”The Coming of Dragons” by A. J. Lake

“Gods be with us,” a tiller man mouthed as the ship, Spearwa, began to sink. Anyone watching the tragic scene unfold would not have guessed that there could be any lives saved.

 The intriguing book of the first book of the Darkest Age series, “The Coming of Dragons,” begins with a deadly shipwreck caused by an evil dragon that plans to kill every life on the ship. The only survivors are Edmond, a prince in disguise and Elspbeth, the daughter of the sea captain, who are washed up on the short with a mysterious wooden trunk.

Edmond, the eleven-year-old heir to Heored of Sussex, was put aboard the ship by his mother when his father had disappeared. His mother, Branwen, had been afraid that if he remained with her, he would surely be killed, so she sent him to live with his uncle.  He swore to his mother that he would keep his identity concealed. Not only was he the prince, but he was also a Ripente – a much feared and often alienated people who had the ability to read thoughts by entering minds of other people.

Elspbeth appears to be an average girl with no secrets, until she opens the wooden trunk that reveals a sword and gauntlet, which attach to her being. When in danger, her arm turns into the sword. Though controlling it was, in the beginning, difficult for her to control, throughout the story, she has an easier time using it.

While they were on the shore, another character is introduced. Aagard, a strange old hermit, waited for them. He claimed that he had been anticipating a great evil overcoming not only their home, but the world and with that evil a hero would come forth and save them all. He believed that the two children would be the heroes.

The two youngster’s only wish is to return to Sussex where Edmond hopes his mother is waiting and where Elspbeth dreams she may find her own family. Sussex, however, is not as either left it. Aagard had been right; a great veil of darkness has fallen over their beloved Sussex.

The band of three make their way across the dangerous Britain towards Sussex, hoping that they can make it before it is too late.

On their long journey for home, they come across many dangers; miscreant knights, dark magic, and evil boars. It seems that the biggest dangers they face, however, are the secrets they carry within themselves.

Together, and with the help of the wise Aagard, they fight and overcome every peril that they come across.

The story ends with a dramatic overcoming of the evil dragons and the black magic and a betrayal an already sneaky character. The children, who are celebrated throughout the land for their bravery, turn the things that they thought were weaknesses in the beginning into their biggest strengths.

In the midst of celebration, however, the wise and almost prophetic Aagard warns, “… it’s not over. It has hardly begun.” His phrase is not only for the children, but also for the reader. It is a promise of future adventures, future journeys, and future books.

Works Cited

Lake, A.j. The Coming of the Dragons: the Darkest Age I. Bloomsbury PLC, 2007. 240.