Dragonborn

by Struan Murray

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

Enter a secret world of dragons and meet a young girl on a quest to find her true self. Perfect for fans of Impossible Creatures, Alex Evans is about to learn what it truly means to soar in a world of hidden powers and mysterious places.

New York Times Bestseller!

An astonishing new fantasy series takes flight in this soaring, action-packed adventure filled with twists and surprises. The secret world of dragons is waiting for you!

*This stunning book features a dragon-scale edge, full-color illustrated endpapers, a foil scene on the case, foil on the jacket, and an interior map*

There is a secret world of dragons that lurks at the edges of our own. But dragons also live among us. These Slumberers have been human for so long they have forgotten their true selves—until something awakens the dragon within.

Twelve-year-old Alex Evans is about to wake up.

Ever since her father’s death, Alex’s overprotective mother has smothered her with unbreakable rules and unspoken fears. Feeling trapped, Alex’s frustration has become too big to hide away. Burning inside, she erupts into a fierce, fiery roar.

A new school and a new life await Alex on the legendary island of Skralla, one of the last surviving dragon havens. There, she will train alongside other young dragons who are wild, untamed, and—unlike Alex—skilled at transforming and embracing their dragons within.

As dark factions begin to rise, Alex finds herself in a race to unlock her long-dormant power before Drak Midna, the greatest dragon of all, rises again to wage war against the human world.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9798217113217
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	10/14/2025
Pages:	336
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.10(h) x 1.20(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Struan Murray is Scottish and grew up in Edinburgh, the youngest of a large, rowdy family of redheads. His debut novel, Orphans of the Tide, won the prestigious Branford Boase Award and was a Guardian Best Children’s Book of the Year. When he’s not writing, Struan is a lecturer in biochemistry at the University of Oxford.

Read an Excerpt

“OLIPHOS, HELP ME!” she cried.

But she didn’t see how he could. A towering wall of fire was closing in, searing its way toward her. Alex could smell the stink of her own burning hair. She hugged her rucksack close and thought of her dad.

Thunder rumbled in the mists.

She staggered as a great gale swept through the long grass, dousing the flames in a drizzly blanket of mist. Alex blinked, beads of cool water on her eyelashes. The gale had gone as suddenly as it had come, and taken the fire with it.

The world was silent. The mists lay heavy around her. Alex peered through the endless whiteness, hearing nothing but her own frightened breath.

The ground tilted under her feet, dropping Alex to her knees. A dozen sparrows fluttered cheerfully into the mists; earthworms and centipedes wriggled through the mud as if rushing to greet an old friend. Alex gazed ahead.

The mists were changing.

They were turning gray at their center, then blackest black.

Something was growing beyond the pale curtain—a shadow, a massive shadow. It came closer, on slow, careful footsteps that shook the earth. Alex felt sure that it was looking at her.

She noticed a long dark neck, and then, spreading out either side, two immense black sails. They grew larger, fanning out above, nearly touching at their tops. One fluttered slightly, and a second fierce gust swept across the field, silencing the last little flames.

There was a low creak, like an ancient tree bending in the wind. A breath as loud as a crashing ocean.

And then . . .

THUD-THUD. THUD-THUD.

A heartbeat. Shuddering through the ground, making the insects jump. Like the heartbeat of the world itself.

Fear flooded Alex like ice water. She couldn’t move—she was cer­tain her life was measured in moments. The shadow loomed closer. Alex closed her eyes.

There was another deep rumble. Another crunching footstep. Then nothing.

Alex dared to look.

The shadow was gone. She searched about, blinking, listening for that huge heartbeat.
Instead, she heard a soft tread of footsteps on grass. Someone was walking toward her through the mists, right where the shadow had been. White wisps curled from his shoulders.

“Now then,” said Oliphos, in a voice like gentle thunder. “You called for me?”

Editorial Reviews

“Dragonlore with a difference.” —The Times (London)

“Following a delicious twist at the end, readers will be hooked until book two arrives.” —Booklist

“Come for the dragons but stay for the suspenseful reveals and relatable characters.” —Kirkus

“Murray balances wonder-laced, laughter-fueled adventure with fearsome action, resulting in a fanciful and exciting series opener.” —PW

“Astonishing fantasy with a unique story that burns with brilliance. Readers will love this thrilling new take on dragons.” –A.F. Steadman, author of the Skandar series

“A blazingly brilliant adventure that will burn bright in the imagination long after the final page.” —Aisling Fowler, author of Fireborn

“A fire-breathing, heights-soaring, majestic beast of a book.” —Thomas Taylor, author of Malamander

“The kind of fast-paced, perfectly plotted, thrillingly written book that makes you want to devour it in one go.” —Katya Balen, Carnegie medal-winning author of The Light in Everything

“Think you’ve read every dragon story? Think again. I adored this epic, heart-racing fantasy.” —Vashti Hardy, author of Brightstorm

“As powerful as a dragon’s roar, as fast-paced as a dive through the sky, and with more twists than a coiling tail—Dragonborn is brilliant.” —Jamie Littler, author of Voyage of the Frostheart

“The freshest, most exciting children’s book of the decade. Brimming with originality and full of breathtaking twists.” —Joseph Elliott, author of The Good Hawk

From the Publisher

2025-06-13
A lonely and anxious English girl discovers a family secret in this series opener from acclaimed Scottish author Murray.

Twelve-year-old Alex Evans, who presents white, lives a cloistered life with her controlling mother. Her only escape is the nearby forest, which reminds her of her deceased father. There she meets Oliphos, a kind (and oddly dressed) Black man with a Scottish accent, who tells her something surprising about her heritage. Oliphos introduces Alex to Dr. Archibald P. Puppinsworth, a Dragon Scholar who knows all about the Otherworld, the magical dimension where dragons live. Alex realizes that she possesses a special power that might help locate the Phylactery, a long-missing magical object sought by the villainous Drak Midna, a terrifyingly manipulative—and enormous—ancient dragon. Along the way to Skralla, one of the last dragon refuges, with Oliphos, Alex meets Erik, an orphan with “chestnut curls” who understands what it’s like to feel like an outsider. Both young people are battling unknowns and deep loneliness, and their complex characterization feels realistic even though fantasy worldbuilding forms the backdrop of their friendship. Coming from a highly sheltered background, Alex may be naïve at first, but she grows in maturity and bravery as the book progresses. The well-executed worldbuilding includes portals called waypaths and dragons with creative features. Murray explores themes of intolerance through the world’s history of human-dragon conflict.

Come for the dragons but stay for the suspenseful reveals and relatable characters.(Fantasy. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews