Thank you NetGalley for the eArc copy of this book for an honest review.

Absolutely loved this book. Wonderful world building. I have been on a dragon binge, so this definitely satisfied!

𝘿𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙤𝙣 𝘿𝙚𝙣 𝖻𝗒 𝗞𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘀 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝗻
𝘈𝘷𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘕𝘰𝘸
𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝟦/𝟧 ⭐️

As a student at Dragild Military Academy, Markus has been training to become one of the Goldwings; now it is time for him to claim a dragon. Markus has been waiting for this moment, with collar in hand he plans to break a Black Clubtail. When he returns to Dragild without a dragon, Markus knows his dismissal from the academy is imminent. The commandant, however, has other plans for Markus that could get him killed. To remain at Dragild, Markus must infiltrate the Dragon Den and determine which clan is behind the hijacking of obsidian. There is only one problem: one of the clan leader's daughters is his friend and his biggest distraction.

A captivating story with plot twists and enjoyable characters. Readers can jump right into the story with minimal world-building, which makes the pace of this book perfect. The rider-dragon relationship is very similar to other books, but the way dragons are claimed is different, allowing for this book to stand out on its own. Dean’s writing flows naturally, making this an easy, quick read.

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲:
✨ Urban Fantasy
✨ Undercover agents
✨ Banter
✨ Rival clans
✨ Military academies

Thank you to Netgalley, Kriss Dean, and Yggdrasil Press for the eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book is described as The Fast and The Furious meets Fourth Wing. The first is a very accurate description of the book theme- except sub dragons for cars. In terms of the Fourth Wing mention- there is a school for dragon riders and a dragon bonding ceremony that definitely links those stories.

Markus is a 1st year student trying to bond a dragon when we meet him. His love for all things dragon is evident as well as his love for Amira, another first year student. Markus gets wrapped into an undercover mission to find out who has been attacking and stealing convoys of Obsidian (a metal used to bond a human and dragon bond). To remain a student at school, and to stay connected to his new dragon- Loki, he must infiltrate a friend set, who just happens to be Amira’s brother, Tobias, and his friends. Although he thinks he’s uncovered the culprits he soon finds that not everything adds up. How does he negotiate the feelings he has for his fellow classmates with the knowledge of who’s behind these attacks? This dystopian dragon rider story is fast paced and a fun read.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thanks to @netgalley @krissdeanwrites and Yggdrasil Press for this #advancedreaderscopy

Pub date was 6/20/24. Hoping for a sequel!!

I was so excited to get into this book because of the dragons and the similar storyline to The Fast and Furious, and Fourth Wing, but I think my expectations were set too high.

While there are books that say they draw inspiration, I found myself looking up lines in the books because they sound familiar to the F&F movies, only with a few words changed around.

There was so much potential for the story to develop, the world to really expand on, and the characters needed to be mapped out more so that they have their arc.

It is a short read, and it was manageable, but I found that maybe this story needed to be developed further before being published. I realllllllly wanted to like it, but there's a lot of holes, and a lot of things that needed to be polished.

The romance felt very insta-love since everything was rushed. The whole book was rushed, with my version being 180 pages. On Goodreads it’s supposed to be around 300. Don’t know what happened there.

This book was advertised for fans of the Fast and the Furious, Fourth Wing, and How To Train your Dragon. And it certainly was, with an actual quote being taken from the Fast and Furious movie and incorporated into the book, nearly word for word.

Markus Fredriksen, the First of His Name, more titles to come, always dreamed of breaking a Black Clubtail and becoming a dragon rider. He fails to break any dragon at all, marking the end of his tenure at Dragild Military Academy.

The commandant unexpectedly offers him a broken dragon, but with a caveat: Markus must infiltrate the clan running the Dragon Den, suspected of hijacking semi-trucks carrying precious obsidian.

He jumps at the opportunity to salvage his dreams. He has no idea what he’s in for, but the clan leader’s daughter is about to become his biggest distraction.

