Talon by Julie Kagawa (Talon #1)

Genres: Young Adult, Paranormal, Romance
Publication Date: October 28th 2014
POV: Alternating - First-person, Past tense
My Rating: 4 out of 5

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Long ago, dragons were hunted to near extinction by the Order of St. George, a legendary society of dragon slayers. Hiding in human form and growing their numbers in secret, the dragons of Talon have become strong and cunning, and they're positioned to take over the world with humans none the wiser.

Ember and Dante Hill are the only sister and brother known to dragonkind. Trained to infiltrate society, Ember wants to live the teen experience and enjoy a summer of freedom before taking her destined place in Talon. But destiny is a matter of perspective, and a rogue dragon will soon challenge everything Ember has been taught. As Ember struggles to accept her future, she and her brother are hunted by the Order of St. George.

Soldier Garret Xavier Sebastian has a mission to seek and destroy all dragons, and Talon's newest recruits in particular. But he cannot kill unless he is certain he has found his prey: and nothing is certain about Ember Hill. Faced with Ember's bravery, confidence and all-too-human desires, Garret begins to question everything that the Order has ingrained in him: and what he might be willing to give up to find the truth about dragons.

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I really loved this book. It felt a lot more in the spirit of The Iron Fey, which is the series that first got me into reading, than her other books. It has that great sense of adventure and discovery, and life and love and friendship. And heroism.

I absolutely loved Ember. She was so full of life and spunk. And her physical appearance was a perfect representation of who she was underneath. She was small with bright green eyes and spiky red hair. She was such a firecracker (or Firebrand, as Riley liked to call her). She was like a female Puck. A person like her would never have survived inside Talon. At least not with her soul intact. She needed freedom. But I love how, in the end, it was not selfishness and her desire for freedom that finally convinced her to leave. She would not have been happy in Talon, but I don't know for sure whether or not she would have left without Riley's help. I'd like to think she would have stayed for her brother. But in the end, it was her goodness and her heroism that finally convinced her of what she needed to do.

And the same goes for Garret. He may have unwillingly fallen in love with a dragon, causing him to question everything he has ever known. But it was not only his concern for Ember that made him betray St. George, but the fact that if Ember is good, than others must be as well. He would not kill Riley, or Nettle or Remy either. Because like Ember, he will do what he believes to be the right thing, not only the thing that is best for him.

This book was just full of great characters, from the protagonists, to Dante and Riley and Wes, and even Lexi. Riley is a great friend for Ember and I am so glad that she found someone who understands her and she can talk to about being a dragon. I enjoy the fact that their relationship is complicated and I look forward to seeing how much more complicated it becomes. Although I hope not too much happens between them, because it is clear that any attraction is a result of their dragon natures, and has little to do with actual feelings. I also really enjoyed Dante and I feel sorry for him. He was so easily fooled and put under Talon's thumb. I really hope that he comes around in the end, because he was a really great brother to Ember in the beginning.

I loved the fact that the story and mythology of the dragons was balanced with the amount of romance. In YA series you sometimes have to wait for several books before a romance really develops. But in Talon, Ember and Garret are in love and making sacrifices by the end of the first book. And that didnt take away from the high stakes of the story at all. I really look forward to learning more about Talon's secrets. What we learned about Vipers and Chameleons, and their possible secrets labs was all interesting and I am sure Ember will now work to rescue others and expose their secrets. I also look forward to her infiltrating St. George and rescuing Garret, and hopefully more shifting, now that she is free to do as she pleases. I am really excited for this series and I can see some much potential for it to be totally epic.

"Somewhere between that day on the beach when I'd met her for the first time and the night of the party when we'd kissed in the ocean, she had become something more than a potential target. She had, very inexplicably, become the most important thing in my life. 

And that terrified me."

The Treasure Keeper by Shana Abé (Drakon #4)

Genres: Adult, Historical Fiction, Fantasy/Paranormal, Romance
Publication Date: March 19th 2009
POV: Alternating - Third-person, Past tense
Smut-O-Meter: 5 out of 10
My Rating: 4 out of 5

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With such novels as Queen of Dragons and The Dream Thief,Shana Abé has created a unique and vividly imagined world that exists side by side with our own—a realm populated by a race of supersensual men and women whose power to change shape permits them unlimited acts of pleasure…and ever-present danger. Now the survival of the drákon rests in the hands of a young woman with untried and unexpected powers—and the powerful Alpha male she must break every drákon law to save.

The drákon are at war, surrounded by an enemy they have every reason to fear. The sanf inimicus are no ordinary human beings but the most dangerous of hunters. They've sworn to exterminate the shape-shifters whose presence they now can detect, and they've already claimed a prize prisoner: Lord Rhys Langford.

It’s a blow the drákon clans feel from Darkfrith, England, all the way to the Carpathian Mountains of Transylvania. But it strikes no one harder than Zoe Cyprienne Lane. A mere seamstress’s daughter, Zoe isn't even in the same league as Rhys. In fact, as an unwed male in the Alpha line, according to drákon custom, he owns her. So nothing could be more outrageous—or personally ruinous—than the mere notion that she might set out on her own to find her childhood friend...and first true love.

But the unexpected is exactly what Zoe intends to do. For years she’s been hiding two extraordinary Gifts that have set her apart from other drákon females: the power to become invisible and the power to feel others’ emotions. Now, guided by a link to Rhys—his presence and touch as electric as if he were beside her in the flesh—Zoe uses both Gifts to infiltrate the sanf inimicus. And for Rhys, whose time is running out, Zoe is his last lifeline to a world—and a love—he never thought he’d regain. Only together again, hunter and huntress, can they save the drákon from the traitor in their midst who would destroy them all.

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This was better than its predecessor, Queen of Dragons, but not as good as the first two books. So I would rank them 2, 1, 4, 3. I still have to read book 5, that one has the lowest average rating though.

I really enjoyed Zoe as a heroine. I loved how she was such an icon of beauty and grace to all the men of Darkfrith, and she didn't even know. I wonder how Hayden found the courage to court her. Zoe was incredible, how she ran away and searched for Hayden and Rhys on her own. She did so much that people didn't think women could do. And she couldn't even Turn. I suppose that the previous three heroines did similar things, but there is something about Zoe that fools us into thinking she is meek and subdued and not capable of such things, so it surprised you when she does.

I also loved Rhys. He was more like his father than Kimber. But Zane from book 2 is still my favourite hero from this series. Rhys was definitely the most brooding and tragic of the Drakon men. I felt a lot of sympathy for him and I was a bit sad about the ending overall. It was an HEA but not a perfect HEA. We don't know if Zoe would have really chosen Rhys in the end if things had turned out differently. She told Rhys she never really loved Hayden, but she was so loyal to him up until his death, it makes me think that regardless of her feelings, she probably would have gone through with marrying him.

The story was very interesting, and it was the first to not focus very much on the dragons. Since Zoe could not Turn, but had other Gifts that made her unique, and it focused a lot on that. She and Rhys had a lot of great interactions throughout, but I was sad that for so much of the book Zoe was caught up on Hayden. It didn't give much time for a romance to develop between her and Rhys. When it finally did happen it felt a bit rushed. Although Hayden was nice, she clearly belonged with Rhys so I was just waiting for it to happen.

Although I enjoyed this one a lot despite the tragedy of it, I feel very anxious about reading The Time Weaver. It sounds extremely tragic. This series cannot end on a dark note. It better not!

“I love you. At your best and your worst, I love you. Paris or Darkfrith. Here, there, and everywhere, I love you.” 

The Dream Thief by Shana Abé (Drakon #2)

Genres: Adult, Historical Fiction, Fantasy/Paranormal, Romance
Publication Date: September 26th 2006
POV: Alternating - Third-person, Past tense
Smut-O-Meter: 5 out of 10
My Rating: 5 out of 5

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In the remote hills of northern England lives a powerful clan with a centuries-old secret. They are the drákon, shape-shifters who possess the ability to Turn—changing from human to smoke to dragon. And from the very stones of the earth, they hear hypnotic songs of beauty and wonder. But there is one stone they fear.

Buried deep within the bowels of the Carpathian Mountains lies the legendary dreaming diamond known as Draumr, the only gem with the power to enslave the drákon. Since childhood, Lady Amalia Langford, daughter of the clan's Alpha, has heard its haunting ballad but kept it secret, along with another rare Gift...Lia can hear the future, much in the way she hears the call of Draumr. And in that future, she realizes that the diamond—along with the fate of the drákon—rests in the hands of a human man, one who straddles two worlds.

Ruthlessly clever, Zane has risen through London's criminal underworld to become its ruler. Once a street urchin saved by Lia's mother, Zane is also privy to the secrets of the clan—and is the only human they trust to bring them Draumr. But he does nothing selflessly.

Zane's hunt for the gem takes him to Hungary, where he is shocked to encounter a bold, beautiful young noblewoman: Lia. She has broken every rule of the drákon to join him, driven by the urgent song ofDraumr—and her visions of Zane. In one future, he is her ally. In another, her overlord. In both, he is her lover. Now, to protect her tribe, Lia must tie her fate to Zane's, to the one man capable of stealing her future—and destroying her heart.

