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Janet Lee Carey

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Dragon's Keep Kindle Edition

by Janet Lee Carey (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.5 209 ratings

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“In stunning, lyrical prose,” this YA fantasy “tells the story of Rosalind, a twelfth-century princess destined for greatness by a prophecy from Merlin” (Booklist, starred review).

For generations, an exiled line of the royal Pendragon family has ruled Wilde Island. But now that distant isle is plagued by a dragon. So it is no small matter that Princess Rosalind was born with a dragon claw where her ring finger should be.

To hide this secret, Queen Gweneth requires her daughter to wear golden gloves at all times until a cure can be found. Only then can Rosalind can fulfill a centuries-old prophecy that will restore her family to its rightful throne.

But Rosalind’s flaw cannot be separated from her fate. When she is carried off by the dragon, everything she thought she knew falls apart . . .

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Starred Review. Grade 6–10—Nonstop action may keep readers glued to this page-turner, but strong writing and character development are what will make it linger in their memories long after they've finished it. Princess Rosalind Pendragon is meant to fulfill a 600-year-old prophecy from Merlin that she will restore her family's good name and end a war. Rosalind was born with one dragon talon, which is a fearful secret known only to the teen and her mother. It is kept hidden by the golden gloves that Rosalind is never without, and over the years, the queen tries desperately to find a cure for the curse. When Rosalind reveals her claw to Lord Faul, a dragon that has been terrorizing the island, her destiny is set in motion. Taken by him to be nursemaid to his motherless children, she learns of her dragon blood and of her mother's treachery. Rosalind and the dragons are bound together in a complex relationship that, in the end, helps her fulfill the prophecy. Her heroic journey comes full circle, and she finds internal peace as well as peace for her people. While the story has roots in traditional fairy tales and legends, the author has crafted something new and magical, and unexpected plot twists will surprise readers throughout. Lord Faul and Rosalind, whose personality is a fantastic combination of Joan of Arc, Briar Rose, and Patricia Wrede's Princess Cimarron, develop so well as characters that readers will be touched by them. Devotees of fantasy adventure stories will certainly find treasure here.—Cheri Dobbs, Detroit Country Day Middle School, Beverly Hills, MI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

*Starred Review* In stunning, lyrical prose, Carey tells the story of Rosalind, a twelfth-century princess destined for greatness by a prophecy from Merlin: the twenty-first queen of Wilde Island, which is plagued by dragons, will do three great things. Rosalind is to be that queen, but because she was born with a finger that looks exactly like a dragon's claw, she always wears gloves of gold. If exposed, her deformity will mark her as a witch and spell her doom, so anyone who finds out about it has died. Her life takes a strange turn during the summer Rosalind is 16; she is plucked from the ground by a dragon and flown to its keep high in the mountains on another island to serve as nursemaid to its four motherless pips. Carey smoothly blends many traditional fantasy tropes here, but her telling is fresh as well as thoroughly compelling. Fantasy fans wanting a slightly different take on dragons might enjoy books by N. M. Brown and Jason Hightman. Diana Herald
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"A rich medieval fantasy, a splendid weaving of bright and dark threads, constant surprises and startling turns of events; of brutalities and beauties, terrors and triumphs . . . a remarkable achievement."--Lloyd Alexander[star] "Stunning, lyrical prose . . . Carey smoothly blends many traditional fantasy tropes here, but her telling is fresh as well as thoroughly compelling."--Booklist (starred)

About the Author

JANET LEE CAREY received the Mark Twain Award in 2005 for Wenny Has Wings. She lives near Seattle, Washington.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

