by Mir Benitz
Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.
This book grabbed my attention with its references to Formula One racing and dragons. The cover, with the checkered flags and racing helmets, and the big race being called “The Silverscale Grand Prix” really pushes that this will appeal to auto racing aficionados. This isn’t exactly the case, but actually – that’s okay. This is still a good story about friendship and whether winning at all costs is worth paying those costs.
This world building falls into a sort of contemporary romantasy genre, where the world appears to be the equivalent of our own world with its modern conveniences like smart phones and media influencers but, with magic and magical creatures. And the magic and multiple creatures and non human races are not secret, just what if we had the same jobs and dreams and stresses that we do know, but also, dragons. Sometimes it’s actually the same world as ours, sometimes, like the world of Fire Power, it is just a world that has different topology but works just the same way.
In this world, our main female character, Asta, is a farm girl, with cows and hay and chores. Just like real life, it’s hard work to make a go at farming, and when she is young, her neighbours decide to sell off their land and get out of farming. They sell to rich racing dragon breeders and Asta gets her first exposure to dragons, and immediately discovers her life calling . It doesn’t hurt that her new neighbours have a son the same age as Asta, and they become immediate BFFs. Felix teaches her to ride dragons, as he is born into a dragon racing family he was always going to be an elite racer, and Asta dreams of nothing else but racing.
But, as things happens, their friendship develops into something deeper but, fast forward a few years and Felix is the top racer and Asta has had to scrape her way into the top echelon through hard work and making a few shady deals with another racing family that doesn’t quite play by the rules. You see, dragon racing takes a lot of money to participate as well as connections and Asta was always determined to get there on her own merit. Which means not relying on her connections with Felix and his family.
But here we are at the Silverscale Grand Prix, the championship race and Asta’s chance to unseat Felix as the reigning champion. And add to that, we find out that at some point there was an incident that has come between Asta and Felix and they haven’t talked for years. So, lots of anger, and hurt feelings and resentments plus a driving need to prove herself has driving Asta to this one chance to either win recognition as a respected rider or to spend the rest of her career as the second best rider and in financial debt to a racing team with unethical methods and a dirty reputation.
The novel takes place over the 6 days of the Silverscale Grand Prix, covering prelim races and heats leading up to the final race on day 6. The rider’s relationship to their dragons is very much like an equestrian and their horse. Asta and her dragon Carmine have created a partnership that has taken years to develop, more than a jockey and a race horse. The race itself is a combination of terrain and skill tests for rider and dragon and resembles more of the cross country aspect of eventing. However the racing atmosphere, the standing start, the “pits” and the teams and crew are very much auto racing Having an actual background in both equestrian events and auto racing, I enjoyed the racing and competition on several levels.
At my heart I am a horse girl and they say we like our dragons, and I loved the dragon/rider dynamics. Anyone who has competed at a horse event will recognize themselves in a lot of the descriptions. When Asta steps foot on the venerated ground of Silverscale speedway, it was like walking into WEC in Ocala, Fl, and I assume it’s the same for anyone who sets foot in a top venue of a sport you’ve dedicated so much of your life to get there. And maybe it’s the same in other sports, but the team aspect, the rich families with the scions born to it with the handful of talented determined athletes who come from less privileged backgrounds will be familiar to anyone following horse sport or auto racing.
The drama is all to do whether Asta and Felix will continue to let the sport keep them separated. Obviously there is a HEA but the outcome is not exactly cookie cutter – both our protagonists have to decide what the sport means to them and what is most important.
Final thoughts is that this is well written, fast paced and creative mix of sport, fantasy and romance. A solid 4/5.
