Abbie Eaton's Dragonhart is a solid debut with a unique take on the typical fantasy heroine. I appreciated that Arla, the female main character (FMC) wasn’t confined to the standard trope of either a delicate princess or a hardened tomboy. Instead, she exists in a refreshing middle ground—comfortable in both an elegant gown and a battle scene. That balance added some depth to her character which I appreciated.

Arla's bond with the dragon was another highlight. Their dynamic was intriguing and full of potential, offering moments of genuine connection and awe. However, I couldn't help but feel like it came about suddenly in the story, lacking the gradual development and belief systems necessary to make it more impactful. A bit more time spent exploring different beliefs and anticipating that connection would have gone a long way.

Unfortunately, the same can be said for the romantic relationship in the book. The FMC and the male main character (MMC) had very little chemistry, and what was there felt underdeveloped. The spicy scenes, which could have added emotional intensity, came across as awkward and rushed instead. It made their dynamic hard to root for, and I found myself wishing for more meaningful interactions between them.

Another struggle I had was with the FMC's temper. While flawed characters can be relatable, her anger often felt disproportionate and underexplored. Understanding more about her backstory could have helped justify her reactions and made her emotional journey more engaging. Without that context, it was difficult to connect with her fully.

Additionally, the romance and character drama at times seemed to overshadow the plot. While the world-building and overarching story held promise, pivotal moments often took a backseat to the relationship drama. It left me wishing for a more carefully constructed narrative that gave the plot the space it deserved.

Overall, Dragonhart has the foundation of a great fantasy novel, but a bit more time spent fleshing out the characters and their relationships could have elevated it to the next level. I’ll be interested to see how Eaton's storytelling develops in future works!

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for the ARC! <3

I really loved the premise of this and I do think the barebones of a great story are here but it just fell flat for me unfortunately. I did not connect to any of the characters at all and actually found Arla quite annoying!

I think one of my biggest issues was that there just wasn’t enough exposition and things were just flippantly mentioned with absolutely no elaboration meaning I just couldn’t buy into it. There were certain elements that made me feel a little bit like they were just there to tick the romantasy checklist which again may be linked to my lack of emotional connection.

I do think the author shows promise as I think the storyline has great promise!

Thank you to Netgalley and One more Chapter for the ARC in exchange for my opinions

I LOVED this book and if there isn’t a series, I will riot. But before rioting, let’s talk plot in layperson terms. Arla Reinhert is a badass, 18 year old personal assassin to the King of Hadalyn. Her parents died nine years ago when the kingdom of Kastonia stormed Hadalyn looking for dragons below the castle and killing anyone, including Arla’s parents, who got in their way. They didn’t find any dragons and there has been a (sort-of) peace since, but there is no peace for Arla. Arla is filled with rage, which makes her perfect for assassinating, but not great for letting people in.

She and Hark Stappen, the ambassador from Kastonia, are sent on a mission to Kastonia to find out why iron shipments keep going missing. Does she want to spend time with a man from the kingdom that killed her parents? Absolutely not. But this is her job, so they try to set their differences aside (not without continuing to bicker with and barb at each other) as they travel north. But once they get to the shipments, Arla realizes that it isn’t iron that is going missing and that there is so much more that she isn’t being told and doesn’t know. Oh, and maybe she hates Hark less than she thinks she does. It is all very confusing and very fun for the readers.

I loved the way that Abbie Eaton created this world. I sometimes get intimidated by fantasy when I can’t pronounce the names or there are 20 kingdoms to keep track of or the magic doesn’t make any sense, but this world was vivid and rich without being overwhelming. She also had an amazing ability to set scenes so that you could visually picture everything because of the richness of all of the amazing detail (honestly, I sometimes felt like I could smell it too).

This was the type of book that I was rushing back to so that I could keep reading (lunch breaks be damned). It was so engrossing and had many good chapter cliffhangers and twists that made it a page turner. There was a section in the middle that was a little slower paced for me but when we got back into the action, I was hooked again.

I loved Arla and Hark’s dynamic. They are two young adults trying to figure out their feelings for each other and about the world and their growth of enemies to partners felt really organic. Sometimes, they were both very stubborn in their beliefs (especially Arla) and that could feel frustrating but it made sense that she could want to hold on tight to her beliefs because they were what she could control and could latch on to after the trauma of her parents’ death. It was rewarding to see her start to adjust her beliefs even though I wished it had happened a tad bit earlier.

The ending of the book was super satisfying and I can see (and hope that there will be) a series in this world.

Thank you to HarperCollins UK/One More Chapter and NetGalley for providing this eARC! All opinions are my own.

If you like throne of glass and Lady Of darkness series then this book is for you. It's like they joined they 2 books together. It wasn't a bad read. Some parts were actually really good.

Absolutely enjoyed reading this book because it had a cocky woman assassin, hidden dragons, a hate to love relationship, and of course, political games where the main characters are caught having to decide what they firmly believe in. Are there some parts of the book that could have been better explained or explored? Yes. But the gist of the story and writing is enough to keep you going once you start consuming the book.

