*Thank you to HarperCollins/Netgalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review*

The Color of Dragons follows Maggie and Griffin. Maggie has powers, with no one to help her control her magic. Until she meets Griffin, the king's champion infamous for hunting down draignochs that plague the kingdom. Neither of them has any idea of the destiny they both carry, or that their meeting causes a chain of events to start that alters every aspect of the life they know- and all of history afterward.

I love this book. It is a Pre-Arthurian tale of the origins of magic (and Merlin). It was phenomenal. The beginning was a little slow, but not by much. This was such a fast-paced book that I loved every second of it.

Maggie is my favourite character. She is strong yet going through so much heartache in her life. She is strong, stands up for what she believes in, and is unbelievably funny. I was not expecting to laugh so much in this story, but I was proven wrong because of Maggie.

This book is a standalone, and it was done perfectly. In the end, there was not more the authors could have added, because then it would get into an Arthurian retelling (which I mean, I wouldn't mind reading a version from them *wink*)

If you are looking for a Pre-Arthurian retelling full of magic, funny characters in dire situations, dragons, and it is fast-paced, The Color of Dragons is for you.

The story before the story, well-known author R.A. Salvatore and debut author Erika Lewis give a new twist to the origin story of one of Camelot's most beloved characters. In The Color of Dragons, orphaned Maggie is traveling across the land as a magicians apprentice. But surprisingly, it is Maggie who can produce magic and not her employer, a fact she must keep secret from everyone. Conveyed to the home of a corrupt king, she finds herself meeting a knight who personifies the fairy-tale and the two of them fight to reclaim both themselves and their way of life. A riveting, fast-paced read, this is a book worth adding to your shelf.

I wanted to love this so much but alas it fell short for me. A quick fantasy read with a little romance, a tyrant king, and dragons. The story felt rushed and while the characters were developed well, the plot and world building felt rocky. Dialog was strange and I felt like the book couldn't decide if it wanted to be MG or YA. An easy read that I would recommend for tweens getting into fantasy but aren't ready for some of the heavier hitters.

Perfect for when you want to go on an adventure that doesn’t require a lot of thought. The Color of Dragons is a fun romp through a medieval fantasy world. Follow along as the main character figures out her power, her love life, and defeats the bad guys in this tale of knights and castles, magic and mystery. It has a little bit of everything for those who want to take a break from the real world for just a little while.

#TheColorofDragons #NetGalley

All I can say is WOW. Well not all I can say, but that is a good start haha. This whole premise is sort of like how to train your dragons, but darker, and arguably better. I think that this book does an amazing job of keeping you wondering and guessing, while still not letting you discover the answer until its right in front of your face. I think the authors do an amazing job of complementing each other in a way that really adds depth to this story. I think it is unique, adventurous. luscious and addicting. It truly is an amazing stand alone in my eyes. I think the twist at the end was brilliantly done and executed and overall made it so the story was well worth it. I loved the dual pov as I truly thought that both pov added to the story and truly created a multilayered fantasy world. I loved that this was a pre- arthurian tale, and was simultaneously complex while also being easy to follow. I think that this story had a little bit of everything for every type of reader and I overall just really enjoyed. I thought it was such a fun read and I am excited to see what others think when it is released.

Thank You Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book.
Maggie is amazing. Her story is full of heartache and strength! Her love and loyalty for Rendicryss is beautiful!
I am always surprised when a character ends up being the complete opposite of what I am expecting. In this book... multiple characters surprised me. A few were totally infuriating! A few ended up redeeming themselves. Merlin has some pretty cool grandparents.
A solid YA read.

I am going to be honest, I requested this book simply because of the cover. I am a sucker for a book with dragons.
I absolutely loved this book! The storytelling was well written, but not so complicated that the storyline was hard to follow. There were a few twists along the way in the story. I will definitely read more from these authors and hope there is more to come from these characters.

Magic needs a spark.

And Maggie’s powers are especially fickle. With no one to help her learn to control her magic, the life debt that she owes stretches eternally over her head, with no way to repay it.

Until she meets Griffin, the king’s champion, infamous for hunting down the draignochs that plague their kingdom.

Neither has any idea of the destiny that they both carry, or that their meeting will set off a chain of events that will alter every aspect of the life they know—and all of history thereafter.

This is the first book I've read from these authors and while I do adore the story, I feel like there was room for more to be explored. It felt rushed, even going by YA fantasy standards.

