Bradley's Dragons

by Patrick Matthews

[Rach Wood]

Set in a Florida trailer park, this AMAZING and fast-paced middle-grade fantasy coming-of-age adventure follows Bradley Nash, a young boy who suffers from anxiety and panic attacks, especially around strangers. He doesn't have memories of it, but the main reason is that he was attacked by an unknown man named Max when he was only nine years old. That was three years ago, and he barely escaped.

When his parents tell him their family secret, just before his twelfth birthday, he can’t believe it. After all, how could he be a dragon? Well, a dragon egg, since he hasn’t hatched yet. But if he figures out how, he will be one, just like his mom and dad. Super cool, right? There’s one problem, though. He has to stay hidden from hunters. That's the only way to protect his gallu draig, before he hatches and turns into a powerful dragon. He doesn't know what type of dragon he will be, but he would love to be a swamp dragon, just like his dad. And he definitely doesn't want to be a sky dragon, like his mom, because those can mess with people's minds, and that's not right. But that doesn’t matter. His world has already changed forever, and he needs to spend some time reading his parent’s gift: a handwritten wooden book, titled Mastering the Gallu Draig. Unfortunately, it only has half-baked life advice, or so Bradley thinks.

I couldn’t help but root for Bradley, as he learned more about what it means to be a Nash, what's most important to him, and how to overcome his inner fears and even outer threats. Following him on a mysterious and very magical quest was exciting, particularly because Bradley is really anxious and has to overcome it in order to help those around him.

When I was a kid, I was the total opposite of Bradley: my mum told me I was always smiling at strangers, and I loved to talk with everyone. But I know what anxiety looks and feels like. And I also have my share of panic attacks. Watching Bradly learn to cope with it made me smile a lot, especially because he’s a splendid boy and deserves everything good in the world.

Besides Bradley, I also loved to know more about his parent’s stories and family secrets. And I think the author did a superb job portraying the relationship between parents and children; and how, at a certain point in their growth, children question the image they have of their parents and the lessons they have been taught, and how similar or different they would like to become.

Though the writing style is not brilliant, I think the author is incredible at storytelling, and I love how he gives us clues about the big picture without failing to surprise us. Between Bradley’s coming-of-age story, an unexpected enemy and many secret agendas, readers don’t have the time nor the will to put the book down.

Thank you to NetGalley and Patrick Matthews for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.