When Dealing with Dragons

WHEN DEALING WITH DRAGONS is a thrilling and consuming YA romantic fantasy. The story follows Farren and James in alternating points-of-view. They have long been rivals, competing for a scholarship to college that they both desire for their own reasons. Farren is a copper, two levels down from James's family of silvers. Their metal color designates their socioeconomic status as well as their powers and is related to the color of dragon armor on those dragons that they bond with. Mixing between metals is not advised for people or for dragons.

After a deadly fall during a race, Farren saves James's life, and in the aftermath, he decides to stay on at her family's dragon rescue to learn about medicine as an intern, while his racing dragon is recuperating. Farren's father is one of the best dragon vets, and James is eager to learn from him. However, Farren cannot stand him and does not want him around.

As they spend more time together and as more of her secrets come to light, Farren begins to reevaluate what she knows about James and what he might mean to her.

What I loved: Both Farren and James were really compelling characters, and the dual perspectives were perfectly done to seamlessly build their individual characters and their relationship. The romance here is absolutely fantastic. The build is a very slow-burn with lots of pining and getting to know each other. Their relationship was easy to cheer for and really lovely with lots of time spent building it up. As they are from different metal classes, they are not supposed to mingle romantically, and this underlies some of the hesitation and impossibility of it all, especially with James's parents the way that they are (elitist and dangerous).

Farren is a strong character who cares deeply and knows what she wants. Her family is strong and loving, but she is holding onto some big secrets. Considering her age and what she knows of the world, she has had to hide herself in the shadow of these secrets, but she would do anything for those she cares about. James has grown up in an abusive household and has spent much of his life hiding his feelings. He is challenged to understand and develop relationships because of it, but he wants desperately to belong and have a chance to give (and receive) kindness. His feelings for Farren have complicated their past interactions, but as they spend more time together, they only grow and complicate further.

The world-building here was really fantastic with a society built on the magic of dragons, which were discovered and mastered. Like many things, this has been turned into an economic structure and financial enterprise, which lends itself to cruel practices, extinction of species, and political intrigue. The types of dragons and groupings of people have broad implications, which are challenged by some of the secrets Farren is hiding. As more is revealed, important themes around socioeconomic status and social mobility are discussed. Political control, abuse of power, ethics, and animal treatment ethics were also strong themes in the book.

I absolutely would have read a whole series with these characters, but this is a stand-alone. As such, everything is wrapped up nicely in the end, with a satisfying conclusion. I found this book absolutely unputdownable - the characters, the world, and the twists all kept me hooked from start to finish!

Final verdict: WHEN DEALING WITH DRAGONS is a consuming YA romantic fantasy with compelling characters, fascinating world-building, and strong themes. Highly recommend picking this one up!