Today I'm excited to hand the blog over to twin brothers Connor and Caleb from Mari Mancusi's paranormal young adult release, Scorched, to give us a little introduction to their world. Each young man has a very, VERY different opinion on dragons and what should be done with the egg that comes into Trinity's possession, so I asked them to give us a brief crash course on these previously-mythical beasts so we can better understand the reasons for their beliefs. I so thoroughly enjoyed this book (you can read my full review here), and I hope everyone gives it a try after reading the two arguments below so you can all discover which side you're on!
CONNOR’S DRAGON 101
This isn’t rocket science, people. Dragons are evil, plain and simple. They decimated the surface of our planet. No more trees, no more flowers, no more playgrounds or sports stadiums. The dragons destroyed it all. They forced mankind underground, the only place of safety and now we live like moles in the dirt, always in fear of the next attack. There’s never enough to eat and many have been afflicted with bone cancer, due to a severe vitamin D deficiency from living a sunless existence underground. In short, we’re practically an endangered species. And dragons are to blame for everything.
I was just a child when my father was murdered by a dragon. A big, ugly beast with razor sharp teeth and black beady eyes. My father was only trying to protect me—when the dragon scorched him with its flames, striking him down where he stood. To this day, I can still hear his agonized screams and smell the stench of burning flesh.
Now I have a chance to stop the dragons. Go back in time, destroy this one last dragon egg—and wipe these vile beasts off the face of the earth forever. Destroy the dragons, save the world. How can anyone argue with that?
CALEB’S DRAGON 101
No one’s arguing that dragons haven’t done a lot of bad over the past years. But who can blame them? Mankind tortured them, abused them, sought to use them as biological weapons of mass-destruction. No wonder the dragons had a bone to pick with them. Not to mention these dragons that caused the destruction in question were actually hybrids—their DNA mixed with that of other more nasty lizards—and they were pumped full of steroids from the day they were born. No wonder they went rogue.
Dragons are animals, just like any other. Abuse a dog and he’ll bite. Give it love and affection and food and it’ll be yours forever. Same deal with dragons. Raise them right and they’ll become man’s new best friend.
Dragons have a lot of gifts to offer mankind. Their blood has crazy healing properties and they can sniff out natural resources buried deep underground. With dragons we don’t have to worry about a shortage of oil or water anymore. We can harness their powers to save the world.
Wipe out dragons and you wipe out mankind’s future. The egg must be saved.
• • • • • • • • • •
(available now from Sourcebooks Fire)
Trinity
Don’t leave me here... It starts with a whisper. At first Trinity thinks she’s going crazy. It wouldn’t be a big surprise—her grandpa firmly believes there’s a genuine dragon egg in their dusty little West Texas town. But this voice is real, and it’s begging for her protection. Even if no one else can hear it...
Connor
He’s come from a future scorched by dragonfire. His mission: Find the girl. Destroy the egg. Save the world.
Caleb
He’s everything his twin brother Connor hates: cocky, undisciplined, and obsessed with saving dragons.
Trinity has no idea which brother to believe. All she has to go by is the voice in her head—a dragon that won’t be tamed.
Find Mari:
I really loved that the characters were morally complex in this book. That's it's not all black and white. Great idea for a guest post, hopefully it urges some to read the book!
ReplyDeleteMe too Candace! In the context of the story, they both have good cases for what should be done, but of course I favor Caleb. Long live dragons!
DeleteI'm more team Caleb based on this. He makes great arguments and usually there is never one side who is completely at fault and I think human race is afraid of the unknown and dragons are pretty darn scary and unpredictable. I hope they save these exotic creatures :)
ReplyDeleteI hope you give it a try Siiri, I thoroughly enjoyed it. And Caleb:) Connor has very valid points and reasons for why he believes what he does, but....dragons:)
DeleteThis might be a bit different picture of a dragoon that I'm used to it. Somehow I have read only about them being good, but this makes more sense. I must read this book. Great post Jenny :)
ReplyDeleteYES! It's a complicated world Caleb and Connor come from, and you can't help but ask yourself which brother you would side with.
DeleteI haven't read the book yet but I have to agree with Caleb based on his views of dragons. Will check this one soon since I need to add more fantasy on my TBR. Dragons are always interesting!
