Dragon's Bait

By Vivian Vande Velde,

Book cover of Dragon's Bait

Book description

Fifteen-year-old Alys is not a witch. But that doesn't matter—the villagers think she is and have staked her out on a hillside as a sacrifice to the local dragon. It's late, it's cold, and it's raining, and Alys can think of only one thing—revenge. But first she's got to escape,…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked Dragon's Bait as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

She’s a witch! Let’s stake her out for the dragon to eat. This happens to Alys. But she’s not a witch. Her village just didn’t like her. She wants revenge and when the dragon arrives, he becomes her ally. Here’s another twisted plot where the female is undervalued but the story helps Alys find what she thinks she wants. Part of what she finds along the way is a strength and loyalty she didn’t know she had. But she also discovers what she thought she wanted, isn’t really worth it in the end. 

From Eileen's list on dragons for all ages.

This is one of my all-time favorites. It tells the story of Alys, who's wrongly accused of being a witch, and is sentenced to death by dragon. However, it turns out that the dragon in question, Selendrile, is not a mindless, maiden-eating beast. He's an intelligent shapeshifter, and he's fond of revenge. He assumes human form and vows to help Alys get back at the people who wronged her.

My favorite thing about this book was that both Alys and Selendrile are morally gray. Selendrile makes Alys worse by leading her on a path of vengeance; Alys makes Selendrile better…

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