Friday, February 27, 2015

DragonKin / Maria Schneider


Reviewed by: ?wazithinkin

Genre: Fantasy / Young Adult

Approximate word count: 60-65,000 words

Availability    
Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: YES  Smashwords: YES  Paper: NO
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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