The Royal Dragoneers

The Dragoneer Saga, Book One

By: M. R. Mathias

Narrated by: Christine Padovan

Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's Summary

After struggling for more than two centuries to tame the inhospitable islands where they washed up, the descendants of the survivors of a lost passenger ship are now striving to tame a more substantial "Mainland" they have found.

For as long as mankind has been stranded, dragons have been their sworn enemies.

But no longer...

Sixteen year-old Jenka De Swasso wants nothing more than to follow in his father's footsteps and become a King's Ranger. But when he one day finds himself surrounded by vicious trolls, a young pure-blood dragon comes to his rescue and they become bond-mates.

Meanwhile, the goblins have a new king, Gravelbone, and have allied themselves with the tainted "mudged" dragons to drive mankind out of its lands. Setting his sights on a vast manmade wall, Gravelbone and his wicked hell-born Nightshade, seek to poison the entire human kingdom and enslave any survivors.

Jenka and his companion, a druida warrior named Zah, soon realize that they and their bonded dragons are mankind's only hope for survival. Forced to defy their arrogant king's wishes, the pair set out on a desperate quest to stop Gravelbone's forces and save mankind from its terrifying fate.

With action so intense you'll forget to breathe and intrigue around every corner, The Royal Dragoneers is one adventure you cannot miss.

Hold on to your dragon... your journey is about to begin!

©2010 Michael Robb Mathias Jr. (P)2013 Michael Robb mathias Jr.

The story was great

The story was an outstanding read. The narrator has a good voice but used pauses and inflections that were irritating. We managed to ignore the voice inflections and pauses and just listened to the words

A well written, and well told action-fantasy.

What made the experience of listening to The Royal Dragoneers the most enjoyable?

The story was great. A village boy and some others turn into dragon riders to save a land from a troll who is trying to poison them.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Royal Dragoneers?

When the young dragon Jade gets chastised and then takes off on his own. I was scared for that juvenile wyrm, more than I'd like to admit.

Have you listened to any of Christine Padovan’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I heard her read Mathias' Crimson and Clover on youtube.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Absolutely. Each chapter ends in a way that compels you to keep going.

Any additional comments?

This is the second M. R. Mathias audio book I have listened to. In both the narrators use voices for the characters. This is okay but distracting at times. It also lends to the drama and anticipation at times too. Mathias' stories are somehow traditional fantasy yet told in a very refreshing way. I hope all four of his fantasy series make it to audio format.

can't wait to hear the next one. Good book.

Great what's next?......?????? just getting started. exciting and fun and I will be back. thanks.

Wonderful story

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, I enjoyed the story very much.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

I found the narrator's reading style annoying to listen to. She read in strange surge-like phrases that were distracting. I was almost like a computer was reading to me.

Good story, but bad narration

The story, though feeling a bit generic at times, was very entertaining, and I enjoyed the adventure. But the narrator, I don't know what she was thinking. Having Siri read the book would be a better choice.

Narrator is horrible

I have no idea if the book is any good. The narrator is so bad that I stopped listening in less than 5 minutes. Her lack of emotion and slow speech made me think she had just learned to read or was trying to read while not showing she was on pot. Or perhaps she was just trying to sound like a make, which would explain the low slow voice, which doesn't sound real.

Narrator little better than text to speech

This review is based solely on the narrator, she's awful. Lovely voice but doesn't fit. I've started reading it myself and the story is holding my interest. Narrator lost them the fifth star.
Having trouble getting into the story because of the readers cadence. She pauses unnecessarily, And is annoying. I need to read/listen to the story before my granddaughter and all I want to do is ask what people were thinking when they hired her to read the entire series. The people at audible really should get feedback before hiring narrators. I have several books I love but hate the narrator. She may be great reading some books but not this one and she is detracting from the story. They may have done better going to a local library n held auditions. It's hard to find a children's librarian that can't read a great story and make it better!

Hardtime following the story bad narrator

What disappointed you about The Royal Dragoneers?

I did not like the way Christine read the book. the puncuation on the last word of every sentence drove me nuts.I will not try the other books if she is reading them.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

see above answer

the person reading was to herky jerky.

the narrator made it hard to follow but story was good. her readin g was to herky jerky.

Great Narration

Christine Padovan did a masterful job of bringing all the characters to life. I strongly suggest anyone reading this book to get the Audible companion.

Not Impressed

Any additional comments?

The idea of the book was good but the narration, the childlike character and non engageing story put me off, I had to force myself to finish the story.