Blurb:
A thrilling dual-narrative conclusion to the award-winning Legends of the Sky middle-grade fantasy series, which can also be read as a stand-alone adventure.
Serina and Raff live on separate islands, each believing the other’s people to be their sworn enemy. Forced together in dramatic circumstances, they become friends while nurturing their young dragons. When Serina’s home, parents, and all the dragons of Arcosi are threatened, Raff and Serina must persuade their families to work together, taking a leap of faith and forgiveness to defeat a shared threat.
Liz Flanagan, The Pirate’s Dragon, blog:
Better Together? Why I Needed to Practise Listening to Opposite Views
A blog about the ‘better together’ themes of The Pirate’s Dragon, and why I needed to learn about finding common ground with people I disagree with!
I started writing The Pirate’s Dragon in early March 2020, not realizing what an absolute lifeline it would become for me in the months that followed. I knew from the start that I wanted it to have a message of ‘we are better together’ and I knew it would have two narrators who each thought the other was their enemy. What I didn’t know then was how much I would enjoy writing this story with its narrative arc which moves from division and mutual misunderstanding to friendship and co-operation – and what that would teach me!
Have you ever found yourself completely disagreeing on a big question with someone you care about? I was thinking about this blog post this morning and trying to figure out when this happened. Maybe I’m misremembering, but when I was younger, it didn’t seem as if there were quite so many issues you might disagree about, even with your friends and family. But these days, I’m sure we can all think of topics we avoid because we don’t want to have another steaming row with someone we care about. And that’s just in our own circles, never mind disagreements between big groups or even countries. So it feels more important than ever to think about how we get to tell our side of the story AND listen to the other side, and try to find some common ground, even if we are firmly convinced that we are right! I have to confess to finding this really difficult, to feeling bruised after certain discussions, and I’m definitely in need of help here! So maybe that’s why I wrote this story.
Let me give you a brief outline. The story opens on Hatching Day. Serina has just bonded with a fragile, newly hatched dragon, when it is stolen away by pirates in a dangerous raid on her island, Arcosi. She has no time to think, she just leaps onto the pirate’s dragon in order not to be separated from her hatchling, and she travels as a stowaway to a new island where everything is very different, where these islanders believe her people acted wrongly and are now seeking revenge.
At the same time, Raff, son of the pirate queen, is waiting eagerly on Skull Island for the chance to bond with a dragon from one of the stolen eggs – why should the people of Arcosi keep all the dragons for themselves?
Despite their differences, slowly, Raff and Serina become friends, finding common ground as they care for their hatchlings. When new threats emerge, they must work together to save the lives of people and dragons they love. But it’s so hard to trust a person you’ve just met, who believes such different things. Will they manage to overcome their mutual suspicion? I hope you will enjoy finding out!
The Pirate’s Dragon is published by UCLan Publishing, £8.99 ISBN: 9781915235992
Liz Flanagan is an award-winning author who writes for children and young adults. Her books include the Wildsmith series, illustrated by Joe Todd-Stanton; the Legends of the Sky series, and Eden Summer (nominated for the Carnegie Medal).
Find out more at lizflanagan.co.uk
There’s a family-friendly book launch on 17th March at The Book Corner in Halifax’s Piece Hall, 3-4pm. All are welcome to come for a reading, book signing and chat!
My thanks to Antonia and UCLan for a copy of the book and the blogtour spot.
@richreadalot March 2024
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