#bob heartstriker

[happyfoxx-art]

I FINISHED THE BOOKS! I cannot get over Bob talking about knowing Julius for so long. I can't imagine how he must have felt when Julius finally came along- so here have something soft, fluffy, and adorable. It's appreciate a dragon day, and I appreciate that dragon :3

[ask-zaukodar]

I just finished listening to the Heartstrikers Saga again and *ZOMG* I have never wanted an animated series for something this badly.

[gaydelgard]

tagged by @bi-mirandalawson !! this is fun

sorry for half the list being from fe3h but im tumblr user gaydelgard so Im Allowed

threw in some more obscure book blorbos near the end there for the real ones

im sposed to tag some ppl lets see @terramythos @falloutcoys @annalrk @dominicsorel @ellorgast

[fuckyeahheartstrikers]

I know in the Heartstrikers books there’s a lot of emphasis on how Chelsie (and Felicity) takes after her mother (“reeks of Bethesda,” as per Fenghuang), and i know how they're narrative foils to each other and all, but let’s take a moment to appreciate the similarities between Bethesda and BOB?!

Look at this shit. This makes me insane.

Bethesda being initially underestimated by her father and brothers before she successfully staged her coup, and Bob being fully embraced by Bethesda as her seer only to then ultimately betray her too?

NOT TO MENTION ONLY THEY HAVE RAINBOW FEATHERS?!??

Plus with Amelia being in the “starter clutch” and lacking the green eyes, this means Bob is the first child to truly look like Bethesda.(well, since the rest of his clutch died)

Like mother, like son.

[lyreofsheliak]

Six Fangs

Fandom: The Heartstrikers

Characters: The Quetzalcoatl, Bethesda, Bob, Chelsie, Conrad, Julius, Justin

Summary: The Fangs of the Heartstriker are the teeth of the Quetzalcoatl as well as the treasures of his family, and some fragment of his will lives on in them.

Ao3 link: here.

[words-writ-in-starlight]

Bob will look at a Heartstriker and be like “is anyone gonna traumatize that for the greater good” and not wait for an answer

[bubblesandpages]

Brohomir saying “you and I are going to be the very best of enemies,” to a newly hatched Felicity right after we’ve spent the whole book seeing Amalia and Svena’s friendship, and establishing that a “dear enemy” is the closest ancient powerful dragons get to being friends is singlehandedly the sweetest moment in the series.

[seirnarei]

I’m very excited to see Svena and Ian continue to be arrogant together. My tastes are very predictable but people who can be effortlessly ambitious have my respect.

[halelshiyr]

"I though the Black Reach lived in China." "That doesn't mean anything," Bob said with a shrug. "The Black Reach doesn't have to be in the same hemisphere to meddle in your affairs. He didn't get his name for having unusually long arms, you know."

Bob, The Great Seer of the Heartstrikers

Nice Dragons Finish Last by Rachel Aaron

[pers-books]

The Heartstrikers Series – Rachel Aaron (Spoilers)

Julius Heartstriker, youngest son of Bethesda Heartstriker, is a Nice Dragon. Which is a bit of a problem when ‘nice’ is seen as weak, and the rest of your family considers you a disgrace to dragonkind. Instead of going out into the world and carving a place for himself, as any proper dragon would, Julius prefers to keep his head down and hang out in his room, playing online games with humans (whom most dragons consider as either playthings or pets), or taking online classes in every subject imaginable.

Finally tiring of her wayward son and his lack of draconic traits, Bethesda storms into Julius’ room, seals his magic (meaning he cannot transform into a dragon but is forced to remain in his human form) and dumps him in the DFZ: the Detroit Free Zone, a notoriously lawless city (think Chicago during the Capone years) which is run by the dragon-hating Water Spirit, Algonquin aka, The Lady of the Lakes. He stays one night on the couch in his sister Jessica’s apartment (Jessica is a doctor and is fully expected to be running her own hospital within a few short years) then his mother gives him a task – prove himself to be a proper dragon (which generally means ripping people off for one’s own gain, rather than ripping people’s heads-off in this near-future setting), or she’ll eat him. Oh, and he’s only got a month to do this – and because his dragon is sealed, he cannot access his fire or magic – so he’ll have to find ways around the limits Bethesda’s imposed on him.

