I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Going Down in Flames by Chris Cannon Narrator: Julie Niblett
Series: Going Down in Flames #1
Published by Entangled Publishing, LLC on June 30th 2014
Length: 11 hrs and 9 mins
Genres: Action & Adventure, Magical Realism, Paranormal, Romance, Young Adult Fiction
Pages: 414
Format: Audiobook
Source: Provided for review through Audiobook Blast/Boom
Goodreads
If her love life is going down in flames, she might as well spark a revolution.
Finding out on your sixteenth birthday you’re a shape-shifting dragon is tough to swallow. Being hauled off to an elite boarding school is enough to choke on.
Since Bryn is the only crossbreed at the Institute for Excellence, all eyes are on her, but it’s a particular black dragon, Zavien, who catches her attention.
Zavien is tired of the Council’s rules. Segregated clans, being told who to love, and close-minded leaders make freedom of choice almost impossible. The new girl with the striped hair is a breath of fresh air, and with Bryn’s help, they may be able to change the rules.
At the Institute, old grudges, new crushes, and death threats are all part of a normal day for Bryn. She’ll need to learn to control her dragon powers if she wants to make it through her first year at school. But even focusing on staying alive is difficult when you’re falling for someone you can't have.
Julie’s Review:
I really enjoyed the world-building in Going Down in Flames. The notion of dragons and their individual clans is really interesting. There are dragons of various colors, and each color dragon has a special breath weapon. Red dragons breathe fire, as expected, but then there are blue dragons who breathe ice! There’s wind, electricity, and it’s so exciting to have different types of dragons. I also like that these shifts are magical and not tear-out-of-your-clothes type shifts. And when the dragons look at each other, they see a glimpse of the human face to know the dragon’s identity. Unique!
The premise is our main character is a mixed-breed. A red and blue dragon fell in love and ran away from the dragon society and rules. They were expecting to be sterile, but as it turned out, their offspring is a mix of both type of dragon. She can breathe fire and ice, among other cool things she can do.
Of course, she finds out in a typical I just turned 16 and now I’m this new thing I’ve never heard of before way, and she handles it like any feisty and hard-headed teenager does, but overall she comes to her own. She learns to accept and even admire other dragons and even charms some of the hater-haters to think more of her and accept her existence. She also makes some loyal friends and supporters.
But of course, there’s politics. Lots and lots of politics. There are death threats and attempts on her life. There are love interests and forbidden futures. There is enough intrigue to get me curious about the rest of the series, but also I kind of expected a bigger build up at the end. It almost seemed like everything tied up too nicely, which don’t get me wrong, I didn’t want a cliffhanger! But there are so many bigger problems, yet it kind of felt too chummy at the end.
The audio narration was great. Good voices, pleasant cadence. Great to listen to and enjoyable. I would definitely listen to this narrator again.
Overall, a good read. Somewhere between a 3.5 and 4 stars. I do love a feisty red-head heroine who challenges the norms and will hopefully lead to the fall of the dragon patriarchy.
