Review Detail

Alec lives in the futuristic city of Drakopolis, which has some dystopian problems but is a thriving city. Alec's family struggles a bit: his father has scaly lung, his mother works in a dragon food plant, and his sister Lina is working at a cafe to help the family with money. His brother Silas is doing okay, and has been accepted into the Dragon Riders, which serves as a police/military entity to protect the citizens, but always seems a bit questionable. Alec failed his entrance exam to the Dragon Rider Academy, which was a bit of a relief. While he and his best friend Roa (who is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns) like reading comics about the daring exploits of Dr. Drago, dealing with ACTUAL dragons sounds dangerous. When Alec finds out that his sister has a secret life of crime and is herself riding dragons, he's leery of being asked for help, but follows her directions. He uncovers Karak, a dragon his sister has stolen, and with the help of a teacher at his school, Ally, as well as Roa, he learns how to take care of a dragon and starts to ride Karak, who bonds with him. Drakopolis is run by kins, which are like gangs, and it turns out that Lina is aligned with the Sky Knights, which have a revolutionary, Robin Hood vibe to them, but Roa is surprisingly aligned with the Thunder Wings, as is Ally. There is also a Red Talon kin, and they are threatening Alec's family because of Lina's activity. The kins have what amount to "rumbles"; battles that are "equal parts race, heist, and duel". These battles determine who has control of different neighborhoods and their resources, like dragons. Because Alec has a dragon, he is the center of a lot of activity to win his dragon over for a kin. He's not sure which one he should align himself with, and when a big battle is planned, he has to decide. Will he side with his sister, his best friend, or his brother, or forge his own path?