Pit Dragon Trilogy: Dragon’s Heart
DRAGON’S HEART
Harcourt 2009
ISBN# 0152059199
So twenty years after the last book was written, I finally wrote (and finished) the fourth book of the Pit Dragon Trilogy. Yes, I know. It’s laughable. So we have renamed them the Pit Dragon Chronicles. I swear this is the last. All the threads have been wound up. Everyone’s fate is laid out. We understand everything. (Even stuff I hadn’t understood myself became clear, thanks to my lizard brain—which is what I call the subconscious.) I went through four actual editors and the purchase of Harcourt by Houghton during the writing and editing of the book. But when it came out, I breathed a huge sigh of relief. No more letters from kids (and adults) demanding the final book. It was also a book my late husband always wanted me to write. So David—this one was for you.
What reviewers have said:
- “Every past question you might have had is answered, from “Why did Likkarn help Jakkin and Akki escape?” to “Will everyone be able to hear Dragons?” along with new questions like “Can everyone be trusted with this ability?” This is a stunningly wonderful end to the series and I found it completely satisfying. But this is not the book to read first- That would be Dragon’s Blood. But if you’ve read the others, you’ll definitely want to read this one. Highly recommended.”– http://ladyrhian.blogspot.com
- “. . . the dragons display vivid personalities and agendas . . . the author crafts a plot well supplied with danger and action . . .”–Kirkus Reviews
- “[Dragon’s Heart] offers fans a welcome return to one of the best sci-fi fantasies of the previous generation. Yolen’s world-building remains accomplished, and the characters are engaging and sympathetic.”–The Horn Book Magazine
- “. . . fans of the initial trilogy will eagerly read this addition to the series. An introduction and preface allow those new to the series to read this title without reading the first three books, but reading the books in order will undoubtedly be more rewarding.”–VOYA (3Q3P)
- “Jane Yolen finally bowed to fans’ demands for a concluding volume to the series. This is definitely the last one, make no mistake about that. We could always learn more about Jakkin and Akki’s lives after the events of this novel, but the plot threads are neatly tied, and the final chapter makes it clear exactly what happened afterwards, in enough detail that fans of the series should be well satisfied. Here, the series comes to a head. Jakkin and Akki have learned the secrets of the Dragons. But who can they trust those secrets to, and who will believe a couple of kids/young teens could make a discovery of this kind of importance on their own? Mostly, the two take care of their own problems, but both need help, both from the dragons, and the other adults.Every past question you might have had is answered, from “Why did Likkarn help Jakkin and Akki escape?” to “Will everyone be able to hear Dragons?” along with new questions like “Can everyone be trusted with this ability?” This is a stunningly wonderful end to the series and I found it completely satisfying. But this is not the book to read first- That would be Dragon’s Blood. But if you’ve read the others, you’ll definitely want to read this one. Highly recommended.” –Deep Thoughts blog
- “The Pit Dragon Chronicles– Dragon’s Heart: Jane Yolen has done the impossible. She has returned to her Pit Dragon trilogy of books (written in the 1980s!) for one last story, set immediately after A Sending of Dragons. Jakkin and Akki return home after a year in the hands of the murderous Trogs, with several dragons and secrets in tow. Akki wants to go to the Rokk to research the incredible change that came over them at the end of Heart’s Blood (Book 2), attempting to ensure the information doesn’t fall into the wrong hands. But when she sees a familiar and frightening face, she is kidnapped, and it is up to Jakkin to save her. All of the characters from the original Pit Dragon Trilogy return. Many have revelations. Others are killed off, something Yolen rarely did in the original trilogy. And this book gives a better ending to the series, which had ended too abruptly at the close of Sending. Finally, the encyclopedia entry at the end of the book serves as the perfect epilogue, giving a lot of fun facts away if you’re paying attention. This is something I thought I’d never see, and now that I’ve read it, I can’t help but wonder how the series did without it in the first place.” –The Writer’s Notebook blog
- “Yolen’s world-building remains accomplished, and the characters are engaging and sympathetic…a welcome return to one of the best sci-fi fantasies of the previous generation.”–Horn Book