CHAPTER ONE
The Queen’s Knife

WILDE ISLAND AD 1145
MOTHER PULLED OUT HER KNIFE. We were alone in her solar.
“It’s time,” she said. “Give me your hand.”
I drew back. “It’s not yet Sunday eve.”
“We’re together, Rosalind, and the door’s well locked.”
“Tomorrow.”
“Tonight.” Then softening her voice she said, “Come, Rosie, take off your gloves.”
Her blade flashed in the firelight and sent a russet glow across the room. She was ready for the ritual. I dreaded it.
“Take yours off first.”
Mother placed her knife on the table and bared her hands. Queen Gweneth’s fingers were finely tapered as candles, her skin milky as the moon. It was a shame for her to wear golden gloves, but she’d donned them at my birth to protect me, and worn them ever since.
“Now you, Rosie.”
I bit my lip as she removed my right glove. Pretty hand that never saw the sun; the skin was soft and creamy not unlike her own. Mother kissed it. Then taking my other hand in hers, she peeled away the left glove. None but Mother and myself knew what hid underneath.
My throat tightened as we looked at my fourth finger. The horny flesh. Blue-green and scaly as a lizard’s hide. Claw of the beast with a black curving talon at the end.
I rubbed the scar at the base of my claw. A wound I’d made myself the night of Nell’s witch burning. With her cunning craft Nell had lured folk into the woods and fed them to the dragon. Of this she was accused, and too she had a devil’s mark on her back. I’d seen the mark myself before they burned her—it was nothing compared to mine.
With Cook’s sharp knife I’d stolen to my room to try to cut off my cursed part. The wound was deep and the blood had drenched my kirtle before Mother caught me.
The queen was peering at my claw now, working her face to hold back a sickened sneer, but with all her trying, her lip still tightened. “The sorrow of it,” she whispered. “That it should be your wedding finger.”
“No man would marry me unless he was a leper.”
“Rosie. Don’t say such things.”
“Then say it isn’t true.”
Mother pulled out her silver vial, sipped the poppy potion, and closed her eyes. The fire crackled. When the lines around her eyes and mouth grew smooth she capped the bottle and set her jaw. “Now.”
I hid my hand behind my back. “It will hurt.”
“I’ll cut with care.” Tugging my wrist close, she used her knife to peel the black talon as a fletcher sharpens an arrow.
Curled bits of hard black nail fell to the floor. Sparks flew and a trail of smoke rose as she trimmed the nail. It was a wonder we’d shaken our heads at. For what kind of talon hides a spark?
Scrape. Scrape. I closed my eyes and smelled the odor of ground bone and, stranger still, a scent of rusted metal. The stench filled me with shame.
I waited for her to finish, taking slow breaths to calm myself. Then I felt a sharp prick.
“Too close to the quick!” I drew back and blinked away the tears.
“Done,” said Mother, sweeping the broken bits of nail into her hand and tossing them in the fire.
Gently now, she slid my golden gloves back on and put her cool hand on my cheek. “This secret is heavy between us,” she said. “But don’t cry, Rosie. I’ll find a way to cure you. I swear it on my life.”

Copyright © 2007 by Janet Lee Carey

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Requests for permission to make copies of any part of the work should be submitted online at www.harcourt.com/contact or mailed to the following address: Permissions Department, Harcourt, Inc., 6277 Sea Harbor Drive, Orlando, Florida 32887-6777.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B003K15IMG
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Clarion Books; First edition (May 1, 2008)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 1, 2008
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 981 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 325 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #637,270 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #280 in Teen & Young Adult Historical Fantasy eBooks
- #337 in Teen & Young Adult Nature & the Natural World Fiction eBooks
- #487 in Children's Dragon Stories

Customer Reviews:
4.5 209 ratings

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Janet Lee Carey

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~Things are never what they seem. Find the lost inside the dream ~

Janet Lee Carey grew up in the bay area under towering redwoods that whispered secrets whenever the wind blew. When she was a child, she dreamed of becoming a mermaid (which never happened). She also dreamed of becoming a writer (which did happen). She is the author of nine novels for children and young adults including her newest release, In the Time of Dragon Moon book three of the Wilde Island Chronicles. School Library Journal starred review calls her work, "fantasy at its best—original, beautiful, amazing, and deeply moving." Janet tours the U.S. and abroad presenting at schools, book festivals and conferences for writers, teachers, and librarians. Janet and her family live near Seattle by a lake where rising morning mist forms into dragons. http://janetleecarey.com/

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Elaine C McTyer

Dragons, Dragons, and more Dragons

Reviewed in the United States on July 25, 2008

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I found this book in my recommendations. I am so glad I bought it. It is a great adventure with a romance. An adult fairy tale that really is good.

Rosalind is a princess, but she has a problem. One of her fingers is a dragon's claw. Her mother has used dragon magic to have a child and this is the result. Rosalind wears gloves always. There is a prophecy that a perfect princess will regain what was lost and bring her line back into the Pendragon line. An ancestor married against the wishes of her liege and the line of that princess was exiled to Wilde Island.

