In a tribe where weredragons are shunned, feared, and murdered, young Laira discovers she has the curse. In the Kingdom to the north, a young king murders his father for the throne, and declares that all weredragons must die. Two travellers try to trade, hiding a dark secret. And they will all be drawn together as the world changes.

This isn’t dark fantasy, it is grimdark fantasy. It has a body count, rape is a fact of life, and a woman burns to death on the second page. What appears to be a straight good and evil plot quickly turns into a very dark grey at its brightest. Yet at the same time, the action moves quickly, the writing glows, and the plot kept me turning the pages.

The early chapters have a lot of set-up, but the action doesn’t stop despite that. It is easy to get emotionally caught up in the book. There was a certain character I really wanted to see dead, and I cheered when it happened. The characters are developed and individual, with their own ideas, motives and trends, and that isn’t just the heroes. The villains are well-rounded as well, it just doesn’t mean they have anything particularly redeemable about them.

I was supposed to be having an early night. Instead it kept me up til two finishing it. It is rare for me to say it, but the writer has the ability to create some stunning images with his words and I do regret not picking this up until one of his other books have dropped off.

There are no notable typos or grammar errors, the formatting and layout was fine on Kindle or cloud, and the cover was outstanding. It is the first book in a series, but the ending is strong and a natural break: the initial action has ended, and the first Act is over aside from a few elements that will effectively kick off the action in a sequel. I am actually torn on whether this should be a five, but the reason it is a four is because I am unlikely to re-read it.

Fantasy fans should read this, but so should horror, goth, and there’s even something here for action readers.