Dragon Venom

by Lawrence Watt-Evans

Overview

After many years of peace in the Lands of Men, there came Dragon Weather: a wave of incredible heat, oppressive humidity, dark angry clouds . . . and dragons. Dragons with no remorse, no sympathy, no use for humans; dragons who destroyed an entire village and everyone in it. Everyone, that is, except the young boy Arlian. Orphaned and alone, Arlian was captured by looters and sold as a mining slave. He finally escaped, fueled by years of hatred and a personal vow to bring justice to all who had wronged him.

After killing those who enslaved him, Arlian sought out The Dragon Society, whose sworn purpose was to stand against the dragon menace. It was there, among his peers, that Arlian discovered he is humanity's best hope for defeating the dragons . . . permanently.

Now, Arlian seeks his final vengeance: death to all of dragonkind. But as he begins to destroy the evil beasts, wild magic seeps into the Lands of Men, sowing chaos and destruction in its wake. Will Arlian's all-consuming quest for justice consume humanity as well? The answer may lie within his ancient foe's most lethal weapon: Dragon Venom

Product Details

BN ID:	2940164290986
Publisher:	Misenchanted Press
Publication date:	11/01/2020
Sold by:	Smashwords
Format:	eBook
File size:	565 KB

About the Author

Born and raised in Massachusetts, Lawrence Watt-Evans has been a full-time writer and editor for more than twenty years. The author of more than thirty novels, over one hundred short stories, and more than one hundred and fifty published articles, Watt-Evans writes primarily in the fields of science fiction, fantasy, horror, and comic books. His short fiction has won the Hugo Award as well as twice winning the Asimov's Readers Award. His fiction has been published in England, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Poland, France, Hungary, and Russia.

He served as president of the Horror Writers Association from 1994 to 1996 and after leaving that office was the recipient of HWA's first service award ever. He is also a member of Novelists Inc., and the Science Fiction Writers of America. Married with two children, he and his wife Julie live in Maryland.

Editorial Reviews

In Watt-Evans's stirring conclusion to his high fantasy Obsidian Chronicles (after Dragon Weather and The Dragon Society), the series' rather remote and self-righteous protagonist, Arlian, returns to the walled city of Manfort after 14 years of slaying evil dragons to find the duke of Manfort contending with unruly subjects and disruptions caused by wild magic. Since the duke blames these problems on dragon slaying, Arlian suffers near disgrace and has to defend his work from criticism, not that the duke's displeasure bothers our thick-skinned hero much. No longer allowed to kill dragons, Arlian decides to nose out why the wild magic has spilled into the Lands of Man and stumbles on a more intriguing line of study-dragon venom. Why, and how, does dragon venom turn humans into dragonhearts, and what connection is there between humans, dragons and the long-lost Gods of Man? Watt-Evans tends to overexplain and his dragons lack any redeeming graces, but the swashbuckling story line builds to a twist ending sure to leave the author's fans smiling.

Publishers Weekly

During the time of Dragon Weather, the fearsome creatures destroyed an entire village except for a single child. As an adult, Arlian has vowed to spend his life waging war against dragonkind, slaying them wherever and whenever he can find them. Yet his private war is not without cost as wild magic spreads throughout the land. The conclusion to Watt-Evans's "Obsidian Chronicles" features a driven hero, a group of loyal companions, and an intriguing and vividly realized fantasy setting. A strong addition to fantasy collections. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

Conclusion to Watt-Evans’s fantasy trilogy (Dragon Weather, 1999; The Dragon Society, 2001). Previously, young Arlian, sole survivor of a dragon attack on the village Obsidian, accidentally ingested a mixture of human blood and deadly, corrosive dragon venom—and thereby became a "dragonheart." Charismatic, strong, fast, and invulnerable to most poisons, Arlian is destined to live a thousand years. As a downside, he will become less and less human and eventually will die when a new dragon claws its way out of his chest. Unlike most dragonhearts, Arlian burns for vengeance upon the creatures that made him what he is. And now he knows two crucial facts: dragons, once considered invulnerable, can be slain with weapons tipped with obsidian; and, though dragons don't eat, they prey on humans because they consume souls! Arlian, taking advantage of the dragons’ midwinter torpor, slaughters them as they slumber in their caverns. But as the number of dragons dwindles, so does their magic, allowing the wild magic, evil wizards, and monsters of the Borderlands to encroach on the Lands of Man. After journeying into the Borderlands to consult with the powers there, Arlian wonders why the mixture of human blood and dragon venom is such a potent elixir. Cold-bloodedly, he experiments on animals to see whether the elixir might create other kinds of magical beings. The results are disturbing. And, naturally, his plans will be violently opposed by the other dragonhearts and their surviving dragon allies. Should satisfy existing fans but won't tempt many newcomers.

Kirkus Reviews