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This is such an amazing series. Such a great concept, crossing historical romance with dragons. And I love the men in it so far! I loved Zane even more than Kip, but they were both so naughty yet still dignified. Zane isn't even Drakon but there was still something about him that was just magnificent and Alpha. I am slightly in awe of him. I really can't blame Lia for being in love with him most of her life. For making a move on a man in his mid-thirties when she was only 14. I am sure she couldn't have helped herself. But the way she was dedicated to him was inspiring. She knew him her whole life, him being a friend of her mother, and she knew what he was. A criminal, a thief, a liar. But she loved him. She knew his future (or a possible future), and the terrible things he was capable of, yet still she loved him.

 

The story in this was much grander than The Smoke Thief, which was about a jewel theft in London. In The Dream Thief, Lia and Zane go to Hungary to track down a legendary diamond that can control the Drakon. There is much at stake. There are powerful new enemies, and powerful new allies, and you don't always know which is which. There is sacrifice and love, and a possible dark future. The sense of desperation between Lia and Zane, caused by her dreams, was nearly intoxicating. The scene where they made love just after Zane had found out the power of the diamond, was heartbreaking and beautiful. The writing is breathtaking and hypnotizing. Nearly every word is worth remembering and making note of. Its like a song.

I cant stop thinking about this series, and I have to order Queen of Dragons from my library right away. It is about a character we met in this book. She was only 11, but Zane was only 13 in The Smoke Thief, so I'm sure several years will have passed. I am extremely excited to hear her story. The rest of the series has lower ratings than the first 2 books, but I hope I will love it anyway.

“Something inside his chest unlocked--wildly, slowly, a peculiar sort of melting. He was lost. He was the thorn and the thistle, blown upon her breeze. He felt, strangely enough, staring into her yes, like he was going to weep.”

The Smoke Thief by Shana Abé (Drakon #1)

Genres: Adult, Historical Fiction, Fantasy/Paranormal, Romance
Publication Date: September 27th 2005
POV: Alternating - Third-person, Past tense
Smut-O-Meter: 5 out of 10
My Rating: 4 out of 5

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For centuries they’ve lived in secret among northern England’s green and misted hills. Creatures of extraordinary beauty, power, and sensuality, they possess the ability to shape-shift from human to dragon and back again. Now their secret—and their survival—is threatened by a temptation that will break every boundary.

Dubbed the Smoke Thief, a daring jewel thief is confounding the London police. His wealthy victims claim the master burglar can walk through walls and vanish into thin air. But Christoff, the charismatic Marquess of Langford, knows the truth: the thief is no ordinary human but a "runner" who's fled Darkfrith without permission. As Alpha leader of the drákon, it's Kit's duty to capture the fugitive before the secrets of the tribe are revealed to mortals. But not even Kit suspects that the Smoke Thief could be a woman.

Clarissa Rue Hawthorne knew her dangerous exploits would attract the attention of the drákon. But she didn't expect Christoff himself to come to London, dangling the tribe's most valuable jewel—the Langford Diamond—as bait. For as long as she could remember, Rue had lived the life of a halfling—half drákon, half mortal—and an outcast in both worlds. She'd always loved the handsome and willful Kit from the only place it was safe: from afar. But now she was no longer the shy, timid girl she'd once been. She was the first woman capable of making the Turn in four generations. So why did she still feel the same dizzying sense of vulnerability whenever he was near?

From the moment he saw her, Kit knew that the alluring and powerful beauty was every bit his Alpha equal and destined to be his bride. And by the harsh laws of the drákon, Rue knew that she was the property of the marquess. But they will risk banishment and worse for a chance at something greater. For now Rue is his prisoner, the diamond has disappeared, and she's made the kind of dangerous proposition a man like Kit cannot resist.

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I love the combination of genres in this. It would at first seem like a Georgian historical romance, set in 1751 London. But it was also a cat-and-mouse story of a jewel thief. But then, on top of all of that, there are dragons! Yep, you heard me.

Clarissa grew up in a secret tribe of shapeshifting dragons that is disguised as a village and a large manor house, where the Alpha dragon and his family live. From a young age, Clarissa has been in love with the Alpha's beautiful son Cristoff, 4 years older than her, and far above her in status. But when Clarissa is 17, she discovers she can shift. A terrifying reality, or a dream come true? Female who canshift are rare, so she will be forced to marry Cristoff. It may sound like a dream come true. But more than wanting to marry him, she wants him to love her. So she runs. She runs away to London and becomes the Smoke Thief. Nine years later, Cristoff is now Alpha and still unmarried. He comes to London to stop the Smoke Thief before their kind are exposed. But he had no idea what kind of fight he was getting into with Miss Clarissa Rue, The Smoke Thief.

