as I did finish it, but it was not a favorite