Chrissy’s Review: The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli

The Last Namsara (Iskari #1)
written by Kristen Ciccarelli
published by HarperTeen, 2017

find it here: (affiliate links) Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Apple Books, Target, Walmart, Kobo, Book Depository, Goodreads

Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Did I enjoy this book? I really did! It was something new for me, and I didn’t want to put it down. That’s right . . . I read it every free chance I had.

The Last Namsara has action, adventure, old stories and legends, a complex female lead, a love story, conflict, and dragons. What more can you ask for? This story kept me turning pages. I couldn’t imagine being labeled as the Iskari, the one chosen to hunt and kill all the dragons to save her kingdom, the one feared by many in her land, the one whose world was turned upside down. I thought Asha was a fabulous heroine and dragon hunter. She was strong, fierce, intelligent, but she also had a vulnerability and a cautious side that made her question everything she had been told. The world Ms. Ciccarelli created was well-developed and creative. It was an easy world to get immersed in. I loved that the old stories, which were forbidden because they called the dragons, were told throughout the book. It provided more context for what was currently happening to the characters. The ending left me satisfied but definitely wanting more. In fact, I will be starting the next book, The Caged Queen, now . . .

Would I recommend it? Yes, especially if you like fantasy books about dragons.
 

 
About the book – from Goodreads: In the beginning, there was the Namsara: the child of sky and spirit, who carried love and laughter wherever he went. But where there is light, there must be darkness—and so there was also the Iskari. The child of blood and moonlight. The destroyer. The death-bringer.

These are the legends that Asha, daughter of the king of Firgaard, has grown up learning in hushed whispers, drawn to the forbidden figures of the past. But it isn’t until she becomes the fiercest, most feared dragon slayer in the land that she takes on the role of the next Iskari—a lonely destiny that leaves her feeling more like a weapon than a girl.

Asha conquers each dragon and brings its head to the king, but no kill can free her from the shackles that await at home: her betrothal to the cruel commandant, a man who holds the truth about her nature in his palm. When she’s offered the chance to gain her freedom in exchange for the life of the most powerful dragon in Firgaard, she finds that there may be more truth to the ancient stories than she ever could have expected. With the help of a secret friend—a slave boy from her betrothed’s household—Asha must shed the layers of her Iskari bondage and open her heart to love, light, and a truth that has been kept from her.

 

 

 

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** This post first appeared on Every Free Chance Books (everyfreechance.com) on December 12, 2019.