A review by mastersal
Moon Rising by Tui T. Sutherland

5.0

A strong start to a new arc in this world.

I was scared to read this book as I really enjoyed the first five books so I am pleased to report that this book was great.

I liked the new school setting and the new dragon cohort. Some of the new dragonets we met before in the earlier books but the lead in this book is a new dragon, Moonwatcher. I liked her quite a bit even though she was a quieter, less aggressive character.

The tone was less world ending here than the previous series. This was probably a good thing as it allowed a more gentle entry into the new arc. There is a new macro arc but most of this book works well as a standalone mystery. I think the author’s plotting has actually improved. The previous books also focused on individual dragons but here the plot was quite well balanced between the mystery and the new world building.

All in all this was an excellent job - 5 stars. I really enjoyed the characters, the mystery. The introduction of the new cohort / wing was cool. I’m glad they started with a hesitant character instead of a loud one which could be annoying as an introduction.

I didn’t get very emotional but had a great time - excellent middle grade. Well written and good job with handing the baton over from the first trilogy.