House of Dragons (Jessica Cluess)

House of Dragons
The House of Dragons series, Book 1
Jessica Cluess
Random House
Fiction, YA Fantasy
**** (Good)

DESCRIPTION: The Etrusian empire was founded on order, enforced by steel and dragonfire as it banished all chaos magic from the land. To this day, it continues its endless wars of expansion to bring the whole world under its banner, lest chaos and disorder ever rise again. The five great noble Houses keep dragons as mounts and companions against the day they might be summoned to compete for the crown. The eldest royal children are born and bred for this opportunity, when the Great Dragon calls them and they face the fourfold challenges to either take the throne or be executed as unworthy. Thus shall the forces of order, and the Etrusian empire itself, always stand strong.
When the old emperor at last dies, one member of each house is called... only something has gone terribly wrong. It is not the eldest, nor the strongest, who are summoned, but five of the least-likely candidates, runts and outcasts and byblows. But when the Great Dragon has spoken, not even the priests dare contradict His will. Now an illegitimate thief, a girl with a terrible magical secret, a warrior son who has sworn off violence, a servant girl with not a drop of noble blood, and a young woman whose desperation for the crown leads her to a bloody act of betrayal before even setting foot among the other challengers will face the greatest test of their lives - and uncover the greatest treachery at the very heart of their empire.

REVIEW: Set in a magical world vaguely reminiscent of classical Europe, House of Dragons melds elements of The Dragonriders of Pern and The Hunger Games with a touch of The Breakfast Club for an exciting fantasy adventure. The characters start off a little flat and familiar, but gain some depth as the story moves on, even if their voices sometimes feel a little more modern American than one might expect from a fantasy world; the thief boy Ajax in particular would not be out of place in a contemporary urban fantasy, somewhat jarring when set against other characters who feel more firmly rooted in their setting. Still, they clash and mesh in interesting, sometimes unexpected ways, alliances and rivalries forming and breaking as the challenges unfold and other enemies come to light. I liked Cluess's take on dragons, which borrow from other bonded-dragon tales (particularly Pern) to become integral parts of the tale and not just tagalongs added for ambience (as some dragons can be.) The story moves at a decent pace with a few surprises, though even the twists I saw coming played out well. The ending stumbles slightly, first when a major backslide sets up the climax, and again as it invokes a time-honored trope-bordering-on-cliche to kick off a series, but I still enjoyed it far more than I didn't.
As a closing note, this was an advance reader copy, received as part of a "mystery box" book bundle; the book itself is set to release on May 12.

You Might Also Enjoy:
The Dragon Quartet (Marjorie B. Kellogg) - My Review
The Dragonriders of Pern (Anne McCaffrey) - My Review
Dragon's Blood (Jane Yolen) - My Review