Dragon's Nest (Dragons of Deltora Series #1)
Search in google:
The evil Shadow Lord has been banished, but famine still stalks Deltora, and only monsters thrive. As the starving people weaken, Lief, Jasmine and Barda discover a terrible secret. The Enemy left the seeds of death behindhim. Four vile creations of sorcery called the Four Sisters are hidden in the land. They are slowly killing it while the Shadow Lord gloats, awaiting his triumphant return. The companions must find the deadly Sisters and destroy them. Their only clue is a fragment of an ancient map. Their only hope of help lies with 7 unlikely allies - the last of Deltora's dragons.Wendy Glenn, Ph.D. - Children's LiteratureIn this first book in the "Dragons of Deltora" series, young King Lief and his brave companions, Barda and Jasmine, begin a journey to save the land made barren by the evil sorcery of the Shadow Lord. Using only a fragment of an ancient map, they set out to locate and destroy Dragon's Nest, a cave deep in the earth said to hold the power of the enemy. With the help of Josef, a librarian intrigued by the adventures of a former dragon tamer, Lief learns that he (using the magical belt he wears) is the only human able to call from slumber the dragons necessary for success in such a battle. As Leif and his crew search for their dragon allies, they meet and save the Capricorn Rolf, a whiny, innocuous creature that proves to be quite different than that which he seems. The novel contains photographs of ancient manuscripts, maps, and cryptic letters that readers are asked to decode. Character development is relatively weak in that we know little of our hero Lief and his motivations, fears, and desires beyond the hunt, and Rolf's revealing in the conclusion comes as no surprise. Yet, the plot moves quickly, and the tensions between good and evil are effectively rendered. 2003, Scholastic, Ages 10 to 14.