ReplyDeleteDragons for the win! I will pretty much read anything with dragons in it, and I loved the setup of this book:)
DeleteI love a good story featuring dragons, so this seems right up my alley! Will have to look into it for sure. Thanks for sharing, Jenny!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome Keertana. A huge yay for dragons!
DeleteDragons?! I really, really like fantasy stories, and I've actually heard some really good things about this novel (despite the fact that I was a bit hesitant to give it a go). Caleb sounds awesome...Connor sounds kind of like a dick ;) thanks for sharing, Jenny!
ReplyDeleteI loved this one - I liked that it was dragons and the fantasy that comes with them, but it's our world, present day:) Definitely a fun read!
DeleteAre we voting? Because, based on their answers, I think I'm currently a Caleb fan...though Connor seems to be more practical. Ah, choices, choices.
ReplyDeleteIf we're voting, I'm voting Caleb too. I want to live in a world where I can have a dragon at home. As long as he doesn't try to eat my dogs, then I might have to side with Connor:)
DeleteI need to read this asap. The more the talk of dragons, the more I want to read it. I'm definitely a Caleb fan as well, because there's something about his answer that makes him attractive, but Connor makes sense too.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing, Jenny! :)
They both make sense when you get a glimpse of the future, that's what makes both boys so interesting. Hope you find time to read this one Nick!
DeleteOoooh I love how the twins couldn't be more different form one another! How have I not seen this is reviews yet?
ReplyDeleteI wasn't planning on reading this one to be honest but now I think I need to!
Dragons and a hot dude, you totally have me on board. I need to pick up this book.
ReplyDeleteOh gosh, I knew they were brothers but twins?! I can't really make up my mind as to who makes more sense but I gotta say Caleb does seem more attractive. Can't wait to read this one and find out who Trinity is going to side with!
ReplyDeleteLove it! Scorched has been on my radar for quite some time now, love the cover, love the premise of it and, well, it's about dragons - who wouldn't want to read it?! I like the idea of twin brothers having such different opinions about dragons. I imagine this to be quite an intensive read :) Gosh, how I wish I could read faster! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing this quest post with us, Jenny & Mari! :)
Ohh, I love me some dragons! It's great that we have two completely different views of the same thing, it gives the story both conflict and necessary depth, which is awesome. I completely understand Connor's attitude, but at the same time, I suppose Caleb is right too.
ReplyDeleteThis is such a wonderfully written post, it totally succeeded in making me want to pick this up right away. BEcause, you know, there be dragons!
I have a copy of this one that I need to read! I love how different the POVs are.
ReplyDeleteI love the sound of this book! (Dragons!) Right now, I think Caleb might be more my type of character, but it'll be interesting to see who I prefer in the end. Thanks for sharing. :)
ReplyDeleteAH! This is so not my kind of book but I get the feel from this post that it has a really realistic (as realistic as can be in a world ruined by dragons) look at the effect on quality of life after something like this. The mention of the bone cancer really stuck out to me. In so many books we read about the world ending and people being deprived of things that their bodies need and they just survive! It irritates me!
ReplyDeleteI like the different perspectives that we get from Caleb and Connor regarding dragons, I have to say that both characters have valid points, but I think I find myself drawn to Caleb's perspective, I've always found dragons to be fascinating creatures. Thanks for sharing this post with us Jenny!
ReplyDeleteI like the sound of caleb and connor
ReplyDeleteI loved your review of this, and am very excited to read it. It's interesting to hear the differing approaches to dragons here. I think I might tend to agree with Caleb's perspective, especially "Dragons are animals, just like any other. Abuse a dog and he’ll bite." I rarely ever think wiping out a species is a good thing, or that it will save the world, but I'm prepared to have my mind changed when I read it. :-)
ReplyDeleteI agree with Caleb. Mostly because I want a dragon! *wonders why my pups are glaring at me suddenly* Oh I loved this post. Darn I need to get this one ASAP!
ReplyDeleteSo this is about the third post I've seen regarding Scorched on your blog. You must really like this one. I have it and my dragon charm thanks to your heads up! I'm a huge dragon fan so I'm gonna have to go with Trinity and Caleb on this one. Save the egg! Dragons rule! Now, I need to read my copy of Scorched!!
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