City of secrets

The exile of young dragon rider Abel from Drakopolis leads to the launch of a dragon liberation movement in this third series entry. Freshly arrived in the isolated town of Glassblower's Gulch with his parents and squabbling older sibs, Abel is quick to learn that local sheriff Bina Skint and her brutal deputy, Manchi, are not only on the take, but run a regular rodeo in which troublemakers are forced to fight deadly dragons. Since Abel soon finds himself struggling to secretly harbor and train an illegal baby wyvern foisted on him by new friend Kayda and her moms, it's only a matter of time before he's in the arena himself--and on the road to startling discoveries about the supposedly feral and nonsentient monsters. London continues to weave nuanced explorations of family relationships into his action-packed plots and also to wheel in crowd-pleasing flocks of fire-, glass-, acid-, or lethal-loogie--spitting dragons of many types and temperaments as he reassembles both the draconian and White-presenting and gender diverse human cast from previous episodes for a lengthy climactic aerial battle that shows every sign of extending back to Drakopolis in the next outing. Stay tuned. More than enough mayhem, mischief, and awesome aerial exploits to send young dracophiles soaring and roaring. (Fantasy. 9-13) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.