Escaping Peril
2015
- juvenile fantasy fiction
- juvenile fiction
- quests (expeditions)
- dragons
- prophecies
- imaginary wars and battles
- good and evil
- friendship
- identity (psychology)
- children's fiction
The story
"The New York Times and USA Today bestselling series soars to even greater heights with a new prophecy and five new dragonets ready to claim their destiny! Peril has been loyal to Queen Scarlet, who used her fatal firescales to kill countless dragons in the SkyWing arena. Now, Peril is loyal to Clay, the only dragonet who has ever been her friend. So when Scarlet threatens Jade Mountain Academy, Peril sets off to find her former queen, stop her, and save the day, no matter what it takes. There's just one problem: a strangely persistent SeaWing, Turtle, insists on coming along, too. Turtle is worried about his friends, who left to search for Scarlet and haven't returned. Peril is worried that she might accidentally burn Turtle -- or burn him on purpose, for being so annoying -- and frustrated that she keeps saying and doing the wrong things. She can't escape her firescales, and she can't escape her reputation as the deadliest dragon in Pyrrhia. So when she's offered a chance to trade everything for a second chance, Peril has to decide who she's really loyal to . . . and whether her own scales might actually be worth saving."
What it’s like
Escaping Peril is a sprawling middle-grade fantasy told in close, brisk third person, with short chapters, quick dialogue and a steady stream of action that never lingers long on gore. The sensory world is built from warm, vivid colour: fire-lit caverns, sun-baked desert and rainforest, the sheen of scales and the glow of molten fire, all rendered with a playful, accessible prose voice rather than dense description. Its vibe is warm, earnest adventure with a bruised undertone of self-doubt. Violence is present but mostly off-page or brief and cartoonish, with peril and a few threatening moments rather than graphic cruelty or sustained horror, and nothing sexual. The pacing is fast, the chapters end on hooks, and the emotional register swings between banter and quiet worry. The arc follows a dragon who has been branded by her past slowly learning that loyalty and identity are choices she can make, alongside a prickly friendship that softens over the journey. It suits a long-haul flight, a lazy afternoon, or reading aloud, and it is for young readers and adults who want an accessible, character-driven fantasy with friendship at its core.
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