Another story has come to an end. Tears of a Dragon is the final book in the Dragons In Our Midst series by Bryan Davis and it tells of the final confrontation between Billy and Morgan. Having returned from England after their trials with the seven circles in the previous book, Billy, Bonnie and their friends are working to figure out what Morgan’s plan is going forward. Thinking that Morgan is without a body, having not acquired a hostiam, they decide to work on freeing the soul of Billy’s father, and numerous other dragons, in order to continue fulfilling the prophecies of Merlin. However, what they haven’t realized is that Walter’s family is also descended from Arthur and his older sister could function as a hostiam for Morgan. By the time they realize this it is already too late and things are gearing up for the final confrontation. The problem is that Billy and Bonnie are trapped in an alternate dimension trying to free the dragons while Walter’s mother and some of Ashley’s sisters are being held hostage by Morgan in order to get Ashley to help free Devin. It looks like everything is reliant on this final fight and the ultimate outcome.
This book was pretty good and a good addition to the series but I also felt like there were a few things that were more than a little unexpected. A big one that I was surprised by was the revelation that Walter’s family was descended from Arthur and so Walter and his father were able to wield Excalibur. I am not sure how I felt about this as it felt like this was added in at the end only so that Excalibur could still be used while Billy was trying to save the dragons. The same thing with how it ties into his sister being able to function as a hostiam. I kind of felt like this was a forced reveal just so that Morgan could have a physical body for the final fight. The reason I say that is because Walter’s sister was a complete non-entity before this and considering the overall role of Walter’s family in the series so far I feel like we should have seen or heard more about her previously. This whole situation feels off to me but that may just be me. That being said, this information did add some extra layers to this book as it also adds in layers of betrayal and family going against family and making wrong decisions because you don’t have all of the information to make the right one. I do feel like this book did a pretty good job of wrapping up many of the elements and threads that were first introduced in earlier parts of the series. We see a return to the mountain that was the setting of the events of the first book, and then elements of Ashley’s lab that was a setting in the second book. Characters such as Hambone, the dog from the first book, also make a reappearance. It feels like this book has attempted to make a full circle in order to try and wrap things up in such a way that it actually feels complete. Honestly, the book, and the series, do feel complete as we see many of the problems that have been dogging the characters throughout finally get resolved. Overall, a fitting end to the series and a book that is getting four out of five stars from me.
This book is considered a young adult fantasy series which is a categorization that I would mostly agree with. With the characters mostly being teenagers, at least the various protagonists and narrators anyway, I can see why it would hold the most appeal to a similar age range. I am not sure it would hold much appeal outside that age range, either older or younger. More specifically, I think it would hold the most appeal to young adult or teen readers who enjoy a good fantasy series. However, there is something that should be taken into consideration. This book, and this series, is something that I would consider to be Christian Fantasy. If this does not appeal to you that is fine but I do think this is something to be aware of going in as not everyone enjoys that genre. It is a good book and a good series so if it sounds like something you might like feel free to try it and share your thoughts in the comments.