He is tasked with helping his older brother Ian’s girlfriend Svena to retrieve her wayward sister, Katya. Like Julius, Katya is the youngest of the Three Sisters Clan of dragons, and also something of a disappointment to her family. Rather than hiding in her room, however, Katya runs away a lot. Svena wants to bring her back home and via Ian, tasks Julius with the job, giving him a silver chain with a spell on it to placate Katya. Julius has to put the chain on Katya and then Svena will be able to collect her sister and take her home. Unsurprisingly, Julius is reluctant, but agrees to the task because he wants to be allowed to return to his own home, and to have his dragon form unsealed again.

To the surprise of almost everyone (certainly to Bethesda’s, and even to Julius’), the ‘Nice Dragon’ not only survives the quest he’s given, but he manages to broker a relationship between his clan and that of the Three Sisters, the oldest clan of dragons (all of whom are female), rather than getting eaten as nearly everyone, including Julius, was expecting.

From here, Julius goes on to overthrow his mother (a move that definitely surprises Julius as well as the rest of the Heartstrikers) – but instead of doing the obviously draconic thing of killing his mother and putting her head on a spike somewhere to terrify the rest of the Heartstrikers into obedience, he has her dragon form sealed (a tiny bit of poetic justice!), and instead proposes forming a three dragon Council to run their clan so that it can be run in a manner that encourages dragons to concentrate on what they’re good at, instead of encouraging them to destroy each other. This is also considered very un-draconic, of course, but Julius got the idea from humans and he introduces his clan (who are all very powerful, properly draconic dragons) to the concept of elections and doing things democratically so that they can become even more successful in their various enterprises instead of being subject to the whims of their mother Bethesda, who punishes any dragon against whom she takes by sending her daughter Chelsie – the clan enforcer – to punish or kill them.

Julius is aided and abetted by the human Mage, Marci – who is extremely talented and capable – and by his oldest brother, Bob, formally Brohomir, the Heartstrikers’ Seer who has made Julius the lynchpin of a fantastically convoluted plot to improve the lot of all dragons, not just the Heartstrikers. Bob, in turn, is aided by the eldest of the Heartstriker dragons, Amelia who, like Bob, is the only surviving member of her particular clutch – Bethesda, unusually, produced large clutches of eggs at regular intervals, leading to much snide commentary from other dragons who often referred to her as ‘the Broodmare’. Amelia is also known as the Planeswalker as she spends very little time in ‘our’ reality, since she fears Bethesda will pre-emptively kill her, rather than let Amelia challenge Bethesda for the leadership of their clan (which Amelia doesn’t want!). Bob is also, somewhat more reluctantly, aided by Chelsie, the clan enforcer, who is one of the only two remaining members of C-clutch (Bethesda gave her children alphabetical names running from A-clutch through to J-clutch).

Aaron’s Heartstrikers series successfully inverts the toxic masculinity trope by allowing Julius to succeed at whatever he turns his attention to without using violence or treating other beings (humans, dragons, Spirits) as disposable to be used and then dropped. Of course, Julius does not have it easy – during the course of the series both Marci and Amelia die. And while their deaths aren’t permanent (this is a world with magic, after all), they nevertheless have a significant impact on Julius. He and Marci have fallen in love – though, being a Nice Dragon, Julius has largely kept his feelings to himself – and his grief at Marci’s loss is palpable throughout the chapters that follow (he literally takes to his bed and won’t stir until, eventually, he is forced to do so by his older siblings).

