Reviewed
by: ?wazithinkin
Genre: Fantasy
/ Young Adult
Approximate
word count: 60-65,000 words
Availability
Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in
Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store
Author:
Maria Schneider grew up in New Mexico and currently lives
near Austin, Texas with her husband.
After working in the computer industry for twelve years
she now enjoys creating messes and inventing characters to find their way clear
of her imaginings.
You can find several of Maria's short stories online in
such fine magazines as: Coyote Wild
Magazine, www.AnthologyBuilder.com, TownDrunkMag.com and Over My Dead Body.
She writes cozy mysteries, fantasy, paranormal mysteries.
Feel free to check out her website.
Description:
“Drissa needs a place to hide, and she needed it
yesterday. Wendal, with its rumors of inhospitable shifters, unknown terrain
and wild magic, is not a territory many want to explore, making it the perfect
place to disappear. Now, the last thing Drissa needs is to adopt more trouble,
but what can she do when it hatches at her feet and then insists she drag it
and a half-dead stranger to safety? But she’ll do whatever is necessary to
survive, because her younger sister can’t wait forever to be rescued. Of course,
Wendal and its inhabitants aren’t necessarily interested in her long-term plans
or her survival.”
Appraisal:
This adventure is full of dragons, dragonkin (smaller dragons that don’t
shift), gryphons, shifters, ogres, chimera, snakes, unhappy parents, a cruel
uncle, poisonous plants, and one very special dryad (wood nymph). It also had a
romance that made my heart melt. The story hits the ground running and doesn’t
stop. There is a plot to enslave the dragonkin with nefarious capitalists who
have enlisted the help of the chimera.
The plot is full of action as Lindis, Drissa, and Falk try to save the
dragonkin from their plight. Sparks is the dragonkin hatchling that has adopted
Drissa, he is delightful through the whole story as he grows up fast. The plot
takes some unexpected twists as Falk’s parents try to find him a mate that will
be advantageous for their clan. With Drissa running from the same fate and
trying to save her younger sister who was drafted to replace her, she and Falk
are able to relate.
I got a chuckle out of the fact that the same prince was kidnapped,
again, to marry Drissa’s sister as in the Dragons
of Wendal. This prince has some serious security issues to deal with back
at home. Since he hasn’t chosen his own bride yet, I wondered if perhaps he is
gay. Wouldn’t that be a hoot? (Sorry, I got distracted there a minute.) Ms. Schneider
has done a wonderful job building her fantasy world and the characters who
inhabit it. Except the chimera, I couldn’t wrap my head around them, they
seemed too illogical. Mad cows would have been a better choice. (Stifles a
giggle.)
FYI:
This is the second book in Dragons
of Wendal series. There are a few returning characters in DragonKin, however I think it could be
read as a standalone.
Format/Typo
Issues:
I found no significant editing or formatting issues.
Rating:
***** Five stars
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