Book 1 3.5 stars
I discovered this series because another series by the author, The Book Of Bawb, was one that I loved, and while the last book wrapped up satisfyingly, it ended with Bawb running into Charlie which made me think I would be able to see more of Bawb, so I was excited to see this book on Booksirens. However, to be clear, Bawb does not show up in this book except in passing, and had I not also gotten the audiobook as a 3-book bundle, I would have been kind of disappointed and may not have continued.
I was not thrilled by Rika suddenly disappearing as I thought she would become a strong character that would be a nice contrast to Charlie’s personality. Yet, knowing this author and what he did with Bawb’s series, as well as Hozark’s series, she would probably show up later.
In any case, this was a decent introduction to this universe, but if you weren’t thrilled by this first book, I would suggest continuing as I enjoyed the next book much more! But I’m a sucker for dragons, especially dragons who are connected to a person.
Book 2: 4.5 stars
I definitely liked this one more than the first book. Yes, it’s probably in part because Bawb shows up and I really wanted to know what happened to him after the last book in his series. I’m still not sure I’m correct about the timeline, but I think the last book of Bawb overlaps the end of Dragon Mage #1 and much of this one. I think the end of this book is probably where the last book of Bawb ends.
Either way, I love the blend of science fiction, fantasy, and magic. It’s fun seeing our Earth technology through the eyes of their world and thinking it’s evil (bad magic) or something to fear because it doesn’t obey the rules of their world. For Charlie, it’s fun watching him try to figure out their magic using his unconventional thinking. I love Charlie’s friendship with some of the other slaves, and as I mentioned, I particularly loved it when Bawb showed up and all sides had to figure out what the heck was going on. The Zomoki is one of my favorite characters, and way things go a bit nuts with magic when she and Charlie connect is just so much fun. The stuff with the feces some might consider juvenile, but I loved it.
Overall, this is a fun blend of fantasy, sci-fiction, adventure, and humor and I’m looking forward to the rest of the
Book 3: 4 stars
Charlie and Bawb have definitely joined forces by this time, although not necessarily by their own choice. Without revealing any details, they are now back on Earth, but at least a thousand years in Charlie’s past. As you can probably guess from the title, he is now Dragon King Charlie, and never realized just how difficult it is to be King. I mean, it’s probably better than being a slave, but being king requires way more responsibility and in some ways, more challenges. This story was fun and definitely was a mix of adventure, science fiction, fantasy, and historical fiction (think Camelot). While I think I still liked the second book more, this was a lot of fun, and I’m looking forward to seeing what the next book will bring!