That being said the characters were well-developed for the space that they were given. The world feels real and grounded and I adored the character dynamics. Between Maggie and Griffin, I definitely connected to Maggie more and I think this may be due to the first-person POV. That's not to say I felt disconnected from Griffin, but the POV tense just managed to convey the emotional roller coaster ride that Maggie is on. There is a sense of magic and wonder that I loved reading throughout and, while a bit too fast-paced for me, the plot delivered a fun story.

ARC Review from NetGalley

"The Color of Dragons" by Erika Lewis and R. A. Salvatore is a delightful read full of mystery, magic, and intrigue. From start to finish, it is fast-paced, and keeps the reader wanting to learn more. The story follows two main characters, Maggie and Griffin. Maggie is a young woman of unknown origins who is the main assistant in a traveling troupe, while Griffin is a young man from the "Bottoms" who literally fought his way to become the king's champion. In the beginning, Maggie comes in contact with a strange, fearsome creature believed to be a draignoch that has been captured by soldiers. When she gets curiously close to its cage, she and the draignoch touch igniting a fire of magic within her that has lain dormant, changing her entire existence and that of her soon-to-be peers in a matter of seconds.

Although the book was a fun read, it felt rushed, and the ending left the reader feeling as though the author had run out of ideas and just "needed" to end the story quickly. Lewis seemed to spend too much time focusing on the love interests, and too little time developing the kingdom and the magic system. While it is entirely possible this is the start of a new series of dragons and magic, it is also likely that this story is merely a simple story of how a kingdom was changed by a young woman who encountered a draignoch. .

"We were two pieces of the same universe. Sun and moon. And we would always be part of the same sky."

When I first saw that this book was a pre-Arthurian tale, I knew I had to read it. I've always loved the stories set in times of medieval magic and the tales of King Arthur, so a story about the origins of the magic in that setting seemed totally up my alley.

I really enjoyed this book. I love fantasy books and I adore romance. When there is a true adventure tale, I feel like it is often hard to get the perfect balance of romance into the story while maintaining the epic fantasy element, but I think it was really well done here. I might have liked a little bit more of a romantic wrapup after all of the things Griffin and Maggie went through together, but eh, that may just be me.

Griffin and Maggie has a bit of an enemies-to-lovers vibe, mixed with forbidden love, and the power of destiny. I really loved them. Having them in separate viewpoints was really nice, as I like how that allows for individual development.

I loved all of the magic and dragon-esque details that were woven in this book. I think they had a very interesting take on the connection between a human and their magic, and I liked that Maggie maintained her strong moral compass throughout everything.

There is quite a lot of death and violence in this book. Personally, I didn't mind it, as I feel like that is an accurate depiction of medieval times, but that would be my main potential warning to other reads. Quite a few characters die rather violent deaths and there is just quite a lot of fighting (all that jazz). As said though, I think it worked in this case, but this may not be the best for everyone.

Recently, I've been more interested in reading a series than a standalone, but I think this book has helped bring me back into the world of standalones. It is very well done, and I think that the two authors blended together seamlessly.

I would be interested in reading more of their work in the future!

Thanks so much to NetGalley, the authors, and Harper Teen for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts are my own.

The Color of Dragons is a new young adult fantasy by R.A. Salvatore and Erika Lewis. The story is told from both Maggie and Griffin’s perspectives, which I liked, especially considering how different they are and that their stories aren’t always together. However, Maggie’s chapters are told in the first-person point-of-view, while Griffin’s chapters are from the third-person. I have mixed feelings about this. I liked the first person and felt that I got more perspective on Maggie’s thoughts and feelings. It delved deeper into her character this way. Griffin’s story, though interesting, felt a little more detached. I think this might be an interesting way of showing the differences in their personalities, but I would have loved to know more of Griffin’s thoughts and feelings in the first person as well.

Since she has newfound powers, Maggie must learn how to control and use them. She also tries to find out more about her past and the situation with the dragons. Maggie has a special connection with dragons, unlike Griffin. Griffin is the king’s champion, and he has a lot of pressure put upon him. The king has high expectations, as do the citizens. Additionally, he hunts dragons. Griffin has suffered much loss at the hands of dragons and hates them for it. I like how his feelings and opinions evolve over the course of the story and how Maggie’s influence opens his eyes to what is happening around him.

