This blog has officially moved to Wordpress! You can find the latest posts at www.blueeyebooks.com. Redirect coming soon!

Sunday, December 14, 2014

R&R Review and Interview Sunday: Dragon by Rustin Petrae


Goodreads Blurb:
"He was an enemy.

She saved his life.

The rest is history.

Rooks have embraced science and technology, even inventing helpful, microscopic, robots called nanos to create nearly any machine they want to meet their needs.

The Terraquois are their opposite. They have embraced the spiritual and have a deep bond with nature. It is this bond that allows them to transform into the animal that resembles their own, inner selves. 

These two races have fought each, often with brutal savagery, for centuries. But things change when the Rook prince, Rone Varlamagne, is shot out of the sky and left for dead in the desert by an unknown force. Keiara, the daughter of the Terraquois chieftan, is the one to find him but instead of killing him, she decides to save his life. It is one act. One conscious choice, but it changes everything for them and the entire face of Purga.

Together, they face foes from every direction...and they will stop at nothing to protect each other."



Review:
Thank you to the author, Rustin Petrae, for gifting me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I don't think I've ever read a book quite like this one.  It's like a combination of everything I imagine in my head (science fiction stuff).  I don't really know how to structure this review so lets just jump right in!

I really loved the setting and just generally the world.  It was really different but also was described in a way that I could picture everything and I always knew what was going on.  The nanos as well were a very nice addition.  They blended well with the story and I've never seen that concept used before so that was cool.

I also loved the whole message of acceptance.  There are these two groups at war and two people try to bridge the gap.  Some other crazy stuff happens along the way and it definitely isn't smooth sailing but it's such a great message!  Sort of going along with that, I loved Keiara's character!  She's so strong and able to do whatever needs to be done.  Rone's POV was also very interesting to read.

I would have liked a bit more background about the Rook's and the Terraquois past relationship.  At some points, it felt like this was the second book in the series (like there's a prequel that I'm missing).  So characters were introduced like we had already met them and their relationship to everyone else was just explained with parentheses and certain plot points from a seemingly non-existent but still existent history were referenced.  Maybe a prequel is in order?

The Final Verdict:
A very interesting read with a wonderful message and strong MC's.  A little more background information would be helpful though!
4 stars


Quotes:
WHAT IS THIS MADNESS??  This is like the third book in a row that I didn't take notes on the quotes!!  What has the world come to??  I'll get this updated ASAP!


Interview:

1.  Was becoming a writer something you always wanted to do?
- Definitely. I've always loved creating unique, compelling stories where anything can happen.

2.  Dragon focuses on how one choice can save or destroy nations.  Have you always been fascinated by turning points in history?
- History has had a major impact on me and I've always thought that one person can make a huge difference, sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse. The fact that someone can have such a huge impact on the human race as a whole is very fascinating to me.

3.  Are you a reader as well as a writer?  If so, what are your favorite genres?
- I love to read. It is one of my favorite hobbies. The genres I like are anything related to superheroes, the paranormal, fantasy, or science-fiction.

4.  Do you prefer creating your own world rather than using our world as a base?  Does it give you more freedom or does it make it harder to keep track of the 'history'?
- I actually prefer to create my own worlds, but I also like to add bits and pieces of our world into the mix too. With the Histories of Purga series, I wanted to show that these humans derived from our world but remained separate from it. Despite that fact, however, there are still similarities between the two worlds. It does make it a challenge to keep track of the history, but the ability to create that history all on my own is worth it to me. 

5.  How would you describe Dragon in three words?
- Unique. Compelling. Awesome.

6.  Did you plan out the entire book or did you discover where it was taking you as you wrote?
- It is actually a melding of both techniques. I do plan out the book from start to finish but find that when I actually start to write it, it starts taking me in new and different places.


7.  I know it's such an overused question but any advice for aspiring writers?
- The best advice I can give any writer, is to keep pushing. Even it feels like there's nothing but walls in front of you. I feel those walls all the time but every review I get (good and bad) is a piece of the wall crumbling away. Eventually, there won't be anything left.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...