16-year
-old Aurora Darlington is an orphan. Mistreated by her adopted family and bullied at school, she dreams of running away and being free. But when she is kidnapped and dragged through a portal into a magical world, suddenly her old life doesn’t seem so bad. Avalonia is a dangerous land ruled by powerful mages and a cruel, selfish queen who will do anything to control all seven kingdoms—including killing anyone who stands in her way. Thrust headlong into this new, magical world, Aurora’s arrival sets plans in motion that threaten to destroy all she holds dear.With the help of a young fae, a magical pegasus, and a handsome mage, Aurora journeys across Avalonia to learn the truth about her past and unleash the power within herself. Kingdoms collide as a complicated web of political intrigue and ancient magic lead Aurora to unravel a shocking secret that will change her life forever.
Sissy: What a find! First of all, the cover is beautiful and the minute I saw it, I knew I wanted to peek inside and read the story. The Last of the Firedrakes is author Farah Oomerbhoy’s debut novel and it is fantastic. I thought from the title that the Firedrakes would be some sort of mystical animal but I was incorrect. It turns out that our heroine Aurora is the last of the Firedrake family. From another world, mind you. And she just thinks she’s a boring orphan living with an uncaring aunt and uncle in London.
Bubby: I love stories that begin in our normal world and then suddenly end up somewhere magical and fantastical. Haven’t we all dreamed that we really are the lost princess or the forgotten heiress? And that any day now, our TRUE heritage would catch up with us and rescue us from our mundane existence? I must admit I’ve pretty much given up hope at this point – I’ve accepted the fact that Sissy is the closest thing to an eccentric millionaire relative that I’m going to get. Unfortunately, she has no millions for me to inherit!
Sissy: Sorry. We’ll just have to be content being the crazy aunties who give out cookies instead of millions. We can always escape into the pages of books like The Last of the Firedrakes to find our fill of fantastical things like evil queens, the Fae, mages, (and even better, Fae Mages), plus wickedly handsome outlaws like The Black Wolf. Or how about playboy princes engaged to foul maidens?
Bubby: There IS a quite satisfying love interest for Aurora. You’ll just have to read the book to figure out who it is! The worst part of this book is that it’s the only book of the Avalonia Chronicles that has been published – and there’s no telling when the next one will be available. Oh, well. In the meantime, I can head over to Farah Oomerbhoy’s many pinterest pages where she shows us exactly what her vision of the characters, clothing and setting in Avalonia looks like, including this picture of Pixiebush (on the left) where Aurora first meets the Fae. I so want to go there!
Sissy: You have only to look in the table of contents at the chapter titles (like “Silverthorne Castle”, “Lessons in Magic”, “The Royal Ball” and “The Dagger of Dragath”) and you will immediately want to become lost in Avalonia and the story of Aurora Firedrake. I can’t wait for book two!
Bubby: We are left with quite the cliffhanger, aren’t we, Sissy. Not knowing what happens next is torture! But the good kind, not the kind with, well, you know – bad stuff like the rack. Anyway. Nothing cures the back to school blues (not that I’m having those but my kids are) like a great story. Choose this one. You won’t regret it!
Click HERE to buy The Last of the Firedrakes by Farah Oomerbhoy
We received a copy of this book from Netgalley in return for a fair and honest review.
This has to be my favorite review so far of The Last of the Firedrakes! You guys are so funny :).
Did you know Farah also has a website? http://farahoomerbhoy.com/