The Dragon’s Apprentice (The Dragon’s Apprentice #1)
James Riley
Labyrinth Road
Published April 1, 2025
Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads
About The Dragon’s Apprentice
In this hilarious fantasy adventure from the New York Times bestselling author of the Story Thieves series, a girl strikes a deal with the ancient, cranky dragon she accidentally summoned to teach her the forbidden magic she needs to save her mother.
STOP. Don’t read any further. There are magic spells in this book, and the Emperor has forbidden anyone from learning magic, because it’s way too dangerous! If you try one of the spells, any number of terrible things might happen (or so the Emperor says).
Don’t be like Ciara, a twelve-year-old girl living in the tiny village of Skael. When she used a spell from within this book, she ended up summoning a dragon. A DRAGON! Those things breathe fire! From their mouths! She’s obviously doomed.
And don’t listen if Ciara tells you that dragons won’t hurt humans, and that they even once taught us magic, a thousand years ago. Definitely don’t pay any attention to the fact that the dragon she summoned, Scorch, might be willing to help rescue Ciara’s mother and free her village from the Emperor and his Warden, because it’s all obviously a big lie. So put this book down, and forget about it. Magic is just way too dangerous. After all, you wouldn’t want to summon your own dragon, would you?
My Review
My daughter picked this book when we were shopping at a book sale recently. We weren’t familiar with the author, but I think the cover art and the characters’ expressions in that illustration drew her in.
The story begins with an excerpt from Bianca’s diary and then connects readers to Ciara, the main character, who is interrupted while reading it. Both Bianca and Ciara are upbeat narrators with a little bit of spunk to them.
Ciara’s mom is sick with a potentially fatal illness caused by her mining work. Ciara and her mom hope to sell their farm in order to buy the medicine that will cure her. The warden, who holds the town in his iron grip, refuses medicine to the villagers without a hefty fee. His soldiers trash crops and property looking for Bianca’s journal. They have the classic thoughtless bad-guy vibe, basically doing everything to make the villagers’ lives miserable.
When Ciara discovers that she can use magic, she thinks of all the possibilities of how the magic could be used to drive the warden out of her village. What she doesn’t realize at first is that magic can’t be used to directly harm humans, and using magic comes with a price.
The relationship between Ciara and the dragon, Scorch, really drives this story forward. There’s a playful energy to it that keeps the overall narrative upbeat, despite the warden’s cruelty.
I read this book aloud to my eight-year-old, and she really enjoyed it. We’re hoping to continue the series with the next book soon.
Content Notes
Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.
Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.
Romance/Sexual Content
None.
Spiritual Content
Some characters can do magic. Dragons exist in the story. References to mysterious, malevolent creatures called revenants.
Violent Content
Situations of peril. References to abusive working conditions and torture. Soldiers intend to execute someone they’re told is an enemy.
Drug Content
None.
Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I purchased a copy of this book. All opinions are my own.