Tracy’s review of Flying Blind 
Zoë Sorensson is perfectly normal, except she’s been told she’s destined for great things. Zoë’s the one female dragon shapeshifter of her kind. But Zoë is at the bottom of the class when it comes to being Pyr and her powers are AWOL, so she’s sent to a Pyr boot camp.
Zoë quickly realizes that she has to master her powers yesterday, because the Pyr are in danger and boot camp is a trap. The Mages want to eliminate all shifters and the Pyr are next in line-unless Zoë and her friends can work together and save their own kind.
Zoe is a little distressed. Here she is at the ripe old age of 15 and she still doesn’t have either boobs or her period. She’d love to get the boobs more than the period but with puberty comes the ability to turn into a dragon. You see she is the only female Pyr (Pyr are shape shifting dragons) and since the male offspring of the older Pyr started getting their abilities when they hit puberty she assumes she will too.
Funny (read: strange) things do start to happen when she wakes up one morning but she really has no idea what to make of it. Since she’s the only female Pyr she’s supposedly this “all-knowing” being called the Wyvern but frankly Zoe doubts that she is since she just feels like a regular girl. When she partially turns into a dragon in front of her classmates at school not only does she get suspended but her father (who is the leader of the Pyr) sends her off to Pyr boot camp which is a kind of training session for the younger Pyr.
Zoe’s actually pretty excited to be at boot camp. She gets to see the other Pyr that are more around her age but most importantly Nick, fellow Pyr and the boy she likes. Unfortunately when she arrives so does Isabelle who is not Pyr but is the adopted daughter of one. Nick’s interest is fully on Isabelle and that pisses Zoe right off. She does meet a hunky guy named Jared but she’s not exactly sure what to make of him.
When all the teens get to boot camp there’s a new enrollee that they’re not familiar with but that’s the least of their problems – or so they think. Donovan, who normally runs the boot camp, isn’t around and they’re not sure what they should do with themselves. When the truth comes out about why the new enrollee, Adrian, is there and that the Pyr are in trouble with Mages Zoe needs to prove that she is not only a capable and smart dragon but also the Wyvern and can hump in to help when needed.
If you have been reading the Dragonfire series by Cooke then you’ll recognize the names in this book as these are the teen children of the Pyr from that series. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started the book – especially since I don’t normally read YA books but this one delivered.
The book has a teensy bit of a romantic element but this is not a romance. This is a book about Zoe coming of age and discovering not only her abilities but her limitations. Most of the limitations were set up by Zoe’s own lack of confidence in who she was but when she finally believed in herself she really became a shining star.
Cooke did a fabulous job of giving us characters that were so very normal in their teenage lives while still being these incredible beings. I loved how she brought in the older Pyr that we’d been reading about in the Dragonfire series in a way that was more in line with teaching the younger Pyr about their strengths. Also, so many YA books that I’ve read have teens that have been abandoned, abused, neglected or raised by grandparents that didn’t quite know what to do with them. I thought it was great that we could read about a girl who was incredibly loved, had two parents as well as a huge support system and had rules and limitations, just like normal teens should. I think this is a series that I’m very much going to enjoy and I’m definitely looking forward to the next installment in the Dragon Diaries.
Rating: 4 out of 5
You can read more from Tracy at Tracy’s Place
This book is available from NAL Trade. You can buy it here