The futuristic but dystopian city of Drakopolis was built by humans aided by domesticated dragons. Thirteen-year-old Abel, right after the events of City of Thieves, finds himself enmeshed in the world of dragon racing, even as someone seems to be hacking dragons’ DNA to create monstrous, enslaved beasts that threaten the city and its inhabitants. Abel finds himself in a position to stop them, but to do so, he must confront warring gangs and balance his obligations to his friends and family, including a sister who is part of one such gang and a brother in the city’s secret police.
The book has a cyberpunk, Pokémon-meets-Game-of-Thrones vibe, geared to middle-grade readers, and the constant action should delight those who love fast-paced books. Abel’s friend Roa is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns; this is simply incorporated into the book without fanfare. Another character performs in drag, and there are hints of at least one male character who might have a crush on another boy. I’m betting that author Alex London, a gay dad himself, will develop this further in a future volume.
Some readers, however, may balk at London’s (one-time) use of the term “preferred pronouns,” which he also used in City of Thieves. It’s not the worst offense, but it’s not the best way to phrase things—as GLSEN explains, “There has been a shift away from the term ‘preferred gender pronoun’ or ‘PGP’ to just using ‘pronoun.’ This change was made because a person’s pronouns are not just preferred; they’re the pronouns that must be used.” Let’s hope the term is changed in future editions and volumes in this series and that we see even more queer characters as part of this compelling world.