Julius is a self-sacrificing noble Nice Dragon – he literally dies to save Algonquin, despite the fact that she hates dragons. He insists on going to talk to her in the hopes of saving her from the Leviathan, a Nameless End – an extra-planar being from outside of ‘our’ reality which is quite literally destroying our reality. The Leviathan has infested all of Algonquin’s waters, meaning she will soon die as the Leviathan is sucking up all of her water which, being a Water Spirit, she needs in order to survive. However, Julius knows that she can make use of dragon blood at a pinch, so after talking to her, and establishing that she would not use the Leviathan again if given a second chance, he swallows the last of her Leviathan-infested water, then as the Leviathan destroys him from the inside, Algonquin flows out of Julius into the pool of blood that’s forming on the ground in front of him from the Leviathan ripping his body apart, and she takes Marci to safety, at Julius’ request, and Julius is killed by the Leviathan.

But while a dragon’s body can be destroyed quite easily, it’s harder to destroy a dragon’s fire – which is the core, essential part of a dragon in the same way that the soul is supposed to be the core, essential part of a human. Bob is able to capture Julius’ fire before it goes out, and he, with the help of many more dragons (not all of them Heartstrikers, and one of them his mother Bethesda, whom Julius – and pretty much everyone else! – had thought still despised him for being a Nice Dragon instead of a blood-thirsty predator) is able to restore Julius back to life by the dragons giving him the magic of their fire.

In the end, all’s well that ends well – Julius and Marci get married, and Dragonkind across the world agrees to work together instead of working against each other, with Julius taking over running the DFZ so that it’s no longer a lawless city, and Marci becoming the Archmage (but without the usual long white beard!).

Note: Last Dragon Standing is not out until March 1 – I was fortunate to read an ARC of it.

The Heartstrikers Series - Rachel Aaron (Spoilers) Julius Heartstriker, youngest son of Bethesda Heartstriker, is a Nice Dragon.

[nikihawkes]

Title: Last Dragon Standing

Author: Rachel Aaron

Series: Heartstrikers #5

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Fantasy [Hybrid]

Rating: 2.5/5 stars

The Overview: Dear Reader, There is no way to write a blurb for this final book without spoiling all of the others. Suffice it to say, mysteries resolve, dragons war, pigeons abound, and Julius must risk himself in ways he never dreamed possible as Bob’s grand plan finally comes to fruition. But the Great Seer of the Heartstrikers isn’t the only one whose schemes are nearing completion. The Nameless End is coming, and even the machinations of the world’s most brilliant dragon seer might not be enough to stop it. As the world comes crashing down, it’s up Julius to prove what he’s always known: that seers can be wrong, and Nice Dragons don’t always finish last. -Goodreads

The Review:

My thoughts on this final book (reluctant disappointment) are vastly different from my thoughts of the series as a whole (happy feelings). The series is such a unique blend of genres and ideas, with some of the most memorable characters you’ll ever come across. No Good Dragon Goes Unpunished (Book #3) is one of my favorite books I’ve ever read. All that said, although I loved where the story ended, I had quite a few issues with how it got there and can’t help but feel let down by the overall execution of the last two novels of this series.

My #1 Issue: pacing. Rachel Aaron is also known for her super insightful 10000 words a day writing technique (one I’ve tried and it really makes a difference!). Unfortunate, I think all of that unbridled word vomit inevitably led to two final books that were unnecessarily drawn out, wordy, and dialogue-driven than necessary. At least 90% of Last Dragon Standing was strictly dialogue – rehashing ideas and other endless explanations and discussions. The 10% of actual plot advancement was amazing 5-star quality writing, it just took FOREVER to get there. I sincerely think the series could’ve turned out amazing had books 4 and 5 been condensed into a single novel. I did not pick up anything new in book 5 that wasn’t explained 10 different ways throughout book 4, and all of that endless dialogue effectively killed any momentum it had going for it coming into the finale. I maintain that a more concise flow would’ve made for an absolutely KILLER conclusion to this series. Overall, it felt very… self indulgent seems to harsh a phrase, but it definitely looks to me as though the story could’ve benefited from an more impartial outside perspective (such as a publishing house) by requiring a more intensive edit. That’s just my personal opinion on the matter based in part on comparing these last two books to her other trad-pub titles (which had perfect pacing).

