Every decade, the Dragon comes down from his tower and takes one girl from the valley. But the Dragon is not a dragon at all and he doesn't eat the girls, like the stories usually go. Other than that, no one knows what goes on up there. All of Agnieszka's life, she knew that the Dragon was going to take her best friend, and so did the rest of the village. When the day came though, and he picked her instead, she's thrown into a world of magic and terror that she wasn't prepared for. There is an evil at work, and it isn't the Dragon and his tower.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book! My brother is more of a fantasy reader than I am, but I thought I would give this a go since the ratings were so high. I was not disappointed! I thought it was very well constructed, the pace of the story wasn't jolting or boring, and unlike other books where you feel like you are just getting to the good part and then it ends, this book, every time you thought you had reached the end, there was more. It was the best. 

The beginning shrouded itself in some mystery, so intentions and situations were unfolded and understood at the same pace as the main character - there wasn't any of that "you are so dumb, can't you see?!" moments, which I appreciated. I also really enjoyed the descriptions of magic. the felt magical. I know that is a silly thing to say, but the imagery of water and space, I could see and feel the magic and how it was done and where the strength came from. Agnieszka when she was first learning magic (much against her will), the spells felt clumsy and drained her entirely of energy. Then, in a moment of desperation, she discovered a new kind of magic that dumbfounded her tutor but that felt right. She didn't need spells, but songs and stories and to weave magic into them. That brought a really bright and beautiful element to both the descriptions and the story itself.

Overall, would recommend! 

p.s. There was maybe one swear word in the whole book. Very very clean. There is one makeout scene, but nothing happens, and there is one love-making scene that literally made my ears burn (very interesting experience, I now understand that idiom). Nothing grotesque or overly descriptive, though take the ear burning as you will.

p.p.s. I can't find a version of this book with this cover ANYWHERE to buy it, so if someone knows where, let me know!!