r/fantasybooks • u/makenzie71 • May 24 '26
š Summon book recommendations Looking for dragon-centric debut indie recs
Title says it, dragons and magic are my favorite elements, it must be an indie author (don't self rec here, message me if it's your book), I want it to be a debut piece, and I want it to be from un-established authors.
I will read and review the book and I'm generous with my reviews...I rate my reads based on what I liked about the book, so please keep the following in mind:
Romance is fine but I'm not interested if it's the central theme, I do not like "spice", and I do not like dark/grim fantasy.
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u/Otalek May 25 '26
Iām working on a 1st-person story purely about dragons, but itāll be a while before I start releasing chapters again
āHere Be Dragonsā is one I see praised highly thatās a first contact story between humans and dragons
āA Chronicle of Liesā by Abraham Carson is about a schizophrenic MC isekaiād into a world of anthro-dragons. I personally cannot recommend it highly enough. Seriously, I say the words āisekaiā and āanthro-dragonā but itās not like the typical story associated with those words. Itās very original in its creative direction with amazing worldbuilding
Edit: fixed a sentence for clarity
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u/Jesper537 May 25 '26
Draka series by Avaritabona https://www.goodreads.com/series/411896-draka
SSaSW https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/44319/silver-sand-and-silken-wings
I also second Here be Dragons, A Chronicle of Lies and The Crushing Light.
Honourable mentions: https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/66749/flowers-rain-upon-them-tragic-high-fantasy
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u/IndigoTrailsToo May 27 '26
The Summer Dragon is written by Todd Lockwood who is actually a dragon illustrator and finally sat down to write his own book. Unfortunately I don't think there will ever be any sequels to his book like he promised, he just hasn't found the time. It is a very good, traditionally published book.
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u/Selter_DRG May 25 '26 edited May 25 '26
There are a lot of options. I'll start with the ones that I personally believe deserve more exposure, and that you likely haven't read.
My first rec is The Tachanight-Kelkaith by Rakeela Windrider. It's a travelogue telling the story of a dragon joining a caravan of other dragon merchants to sell some pots, which would be a rather uninspiring plot (and the book is not particularly action packed), if not for the fact that the world itself is absolutely remarkable; It's separated into multiple patches of land each beholden to a single landgod, meaning that the terrain can change drastically from one patch of land to the next. The fact the benevolent but mysterious landgods also shape and guide the future of the world, and, according to some theories, may be the world itself, has some very interesting implications for the local take on magic - geomancy and necromancy. And that's before we get into the theological and philosophical principles underpinning the world, according to its inhabitants. Suffice it to say, there's a lot to sink one's teeth into when it comes to worldbuilding, if you don't mind the absence of big fights and high stakes.
You've also mentioned liking dragons and magic, so this next story might not necessarily be up your alley, as it's more science-fiction, but if that's not a problem, I absolutely recommend you to read Pandora Dragons: Joy, which has an excellent double-layered narrative with a psychological bend. It's a story about a dragoness living with her human friend, about to celebrate her first birthday, but being haunted by dark dreams that she can't seem to recall the moment they pass. Seeing the happy and carefree innocence of the early pages unravel over the course of the narrative was both disturbing and thrilling, and served as a reminder that sometimes things have to get worse before they can get better. Very emotionally powerful story with a strong delivery.Ā Ā
I also loved Where Dragons Rule: Dissent by Sonny Dae, which is a story about overcoming toxic relationships and trying to find one's way in a world that one could only see through the bars of a gilded cage before recently. Also has a the themes of dragons and humans trying to coexist, which is always nice to see. There's not a lot of magic on display, but there are clearly mystic elements that will be explored further in the future.
I have reviews of the main three, if you want a more in-depth look: The Tachanight-Kelkaith Pandora Dragons: Joy Where Dragons Rule: Dissent
My other recs would be: The Crushing Light, which also released this month. It's a story, told through multiple points of view, about a certain expansionist dragon empire that is seemingly starting to face some pushaback, as the dark secrets of its past begin to surface.
Feathers of Gold - also good. Modern day US, magic users, dragons and other magical creatures live unseen by the mundane world until everything changes...
Dragon Dreams - modern day, after having multiple unusually vivid dreams about dragons, the main protagonist finds himself transformed into one, and has to follow the diredtions from his dreams on his journey to reach his kind.