The Last Dragon on Mars

Starred review from July 22, 2024
In this rip-roaring series launch from Reintgen (the Celia Cleary series), dragons are the living embodiment of celestial bodies; Earth is only habitable because its dragon, Gaia, sacrificed herself. A century before the tale’s start, people headed for Mars, assuming its dragon, Ares, would be similarly selfless. Ares refused, however, sparking a war that ended when the dragons of Mars’s moons killed Ares. With his dying breath, Ares turned Mars’s plants, animals, and weather against humans. Now Martian society is nearing collapse, and orphaned 13-year-old Lunar Jones must risk his life salvaging scrap to support himself. While hiding from murderous rivals, Lunar finds a secret bunker that’s home to juvenile dragon Dread and a squadron of kids training to be his flight crew. Dread has the potential to help save Mars—and wants resourceful Lunar to be the crew’s new captain. Reintgen’s latest balances fraught interpersonal drama with expertly choreographed action and gleefully imaginative worldbuilding. The keenly rendered, racially diverse cast boasts jocularity, heart, and derring-do, enthralling readers while illustrating the revolutionary power of forgiveness and teamwork. Ages 10–up. Agent: Kristin Nelson, Nelson Literary.

September 1, 2024
A tenacious 13-year-old battles to save Mars, the only home he knows, in this series opener. Lunar Jones, called "Dad" by the other orphans at the understaffed, underfunded Martian Relocation Clinic, is a scrapper in the dying Mars settlement, which is ironically named Harvest. Although the atmosphere supports human life, Martian plants, animals, and weather pose threats to survival, and the salvagers risk their lives with every expedition. A century ago, people killed Ares, Mars' King-Dragon, hoping to make the planet "a paradise. A second version of Earth." But that plan backfired. After a bloody attack by a rival salvage group, Lunar regains consciousness in an underground bunker, under the care of Gen. John Poppy, who's secretly rearing a dragon named Dread. Poppy has rallied a group of young people with assorted special skills. Soon Dread will choose his dragoon, the human he bonds with for life. In the world of the story, which is reminiscent of Mad Max and Star Trek, each celestial body has its own dragon avatar. The backstory is fairly well developed, and the short chapters are packed with action. Lunar and some other key characters show positive growth, while the minor characters feel more like types. Lunar presents white; there's some diversity in race among the supporting cast. Fast-paced dragon flights and mid-space fights--plus underdog heroes who are easy to root for.(Fantasy. 10-14)

COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

October 1, 2024
Grades 5-8 Despite living in a universe teeming with dragons, Lunar Jones hasn't experienced much wonder growing up on Mars. He was orphaned long ago, and after Mars' resident dragon was killed, the cursed planet has become increasingly inhospitable to humans. Lunar scavenges for scrap to keep himself afloat, but after one expedition goes awry, he takes refuge in an underground military school preparing young recruits and one secret dragon to save their planet. A last-minute reprieve sees Lunar tapped to train, too, and it will take all of his hard-won street smarts to manage hostile peers, potential allies, a galaxy in turmoil, and an enormous dragon who may not be what he appears. This fantastic first entry in the Dragonship series is incredibly imaginative, combining intriguing dragon lore, fierce friendships, and full-tilt action into a whirlwind story sure to keep readers riveted. It's part sf (dragon spaceships!), part fantasy, and all enormous fun, complete with a twist ending that will leave the audience eagerly awaiting future installments. A rollicking reminder to remember your roots and stay open to the unexpected.

COPYRIGHT(2024) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

January 1, 2025
Mars-born Lunar Jones is a salvager on the dying planet, trying to find enough old technology to sell to keep his fellow orphans fed. When rival scrappers attempt to kill him to steal his latest find, he flees into the forbidden military zone and discovers a tunnel that leads to a cave containing a young dragon. The planet has been without one since humanity killed Mars's "king-dragon," Ares, a century before, but the dragons of Mars's moons Phobos and Deimos still drive the spaceships that cross the galaxy. A new dragon would be a game-changer for the struggling colony, and the military wants to eliminate Lunar to keep his discovery a secret. The dragon -- Dread -- intervenes: he has chosen the fearless Lunar as his dragoon, the point person to lead his crew and his ship. So begins Lunar's training to captain a starship. With echoes of influences as diverse as Orson Scott Card and Anne McCaffrey, this innovative adventure effortlessly draws readers into Lunar's predicament. The story line provides a rich ground for interpersonal rivalries and loyalties among the other candidates for dragoon, while the action builds realistically from training exercises to real-life emergencies as the dragons' political conflicts become deadly. The pages turn so quickly that readers will get to the end almost without realizing it -- then wait eagerly for a sequel. Anita L. Burkam

(Copyright 2025 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)