FFB: Dragon Weather -- Lawrence Watt-Evans

At some time or other I read an enthusiastic review of Dragon Weather and bought a copy.  That was years ago, but the other day I was in the mood for a Big Fat Fantasy novel, so I read it.

As a lad, Arlian is the only survivor of a dragon attack on his village.  Looters sell him into slavery in a mine, and he vows revenge on them and the dragons.  After seven years he escapes from the mine and finds refuge in a whorehouse where all the working women have had their feet cut off to prevent any escape attempts.  After quite a while there, he's discovered.  The owners of the house, represented by the very man who looted his village, kill four of the whores, carry off the rest, and burn the house.  Arlian vows revenge on them, too, and he vows to rescue the whores, who have been carried off by the owners.

When he was lying in hiding in his village, Arlian swallowed a mixture of dragon's venom and human blood.  This mixture has given him "the dragon's heart," not exactly superpower, but something that sets him apart from other men.  For one thing, he'll live about 1000 years unless he's killed.  He's not immune to that kind of death.

In going about his revenge, he joins a secret society of others like himself, including all the owners of the whorehouse.   He becomes incredibly rich thanks to a trading expedition, and his revenge begins.  (Count of Monte Cristo, anyone?)

As it turns out, revenge isn't as sweet as he'd thought it would be, and in the end he discovers about having "the dragon's heart."  I enjoyed Dragon Weather so much that I ordered the Big Fat Sequels.  Not promising I'll read them, though.