Sun Dancer by Shannon Peters
Whiskey Creek Press Torrid
Paranormal
Short Story, M/F
Review by Xeranth

Fiona is a gemsmith with a dangerous secret – she plays with fire. Declan is a sorcerer adept at hiding his talents.
Both demand trust and honesty from each other, but can they give it, especially when their lives are at risk from a common foe?

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Sun Dancer is a clever mix of other worldliness, magic and romance.  The setting is on a planet colonized by ancestors of Earth where the old folk tales of mystical beings are believed to be true.   As it happens in our contemporary world, the inhabitants of Kiera fear the unknown and react badly towards it -- namely killing the things they fear instead of trying to understand them.   

The relationship between Fiona and Declan must survive amidst that mind set and it is not easy.  Trust is not given freely or easily which makes falling in love a bit tricky.

Fiona feels like an outsider even among the many people at a party she attended.  She’s made her own way in life despite the odds, which makes her a survivor, a strong personality and a woman any man would be proud to have by his side.  Thing is, she is not interested in a man, any man, because she has too much to lose.  Any man who wants her has a huge hurdle to jump through.

Declan is just such a man willing to try.  Okay, a very hunky and talented man.  At first he has no clue just how tough getting through to Fiona is going to be. Their first meeting is magical and potent and based on that, the poor guy thinks it’s going to be a piece of cake.  Life laughs at people who believe that and throws all kinds of conflict at them, both internal and external.  

I figured out pretty quickly what the internal conflicts are; very human and identifiable which makes it easier to connect to the characters.  The external conflict is unique to Kiera and a perfectly good reason for the irrational fear, if it were to be known, to be encouraged and to feed the flames of distrust the inhabitants have for people who remind them of those ancestral beliefs.  I thought I knew what kind of villain Ms. Peters had introduced until the confrontation and I liked how it was different.

I also liked the fact that although the sex started early in the story, it was placed in amounts and places where It made sense.  The focus was on the building of Fiona’s and Declan’s romance and the obstacles they needed to overcome for its completion.    Sun Dancer is a good solid story with a setting that begs for more stories to be told within in it -- namely, Fiona’s sister, Briana.   I would also like to know a bit more about the community that fostered Declan.  There is a lot of richness to the world which Ms. Peters has created and I hope there is more in the offing because I would enjoy reading more.