Many thanks to the publisher for the e-arc! April 18th is fast approaching and I would not be surprised one bit if this book starts accruing special editions.

Assassin Arla Reinhart must team up with her rival ambassador Hark Stappen to journey across kingdoms to uncover the secrets that will save their world. Dragonhart is a new romantasy that will appeal to readers of Fourth Wing and When the Moon Hatched. For dragon fans!

Loved the enemies-to-lovers dynamic, My favourite trope and it was super well done. I also enjoyed the world development. 5 star, enjoyable read,

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of Dragonhart. The story has potential, and the author shows promise with their debut novel, but I struggled to connect with the characters, particularly the heroine, Arla. Despite being an undefeated assassin, she was repeatedly bested or surprised within the first 25% of the book. Her arrogance felt more temperamental than earned, which made it hard for me to empathize with her.

The writing and pacing were solid, but some sections dragged, especially with the overabundance of descriptions and inner monologues. While I was promised a dragon, the fantasy elements were sparse, and the lack of world-building left the story feeling more like YA fiction than a full-fledged fantasy.

The romance, involving a bickering ambassador from a rival kingdom, felt more frustrating than charming, and their quest lacked the depth I was hoping for. Overall, Dragonhart reminded me of Throne of Glass, A Court of Thorns and Roses, and Fourth Wing, but it didn’t offer the originality I was looking for. It has potential, but it wasn’t quite the right fit for me.

Dragonhart is fantastic!

We follow Arla, a young woman who has risen to the role of the kings assassin after being orphaned by a brutal invasion of her city by the neighbouring kingdom. The story begins when the king tasks her with travelling to the border with the ambassador of the kingdom who killed her parents to investigate stolen shipments of “iron”. She soon finds out that the shipments are not what they seem and she might need her enemy to save herself and her kingdom.

This one has:
- Enemies to lovers
- Forced proximity
- Found family
- Grumpy/ sassy dragons 🐉

This is genuinely the first book I’ve read where I can safely say that anyone who liked Fourth Wing will love it!

I can’t wait to read what happens next!

Thank you to Netgallery and One More Chapter for the opportunity to read an ARC.

I did really like this book! We love an enemies to lovers situation and the magic was really interesting. Love a dragon bond and when the dragons are sassy. The only thing was that it felt a bit rushed. It being labeled as book 1 implies that the story will continue so I hope that is the case because I feel pretty unresolved at the moment. Getting to the secret kingdom and the enemies suddenly becoming lovers just felt really fast and sudden. Just felt a bit jarring to race towards the finish line and all of a sudden it was over.

This was an easy read and one i would recommend to fans of SJM, Sarah A Parker and Rebecca Yarros.

With a great plot, well-rounded characters and just enough intrigue to spur you on, Dragonhart does a wonderful job of keeping you engaged.

Dragonhart had such a good plot--an enemies to lovers trope that really made you wonder if the enemies would become lovers, a morally grey FMC, a fight against evil, and of course: dragons (which improve just about any book, if you ask me).

I struggled at first to immerse myself into the story because of recurring awkward wording choices, but when I set the book aside I found myself drawn back because I genuinely wanted to know what was going to happen next--the sign of a good plot and intriguing storyline if ever there was one.

This book is for those who love dragons and FMCs more feral than those dragons.

Thank you to the publisher for providing an advanced copy of this book for review via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I had so much fun reading Dragonheart. It's one of those fantasies that are so easy to fall into! Highly recommend.

If you just finished Throne of Glass and need more of those vibes, you might like this. I, however, did not. The whole book is all tell and no show and thus fell flat. It also has a very YA feel, but it's not actually YA.

Arla is one of the most unlikeable, rude characters I've ever met. She's also supposed to be the King's Assassin, but she's 19 and way too impulsive for her job. She constantly loses her composure and is rude to everyone. It's annoying.

For a romantasy, it felt like both the romance and magical world building were wildly underdeveloped. All of a sudden the main characters with no sexual tension and clearly hate each other are kissing. Then they love each other and I did not see how they got to that point.

Maybe the worldbuilding behind the magic and dragons will come in later books, but I wish there had been more of a setup for it because I just didn't care and was bored at a certain point. At about 70% in, the story starts to pick up and feel less like a Throne of Glass copycat, but it wasn't enough to pull me in.

If you ignore a lot of plot holes and are just here for the vibes, you'll enjoy it. I was just very disappointed and will not be continuing the series.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

CW: language, sex

This book had so much potential, but it didn’t quite hit the mark. Arla was frustrating, her behavior felt immature for a king’s assassin and the constant reminders of her title didn’t help. Hark had his moments but their arguments in the first half were exhausting. The worldbuilding, especially the fantasy elements, was underdeveloped, making it hard to care about the lore or the dragons. While the story picked up later on, it wasn’t enough to fully redeem the book for me. I wanted this to be my next obsession, but sadly, it missed the mark :(

This was a really easy fantasy to get into. I was immedietly invested in the characters and loved how sassy Arla was. Enemies to Lovers is my favourite trope and I do think it pulled it off well! It was fun and faced paced, but it did feel simiilar to some other books I have read. The vibes were great and I would recommend it!

