This New Adult story involves bars, knives, drunkenness, villains, and violence against women and men, but at heart it’s about a girl and her beloved dragon. Genevieve from a merchant family wants to compete in the dragon races, but no female RIDER OF DRAGONS has ever won, and everyone is dead set against her wish.

The Sterling family competes regularly in the annual obstacle race, turning a blind eye to the fact that racing is illegal and dangerous, and run by criminal gangs. I have to say, these are the best-organised sports gangs you can imagine. They make the sport popular, enforce regulations, and turn a handsome profit. I see no reason why the rich fraternity would not organise a less turbulent version and keep entry for the wealthy, letting others pay to watch and bet, just as happened in horse racing.

Rich families buy and hatch dragon eggs for prestige, and Genevieve, or Ginny, has a black basalt-type called Fang. Ginny and Fang are devoted to each other, but some dragons, born of thieving, cannot trust their riders and tend not to fare as well. After her racer brother's death, Ginny decides to take up racing herself. Predictably, her parents react badly, and she goes off to the shady side of town to find the trainer she desperately needs. Qais, a down-at-heel rider, agrees to train her, but only on one condition: she must promise him all the prize money.

The middle of the book is a bit slow with all the training and rules, but the pace quickens once the first qualifying race begins. That’s when it really hits home with the reader, as well as Ginny, that once the girl starts being a serious contender, the male riders will be all out to stop her. They can be violent in the air, and no scores may be settled after the race ends. Once again, I thought someone should be organising legal dragon competitions, much like showjumping and dressage. These are clearly talented beasts, and there don’t seem to be any uses for them, while they cost a fortune to feed, and Ginny has to give Fang lots of grooming care.

There’s a sort of romance, but you know, if the lady in her early twenties is determined to ignore the multiple red flags, live unchaperoned and drink heavily, she’s making herself stupidly vulnerable. The racing is the best part of the story. RIDER OF DRAGONS isn’t a magic fantasy; the young people use mobile phones, but the world lacks most trappings of the modern era. Aamna Qureshi will conclude this duology with Dragon Thief. I may have said it before, but I hate cliffhanger endings. You’ve been warned.