The Dragon of Cripple Creek (review)

Kat loves gold to the extent that she talked her parents into letting her get a gold tooth, and when the opportunity comes up to go into an actual mine during a cross-country drive, she can't let it pass. The trip itself is a grueling one, a move across the country so her dad can get a job, though no one wants to leave the town where Kat's mother, injured seemingly beyond hope, lies in a coma. Kat, jaded, lonely, and much better at telling stories than admitting to any real feelings, is certainly the type of girl to wander off during a tour, but even she isn't hoping for more than a bit of lost gold. Instead, she finds what appears to be the last dragon in the world, who informs her that gold is actually made of dead dragons, that people are not nearly as important or long-living as they think, and that Kat may be buffeted by life but is still responsible for who she wants to become. That's a lot of philosophy for one novel, especially once the gold-crazed tourists, tough-talking cowboys, dragon-seekers, and reporters swoop in, but it works. The warm and ultimately heart-wrenching relationship between Kat and the dragon is exquisite, and the moments of quiet they share are all the more important amid the chaos. Howell wisely trusts his audience to handle grief, disappointment, and the kind of partial happy ending that is possible within truly sad circumstances, and the novel (and Kat herself) is far richer for it. Fantasy and adventure fans who don't mind saying goodbye to characters they've come to admire will find this an amusing, compelling, and ultimately quite moving look at what happens when dragons and humans overlap.