Knight of the Silver Circle by Duncan Hamilton is second in the Dragonslayer trilogy. Alpheratz the Black has been defeated. Gill doesn’t get the chance to rest for long though. Long dormant eggs clutched by Alpheratz’ mate have unexpectedly hatched, and now three more dragons are terrorising the land. With none to shepherd their growth, mental or physical, these juveniles are potentially far more dangerous than their da. Learning the secret of the Chevalier protection ceremony from Solene, Guillot must recruit new dragonslayers to meet the threat. There’s more than meets the eye with these dragons though. Things that will change the way humanity regards the ancient creatures. Dragon memory is long, and human memory a mere mayfly flicker.

Gill continues to be my absolute favourite. I can’t get it out of my head now that he looks like an era appropriate Hopper (from Stranger Things). It’s because their background is so similar, with loss and how they handle it, and how true crisis shows them they are still good people, and there are still things worth fighting for. Also, a similar sarcastic sense of humour. I felt so bad for Gill in the aftermath of his recruitment efforts. Sure they took out two of the dragons, but at what cost? And the betrayal before the hunt for the third was heart-rending.

I enjoyed following Solene’s story as it diverged from Gill’s, only to rejoin again unexpectedly. In his increasing hunger for power, Amaury has sent Solene to find the Temple of the Enlightened. I guessed the secret of the enlightened early on, and was pleased to see I was correct. Also, her search and success greatly appealed to the anthropologist in me! I wish we had gotten to explore more ruins with her. Maybe next book. I wanted to hug her too, so much. She suffers a terrible loss, in the form of my favourite tertiary character. I won’t give it away, but I hope Solene or Solene and Gill together can fill the gap this person has left in the opposition against Amaury. I think the Prince Bishop’s intentions are (mostly) well-meant, but he’s going about it all the wrong way. Especially in trying to force magic on a populace taught to fear it. You can’t so completely overturn centuries of thought to the contrary all at once. Small, in-between steps of compromise are needed, but he doesn’t want to wait for that. 

I loved Pharadon! I know we will see more of him in the final book, which will hopefully take Gill and Solene away from the crazy political machinations for awhile, as the search for more vessels of enlightenment. Although, they know exactly where the stolen one is headed so maybe they can get it back before Amaury gets it. I know the golden dragon is still about, but I’m hoping that we get to see even more. It seems Alpheratz couldn’t sense the dormant ones, so maybe there are other sleepers that will waken. It seems the more the Fount refills the land, the more likely nearby dragons will waken, and we know from Alpheratz, and the ones here, that they are not merely beasts, but a self-aware species more advanced than humans in many ways. 

And now I’m going to go crazy til the next book comes out!! I have to be choosy as to which books I get as hardcopy lately, thanks to space. This is one of two series that have earned those spots! (The Mia Scalisi series by Meredith Allison is the other, and if you enjoy Prohibition era historical fiction, be sure to check them out.)

***Many thanks to the Netgalley & Macmillan Tor/Forge for providing an egalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. Reviewed for JBN Tours.