Publication Date: 9 April 2026

The Blurb

Rieka’s world is on fire.

She’s lived her whole life aboard Constructs, giant mechanical creatures that battle each other for territory. Now a new enemy has swept across the land – DRAGON. And even with all the survivors united against it, Dragon is winning.

Technically brilliant, Rieka believes that she alone can turn the war. But the path she sets out on is dangerous, both for her and her friends. And all the while, there is a truth about herself she must face.

If she doesn’t, she could destroy everything she’s trying to save.

The Review

Alastair Chisholm has done it again. Following the sheer brilliance of I Am Wolf and I Am Raven, this third and final installment in the series is a masterclass in high-stakes world-building.

What makes this series so special is the seamless blend of mechanical wonder and raw human emotion. The Constructs are so vividly described that you can almost hear the hiss of steam and the grinding of gears.

Reika is the true heart of the final chapter of this trilogy. She is a brilliant, flawed, and deeply relatable protagonist. Her technical genius is her shield, but it’s her internal journey, the truth she must face, that provides the book’s most poignant moments.

The pacing is unputdownable. Alastair writes with a cinematic quality that makes the battle scenes feel urgent and the quieter, character-driven moments feel profound. It’s a bold, thought-provoking adventure that asks big questions about power, unity, and what it really means to belong, and digs deeper still exploring control versus freedom and the ease with which power can corrupt.

Highly original, technically brilliant, and utterly gripping, this is middle-grade sci-fi at its absolute peak.

Great for fans of:

• Orphans of the Tide by Struan Murray
• Railhead by Philip Reeve
• Scavengers by Darren Simpson

Huge thanks to Nosy Crow for sending a finished copy.

The Off The Page Challenge

At the end of We Are Dragon, there’s a fabulous Q&A with Alastair, and one of the questions is, “If you were part of any crew, which one do you think it would be?“

So, my challenge is to create your own Construct. Think about:

• What creature does it resemble, and what is its purpose? Will it be a heavy-set Rhino with iron plating? A multi-legged Spider that can scale canyon walls? Or perhaps a Manta Ray that glides through the dust clouds? Does it attack, defend or scout out new places?
• What personality does it have? Does your Construct have a temper? Is it stubborn and refuses to start in the cold? Is it protective of its crew, or is it a speed demon that pushes the engines too hard?
• How does your Construct get from one place to another? Does it use hydraulic pistons to jump? Does it have giant tank treads? Or maybe it moves on magnetic hover pads that hum when it’s active? When it moves, what do people hear? A rhythmic clank-hiss, a high-pitched whine, or a low roar like a jet engine?

Now, set your timer for 10 minutes, and get creative!