The Royal Dragoneers

The Dragoneer Saga, Book One

By: M. R. Mathias

Narrated by: Christine Padovan

After struggling for more than two centuries to tame the inhospitable islands where they washed up, the descendants of the survivors of a lost passenger ship are now striving to tame a more substantial "Mainland" they have found.

For as long as mankind has been stranded, dragons have been their sworn enemies.

But no longer...

Sixteen year-old Jenka De Swasso wants nothing more than to follow in his father's footsteps and become a King's Ranger. But when he one day finds himself surrounded by vicious trolls, a young pure-blood dragon comes to his rescue and they become bond-mates.

Meanwhile, the goblins have a new king, Gravelbone, and have allied themselves with the tainted "mudged" dragons to drive mankind out of its lands. Setting his sights on a vast manmade wall, Gravelbone and his wicked hell-born Nightshade, seek to poison the entire human kingdom and enslave any survivors.

Jenka and his companion, a druida warrior named Zah, soon realize that they and their bonded dragons are mankind's only hope for survival. Forced to defy their arrogant king's wishes, the pair set out on a desperate quest to stop Gravelbone's forces and save mankind from its terrifying fate.

With action so intense you'll forget to breathe and intrigue around every corner, The Royal Dragoneers is one adventure you cannot miss.

Hold on to your dragon... your journey is about to begin!

©2010 Michael Robb Mathias Jr. (P)2013 Michael Robb mathias Jr.

Hard to Listen

Would you try another book from M. R. Mathias and/or Christine Padovan?

I'm trying to enjoy the story itself, I believe it may be a good story but the narrator makes it difficult to stay into the story. I may need to stop listening to it and download the written version in order to get through it.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

The narrator places emphases and inflextion in all the wrong places in the sentances. Althogh the narrator is capable of creating different characters, her sub-par reading makes it difficult staying in the story.

Siri would have been a better reader

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The narrator was completely horrible.

What didn’t you like about Christine Padovan’s performance?

She would randomly pause at words without any apparent rhythm. The only time she was less horrible was when she got tired. An example would be as follows, note the periods and read the sentences as such "The grey. scaled dragon was tired and was barely able to raise. Its wings to defend itself." Note this is not a quote from the book.

Did The Royal Dragoneers inspire you to do anything?

get my own dragon?

bad narration

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Christine Padovan?

anyone the book was trashed by her

Any additional comments?

if she is used in the next book i will not buy it.....................

Wonderful story

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, I enjoyed the story very much.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

I found the narrator's reading style annoying to listen to. She read in strange surge-like phrases that were distracting. I was almost like a computer was reading to me.

reader is frustrating to listen to

Would you try another book from M. R. Mathias and/or Christine Padovan?

another book with different narrator

What didn’t you like about Christine Padovan’s performance?

at the end of each sentence her voice rises regardless of the story

Very poorly narrated story.

I just could not endure any more of this story and gave up on it. The person narrating sounds like a robot. There does not seem to be any understanding of either punctuation or inflection. The constant broken sentences and halting speech makes it hard to get invested in the story.
I have not seen the text that is being read so there is the possibility the speaker is struggling to read poorly edited text. Either way, this book needs some more work before it is offered to the public.
I rarely give a negative review but I am spending real money for the privilege of hearing this tale so I expect the Publisher and the Author to have made a little effort to create a book worth listening to!
The speakers voice is nice to listen to but I think she should consider reading the book ahead of time or choosing to read a different genre aloud. It does not sound like she is in her element.
You wouldn't hire a 10 year old boy to read romance aloud and you wouldn't hire a 40 year old woman to read fantasy without giving her a chance to understand the characters she is trying to bring to life.
I can not say if the story gets better, I just don't have time to endure the way this one is being read.

Narrating was horrible!

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

I was unable to enjoy this book with the current narrating! Monotone! No inflection in her voice! Boring!!!!!!!

How did the narrator detract from the book?

I was unable to enjoy this book with the current narrating! Monotone! No inflection in her voice! Boring!!!!!!!

the person reading was to herky jerky.

the narrator made it hard to follow but story was good. her readin g was to herky jerky.

Great story but terrible narrator

The story is great. I have really come to enjoy this author. But I will not listen to another book read by this narrator. She narrates as if reading to preschoolers. She pauses in all the wrong places and doesn't provide a good range of voices. She slurs words a lot. Other than that I would recommend this book and author to any fantasy lover. I will be finishing the series but I'll be reading it instead of listening.

Good book-horrible narrator.

What made the experience of listening to The Royal Dragoneers the most enjoyable?

The characters were very likable.

What did you like best about this story?

I liked the relationship between the variety of characters. Everyone from the lowly village boys to the portly king.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

I started reading on my kindle then switched to the audio version. I wish i hadnt . The narrator detracted from the book so badly that if I had started with the audio version I would not have continued with novel.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. Its a good book but the narration is just to annoying.