The way Maggie and Griffin approach things, their beliefs, and even their loyalties conflict. However, they have other things in common. They are both strong and smart survivors who do what they must to protect themselves. They both grow a lot throughout the story, and they both have feelings for each other. Their relationship is sweet and filled with longing, which was one of my favorite parts of the story. I like how Maggie and Griffin slowly connect and change each other.

Political intrigue, corruption, power-hungry antagonists, forced betrothals and other dangerous situations are the cause of conflict throughout the story, and the more Maggie and Griffin find out about the king and his son and their tyrannical reign, the more they realize that things aren’t always what they seem. The antagonists didn’t have much depth, but their villainous ways permeated the land and people. The magic and the dragons are really intriguing, though I wish each was further developed. I want to know more about each and have a feeling they will be explored more deeply in future books in the series. The ending has a twist that I totally didn’t see coming, and it completely surprised me. It did feel a bit rushed, but I liked it nonetheless.

I think readers who like young adult fiction with strong protagonists, political intrigue, a clean romance, and interesting fantasy elements might enjoy this read.

OVERALL:
A decent-but-not-great medieval fantasy with a rushed conclusion and shoehorned connection to Arthurian legend.
SUMMARY:
In The Color of Dragons we are introduced to a world that was once besieged by draignochs until a man named Umber united neighboring forces and defeated the beasts. Made King for his efforts, Umber built himself a castle and city surrounded by a massive wall. As time went on, Umber became more tyrant than king, taxing those outside the city into starvation and treating his people cruelly. Maggie, an assistant to a travelling “magician,” has a strange encounter with a captured draignoch and develops magical powers, which she accidently uses during a performance. Believing the magic comes from her mentor Xavier, the prince of the kingdom, Jori, summons them both to court. There, Maggie meets and falls for Sir Griffin, the king’s champion, who was born a commoner and elevated due to his skill slaying draignochs. When Maggie is discovered as the true source of magic (the Ambrosius) and forcibly betrothed to Prince Jori, the two star-crossed lovers risk it all to free Maggie’s dragon and end Umber and Jori’s tyrannical rule.
CHARACTERS:
Our main POV characters are Maggie and Sir Griffin. Maggie is strong-willed and outspoken, and rages against injustices with little sense of self-preservation. Her character growth centers around developing her powers and unlocking the secrets of her past. Griffin, who has inured himself to the cruelty of court as a means of survival, hesitates to take a stand against the throne. His family was killed by draignochs and he harbors a reflexive hatred for them. Maggie, who is bonded to a dragon (an evolved draignoch) and speaks openly against injustice, pushes Griffin to reevaluate this way of life.
Other characters include Maggie’s adoptive father Xavier, who would do anything (including kill Maggie) for real magic, and King Umber and Prince Jori who are motivated by power and a prophecy about how to maintain it.
WORLDBUILDING:
Much of the worldbuilding for this novel was given in exposition, which was necessary because the story takes place mostly in a singular location (court). There really isn’t much new here, as it is set in a supposed medieval Europe and details the lives of Merlin’s grandparents (a fact that is not revealed to the reader until literally the last line in the novel). The gladiator-style tournament against the draignochs was engaging, however, as was the reveal of the origins of the draignochs/dragons themselves and Maggie’s magic.
PLOT/PACING
The pacing of this novel was slow until the climax, which then blitzed by with barely enough explanation. A lot of time is spent building up the major conflicts—the king and prince are tyrants, Maggie is at risk if her magic is discovered, Griffin and Maggie’s budding relationship is threatened by the Prince and they have a misunderstanding, and Maggie’s dragon needs to be rescued from the tournament—but they are all resolved very quickly. Having Griffin as the POV character for the final events was an odd choice, as the important actions were all done by others. The events just seemed to happen without any real interpretation or introspection by those driving them forward, making them feel rushed. It was then followed by an insultingly short denouement (on my app it was a whole two pages/nine paragraphs) and the shoehorned Merlin connection.

