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Dragon Prince (Book 1) by Melanie Rawn
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Dragon Prince (Book 1) (original 1988; edition 1988)

by Melanie Rawn

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
2,402276,292 (3.94)59
First in the bestselling Dragon Prince series, explore a lush epic fantasy world replete with winged beasts, power games of magical treachery, and a realm of princedoms hovering on the brink of war * "Marvelous!"--Anne McCaffrey When Rohan became the new prince of the Desert, ruler of the kingdom granted to his family for as long as the Long Sands spewed fire, he took the crown with two goals in mind. First and foremost, he sought to bring permanent peace to his world of divided princedoms. And, in a land where dragon-slaying was a proof of manhood, Rohan was the sole champion of the dragons, fighting desperately to preserve the last remaining lords of the sky and with them a secret which might be the salvation of his people....   Sioned, the Sunrunner witch who was fated by Fire to be Rohan's bride, had mastered the magic of sunlight and moonglow, catching hints of a yet to be formed pattern which could irrevocably affect the destinies of Sunrunners and ordinary mortals alike. Yet caught in the machinations of the Lady of Goddess Keep, and of Prince Rohan and his sworn enemy, the treacherously cunning High Prince, could Sioned alter this crucial pattern to protect her lord from the menace of a war that threatened to set the land ablaze?… (more)
Member:lycomayflower
Title:Dragon Prince (Book 1)
Authors:Melanie Rawn
Info:DAW Books (1988), Paperback, 576 pages
Collections:Read, Your library
Rating:
Tags:20th century, american, fantasy, sff

Work Information

Dragon Prince by Melanie Rawn (1988)

  1. 30
    Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey (TheBooknerd)
    TheBooknerd: Both epic series feature a young but clever leader, his intrepid female "partner in crime", great world-building, and -- oh yeah! Dragons!
  2. 00
    Blue Moon Rising by Simon R. Green (MyriadBooks)
    MyriadBooks: Virgin princes ftw.
  3. 00
    Dragon Bones by Patricia Briggs (MyriadBooks)
    MyriadBooks: For barbarian, Machiavellian princes (and their dragons).
  4. 02
    Daughter of the Blood by Anne Bishop (MyriadBooks)
    MyriadBooks: Jewels, jewels, jewels.
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» See also 59 mentions

Showing 1-5 of 25 (next | show all)
A romance with fantasy trappings and a lot of politics. I liked it, though it's something of a guilty pleasure. ( )
  yaj70 | Jan 22, 2024 |
Dragon Prince is the literary equivalent of spraying EZ-CHEEZ straight into your mouth. The good guys brandish their cloaks while the bad guys twirl their oily mustaches.

The plot concerns a prince (Rohan) who has to maneuver through silly court politics in order to protect his kingdom from the tyrannical High Prince. And his girlfriend-with-magical-powers (Sioned) has to deal with a conflict of loyalties. And there's battles! And there's dragons! And despite various moments of violence -- rape, murder, incineration -- there's startlingly little dramatic tension.

( )
  proustbot | Jun 19, 2023 |
I really thought this was going somewhere. I was wrong. ( )
  jamestomasino | Sep 11, 2021 |
These books are a treat- written by not a trained writer but a trained historian, they combine several unique threads.

The basic setting is a early Medieval/Dark Age autocracy, where the central protagonist- Rohan- dreams of transitioning into what we would describe as a constitutional monarchy defined by the rule of law. He is the scion of generations of warlords and kingdom builders, interestingly heir to all of their ruthlessness and ambition, but with it turned toward building a stable tomorrow not dependent on the justice of the strongest ruler around.

Rawn, given her background, has a firm grasp of society and different cultures; the one major gripe I had reading these is her continent, in terms of travel distance, is just too small. The population sizes are correct for 5th-7th century cities, towns, and warfare- but the distances involved are just not there.

Roelstra, the main villain of the piece, is definitely informed by the villains of older literature or perhaps romance, but is a wonderful fit here- he is a sociopath and "native" psychologist; deftly manipulating those around him without their being aware he is doing so.

The magic system is also different. Sunrunners have the ability to instinctively weave light- sunlight, moonlight, and (spoiler) even starlight- and send their consciousness down it, to both observe distant items and communicate with other Sunrunners mind-to-mind. Training in a religious community, they have historically been strictly a-political, bound to silence regarding their communiques- and one is the romantic interest of Prince Rohan.

And in this world, there be dragons.

While the world is believable, this is a character-driven story. If characters with believable depth aren't something you enjoy, preferring riveting action, perhaps not the book for you. For myself, highly enjoyed. ( )
1 vote BrainFireBob | Jul 8, 2021 |
such delicious trashy trope-y fantasy; I love it as much now as I did when I was 20, tho its flaws are much more apparent ( )
  kickthebeat | Nov 1, 2020 |
Showing 1-5 of 25 (next | show all)
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» Add other authors (2 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Melanie Rawnprimary authorall editionscalculated
Siegrist, MartyMapssecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Whelan, MichaelCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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to my mother,
Alma Lucile Rawn

and to the memory of my father

Robert Dawson Rawn
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Prince Zehava squinted into the sunlight and smiled his satisfaction.
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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
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First in the bestselling Dragon Prince series, explore a lush epic fantasy world replete with winged beasts, power games of magical treachery, and a realm of princedoms hovering on the brink of war * "Marvelous!"--Anne McCaffrey When Rohan became the new prince of the Desert, ruler of the kingdom granted to his family for as long as the Long Sands spewed fire, he took the crown with two goals in mind. First and foremost, he sought to bring permanent peace to his world of divided princedoms. And, in a land where dragon-slaying was a proof of manhood, Rohan was the sole champion of the dragons, fighting desperately to preserve the last remaining lords of the sky and with them a secret which might be the salvation of his people....   Sioned, the Sunrunner witch who was fated by Fire to be Rohan's bride, had mastered the magic of sunlight and moonglow, catching hints of a yet to be formed pattern which could irrevocably affect the destinies of Sunrunners and ordinary mortals alike. Yet caught in the machinations of the Lady of Goddess Keep, and of Prince Rohan and his sworn enemy, the treacherously cunning High Prince, could Sioned alter this crucial pattern to protect her lord from the menace of a war that threatened to set the land ablaze?

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