This was a strong debut novel and I liked the premise - a girl rises from her humble beginnings as an orphan to become an assassin, then is sent on a quest to help save the kingdom. There was a decent amount happening in the plot that kept me turning the pages.

For me, the characters could have used more development. Arla is designed to be a strong female lead, but comes across as cocky (and sometimes doesn't seem good at her job). She read as more of a YA character, holding a grudge and generalising in a way that came across as a bit childish. This might be because she's young (one could argue too young for the job her character has been given) but it makes her a bit unlikable at times. She shows some growth as the book goes on, but I think she could have been better developed. I liked Hark, but again despite having sections from his POV we didn't get a ton of depth or character development.

Overall, the plot was fun - your typical romantasy, with a twist and some dragons thrown in. It wasn't anything mind blowing but it was an easy read that kept me engaged. I think the author shows a lot of promise and look forward to future books.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

I'll be honest - I lost all respect for Arla over the business with the bow and arrow. She is the worst assassin who ever assassinated in fiction! Oh, you're bad with a bow and arrow but you love it? Well you've got two options cupcake. Either don't waste energy carrying it, and then risk your life using it, OR you PRACTICE. You practice until your arms tremble and your fingers bleed and you can hit a bullseye every time! She tantrums in lieu of a personality, she's foolish, she's reckless, and her character type has been done before WAY better. The writing is quite overblown, apart from the fight scenes which are distinctly half-baked. Annoyingly I may be tempted to read the sequel because something compelled me to finish it, but I will definitely approach with caution!

Dragonhart is a very well written book. I can tell that the author has talent when it comes to writing and I enjoyed reading it. What I wasn’t a huge fan of was that it felt like it took the story of assassins blade and fourth wing and combined them. There were parts that felt like I was just rereading the style of those two stories. I enjoyed the book but the I didn’t feel like there was any new component to a storyline that has already been created by other authors. The relationship between Arla and Hark was fun to read, I always enjoy enemies to lovers and they had well written banter. Arla was basically Celeana Sardothien, full of confidence and the kings assassin… and then suddenly there are two sassy dragons thrown into the mix adding commentary to Arlas’ antics - we’ve seen this done before…
It’s hard to rate this book because it was good, but is that because it follows a pattern of two other books that have been very successful?
If you are someone that misses the world of throne of glass and fourth wing then this book gives you a nostalgic feeling of those worlds. Personally I would have liked to have seen something a little different.
The world building was very descriptive and the characters were well written, if you’re new to fantasy then this is a great one to start with.

Let’s talk Dragonhart 🐉✨—because this book had me feral one moment and then side-eyeing certain choices the next 👀. It’s giving Rebecca Yarros and Sarah A. Parker vibes, but with a more classic fantasy feel.
Enemies-to-lovers? ✔️
Forced proximity? ✔️
Dragons (kinda)? ✔️
Magic, political intrigue, and a morally grey assassin FMC? Absolutely.

What I LOVED 💖
🔹 Hark Stappen—cocky, charming, infuriating ambassador? Say less. He’s got that “smirks while dodging knives” energy, and I lived for his constant back-and-forth with Arla. The banter was top-tier, no notes.
🔹 Arla as an assassin? Chef’s kiss 🍽️ She’s broody, ruthless, and so done with everyone. If you love an FMC who throws knives before words, she’s your girl.
🔹 Hark’s found family—Sebastian, Jack, and Kase were giving chaotic family energy, and I’d happily read a spin-off about them.
🔹 The romance? TENSION CITY. "I hate you." "Keep telling yourself that, sweetheart." SCREAMING. That first kiss? That fuck it moment? I died. Resurrected. And died again.

😬 What didn’t quite hit:
• The final battle felt like it was speedrunning its way to the finish line. Like, where was the angst, the epic payoff, the glory?! I needed more tension, more high stakes. Arla’s revenge arc had all the right ingredients but ended up a little undercooked.
• The dragons. Were they cool? The concept was intriguing. But I wanted more. More lore, more presence, more fire-breathing chaos. If you promise me dragons, I expect to FEEL their power in the story.
• The somewhat predictable plot. It was engaging, don’t get me wrong, but if you read a lot of fantasy romance, you could see some twists coming from a mile away.

Favourite Quotes (aka proof of my slow descent into madness)

🔹 "Gods, I'd love to stab you."
"I'd like to see you try, sweetheart."

🔹 "This is a bad idea."
"The worst."
“I don’t even like you.”
“You’re the bane of my life…
Fuck it.”

🔹 "When I touch you again, I want you to remember every second of it."

Final Thoughts ✨
If you love an angsty enemies-to-lovers romance with deadly banter, a broody assassin FMC, and a golden retriever menace of an MMC, Dragonhart delivers. It’s not perfect, but it was still a damn good time. Just be prepared for that ending to leave you wanting a bit more.

3.75 ⭐️—because Hark and Arla’s banter alone deserves it.