I was honestly hooked to this book, this is similar to fourth wing with the dragon military academy and a steamy romance side plot. As a kid who loved eragon this seems like a perfect step up. There was a suspenseful plot of the undercover heist and the obsidian smuggling. I think that this book gets 5 stars for the vibe- it wasn’t a perfect book by any means but I had such a good time reading it so it gives 5 star feelings

Note: Thank you to Yggdrasil Press and NetGalley for the e-ARC that I didn’t quite get around to before the pub date!

Rating: 3.75 rounded up to 4/5!

Summary: Markus Fredriksen has always dreamed of being a Goldwing, a dragon rider in the military. First, he must break a dragon by collaring them on the one day a year they leave their volcanic nest, and not just any dragon will do. Markus wants a Black Clubtail, the fiercest, deadliest, and hardest to break dragon of them all.

Except, he fails. Bereft, Markus is left to face the reality that he’ll never be a dragon rider, until the commandant of the fort offers him a deal. Take a pre-broken dragon, a Graytail, and infiltrate the inner circle of an older boy at the fort, and he can be a Goldwing.

Loki, the Graytail he’s made to bond with, is still in mourning for his previous rider, who died trying to discover the true identity of the dragon riders who have been stealing shipments of precious obsidian. With only three weeks to do it, Markus and Loki must come together, or Markus will be kicked out of the Goldwings.

Review: Dragon Den is more accurately classified as a novella, as it is under 200 pages. It goes fast, and it often doesn’t have the time to flesh out some of the more interesting aspects of its worldbuilding, character development, etc. What it did manage to do, I really enjoyed! I’m only somewhat familiar with Fast and Furious movies, and as such didn’t recognize how heavily this novella drew from the movies as inspiration. Loki was the best part, as stated by many other reviewers. I ended up liking the vast majority of the characters, even when I wasn’t entirely certain I could trust them. Rest in peace to all the characters who die, because, oh my, do they die, on page, and sometimes in gorey ways. Be warned going into this.

Dean concludes this novella with everything one would need to continue this world and Markus and Loki’s stories in another installation, which I would be all too happy to read. Dean’s writing in this novella is a bit rough around the edges, and, I believe, could be much improved on in subsequent releases! Not to say it’s unreadable, just a bit different from what you may be expecting going into it.

If you’re looking for a fun, fast-paced, mysterious read, this is the novella for you!

Again thank you so much to Yggdrasil Press and NetGalley for the e-ARC! I hope to see more of Markus and Loki in the future!

The cover and title are what drew me in. The story is what kept my attention! The writing is great. The characters are well rounded and likable. The dragon aspect of the book was awesome. I have zero complaints about this book!

If you happen to read and love *Fourth Wing*, then this novel is for you. However, there are a couple of things to consider: from the beginning, it feels like a sort of "fanfiction" because the setting and the way situations are described are truly understandable only if you have read that book. Some phrases are almost identical to those in *Fourth Wing*, which bothered me because originality should be respected, and depth needs to be cultivated slowly. The love story is also incomprehensible: everything happens too quickly, with a frenzy I can't fully understand. It's a potentially good story, even though the characters are not very well developed, but the frenzy completely worsens it and what appears to be very little care for the narration.

I'm really sorry because I had high hopes for this novel... I would have really enjoyed reading a well-written story with a well-structured plot and dragons.

DNF @ 25%

Thanks NetGalley & Yggdrasil Press for providing an eARC of Dragon Den. Sorry in advance for this severely negative review :(

I was excited about Fast & Furious / How To Train Your Dragon description for this. Then immediately realized it is somehow a worse version of Fourth Wing.

Modern day setting with dragons and a poor attempt at scifi explanations of how they "break" the dragons. Which just makes things worse that they are literally brainwashing the dragons that they capture??

The main character is insufferably arrogant and so FLAT. None of the characters have any real motivations or backstory or, well, thoughts? I know this is coming across really harsh but like genuinely nothing here to even make me consider finishing this book.

This is a thrilling blend of fantasy and action. Markus Fredriksen's journey from a struggling student to a spy on a dangerous mission is captivating, filled with adrenaline-pumping scenes and unexpected twists. While the fast-paced plot kept me hooked, I felt the world-building was lacking, leaving me with questions about the setting and its history. The characters, though intriguing, could have been more developed, especially in their motivations and relationships. Despite these flaws, I enjoyed the book as a fun, quick read, and I'm curious to see where the story goes next if there's a sequel.

