They need to have physical strength, speed, a good connection with their dragon, knowledge of the empire and its inhabitants, people skills and knowledge of themselves so they know what they can and can’t handle. It was interesting to see how some bonds were more developed than others and how these bonds kept growing because all competitors were learning from one another.Īs for the trials, they were made to display and test a variety of qualities an emperor should have. Each dragon had their own personality and the connection with their rider is a very unique and deep bond. Next to the people in this book, their dragons play an immensely important role in this story, which I don’t really get to see much in those so called ‘dragon fantasy’ books. This came through a lot in the story and it also touched on the different views on colonialism. They all come from different regions and have been raised in very contrasting circumstances.

The different cultures of the contestants were so fascinating. All of them have had some sort of struggle from their past and it was interesting to see how they deal with that during the trials. They are all very well fleshed out and I got a good view on their background and who they are/want to be as a person. Sometimes these multi-pov stories can get confusing, but here, all of the characters had a very distinct voice and it was easy to keep them apart. In this book, I got to follow the 5 different pov’s from the competitors.

From strength to strategy to politics to knowing their own selves, they need to be able to do it all. The contestants have to give their everything to survive. Together with their dragons, the five outcast are pitted against each other in different challenges that will determine who the new emperor will be. Five unprepared children will have to compete for the throne. This time though, things seem to go very wrong with the calling ceremony. Each of the five Houses will have one of their own chosen as a competitor for the throne, usually the oldest child of each house, who has been training for it all their live.

House of dragons book by jessica cluess