Dragon's Oath

September 26, 2011
Set in early 19th-century England, this novella, which augments the popular House of Night series, finds troublesome teen Bryan "Dragon" Lankford exiled to America by his nobleman father. As his unwanted adventure begins, Lankford is magically chosen to become a powerful vampire and warrior. Along the way, he falls in love with a young vampire priest- ess, Anastasia, whom he vows to protect. Caitlin Davies's light, pleasant voice is well suited to the book's younger characters, but she lacks the range needed to adequately voice older ones. Listeners will find that many of the book's adultsâ powerful, ancient beingsâsound youthful and immature. Davies also does little to distinguish male and female voices or modulate inflection to dramatize changes in mood. Still, YA audiences will find the story light and appealing, and its narrator an equal match. A St. Martin's Griffin hardcover. (July)â¨â¨

February 1, 2012

Gr 9 Up-P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast's companion (St. Martin's Griffin, 2011) to "The House of Night" series details the early days of the tragic love affair between Bryan "Dragon" Lankford and Anastasia, professor of Spells and Rituals at Tower Grove school. Even before Anastasia meets Dragon, something about the talented fledgling offends her. But when a spell gone awry reveals to her that the arrogant young Sword Master is her true love, her revulsion instantly morphs into gag-worthy infatuation. Meanwhile, Dragon struggles with his conflicting desire to genuinely impress the well-endowed priestess or simply bed her. The only thing preventing this from evolving into a full-fledged bodice ripper is that, after all the intense eye-gazing, sappy dialogue, and bad innuendo, the actual physical intimacy between the characters is anti-climactic. Cast gets so caught up in creating this lackluster romance that more important plot components-the threat posed by Sheriff Biddle, the evil force stalking the House, and Dragon's vow to choose peace over his sword-fall to the wayside and feel more like random afterthoughts than elements that would further the story. Woven throughout is an abundance of dreadful poetry. Caitlin Davies's narration does further disservice to this cliche-laden romance. Her reading is inconsistently paced, she sometimes seems to stumble over her words, and her attempt at various accents doesn't work.-Alissa LeMerise, Oxford Public Library, MI

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