AHHH, WHAT A RIDE! I have only one regret about this book and it's the fact that I haven't read it sooner because The Rage of Dragons is one hell of a debut. Was it perfect? Nope. Did I have fun reading it? Huge yes. I have a lot to say about this novel, so bear with me.

Now I get all those comparisons to Red Rising. You are right to think this comparison being weird, they are nothing alike when it comes to setting. The Rage of Dragon is African-ispired fantasy with dragons and magic while Red Rising Saga is basically politics and Vikings in space - you probably can't get less similar stories. And yet... Both first books in series have caste system, academy battles and military story with focus on vendetta. Both main characters have the same drive, the same determination for revenge, the same raw appeal. However, while Brown's Darrow makes you sympathetic towards his cause and evolves during his journey, Winter's Tau is single-minded never seeing the bigger picture. Talk about being blinded by revenge. Sometimes he got on my nerves so bad with his narrow-mindedness! I truly hope sequel will bring more character development for Tau.

"Life is nothing more than moments in time. To achieve greatness, you have to give up those moments. You have to give your life to your goal."

Another thing that bothered me was unsatisfactory introduction into the magic system. The absence of glossary at the beginning of this book negatively affects the quality of the story. I found magic system, or better said the description of magic system and military hierarchy a bit more complicated for my liking without proper explanation. Readers are thrown headfirst into the depths of it right from the very beginning. I found myself repeatedly rereading some parts and new words in hopes to understand the details of how this magic system works and it disrupted the flow of the story for me since some things didn't make sense at first. I guess that author was going for the shock factor with heavy action right from the first page but because of my lack of proper understanding of how things work, it was chaotic. Fortunately, it got better (or I got better understanding of it) as story progressed and I could enjoy the story properly.

Luckily, great world-building and awesome training/sparring/dueling/fighting saved the day. The Rage of Dragons must be the most satisfying military fantasy novel I have ever read to the date. Author gave us plenty of fights and then some. They were all exciting, engaging and absolute pleasure to read. Rich and unique world-building only solidified the experience. This book redefines the meaning of action-packed. I'm worried that whatever I read next would seem slow and boring in comparison with this novel. If it wasn't for the two complaints that I mentioned earlier, this book would go straight to my all time favorite shelf.

To sum up, The Rage of Dragons was a pleasant surprise and very enjoyable read: fast-paced, full of action and plenty of fights. If you are fan of military fantasy genre do not hesitate to pick this book up. I need more of this unique world and I need it now! This debut serves as perfect set up for fantasy series that has a great potential. I truly cannot wait for the sequel. schovat popis