Moth and Spark - Book Review

Moth and Spark
by Anne Leonard

What is it about:
A prince with a quest. A commoner with mysterious powers. And dragons that demand to be freed—at any cost.

Prince Corin has been chosen to free the dragons from their bondage to the Empire, but dragons aren’t big on directions. They have given him some of their power, but none of their knowledge. No one, not the dragons nor their riders, is even sure what keeps the dragons in the Empire’s control.

Tam, sensible daughter of a well-respected doctor, had no idea before she arrived in the capital that she is a Seer, gifted with visions. When the two run into each other (quite literally) in the library, sparks fly and Corin impulsively asks Tam to dinner. But it’s not all happily ever after. Never mind that the prince isn’t allowed to marry a commoner: war is coming to Caithen.

Torn between Corin’s quest to free the dragons and his duty to his country, the lovers must both figure out how to master their powers in order to save Caithen. With a little help from a village of secret wizards and a rogue dragonrider, they just might pull it off.

What did I think of it:
I totally bought this book because I was lured in by the cover. That it sounded like it might be a nice Fantasy was all the excuse I needed to get hold of this beauty.

And it turned out this is a really enjoyable Fantasy!

Although the blurb promises lots of dragons and action, the first part of the book is mainly about Corin and Tam getting to know each other. I can't say I minded: their banter and the court intrigues were very pleasant to read. I really liked both of them, especially Tam, who's not just smart, but also level headed.

There were some events and things that happened that were a bit too convenient in my opinion, but the overall story was cool enough that I decided to let it slide.

Once Corin and Tam set themselves to getting the dragon problem solved, the action kicked in and the story sped up. With the dragons not being very cooperative and with visions entering the story, it was a bit difficult at times to make sense of what was going on and why. But luckily things got clear after a while.

The ending wasn't the strongest point of this book, but all in all I very much enjoyed Moth and Spark. The setting, the writing style, and the characters all drew me in and I will most certainly reread this book, and keep an eye out for more books by Leonard.

Why should you read it:
If you're looking for lots of dragons, this isn't your book, but if you want a very entertaining and enjoyable Fantasy read, you should pick this up.