Old Dark by Michael La Ronn

Old Dark (The Last Dragon Lord, #1)

by Michael La Ronn

He's a supreme dragon lord at the height of his power, but there's a conspiracy brewing.

Old Dark is a viperous dragon lord who rules the world with brute force. For two hundred years, he and his dragons have terrorized humanity, forcing it to pay tribute or die.

Dark's palace of blood and bone sits on caverns of treasure. He's stockpiled all the world's magic for his own personal use, making him akin to a god.

There is another dragon in Dark's inner circle who wants Dark's power and fortune for himself. And if Dark doesn't stop his own overthrow, he'll suffer a fate far worse than death.

But Dark won't fall easily. There's a reason the ancients called him Dark the Wicked…

Old Dark is a different kind of dark fantasy, told through the eyes of a blood-thirsty dragon. Readers who like antiheroes, the Age of Fire series, and Smaug from Lord of the Rings will love this heart-pounding story of power, revenge, and true evil.

Reviewed by chymerra on

4 of 5 stars

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Before I start my review, I would like to thank Michael La Ronn for allowing me to review Old Dark.

**All opinions stated in this review are mine and mine alone. I received Old Dark from Michael La Ronn for free for my honest and unbiased review**

Now onto my review:

This book was deliciously good.

Mainly told from the viewpoint of Old Dark, a vicious black dragon, it totally embraced how society perceives dragons and runs with it. Greedy, vicious leaders who won’t hesitate to destroy a village to make a point. Loved it!! Not too often that you read a book that 100% supports the bad guy.

What I loved is that the author refused to kill him off. Instead, he had him cursed in an attack and that curse went wrong and he fell asleep for 1,000 years. In this time, humans, elves and dragons were coexisting rather peacefully. Dragons were no longer feared but they worked with humans. Elves can use magic and magic defines their whole society. Human and elves intermarry and have children. There was a downside, though. Magic was being drained from wells beneath the city faster than it could replenish itself.

This is where you meet Miri Charmwell and Lucan Grimoire (love the names btw). Miri is a professor in the Department of Magical Sciences. He is running for governor (against his uncle). They get thrown together when he discovers a dragon tomb in the middle of the Ancestral Bogs and he needs her to help him discover whose tomb it was.

I will admit, I didn’t care for Lucan or Miri’s characters at all, at first. Miri grew on me, at least. Lucan, well he’s came across as a bastard and the author did nothing to dissuade me from that impression.

I do love the latter part of the book. Not going to give anything away but it was great. The ending, even though it was a cliffhanger, was perfect. I really can’t wait to read the next book!!

How many stars will I give Old Dark? 4

Why? Loved the story. Like I said above, it was delicious and a breath of fresh air. Miri’s character was a little naive and Lucan’s character was a bastard. The only thing I didn’t like was that it was a cliffhanger (as you all know, I hate them).

Will I reread? Yes

Will I recommend to family and friends? Yes

Age range? Teen on up

Why? Some sexual situations, lots of violence but nothing too gory

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 23 August, 2016: Finished reading
  • 23 August, 2016: Reviewed