Masters of Fire and Air by Lucy D. Ford

Nila takes to the air with a pack of wyrms in Lucy D. Ford’s Masters of Air and Fire, a children’s fantasy novel.

Masters of Fire and Air by Lucy D. Ford

Kindle Edition

Published 2015 by Sky Warrior Books Publishing, LLC

Masters of Fire and Air is an enjoyable read for all ages. Set in a world where wyrms and humans live side by side, the focus of this tale is entirely on the wyrms – or dragons, if you will.

The story opens with three wyrmling siblings doting on their mother who is about to give birth to her next brood. As far as they know, their lives are governed by the simple things in their life and what the upcoming births will bring. Though it is too soon for the young wyrms to leave their mother’s protection, the fact that she will soon have another clutch of wyrmlings to feed means the three siblings, Orlik, Romik, and Yazka, will have to soon find their own territory among all the other (older and meaner) dragons.

But before they can worry about their future, the mountain beneath their feet has other plans for them all. They are forced to leave their home, and mother, prematurely and under devastating circumstances. Though none of them like it, they’ll have to work together to survive, even after they do the one thing their mother firmly warned them not to do: approach humans.

Romik is hurt during their human encounter and all three are forced to fraternize with men and women even more than any of them bargained for. Their time with the humans teach each of them something different. Though their mother’s warning proves correct, extricating themselves from the humans does bring them all closer together.

While this is written for children, I found this a captivating read. Ms. Ford does an excellent job detailing the wyrm relationships and the inherent conflict between them over territories. In addition, she described a natural cataclysmic event accurately. Not only did the event make sense to the scientist in me, but the way in which it would affect those impacted by the event also rang true. While devastating, natural disasters can impact the course of history and our lives. It does no different in Masters of Air and Fire. And while this particular natural disaster was not the focus of the book, it lent veracity to the wyrmlings’ story and their world.

I also found the relationships in the book satisfying to read. Each character, wyrm or human, had a real sense of motive and acted accordingly. I did find myself wishing the author would go a bit more into the characters, but I had to keep reminding myself that this was geared towards a younger audience that might not have the patience for in-depth character soul searching. Besides, the wyrmlings are much simpler than that. Though they are on the cusp of change, as their world is, they still need the comfort and guidance of their parent. And in the end, they get that as well as a foundation that will serve each well in the future. I know we all don’t like to see messages in our fiction, but in this case, I thought the family bonding in this wyrm clan provided a great example of how we all should learn, if not to like each other, to get along.

This is a quick, enjoyable read. While the author does not skirt away from some of life’s icky realities (human raiders attack a coastal settlement, and there are limited depictions of slaves), I recommend this book for bedside reading for the youngest of readers embarking on a life-long adventure with dragons.

N.E. White, May, 2015.