Whatever the cause, the end result felt an opportunity wasted.

But is the series still worth reading? That’s an easy: absolutely!

I went into this final book with clear expectations, so I was specifically looking for things to go a certain way. At the end of book 4, I stated: “I swear if they try to rationalize and discuss things with the enemy in the final book, I’m going to throw a fit” … which I did. And: “If she can write at least 50% of the final book without endless dialogue and explanation, I’ll be happy” …which I wasn’t. So you can see how I set myself up for a bit of disappointment. However, the friends I read it with over at Fantasy Buddy Reads didn’t dive in with such a picky mindset, and for the most part loved the dialogue and character immersion this book had to offer. They had so much fun with it, and I was the raincloud on their parade (I hate it when I do that). Also keep in mind that this series produced one of my favorite books EVER (#3) and I still absolutely loved the vast majority of it. I am just feeling very over-critical of the final installment. For what it’s worth, I really like how it ended. 🙂

Recommendations: Heartstrikers is an excellent series to dive into if you like fun characters, dragons, great world-building, more dragons, and awesome moments. My personal issues with the final book aside, it’s a unique series well worth your time of you’re in the mood to have some fun. 🙂

Other books you might like:

Fortune’s Pawn by Rachel Bach

The Legend of Eli Monpress by Rachel Aaron

[March 14, 2017] Dragonwatch by Brandon Mull

Dragon’s Blood by Jane Yolen

Jhereg by Steven Brust

by Niki Hawkes

Book Review: Last Dragon Standing by Rachel Aaron Title: Last Dragon Standing Author: Rachel Aaron Series: Heartstrikers #5 Genre: Urban Fantasy/Fantasy Rating: 2.5/5 stars…

[happyfoxx-art]

ARRIVING YEARS LATE TO THE HEARTSTRIKER FANDOM WITH THIS GUY

bob heartstriker everybody

[afoolsingenuity]

Nice Dragons Finish Last // A Fantastic Read Which Actually Met Expectations

Nice Dragons Finish Last (Heartstrikers #1) – Rachel Aaron

Published: 13th July 2014 Source: Borrowed Genre: Urban Fantasy My Rating:

As the smallest dragon in the Heartstriker clan, Julius survives by a simple code: keep quiet, don’t cause trouble, and stay out of the way of bigger dragons. But this meek behaviour doesn't fly in a family of ambitious magical predators, and his mother, Bethesda the Heartstriker, has finally reached the end of her patience.

Now, sealed in human form and banished to the DFZ--a vertical metropolis built on the ruins of Old Detroit--Julius has one month to prove that he can be a ruthless dragon or kiss his true shape goodbye forever. But in a city of modern mages and vengeful spirits where dragons are considered monsters to be exterminated, he’s going to need some serious help to survive this test.

He only hopes humans are more trustworthy than dragons...

I had heard about this book for a long time. I saw reviews from both Kaja and Danya a while ago now and I knew I wanted to read it but I off doing it for now apparent reason. When I learnt the book was available to request as part of the Amazon Prime lending library I knew I was going to be reading it and I’m glad I did. I loved this book.

I had my doubts going into this. I have been burned with recommendations for books (I’m looking at you Labyrinth Lost, why couldn’t the character growth have begun before the 50% mark?) and so I was nervous this would be another flop for me. Add into the fact I was really confused at the beginning of the book and I wasn't certain. Once I got through the first chapter or two I was hooked, though. I didn't want to stop reading, I even ended up sacrificing sleep to make it to the end.

I think what makes this book great is the main character, Julius. Sure, he is uncertain and makes stupid decisions as he listens to others far too much, but he has a conscience and a good head on his shoulders and you like him despite his families insanity. It's not often you get a genuinely nice guy in books, and having him be a nice guy when he's a dragon and part of a family who is actively encouraging him to be more conniving and cruel, well that’s not something you get too often. I loved that he was a nice guy despite all the things that should have made him an asshole.  Create some tension as his mother has manipulated it so that he is likely to be eaten by her if he doesn't prove he is capable of being a dragon and you're ready for a great read.

