Dragon's Heart by Jane Yolen

Jakkin was a Dragon boy on the planet of Austar, and Akki was the daughter of the owner of the largest and best Dragon farm. Due to Jakkin's insistence on rescuing a Dragon named Heart's Blood, he and Akki were forced to flee to the mountains of Austar after inadvertantly taking part in the bombing of a Dragon arena called "The Rokk". In the mountains, they fought against Trogs and were covered in the blood of Heart's Blood's birthing chamber.

This caused significant changes in both of them. They can now survive the After Dark, that long period of cold that can kill any human caught out in it, and they have a mental bond with the five dragonets that comprise Heart's Blood's brood. After a year of surviving in the mountains, Jakkin and Akki are returned to Sakkharn's Nursery, their former home, much changed.

But not only they have changed. The society they grew up in has changed as well since the bombing of Rokk Major. For one thing, though the colony used to be a prison planet and was separated into the bonders, who were descendants of criminals, and masters, who were free and the descendants of guards, there are now no more bonders. No more working for the coins to be free. The Federation, concerned that the bombing has killed so many on the planet, has put the planet under Interdict for 50 years. No more shipments or ship landings, which means no more ammo for the stingers and no more metal for the metal-poor world.

Golden, the senator who they were working for before the bombing, has rescued them and brought them back to light. But he has plans for each of them, and they have plans of their own. Akki wants to train as a doctor, to learn the ins and outs of both human and dragon medicine, so she can give mental communion with the dragons to everyone. Jakkin wants to keep everyone safe and to be with Akki.

But the settlers aren't the only ones on the planet who want their say on how things are done. The Trogs resent the human settlers and also Jakkin and Akki. Akki, meanwhile, falls afoul of a rebel leader who wasn't shipped off-planet with the rest and who hid his involvement with the bombing. But when Akki is kidnapped by the former rebel leader, and Jakkin is taken prisoner by Trogs in preparation for the attack of the Trogs on Sarkkhan's nursery, can they rescue each other and themselves, and prevent the true villain of the peace from getting away with his plans. And more importantly, can they find someone to trust with the knowledge they share about the mental capabilities of dragons, and find a way to give everyone the same power they have?

It's been ten years since the last Dragon novel, and Jane Yolen finally bowed to fans' demands for a concluding volume to the series. This is definitely the last one, make no mistake about that. We could always learn more about Jakkin and Akki's lives after the events of this novel, but the plot threads are neatly tied, and the final chapter makes it clear exactly what happened afterwards, in enough detail that fans of the series should be well satisfied.

Here, the series comes to a head. Jakkin and Akki have learned the secrets of the Dragons. But who can they trust those secrets to, and who will believe a couple of kids/young teens could make a discovery of this kind of importance on their own? Mostly, the two take care of their own problems, but both need help, both from the dragons, and the other adults.

Every past question you might have had is answered, from "Why did Likkarn help Jakkin and Akki escape?" to "Will everyone be able to hear Dragons?" along with new questions like "Can everyone be trusted with this ability?" This is a stunningly wonderful end to the series and I found it completely satisfying. But this is not the book to read first- That would be Dragon's Blood. But if you've read the others, you'll definitely want to read this one. Highly recommended.