Fast and the Furious with dragons... yes please!! It was a good book. Markus Frederickson is attending Dragild Academy, he must break a dragon by putting a collar on the dragon. He tries to break a black clubtail and it doesn't go to plan. Since he didn't break a dragon then he will no longer attend Dragild but he is given a second chance. The Commadant gives him thirty days to find out who is stealing obsidian. He ends up in the world of dragon racing and dragon fights. For me, it was very predictable. In a nutshell, it was way too much like the Fast and the Furious but there was a couple of curveballs.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc, unfortunately this book did not work for me. I’m sure there are others who would be interested in this type of fantasy, but the plot was just not intriguing enough for my tastes.

When the blurb said "inspired in the Fast and the Furious"... I wasn't expecting so much inspiration. But, hey, this novel is perfect for the fan's franchise. (I guess)
My reason for picking this book was the fact that it described the movie plot but with dragons. That decision had no deeper thoughts, and I must say it gave me what I expected.

Markus Fredriksen has always dreamed of riding a Black Clubtail, the fastest and fiercest of dragons, and being a dragon rider. But, as a first year in the military academy Dragild, he fails to catch a dragon and is inevitably kicked out of the training school... At least that was what would normally happen.
When Markus is allowed to stay in Dragild in exchange for infiltrating the Ejo Clan, he takes the opportunity.
Getting close to Tobias Obi won't be easy, since he can't seem to want him around him or his sister, Markus' crush. But with the company of Loki, a Greytail dragon mourning the loss of his original rider, they will try their best to infiltrate and discover who is behind the stealing of the obsidian shipments necessary to mentally connect dragons and riders.

My first thought after finishing it was, "Well, that was just like the movie... I don't know how to rate this".
The explanation behind this is that I struggle due to the similarities; cause even if it was fun to read, it genuinely made me wonder what could be considered plagiarism.
Since the book is published and all this stuff, I guess there is no problem with the "resemble", but I'm still trying to wrap my mind around this whole thing... Should I consider this reading a Fast and Furious retelling? How should this book be described?
I was looking for a similar story to the one portrayed in the known movie since it was "inspired" and the main plot was the same, but the storyline didn't diverge from the original.

All I can think to say is that I liked the characters.
Loki, the greytail dragon, was my favorite, and love it with all my heart; Markus was a funny main character. He was a messy young boy with an enormous crush on a fantastic girl and a big dragon nerd.
I would have loved to see more from Amira since this is supposed to be a "romantic urban fantasy" and she was the love interest. Her role lack development, and it would be one of my biggest complaints.
Also, Tobias' story and the Obi family in general would have improved if they had been explored more. These characters were the ones with the biggest backstories, and we only have the necessary information to continue the plot!

The storyline (even knowing what was coming)was fun to read, with fast-paced writing and action-packed races. It was, overall, an easy read.

The world-building was, probably, the biggest trouble I found in this novel since it was so badly developed. We get info-dump at some points even when it's unnecessary and the most interesting parts are left hanging in there...
It almost feels unnecessary at points, since it won't affect the story.
I also noticed a couple of scenes that felt forced and out of place, that could have stayed out of the final book or edited.

Principally, I feel conflicted because I see potential in this debut novel, but the lack of individuality, creative freedom, and the underdeveloped elements ( sadly) prevent this novel from shining.

Markus Fredriksen, the First of His Name, more titles to come, always dreamed of breaking a Black Clubtail and becoming a dragon rider. He fails to break any dragon at all, marking the end of his tenure at Dragild Military Academy. The commandant unexpectedly offers him a broken dragon, but with a caveat: Markus must infiltrate the clan running the Dragon Den, suspected of hijacking semi-trucks carrying precious obsidian. He jumps at the opportunity to salvage his dreams. He has no idea what he's in for, but the clan leader's daughter is about to become his biggest distraction.

Dragon Den by Kriss Dean is a book that promises an intriguing blend of dragon-riding action and undercover missions. Unfortunately, it delivers more bewilderment than excitement leaving me with an endless amount of unanswered questions.