The book has so many twists and turns and it really keeps you on your toes. It was just really totally awesome. And then you have all these really fab characters and you basically have the best and most addictive read. I mean, Marci, the human mage who is helping him do a job for his brother Ian, is so cool. She may have had a few issues of her own that came up through the book, she was just so nice and her interaction with Julius was great. She was his first honest to god friend who wasn’t out to manipulate him! I also loved Julius’s family. Sure, they were dragons, but they were really cool dragons who were slightly crazy. Bob was definitely my favourite with his slightly weird behaviour, and what was up with the pigeon? I get why he’ll be Julius’s favourite brother.

The book just worked for me, basically. It was funny, action-packed and filled with great and memorable characters. I am fully signed up to read the rest of the series (yes, another one, you got a problem with that?). If you want to read an original and humorous take on dragons with a series which is building to have a really interesting plot arc then this is the book for you. Seriously, give it a chance and see if you like it. You won’t regret it.

Have you read a book which actually met the hype for it lately? And what’s the best dragon book you’ve read, you can never have too many, right?

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[gaydelgard]

bob heartstriker behaviour

[lyreofsheliak]

About the Heartstriker council...

We know that one seat is elected from the Fangs, one from the rest of the clan, and one belongs to Bethesda in perpetuity. 

What happens if she dies? Is there a contingency for that? (The constitution is both absolutely gigantic and written by a seer, so I kind of assume the answer is “if it’s going to be an issue, yes.” And plotwise I have no idea if I think she’s going to survive the series or not. Or if she’s going to regain her dragon form, for that matter.)

So, who is her heir in that situation? 

The wielder of her own Fang? There’s a certain logic to that, but I have a hard time imagining any introduced character taking it—maybe David, or even Ian, but I have a tough time imagining it. 

Her killer, if they’re a Heartstriker? Julius is unlikely to let that happen; he loathes her, but if he didn’t let his favorite sister, the one who’s suffered the most at her hands, kill her, he’s certainly not letting anyone else do it. 

The dragon who would have been her heir, if the council hadn’t happened? Well, that’s complicated...

Amelia’s technically a possibility, but only technically. She’s not dead anymore, but she is a Mortal Spirit, and there’s probably a conflict of interest in making the goddess of all dragons a leader of a single clan. And besides, it’s pretty well established that she really doesn’t want the job. 

If not Amelia, though, who is Bethesda’s heir? 

The established upper-alphabet dragons, other than Amelia, are Bob, Chelsie, Conrad, and David. 

Bob and Conrad have both already refused to be on the council; I can’t see those answers changing. David wants the job; Chelsie... might also want it, actually. She heartily dislikes the clan other than Julius, the Fs, and possibly Amelia; but since Fredrick picked up her old Fang, the rest of F-clutch is probably going to stay in Heartstriker to support him. And I can see her wanting power; even when the matter of the Fang’s seat first came up, she said that if not for Bethesda’s control over her she’d like being on the council. 

Julius confirms, during the latest book, that most dragon clans are ruled by their “matriarchs”; it’s not clear if this is a hard-and-fast rule, but male clan heads are rare enough to make the Golden Emperor an oddity. Chelsie is both the oldest “surviving” daughter and possibly the only one with children of her own; since her children actually like her, she’s got a built-in power base now that they’re free. She also has a terrifying personal reputation of her own, which could only be an asset to a clan head. (Not to mention the clout of being the Golden Emperor’s beloved.)

And if Chelsie and David are the two contenders, I really can’t see David getting the job. So... if Bethesda does die, I’m betting that Chelsie gets the “permanent” seat on the clan council. 

[words-writ-in-starlight]

I'm absolutely positive that whenever Julius' brothers are annoying him (which is always) he tells them that Xian is actually his favorite brother