Kye comes to the Island with his father to get Rosalind's father for a war against the Spanish. On the way they fight and kill a fierce dragon and bring it to the Island. Everyone calls Kye a dragonkiller.

Rosalind has feelings for the unfortunate dragon but she can't say a word during the revels that follow. Everyone is celebrating. Kye finds her and shows her an old broken dragon egg in a cave. But she is still not ready to say anything to Kye.

The dragon they have killed is the female and the male arrives to destroy all he can and retrieve the eggs she carries. In his anger and rage he sets most of the town afire and finally flies off to Dragon's Keep with his progeny.

Shortly after the king left on his mission the Dragon came back and this time he took Rosalind. Holding her in his claws he flew back to the Keep and there Rosalind learned he needed help to hatch his children. He had so much grief for the loss of his mate that at times he cried out. So began Rosalind's life on Dragon Keep until she was sure he would kill and eat her.

I found the story wonderful, full of imagination and fire. The dragons well realized and the differences between man and beast evident. I loved it and if you are looking for a good read about dragons, this is it.

3 people found this helpful

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Maggie

Not Your Typical Storyline

Reviewed in the United States on October 15, 2010

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This book has messed it up for me. Since I've read this, no other author compares and I'm disappointed/bored with other books that got good reviews. So, if you want to mess yourself up, read this.

What I liked best is that it DIDN'T follow the typical storyline, which is: character going along in regular life, something happens, oh-no! must save character, character goes on "adventure" and meets new people, new people help character and character grows for this experience and then is saved and goes on with life, blah, blah blah. This is DIFFERENT. I had no idea where the story was going to go, what was going to happen. It is a really fun read and can't put book down! Enjoy!

3 people found this helpful

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A. Writer O. Sorts

Not sure if you like fantasy? Try this

Reviewed in the United States on November 2, 2007

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What makes Dragon's Keep work for me is its approach -- a medieval fantasy written more like historical fiction than high fantasy. And yet it has that sliver of magic and magical creatures -- dragons, of course -- to spice it up. In other words, the author avoids over-doing it, and instead creates very believable characters in a believable world. I would recommend this for teen readers who aren't sure whether they like fantasy. They should give this a try. I enjoyed it, and I'm a picky reader; I've stopped reading even some very popular books because they've been clones of existing work, presented unbelievable characters and situations, or just plain overdid the fantasy cliches. This does a very good job of sticking with the heroine's struggle.

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Alissa Check

Avid Dragon Lover's 2nd Favorite Book

Reviewed in the United States on December 30, 2013

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I collect dragon everything...my room is full of it. And I just stumbled on this book in the library. It had the word 'dragon' on it, and I wanted it.

This book has made me cry, punch a wall, and frankly flip out. It may be a slow book for some people, but I think the beginning catches the reading with a bit of mystery to build on.
So after a year since I read it, I almost forgot the name of it. It frightened me that I would forget about the book. So even though I will not read this again (probably) I just want to know I own it.
I got the hard cover because I didn't want to receive the book bent in the mail. The cover is smooth and the artwork is nice. The thing I love the most is the smell of the paper.

2 people found this helpful

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Conni

A pleasant surprise

Reviewed in the United States on June 6, 2008

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I wasn't sure about this book. I'd never read anything by the same author and wasn't convinced I'd like it. But then, I'd plowed my way through both Inheritance series books and figured this couldn't be that bad. It greatly exceeded my expectations. This book is well-written, cohesive, answers the questions the read comes up with along the way, and uses foreshadowing nicely. I would definitely recommed this for a 5th-grade reader on up. Enjoy!

Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2024

Verified Purchase

Good book but was damaged

Reviewed in the United States on May 26, 2013

Verified Purchase

This book take place in the time of kings and queens. It is packed with bonds of trust and hatred, loyalty and deceit, and above all, action. There are many twists and it has an excellent ending, leaving it open for the second book (dragonswood).

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Carol R.

Absolutely a great book...

Reviewed in the United States on July 18, 2007

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We gave this book to our 13 year old daughter for her birthday this year. Her words when I asked how it was were, "The most awesome book ever!" This is coming from an avid reader... she breezed through this 302 page book in just three days. Right now she is reading the Bartimaeus Trilogy, but says she would like to read more by this author in the near future.

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