#Review: Dragon Fall by Katie MacAlister - 3 Wine Glasses

 

Title: Dragon Fall
Series: Black Dragons #1
Author: Katie MacAlister
Format: eBook/Paperback, 323 pages
Published: July 28th 2015 by Forever
ISBN: 1455559210
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N
Reviewer: Linda
Source: Netgalley
Rating:  3 out of 5 Wine Glasses

YOU FLIRT WITH FIRE...

For Aoife Dakar, seeing is believing-and she's seen some extraordinary things. It's too bad no one else believes that she witnessed a supernatural murder at an outdoor fair. Returning to the scene for proof, Aoife encounters a wise-cracking demon dog-and a gloriously naked man who can shift into a dragon and kiss like a god. Now thrust into a fantastical world that's both exhilarating and terrifying, Aoife is about to learn just how hot a dragon's fire burns.

WHEN YOU DATE A DRAGON

Kostya has no time for a human woman with endless questions, no matter how gorgeous or tempting she is. He must break the curse that has splintered the dragon clans before more of his kind die. But his powerful attraction to Aoife runs much deeper than the physical-and there may be more to her than even his sharp dragon eyes can see. To survive the coming battle for the fate of his race, he needs a mate of true heart and soul . . .

Linda's Thoughts:
"For the record," I do not desire your body. Not that you're hideous or anything, far from it. Even with those scars, your chest is really nice, and I like your legs because they aren't scrawny, and you have nice shoulders and naughty bits, but I've never been one to put physical attributes ahead of more important things."
"Such as?" He had his hands on his hips when he asked the question, which just made me want to giggle again.
"Intelligence, a sense of humor, and oh yes, not being a mythical creature." I swallowed another giggle. "Not that it wasn't a cool form, but still. I like my men without the sort of baggage that must go with being a shape-shifter."
"Is that so?" One eyebrow lifted.
"Yes."
"Then you will not like this." He pulled me against him, his mouth moving into place on mine, his breath hotter than I could have imagined. And then he kissed the very wits right out of my brain.

DRAGON FALL by Katie MacAlister is the first book in Katie's new Black Dragons series. It's a paranormal romance featuring dragon shifters and a sassy talking dog named Jim. I love dragons and I wanted to be blown away by this book. While I did thoroughly relish parts of it, it just didn't come together for me to be wowed. Still, it was an enjoyable read and Katie's characteristic humor made me laugh out loud lots.

This new series is a spin-off from Katie's other dragon series. Dragon Septs series is a combination of four different series which all take place in the same world and revolve around the different dragon septs.

These series include:
1. Aisling Grey: Guardian (Green Dragons)
2. Silver Dragons
3. Light Dragons
4. Black Dragons

This was the first dragon book I've read by Katie. I've read other reviews that highly recommend that readers have some knowledge of the prior books before reading this one. I will admit that the politics of the dragons lost me at times and the story seemed all over the place. Because of this and based on those other reviews, I would recommend that this book not be read as a standalone.

This is the story of Aoife Dakar and Kostya aka Konstantin Nikolai Fekete, wyvern of the black dragons. Two years ago, Aoife witnessed a dragon shifter fight which resulted in a man disappearing in a puff of smoke. She calls the cops and they throw her in the loony bin aka the Arvidsjaur Center for the Bewildered - also called the Aardvark Center for the Deranged - for TWO LONG YEARS for being an upright citizen and reporting what she saw. When she gets out, all she wants to do is lie low and live a normal life. But the dragons obviously have other plans...

Kostya was an anomaly. He came across as a Macho Man from the Middle Ages, but, of course, he was a dragon shifter with a sexy male body. He was in a state of distress without a stitch of clothing when Aoife found him but he soon morphed into her protector. He then enlisted Aoife to join him in attempting to free the dragons from the curse placed on them by Asmodeus. The curse had huge ramifications for the dragon weyr. The weyr was made up of the various dragon septs with the black dragons being one of those. The septs haven't been able to communicate at all - zero communication - since Asmodeus' curse. Kostya couldn't even be near his brother as they would fight. It was impossible for the dragons to work together. Kostya and Aoife had a huge job ahead of them to remove the curse and their victory was not assured. Along the way, they were going to be forced to face the feelings they had for each other.

Aoife was a fun, good-hearted character. LOL! She ran over a dog and ended up saddled with a talking dog. She found a naked man on the beach and saw that he received the medical attention he appeared to need... and ended up drawn into dragon politics. Kostya was funny too but only because he was so autocratic and clueless as regards modern day speech resulting in some ludicrous situations. AND, of course, he was HOT! Unfortunately, I didn't feel the chemistry between the hero and heroine and the pacing was off for me.

Following please find a few of my favorite quotes:

My entire body shaking, I carefully unstrapped the seat belt and turned around as far as I could to look at the backseat.
Or rather, the dog that sat on it. He was panting, his eyes round, but there was nothing at all odd about him.
Other than the fact that I'd just heard him speak.
"You can't talk," I told him.
"I think I can," he answered.
---

"Do you have some sort of anti-derangement medication? If so, you might wish to take it."
---

"Say that you want me."
His tongue was as hot as his fire.
"Holy Odin and all the little cherubs, I thought that was pretty clear. I do want you, very much."
"Tell me you accept what I am."
"A dragon, you mean?" I wiggled my hips against him, dragging my nails gently up his sides and back.
"Yes, I totally accept that you're really a dragon in a super-hot man package."

I'm a huge fan of Katie's books. Her Dark Ones series is my absolute favorite. This book started out great and while it didn't end up being one of my prize picks, it still showed a lot of promise for the series and had some really cool characters. I'm definitely thinking this series will get stronger and I'm looking forward to seeing that happen - though, in the meantime, I plan to go back and catch up with her Dragon Sept series. I would recommend DRAGON FALL especially to Katie's Dragon Sept series fans and also to those who enjoy paranormal/ urban fantasy romances featuring sexy dragons.