Some traditions are meant to be broken. Lailani has always known that being a woman means that she will never be a dragon rider, but when a messenger shows up demanding that all former dragon riders must prepare for war, Lailani knows that her father's crippling illness will get him killed. She must choose between two paths: let him go and die or put on his armor and go in his place. Disguising herself as a boy, she joins the dragon riders and finds herself facing danger at every turn. With her father's dragon the only friend she can trust, Lailani must learn to be a warrior and fight to save her homeland … if she can keep her secret that long.