I want to thank NetGalley and HarperTeen for providing me with a copy of this book to read and review.
This story is told from alternating points of view: Maggie and Griffin. A story of magic unveiled where it was never thought to be. I wasn't a fan of the first person to third person transition. I actually found it hard to focus at first and had to back track a bit to get the feel of the different POVs.
I enjoyed the light romance of the characters. It was nice to not have hot and heavy romance overpower the story itself.
The world building was a bit lacking for me but overall I could picture it in my mind. I like how the author divided the "good" and "evil" by their place of residence.
The magic was interesting as it tied in with the moon. I've not seen such a tie before so it was definitely intriguing and made the story a bit more interesting. I also love the idea of dragons and how they are portrayed in this book. I did get a Game of Thrones feel from that aspect.
The book felt a bit rushed in many places. Like the author could not bother to tell the full story in fear of making the book too long. And the ending was much too quick for me, leaving me guessing what would happen. I needed more of a wrap up.
Overall it's a fun and easy adventure I can see older middle schoolers enjoying.

I enjoyed this read. Maggie's character is worth worrying about enough to finish the book. I kept expecting to hear more about the dragons (draignochs) but that part of the story didn't seem to flesh out. Characters seem to come and go without much room for the reader to become invested in their part of the story. The setting is interesting, but it didn't go much beyond inside wall lavish/outside wall poverty and pain.

I do believe this story will go over well with the young women in our school book club. I'll be recommending it to our librarian and to students for the strong female character.

I like stories with dragons and magic and this did not disappoint. The plot moved quickly and was entertaining to follow..

The switch between first and third person POVs with Maggie and Griffin was weird but interesting. There were far too many characters that weren't easily distinguishing and I still don't really know who worked for the king and who was just a friend of Griffin.

This book focuses on Maggie, a young woman traveling with her adoptive father who is a traveling magician, and Griffin, a young man who came from nothing and now is the champion. I feel conflicted about this book. The plot was interesting and I wanted to know more about the draignoch and Maggies connection to them.
However, I struggled to really get into this book. I didn’t connect with either of the characters even though I wanted to know what happened to them. I also didn’t like how Maggie was treated by others, from her perspective and Griffin’s. I feel that it could have been done in a not so obvious way. Everyone was openly rude or just assumed she couldn’t do things, and I feel that some of it could have been done differently.

Two underdogs get to live in the renowned walled city and discover not everything is what it seems.

This is a good, quick read with dragons and some interesting world concepts if you don't mind violence.

I loved the characters from the North, and I might have liked the second perspective more if it had come from one of them and not Griffin. The sibling interaction was amazing and I would have loved to see more from them! My favorite character was probably Sybil (though Petal is a close second).

The cute and predictable romance featured in this story was actually clean! Just a few kisses and lots of pining. Honestly, probably one of the most entertaining things about Griffin's perspective was how much he was pining for Maggie.

The world was interesting, but never really delved into because they spent so much time re-iterating how terrible the king and all of his knights are. Speaking of which, I would have liked to see something beyond the typical 'evil fantasy king, who has no humanity left' trope. Was he always that way? Did the war change him? He feels a bit like greed/power-lust incarnate, which isn't necessarily bad, I just wished there was a little something more to him or his story that Maggie or Griffin could have discovered.

This story is told from two alternating POVs, Maggie's and Griffin's, which I do not think did the story any favors. I also thought that a lot of the suspense that could have been built up around whether or not certain characters (like the Prince or even Griffin himself) were good or evil was cut by the fact that we had Griffin's 3rd person narration.

I was not a huge fan of how quickly the ending wrapped up (the antagonist is killed in the literal last chapter) since it left a ton of questions unanswered. Like, who takes over the government now? And how is there literally only one dragon? Surely the king didn't manage to kill all the other wild draignochs.

Another thing I liked was the 'moon magic'. I especially liked how Maggie almost instinctively knew its purpose before she officially figured it out. That was something I would have loved to see an explanation of (is she literally the daughter of the moon?).

There were so many things that interested me in this book, however, I didn't feel like a lot of it was really delivered on. I kind of wish it was a little longer, so the authors would have had more time to explore the world they created. Or if they had freed the dragon sooner maybe there would have been more time? Hard to say for sure, but congrats to Erika Lewis on her debut novel! I am curious to see what comes from her next!

CWs:
-Violence (portrayals of death, attacks on children, wounds)
-Abuse from parental figures (not any physical if I'm remembering correctly, I believe it was mostly mental)

I read this along with my older kids. We all enjoyed it, especially my son who is dragon and sci fi obsessed. The story was great but sometimes the switching back and forth to having the story told from different perspectives can get a little confusing but overall we loved it!

I enjoy a good tale of dragons and magic and this did not disappoint. Swapping between Maggie and Griffins POV was great as we got see how someone whose always known magic sees the world compared to one who thought it wasn’t real.