Imagine The Fast and the Furious but with dragons—quite literally. The book borrows heavily from the movie, to the point of lifting dialogue straight from it. This blatant lack of originality was jarring and had me shaking my head throughout the read.

From the outset, the premise seems fun and exciting. Markus Fredriksen's dream of becoming a dragon rider is dashed when he fails to bind to a dragon. Given a second chance with a broken dragon and a mission to infiltrate a shady clan, Markus should have had an epic journey ahead. Instead, what followed was a string of "why" moments that overshadowed any potential enjoyment:

Why was anything in this book happening?
Why was there a dragon school, and what was the purpose of training people to ride dragons?
Why did the dragons only emerge once a year?
Why was Markus, a first-year screw-up, selected for this critical mission?
Why did the author spend so much time describing real-world places but barely explained the fictional ones, like the dragon academy?

The plot is a rehash of familiar tropes, making the story feel unoriginal. Markus is an extremely unlikable protagonist, and his motivations are unclear. The supporting characters, especially the clan leader's daughter, who is supposed to be a significant distraction, felt flat and unconvincing.

The world-building was one of the biggest disappointments. Despite the fascinating concept of dragons integrated into modern society, the execution was lacking. The rules of this world were confusing and poorly explained, making it hard to immerse myself in the story.

In the end, Dragon Den failed to deliver on its exciting premise. It stands as one of the worst books I've ever read, with an unoriginal plot, unlikable main character, and a nonsensical world. Despite the allure of dragons, this book was a slog to get through, leaving me wondering why I read it in the first place. If you're looking for a well-crafted dragon adventure, I'd recommend looking elsewhere.

Thank you to the Author and Netgalley for providing me with a copy.

Really fast paced and a lot of action. The descriptions for the dragon racing scenes are well done.

I liked the plot of the book, but thought it would have been nice to have some more scenes in the academy/learn more about the dynamics.

Overall, I enjoyed Dragon Den and would be interested in a sequel.

Rating: 4.25/5
I loved this book. It reminds me quite a bit of Fourth Wing vibes. It was kept interesting and kept the pace of the book high. I was able to read this book in one day and it was worth it!

This book is about two dragon riders Amira and Markus, who are first-year students at Dragild where they end up developing feelings for one another. Markus is unable to break a dragon and he has to undergo several missions to get a dragon from another rider who passed. It ends with some major betrayal for friends and maybe even the lover.

I feel bad writing a negative review as this was an arc I was gifted on Netgalley, but I very nearly DNF'd this book. I skim read the last 60 pages or so just to finish it.

The MMC is whiny and unlikeable. He sexualises the women he meets and especially his best friend turned girlfriend. He jumps from plot point to plot point, without much reason for what he does.

I didn't understand any of the lore as there is no world building. Why is there a dragon college? Why do the dragons live in a volcano? Why do they only come out once a year? I don't understand how big the dragons are, either. Apparently, they can fit in a parking garage and fly between buildings with wings fully outstretched. Oh, and also fit in a tiny storage cupboard! But they're also massive, I didn't get it.

The only other thing I want to mention is that I felt the writing was YA, but then there were sexually explicit scenes, so it was jarring.

How is this not plagiarism. They literally took the plot points of fourth wing and mashed it with how to train your dragon. I didn’t think the publisher actually meant stealing?

Title: Dragon Den by Kriss Dean
Genre: Sci-Fi/Urban Fantasy
Pub Date: June 20, 2024

Dragon Riding Academy
Friends to Lovers
He Falls First
Forced Proximity
Undercover Mission

What if How to Train Your Dragon took place in modern day, the characters were a bit older, and instead of Vikings they're part of a dragon riding academy like Fourth Wing? You get Dragon Den.

The writing style is fine (it feels YA, but for the oddly placed spice?), I just think dragon riding stories just aren't for me because I didn't like Fourth Wing AT ALL lol I think if you're one of the many people who loved Fourth Wing, you'd probably love this book too!

Thank you NetGalley and Yggdrasil Press for the digital review copy.