Dragon's Keep

Reader reviewed by Adriana M.

I will be the first to say that I am not into the fantasy books, but this one was very enjoyable. I might even say that I will probably read a lot more fantasy because of it.

Rosalind is a Pendragon Queen but there is only one problem: she has a dragon's claw where her left ring finger should be. No one but her mother the Queen knows, and incidentally anyone who sees it meets an untimely death. Rosalind is both ashamed and fascinated by her "deformity". It will impede her becoming a queen in the eyes of her mother, so she tries every which way to get rid of it (charms, healers, black magic, etc....). There are also real dragons still alive who from time to time come and feed on the residents of Wilde Island, where Rosalind lives. Wilde Island is the place where six hundred years before her ancestress was exiled to, and where 20 queens since then have ruled. There is a prophecy made by Merlin concerning the 21st queen (Rosalind) and that is a very strong part of the story. There is also love, betrayal, lore, magic, and of course dragons.

The writing is very effective and the characters are drawn and presented very well. I would love to read another fantasy/princess story by Carey and I would recommend this book to teen and adult readers who enjoy a good fairy tale with adventure.

Reader reviewed by Stephanie

Banished to Wilde Island, a disgraced splinter of the English royal family rules in constant fear of bandits and man-eating dragons. Merlin foretold the prophecy that the twenty-first queen of Wilde Island would restore glory to the family name and Wilde Island, as well as end a war. Therefore, the twentieth queen is desperately ruthless in making her daughter Rosalind, the future twenty-first queen, as perfect as she can be.

But there is one major problem. Rosie had been born with a dragons claw instead of a normal finger on her left hand. Horrified from her daughters birth, the queen makes Rosie wear golden gloves all the time, so no one finds out about her shameful secret, a secret so terrible that, if known by anyone else but the two of them, would surely mean the end of Rosies social acceptance. The queen will do anything in order to ensure that Rosies secret remains that way...even murder.

However, Rosies dragon claw has a lot more to do with the prophecy than anyone thinks. It becomes a sort of empathic connection between her and the last few remaining dragons in the world. It also saves her life when she is taken by the dragon Lord Faul to Dragons Keep in order to play nursemaid to his children. There, Rosie is subjected to the most disgusting of chores, and she grows to be almost as wild as the dragons, and learns a few startling things about herself as well. Maybe Merlins prophecy is not exactly as everyone has interpreted it for six centuries. Maybe her dual dragon and human blood can help her save herself and her people.

DRAGONS KEEP is a fairly satisfying light fantasy read. I would have liked more about Rosies relationships between other people, such as her best friend, Kit, or her love, Kye. But overall DRAGONS KEEP is a good choice for middle school fantasy lovers.

Reader reviewed by The Story Siren

Merlin prophesied that the twenty first queen would redeem the Pendragon name, end war with the wave of her hand, and restore glory to Wilde Island. Rosalind happens to be the twenty first queen. But Rosalind holds the devils mark, her ring finger is the claw of a dragon with a prominent black talon at its end.


Rosalind is forced to wear gloves to hide her mark and anyone that bears witness to it, doesnt live long after. Although many healers have been sought to heal the mark, it remains. Rosalind fears she will remain tainted forever, and will never marry or find love.


Rosalind is captured by the dragon Lord Faul and is forced to care for his young after his mate is killed. It is here at her life with the dragons that Rosalind finds herself.


I expected a lot from this book, and I hate to say it but I was disappointed. It seemed like Rosalind couldnt figure out what kind of person she was, one second she was vulnerable the next she's invincible. The story was interesting, but it seemed to drag. I had to fight myself to keep interest, I only continued to read because there were so many unanswered questions. To add to my disappointment was the melodramatic climax. At least there was a happy ending. This book was okay, it was good, just not great. I wanted to love it, but I don't know if I even really liked it.