You guys! I just read the most AMAZING book! It was so good I read all 350 pages in one day. I guess you can say, it was a very good day.

So what is this book about you ask? And why is it so good?

Well, it’s about a young dragon who discovers chocolate, but she’s tricked by a human—who’s afraid of being eaten—and turned into a human, herself.

Some stories would have Aventurine going all over the countryside trying to find that tricky food mage and undo the curse, but not this one! All Aventurine wants is more chocolate and to become the best chocolate maker in the world!

Too bad there’s a whole town of humans who keep trying to stop her.

The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart was written by Stephanie Burgis. It was released first as an e-book in 2016 and the print copy followed in 2017.

I read the e-version and this is the first time I can remember reading an entire e-book all at once. Usually I get bored or distracted.

What would you do if you suddenly found your passion, but it meant your entire life had to change?

The first thing I thought when I started The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart was, she’s a lot like me!

Aventurine is about 12 in human terms. (We dragons determine our age a bit differently than you do.) She’s feisty. She’s got annoying older siblings. And she’s not supposed to leave her cave until her scales have hardened enough to serve as real armor.

How hard can that be?

Well, pretend you can’t leave your house until you’re like 21 or 30 or something. And then, you still have to be supervised because you’re new to the outside world and all its dangers. 

That’s what life’s like for us hatchlings. We spend our early years expected to study, gather wisdom, and grow our passions.

But Aventurine doesn’t know what her passion is. She just knows she won’t find it in a book. It’s not until she breaks the rules (again) and sneaks out of her cave that she finds it. And it pretty much costs her everything.

Or does it?

Along the way, Aventurine learns that just because we grown up learning that certain things are a certain way, doesn’t always make it true. She also learns a very valuable lesson about friendship, family, and about how we see ourselves.

Almost better than spicy hot chocolate!

Like I said before. This book is AMAZING! A friend shared that she’d just read it, so I used my library’s awesome Book App to find out more. The sample had the first three chapters and, because my library card is linked to the App, I was about to borrow the entire book right then and there. 

I’m so glad I did!

I’ve added a print copy of The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart to my wish list so I can read it again whenever I want. Because—just like a good hot, spicy chocolate—one taste just isn’t enough!

The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart is perfect for any young reader who is already reading chapter books. It would also be a fun one to read with the whole family. Afterall, family is one of the biggest themes of this story.

I’m giving my third 5 Dark Chocolate Eggs rating and adding in an extra kick of Cayenne Pepper to top it off. Mmmm!

Okay. Now I’m thirsty. I gonna ask mom if she’ll make more of her special hot chocolate.

Note: No goods or services were exchanged for this review. The opinions belong solely to the reviewer.