 

I really loved Cristoff, aka Kip. He was swaggering, arrogant, loyal, bold, determined, and passionate; about being Alpha, about his people, and about his Rue-flower. He was so yummy and the relationship between him and Rue was so unusual. She was bitter about him trying to force her back to the tribe, and he was bitter about the fact that she ran from him 9 years earlier. But it didnt stop them from falling for each other, again, in Rue's case. And the first time they had sex was unbelievable! It was unbelievable that he would attempt it, and unbelievable that she would let him! The arrogant, bold, determination, and passion in him all came into play in that scene. And the bold and daring in Rue that allows her to be the Smoke Thief, also allowed her to have sex with the man of her dreams on the floor of an office during a high society party, with someone else in the room, without being caught.

Rue and Kip were a well matched pair, as rivals, as a couple, as partners in crime, as everything in life, they were amazing together. Their constant bickering, as well as their mutual respect and admiration. And I love the history and magic, and mystery behind the drakon. The way the book ended, with hints of what is to come. I cannot wait to read The Dream Thief!

"In the year 1751, for the first time in centuries, two Alpha hearts united. The power of their union shivered the very web of the drakon. Souls trembled on invisible strings. Fates shifted. And ancient ties, long forgotten, thrilled to life."

Dragon Bound by Thea Harrison (Elder Races #1)

Genres: Adult, Fantasy/Urban Fantasy, Romance
Smut-O-Meter: 9 out of 10
My Rating: 3 out of 5

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Half-human and half-Wyr, Pia Giovanni spent her life keeping a low profile among the Wyrkind and avoiding the continuing conflict between them and their Dark Fae enemies. But after being blackmailed into stealing a coin from the hoard of a dragon, Pia finds herself targeted by one of the most powerful—and passionate—of the Elder Races.

As the most feared and respected of the Wyrkind, Dragos Cuelebre cannot believe someone had the audacity to steal from him, much less succeed. And when he catches the thief, Dragos spares her life, claiming her as his own to further explore the desire they've ignited in each other.

Pia knows she must repay Dragos for her trespass, but refuses to become his slave—although she cannot deny wanting him, body and soul.

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I dont think there is really anything wrong with this, its just not for me. I was uncomfortable with Dragos' possessiveness. And I expect a little sex in an adult PNR, but it just happened so often that it felt like that was the only purpose of the book. Dragon Bound actually had a pretty decent story and an interesting world, but the sex was so much more frequent than was necessary, that I would say this is for a different audience than normal PNR. And the sex wasn't really focused on enough to be a true erotica either. And it happened so quickly it was ridiculous! They knew each other less than a day before they were having crazy animal sex.

I mostly enjoyed the characters, though I would have preferred Dragos to be less intense. That is only my personal preference and I know the caveman alpha types are very popular with most woman. And Dragos is definitely that.

"He had been born along with the solar system... His massive bones and flesh must have been formed along with the planets."

He is a shape-shifting dragon who is the oldest being in the universe, and in the modern world he is a billionaire businessman. And the dragon still loves to hoard treasures.

"Have I been added to his hoard?" 

"No, cupcake. I'm pretty sure you've replaced it."

Pia fights him all the way. She hates the idea of being possessed but he doesn't know how else to handle her. He is a monster who has never loved anything before in his long life. He just wants her to stay with him, and to keep her safe. The only way he knows how to do that is to own her. I cant even guess how many times the words "You're mine" were said in this book. It was borderline creepy, but he meant well.

I really liked Pia. She was a really strong, independent heroine. She had a big secret that she had kept from everyone her entire life. And it was driving Dragos crazy that she wouldnt tell him either. In this world, all magical creatures can shape-shift into human form. Pia has never shifted because she is a half-breed and doesnt have enough magic to shift on her own. She eventually lets Dragos help her, and a split second before they revealed what her true form was, it just clicked in my head. What would be the most ridiculous thing for her to be? I was right, and it was hilarious and ridiculous and awesome at the same time.

So the romance was pretty intense but really funny as well, as Pia struggles to understand and deal with such a great beast in her life. It takes pretty much the entire book for them to understand each other. And Dragos' employees and friends that are in their life are just amazed at their boss' changed behaviour and it can be pretty funny at times. I am sure a lot of people would really love this. But I will check out the next book in the series one day.

You're my miracle and my home...I will always come for you, always want you, and always need you. We clear?" 

She had begun to glow. "Sounds a lot like love to me.”