In 2008, Publishers Weekly said:
This novel defies conventional classification: is it science fiction? biblical fiction? thriller? The story describes a world where flying two-headed dragons and ogres exist, characters with telepathic gifts communicate with both animals and people, a man named Noah builds an Ark in his backyard, and a six-fingered giant named Lilith wants to take over the world. While this collage may have been implausible in lesser hands, the author makes it work, artfully drawing readers into Sethopolis (the “center of the last human-dominated nation on Earth”) and constructing an adventure with attention-grabbing plot twists.
At
the center of it all is 18-year old Susah, a feisty heroine with the
ability to communicate telepathically. Sheltered by her father, Noah,
from the evils of the world, Susah’s life takes an unexpected turn when
her aunt and uncle are killed by a violent street gang. Mesmerized by
the soldier who rescues her and the flying dragon under his control,
she decides to join the Dragon Corps, defenders of the Eden zone, and
become a dragoneer. Lilith, aware of Susah’s gifts, wants to have her
killed. As Susah trains to become a skilled dragoneer, she embarks on a
collision course with Lilith’s army of giants and ogres as they march
toward the Eden zone for the ultimate battle between good and evil.
The author has crafted a compelling story…
In 2009, an ABNA Expert Reviewer Answered Three Questions About the 5000 Word Excerpt of The Dragoneers:
1. What is the strongest aspect of this
excerpt?
The strongest aspect of this excerpt of The Dagoneers is its plot-line. I was drawn into the story and cared about the characters. This story will make a great YA novel.
2. What aspect needs the most work?
The aspect that needs the most work is additional chapters. I want to read more, find out what happens next.
3. What is your overall opinion of this
excerpt?
My overall opinion of this excerpt of The Dagoneers is that it will be a
great fantasy YA novel. The war between good and evil is readily
apparent.
The Rest of the Story:
The Dragoneers is my learning novel. Initially written in 2006, the strategic piece of it, the plot, is basically the same, however the operational layout and the tactical execution of the each page has improved as my continuing eduction has matured me as a writer.
In 2008, I entered the first year of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award (ABNA) and made it to the top 17%, only to be eliminated when they culled the entries to 2%. My Publishers Weekly review from 2008 said the story was disorienting and hard to follow. So I went back to school.
I took night classes, under the excellent instruction of Connie Cox, author of Taking Flight, who taught me the basics I'd skipped in my zeal to write a novel. Then I joined organizations where various levels of experience writers gather to share the secrets of success. First Centenary Writers Group, then NOLA, and LA-FCW, and a small critique group who have started to feel like family. In addition, I joined national organizations ACFW and RWA. The 2009 ACFW Writers Conference expanded my knowledge immensely.
The Publishers Weekly review above was for my ABNA 2009 entry, which made it to the 5% level, but to my disappointment was eliminated at the 1% round.
Since attending an educational session by Donald Maass on how to write a breakout novel, I've extensively re-edited The Dragoneers and entered the ABNA 2010 contest.
This year the contest is divided into two major categories: General Fiction and Young Adult Fiction. The Dragoneers advanced to the 20% round on 25 February and to the 5% round on 23 March. Even though my novel is much better than it has ever been, advancement is based on individual judges' expertise and the strength of the overall field of entries.
Amazon has made all the 250 quarter-finalists' excerpts available online for no charge. You can access the download page for a Kindle Edition of The Dragoneers excerpt here. If you don't have a Kindle, you can download free software in the same location for your PC to read Kindle books.
While you're there, you can read whatever reviews have been posted and you can even post your own comments. Most excerpts were given two reviews from the Amazon Reviewers, but for some administrative reason, only a portion of one of them were posted along with The Dragoneers page.
Additional reviews from several readers were encouraging, telling me the novel is nearly ready for the public. But, alas, The Dragoneers was eliminated in the cut to 1% for 2010.
This leaves me with the situation of what to do next.
I believe the story is ready for all interested readers. I also believe this first novel needs to be made available on the shelves of a book store near before the end of 2011, preferably sooner.
I'm thinking you might want it sooner.