The Last Dragonlord [Paperback]

Joanne Bertin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 1999

Dragonlord Linden Rathan, last-born of a race of immortal weredragons, has spent six hundred years alone, searching for his soultwin while his fellow Dragonlords watch over humanity's Five Kingdoms.

When the Queen of Cassori dies mysteriously, Linden and the other Dragonlords are called upon to prevent civil war as two human claimants vie for the regency.

As the battle for Cassori rule escalates, Linden becomes the target of the Fellowship, a secret society of true-humans who could actually destroy his immortal life.

Then he meets a beautiful young ship captain named Maurynna who may be the only one who can help Linden bring Cassori back from the brink of chaos.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Linden Rathan is the last of a race of weredragons--magical, nearly immortal half-humans who can transform themselves into mighty dragons. Linden is one of three dragonlord judges who will determine the next ruler of a true human kingdom. Political and sorcerous machinations and ancient hatred threaten the dragonlords' decision, and Linden must sort out the good from the evil, all the while fighting loneliness and despair. When he meets a beautiful young sea captain, Linden thinks he might have a chance at love after all. This is Joanne Bertin's first novel, and sometimes her storytelling ambitions make for a bit of confusion when new characters, history, and plot devices are introduced all at once. The Last Dragonlord is an excellent fantasy, nonetheless, with interesting, sympathetic characters and an intriguing setup. Fans of Anne McCaffrey's Pern series and other high fantasy sagas will find themselves caught up in a wonderful, romantic world. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

Action brews constantly at several interstices within the web of characters in this honest and engaging first novel by Bertin. Linden Rathan, youngest of the Dragonlords?humans born with souls that are half human and half dragon?is lonely. Since the time he was born, six centuries ago, the True Dragons have not sensed the birth of a fledgling Dragonlord. It is feared that Linden's soul-twin?the Dragonlord with the other halves of his two souls?will never be born. Linden and the soultwins Kief and Tarlna are sent to Casna to settle a simple dispute over a king's regency?but the plot that unfolds there is far from simple. A group called the Fraternity of Blood seeks to destroy the Dragonlords using magic the likes of which has been seen only once, many centuries before. The brewing conflict between good and evil becomes more complex with the entrance of Otter, bard and longtime friend of Linden, and of Maurynna, one of the youngest and spunkiest ship captains anyone has seen, along with a host of characters from the court. Bertin's writing is only serviceable, but the flow of action and many layers of intrigue will float readers toward her novel's hard-fought conclusion.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Tor Fantasy (September 15, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812545419
• ISBN-13: 978-0812545418
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (100 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,077,736 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A little of everything, April 10, 2002

By 

Benjamin Scott "DragonHawk" (NH, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Last Dragonlord (Paperback)

I just finished reading this book, and I have to say I really enjoyed it. I am sure some will say the pieces the author uses to build the story are unoriginal: The main plot is a classic power struggle, complete with evil conspiracy and a power-mad wizard. The romance between Rathan and his soultwin is likewise your basic romance drama (love at first sight, but circumstances come between them). Magic, swords, horses, dragons -- so what, right?

Simply put, it was well done. The story was engaging, the characters had depth, and the narrative was rich. I found myself rooting for the good guys and worring when they got in trouble. There were doses of commedy, realistic dialog, and I even enjoyed the romance (which added flavor but did not dominate). This was a good story. It isn't Tolkien, but I do not expect nor desire everything I read to be like Tolkien.

Dragonfans like myself will definately want to check it out, but this is a good light fantasy for anyone.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent story, April 14, 2003

By 

Kasatka (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Last Dragonlord (Paperback)

I found this book quite by accident, and was immediately drawn into it. The characters are believable and very likable. One can instantly sympathize with Linden Rathan, a Dragonlord who has been searching for his soultwin for centuries. All he longs for is the close relationship the other Dragonlords have with their soultwins, a bond closer than anything.
In the story, he is sent with two other Dragonlords to oversee the debate over a new ruler following the mysterious death of their Queen. Evil begins to surface as an old faction known as the Fellowship comes back to life. They not only threaten Prince Rann, a small child, but the life of Dragonlords. During this time, Linden falls in love, and suspects his love may be a Dragonlord too, even though the truedragons have not sensed any new Dragonlord. The Fellowship hears rumor of this new Dragonlord and are determined to get control of her, whoever she may be, so that they have their own Dragonlord puppet.
A really good book, with lots of little twists. The "good guys" are good, though they have their faults and you may want to hit one or two of them. ;) The evil doers are really evil, but believable as well. The ending may be a bit predictable, but it's the ending you want anyway, and it's lots of fun getting there.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fresh breeze, August 19, 2005

By 

Lucia C. Bibolini (London) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Last Dragonlord (Paperback)

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, in fact I couldn't put it down, I read it from cover to cover through the night.

Yes, it's romantic... a book that anybody who loves fantasy and still believes in true love, or dreams of it, will enjoy reading. I liked the weredragon twist on the concept of soul mates.

I guess The Last Dragonlord might appeal more to women, but there are also lots of romantic and sensitive males around who, I think, would enjoy this book.

As for the language... well, it isn't high-brow, it isn't a literary masterpiece, it isn't pretentious. But it's easy to read, simple and flowing. Something that people will appreciate who believe in the KISS concept (keep it simple stupid). Personally, I get so tired of books that are just trying to impress me with un-necessary complexity...

The really nice thing about the Last Dragonlord is that it made me feel good. Too many books are so full of horror... Life has its own sorrows, and this story was, for me, a fresh breeze, making me feel that there is still beauty in the human (and dragon) heart!