Queen of Dragons by Shana Abe

Queen of Dragons

By: Shana Abe



Mass Market Paperback, 325 pages

Published November 25th 2008

ISBN13: 9780553588064

Series: Drakon #3.

2 Stars

2 Flames

               

If I were a Drakon Princess who was determined not to become mated to the Drakon Alpha of another Drakon tribe, the last thing I would do is travel to his home. Our Drakon Princess Maricara travels to England to Darkfrith as soon as she is of an appropriate mating age. She goes straight to Kimber Langford’s home. She pops up in his home in the middle of the night, naked to accuse him of trying to spy on her and to declare that she will not wed him. She also flees his home to hide from him. She goes to a pricey inn away from him, yet she sends him the bill to pay for this holiday she is taking. Thus, the male she is determined not to mate/wed knows exactly where she is. My main problem with this book is Maricara. She is extremely immature. The majority of the first half of the book she is not even in the vicinity of Kimber for them to develop feelings for each other. The book was missing the romantic connection between two individuals. The only thing that Maricara and Kimber have going for each other is they are both alphas and destined to be together. I need romance in a romance novel. I like the chase, the pursuit, the flirting, hell stalking would have been better than the lack of that I felt between Maricara and Kimber.

                I had so many issues with this book from the very beginning that it made the book almost difficult to read. I had also decided about half way through the book to not read any more in the series. I will not be allowed to do this. Many issues were presented in this installment of the series. At the ending of the book, none were resolved. The Others (humans) have begun taking Drakon’s.  In fact, the main characters from the first two books are among the missing. I am hoping to enjoy the next book in the series more than this one. I am very curious how the Drakon will handle the Others.  

The Dream Thief by Shana Abe

The Dream Thief

By: Shana Abe



Mass Market Paperback, 368 pages

Published August 28th 2007 by Bantam Books

ISBN13: 9780553588057

Series: Drakon #2.

3 Stars

2 Flames (characters have sex, it is not hot or smutty, just there on the pages in print)

                Book 2 in the Drakon series picks up a few years after the first books conclusion. Clarissa Rue and Christoff (Kit) have had five children. The youngest child is Amalia (Lia); she is the main female character of this book. Her one Drakon gift is dreaming the future. This gift presents itself to her at a young age, so at the beginning of the book she is still a child. She is a child having dreams that let her know Zane is in her future as far as she can see.

                Zane, the young street urchin that Rue took in off the streets in book 1 is the main male character of The Dream Thief. He has grown into an ass. That is the only way to describe Zane as a character. He is brash, rude, seems self-centered at times and a true ass. He does not make any excuses for his character. He presents his self this way quite openly. He is a likable ass. I do not see how he could have been presented any other way. He had a horrible childhood. He decided to keep to his life of crime as he grew into a man. Once again he offers no apologies for this, it is simply who he is. I did like his character.

                I do not use the term hero or heroine in this review due to the fact that neither character does anything truly heroic. There is a complete lack of pursuit in the relationship. Zane is sent by Christoff and Rue to find a diamond that they cannot retrieve themselves. The song the diamond sings enslaves the Drakon. The very human Zane can bring it back to them. Along the journey  to acquire the diamond he finds Lia, trouble and a great deal of sexual tension. Lia knows from her dreams that Zane will be her lover. Zane knows the rules that the Drakon must live by. He has a respectable fear of her very toothy Drakon father. I just never felt the romantic connection with this couple and it took something away from the book.

The Smoke Thief By: Shana Abe

The Smoke Thief

By: Shana Abe



Paperback, 352 pages

Published January 1st 2006 by Bantam Books

ISBN13: 9780553588040

Series: Drakon #1.

4 Stars

2 Flames (there are sex scenes, they are mild and light)

                Clarissa Rue is a halfling Drakon. She fled the shire she was raised in at the age of seventeen to get away from the hateful harassment from the others of her kind. She has created a life for herself in London as the Smoke Thief. Using her Drakon abilities she has become a very successful jewel thief.

                Christoff (Kit) is the alpha of their tribe. One of his many responsibilities is keeping the Drakon existence a secret. One of the ways he does this by bringing the runners back to the shire. After reading reports of the jewel thefts in various papers he comes to the conclusion that these heists could only have been done by a Drakon. Using his tribe’s most valuable jewel, the Langford Diamond as bait he travels to London to bring the runner/thief back to the shire.

                I liked Christoff’s character. He is an alpha male that is willing to bend his will and give into Clarissa’s wants to get what he wants. As with most shifter books he knows from pure animal instincts that Clarissa is his mate. The romantic attraction between the two characters is strong. The conflicts come in the form of trust issues and Clarissa not wishing to be mated to a man who does not truly love her. She understands the need to be with ones mate. She feels the same pull that Christoff does, she just wishes for more than a mating. Clarissa’s character is a strong alpha female that does not back down from a challenge. She also has gotten used to being on her own and doing for herself in late 1700 London.

                I liked this book. It is something a little different in the shifter genre. I do plan on continuing reading the series.