Dragonslayer

The Dragonslayer, Book 1

By: Duncan M. Hamilton

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Length: 10 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

BuzzFeed Greatest Fantasy Book of the Year author

In his magnificent, heroic adventure fantasy, Dragonslayer, Duncan M. Hamilton debuts the first audiobook in a fast-moving trilogy: a dangerous tale of lost magics, unlikely heroes, and reawakened dragons.

Once a member of the king's personal guard, Guillot dal Villevauvais spends most days drinking and mourning his wife and child. He’s astonished - and wary - when the Prince Bishop orders him to find and destroy a dragon. He and the Prince Bishop have never exactly been friends, and Gill left the capital in disgrace five years ago. So why him? And, more importantly, how is there a dragon to fight when the beasts were hunted to extinction centuries ago by the ancient Chevaliers of the Silver Circle?

On the way to the capitol city, Gill rescues Solène, a young barmaid, who is about to be burned as a witch. He believes her innocent...but she soon proves that she has plenty of raw, untrained power, a problem in this land, where magic is forbidden. Yet the Prince Bishop believes magic will be the key to both destroying the dragon and replacing the young, untried king he pretends to serve with a more pliable figurehead.

Between Gill’s rusty swordsmanship and Solene’s unstable magic, what could go wrong?

The Dragonslayer Trilogy:

1. Dragonslayer
2. Knight of the Silver Circle

©2019 Duncan M. Hamilton (P)2019 Macmillan Audio

Authors take note

Write from the POV of the dragon or the enemy (see Rodorf in the Wolfric series)... this is the only way to write. Too much SF is written from good guy POV see just about anything read by RC Bray and that’s garbage even if the character is flawed. 5/5 to everything Duncan Hamilton

Better than expected

Some reviews said this was a slow read and terribly written. I didn’t find that at all. I liked the development pace and enjoyed seeing things from the dragon’s perspective. It was a fun listen.

I am really enjoying Duncan M Hamiltons books

This is my third series of his to listen to and while Wolves of the North is by far the best at this point, I have enjoyed them all. I like that they all take place in the same universe/planet so it is easier to keep track of different concepts and commonalities shared across the different cultures that each series takes place in. I know this series has some harsh reviews but this really is a well rounded book and a very entertaining read.

fantastic

Wow, have enjoyed other Duncan Hamilton audiobooks. This one is no exception. Fantastic narration by Simon Vance and I can't wait for book 2.

great book

I would recommend to anyone, Simon Vance does an amazing job with this book cant wait to start the next one tomorrow

Too fast paced

[Spoilers ahead]. I discovered Hamilton when I bought his Ostia trilogy as a bundle. While enjoyable, that trilogy was flawed with significant problems in the writing. Dragonslayer shows improvement in the author's writing, and the reviews I read that described the novel as just another sword and dragon tale are too dismissive.

Again, I have enjoyed Hamilton's work and would recommend it to most fantasy readers. The problem with Dragonslayer - the reason for only three stars for story - is a lack of development. Being familiar with Hamilton's fantasy realm, I did not need an explanation. I also liked the characters and generally find the realm has some originality. However, the novel takes place over a period of days, not much more than a week. This is not a problem in itself and I am glad Hamilton does not bog down the reader in a Jordan-esque drudge. Still, it's simply not believable that a struggling alcoholic becomes a heroic dragonslayer and, even less so, a baker's assistant morphs into an archmage within a week. I felt so much more could have been done, particularly in the development of the archmage - which perhaps could have been a book in itself. This is reminiscent of the Ostia trilogy; Hamilton fixates on the story he wants to tell and simply hits "fast forward" as desired rather than filling in the gaps. In short, I wanted more: I wanted to know more about the Order of the Spur and I wanted more about mage training. If this resulted in uneven character development, the backstory between Guil and the Prince Bishop could have been pushed forward. Again, this struggle gets little more than a mention and couldve added depth to the characters and the novel more generally. I plan to read the sequel and hope the story is more fleshed out.

There's nothing to add about the performance. Vance is excellent, consistent with his other voice work.

good story telling with well developed characters

really like the story and the narrator brought it to life. really like like the charters and their moral compas.

another great book

Duncan M. Hamilton never fails to enthrall me and Simon Vance as always a great performance looking forward to the next two books

Duncan Hamilton is a wonderful fantasy writer!

An excellent plot, well developed, feasible characters without the foul language and slease of so many.

Great Book about a pissed off dragon.

Wish there was more POV of the Dragon. Great story. Story telling was wonderful! Highly recommended.