Book Review :: The Last Namsara, by Kristen Ciccarelli 

The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli
ISBN: 9781473218130
Series: Iskari #1
Published by Hachette NZ
on October 3rd 2017
Genres: Young Adult
Pages: 432
Source: Hachette Publishing NZ
Find at Hachette NZ
Goodreads

In the beginning, there was the Namsara: the child of sky and spirit, who carried love and laughter wherever he went. But where there is light, there must be darkness—and so there was also the Iskari. The child of blood and moonlight. The destroyer. The death-bringer.

These are the legends that Asha, daughter of the king of Firgaard, has grown up learning in hushed whispers, drawn to the forbidden figures of the past. But it isn’t until she becomes the fiercest, most feared dragon slayer in the land that she takes on the role of the next Iskari—a lonely destiny that leaves her feeling more like a weapon than a girl.

Asha conquers each dragon and brings its head to the king, but no kill can free her from the shackles that await at home: her betrothal to the cruel commandant, a man who holds the truth about her nature in his palm. When she’s offered the chance to gain her freedom in exchange for the life of the most powerful dragon in Firgaard, she finds that there may be more truth to the ancient stories than she ever could have expected. With the help of a secret friend—a slave boy from her betrothed’s household—Asha must shed the layers of her Iskari bondage and open her heart to love, light, and a truth that has been kept from her.

Last updated on 28 March 2023

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What is The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli about?

The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli is the story of Asha, daughter of the Dragon King. Asha’s second name is whispered throughout the land: Iskari. She’s feared among the nation for bringing dragon fire upon the land as a child, an encounter which nearly killed her and left her will a horrific scar.

Now she hunts dragons, secretly luring them to herself by telling the Old Stories they crave so much, and bringing their heads back to her father. The Old Stories killed her mother, and have been forbidden ever since; no one can know she tells them to the dragons. Least of all Jarek, the boy who saved her all those years ago and to whom she is now betrothed. Now a commander in the army, Jarek is a horrible young man, and Asha wants nothing more than to be rid of him. She made be feared by the people, but she fears Jarek and what he would to do to both herself and the land they live in.

When an opportunity proposed by her father arises for Asha to get out of the betrothal, she leaps at the chance to get away from Jarek. The mission? Bringing back the head of Kozu, the First Dragon. To do that, she must venture out and tell Old Stories to the dragon, fight him, and win. But it’s not as easy as all her other missions.

“Once there was a girl who was drawn to wicked things.

Things like forbidden, ancient stories.

It didn’t matter that the old stories killed her mother.

It didn’t matter that they’d killed many before her.

The girl let the old stories in.

She let them in eat away at her heart and turn her wicked.”

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My thoughts on The Last Namsara

I have to say from the get-go, I loved The Last Namsara. It’s been a while since I’ve read a book about dragons, but this was definitely a great book to bring me back into the fire-breathing world.

Asha as a character was a strong lead character, and I actually quite liked her. She’s strong and a bit feisty, feared by many but has her own fears and insecurities like everyone else. The growth and development are definitely evident throughout the story; she goes from being this strong warrior girl with little to no respect for dragons or the slaves she’s grown up with, but by the end of the story, she has softened and sees others in a different light.

Jarek is this wonderfully horrible young man. He’s written very well, and I hated him from the beginning. He’s not the kind of baddie that you could like – not like, perhaps, the Darkling in The Grisha Trilogy – and longing for his downfall takes up a lot of emotional time. Safire, Asha’s cousin, could have had a bigger role. She was really there for Asha’s mini support system and yet she doesn’t really feature as a main character.

Asha’s love interest has been getting a little flack on Goodreads, but I really liked him. Sure the romance was a little iffy at times, and there could be things to pick at in terms of Asha staying true to herself, and how she don’t need no man, but actually? Overall I’m okay with this aspect of the story.

If you’re after a fast-paced, fire-breathing, storytelling adventure set in a fantasy world with strong characters and dragons, then you really must pick up The Last Namsara. I will definitely be reading the next books, which are entitled The Caged Queen and The Soul Thief.

Have you read The Last Namsara? What did you think?

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Thank you to Hachette Publishing NZ for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.