Thanks to her stutter, fourteen-year-old orphan Ileth is thought to be destined for kitchen work and cleaning, but ever since a childhood meeting with a glittering silver dragon and its female dragoneer, she has dreamed of much more. As soon as she is old enough to join, she runs away to the ancient human-dragon fortress of the Serpentine to become a novice dragoneer.But the challenges are far from over. While most of her fellow apprentices are from rich or influential families, Ileth must duel her boss at the fish-gutting table for her place in the world. And after she foolishly kisses a famous boy, she is sent away to the dragon dangers and given charge of a sickly old dragon with a mysterious past. But even that is nothing compared to what she must face when she is forced to take the place of a dead dragoneer and care for his imprisoned dragon in enemy lands...
