I’ve had mixed feelings throughout the entire Dragon Akademy Untameables trilogy, but I wanted to see it through to the end.

While I’m glad to have stayed with it, I’m also thankful that I didn’t get my hopes too high. As with the second book, this one lacked tension and momentum, despite the stakes involved for the characters and the kingdom. The book – the series – has so much potential but the characterisation of Laini stopped it from reaching that.

The issues I had with her in the second book continued in the third. She’s desperate to protect her family, adamant she will take everything on herself and takes everything that goes wrong as a personal failure. To be fair, I’ve read many characters like that.

My problem was that book one set up a diverse and interesting group of characters that sparked off each other. Laini’s actions means the other Untameables – Thea, Lokari and Frinna particularly – are pushed into secondary characters, denied very little page time and no chance to develop. They’re all in the same situation – it would have been stronger if she allowed all the characters to play their part. That I found Laini’s character annoying didn’t help.

As before, Tyr’s storyline was far more engaging. United with his childhood friend, on the run for survival and trying to help his friends, Tyr’s plot has a good rise and fall of tension, interaction between the various characters and they are all given the chance to prove themselves.

Both Tyr and Laini want to take the weight of the world on their shoulders. Tyr learns much earlier the problems with this. Laini waits until the last battle, then suddenly sees what the readers have known all along: her friends need her help, not her protection.

This trilogy helped me pinpoint an issue I had with the last Ava Richardson one I read. I think she’s better at writing male characters. I loved Tyr in this, and when male characters have been her protagonist in the earlier books, they are strong. The last two with female leads have been irritating, even if it is hard to put my finger on why.

There are some big battles that take place this time, with the fate of all the Gods at stake. It feels wrong to say I enjoyed the earlier fights before Laini was present more than the latter ones – which proves the issues I had with her character. There was some clever use of magic though, and it was engaging to see what the Untameables were capable of when they weren’t shoved to the side.

Dragon Family had potential, and it had a satisfying conclusion. I struggled to engage though.

I think this will be the last Ava Richardson trilogy for me. I’d still recommend them to a younger audience wanting dragons, magic and adventure, not to mention finding who you truly are when all feels lost.

I really enjoy Ms. Richardson's writing style and her characters. Everything is really interesting and pull you in to immersion.

Dragon Family by Ava Richardson. Laini has lost people left and right, forcing her to go to places she never wanted to go, hope seems elusive and help nowhere to be found...

This is the third book in the trilogy and I was really keen to get my hands on a copy to see how it would all end - this is definitely a series that needs to be read in order.

I thought that this was an exciting instalment and a great end to the series.  There was action all the way but I did find that it was a little too long for me and it could have ben wrapped up a little sooner.  This was the only downside for me and has dropped my rating from 5 to a still very good, 4 stars!  I really enjoyed it and was glad with the ending and it wrapped up everything nicely!

This novel was a great conclusion to the Untameables series in Ms. Richardson's world of dragons and magic. So much it at risk and Hel's vengeance has grown, for he hates what the Gods, her "family" did to her. Laini feels so much guilt for causing the deaths of her friends, that she returns to doing things on her own, believing she is protecting the rest of her family that lives. When she discovers the Book of Death can bring back the Gods who were killed, she knows this is the only way to defeat Hel. But Hel has always been steps ahead of Laini and her family, including bringing Unger to her side after she killed their prince. Laini believes she must do these tasks on her own, but family is always there for you, which is something she needs to realize before it is too late. Laini is able to travel to the Underworld and has a link with Tyr, the man she loves, which allows them to communicate. Tyr and the other Gods who were killed go in search of Hel's high priest who was killed, but possessed the Book of Death, Laini and the others will have to wage battles on two fronts to save the world and end Nightfall.