All Jackie wanted was equal treatment and to ride a dragon. When her cruel brother-in-law takes over as head of household, and makes her quit school, she is forced to do all the chores, and collect wood in the forest. Jackie finds a dragon's egg, and although law forbids girls to ride dragons, she secretly hatches the egg, and dons boy's clothes. After she brings the gift of fire to the dragonriders, she becomes an accepted member of their band. Civil wars breaks out, dragonrider against dragonrider. Jackie leads the loyalist faction against the rebels. The stakes-the fate of the kingdom and the life of her and the man she has grown to love.