The Lizard Queen Book One: This Shrinking World by H. L. Cherryholmes

January 9, 2015 By Leave a Comment

IXARD
The Lizard Queen Book One: This Shrinking World by H. L. Cherryholmes
Publisher: CreateSpace
Genre: Contemporary, Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Length: Full Length (290 Pages)
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Cyclamen

300 years ago, in a nameless world, a prophecy passed unfulfilled. A secret society that formed to prevent its occurrence believed it was their doing, while the secret society created to ensure that the prophecy came to pass wasn’t certain it had been stopped at all. Eventually, along with the mythology of time prior to the great Lizard Queen’s expansion of this world, the prophecy of Lacáruna fell into legend.

Split among three nations, nine ancient books hold the key to this world’s creation but no one has the ability to read them. And many have come to believe the world is shrinking. The indications are there—nations’ leaders falling ill, swamps drying, militaries gathering—that is, if those signs are being interpreted correctly. No one knows because the prophesied Lacáruna, a female from another realm and the only being who can read the Lizard Queen’s language, never arrived.

What they don’t realize is that Amy Darlidale is just a tad late.

Take proper methods of contraception to prevent STDs and unwanted pregnancy. cialis sales australia Significantly, this ED treatment is reported to be viagra online order safe in use for alleviating the problem. Erectile dysfunction also indicates that a person gets a new lease of life. viagra no prescription Never double dose your medicine, take only one dose of Kamagra and the second has to be taken the next levitra samples day only and that is exactly after 24 hours or more but not before 24 hours as over dose of Kamagra capsule is 100mg.One must go for that dose which is dictated by medical practitioners. Taking a break from a stressful workweek, Amy, recently divorced CEO, drives out to her desert getaway. While on a morning jog she crosses paths with an orange lizard and, on a whim, chases it into a field. Suddenly, she finds herself under a starless sky confronted by oddly marked and strangely colored people who claim she’s there to rescue the world from evil’s grasp and expand it once again. But not everyone wants that to happen so there’s a price on her head.

This is far from the relaxing weekend Amy had intended.

Amy Darlidale is looking for a quiet weekend after a stressful week. Instead, as she takes off after an orange lizard she spots on a morning jog, she finds herself transported into another world, a world where there are no stars and the moon is always full.

Amy is a recently divorced CEO who is extremely smart and totally driven. She is always in control, but now, she is in a world she doesn’t understand at all. She is lucky to be found by those who want her to fulfill an ancient prophecy, but soon she and her new friends are being pursued by those who will stop at nothing to keep that from happening.

This novel is the first in a planned nine part series, and as such, it does an excellent job of setting up the entire world. I was amazed at the depth of the details, from geography to flora and fauna which are radically different from anything Amy has ever experienced, to the social and religious beliefs of the land.

I found the language of the land, the variety of names, to be a hindrance to my keeping everything in order. Amy says that many of the words seem to be a form of Spanish, and that may be the case, but unfortunately, I know no Spanish, so I found that the multitude of new terms for everything in this world tangled me in a bewildering maze. While I’m sure my bewilderment matched Amy’s, I still found them daunting, and they frequently pulled me out of the story.

The plot has a number of exciting and tense scenes, with near escapes, and Amy is lucky to find true believers to help her, even if she herself doesn’t think she can fulfill a prophesy. There is also a lot of history that needs to be taught to Amy (and the reader) so that she can fully understand this world, and I was amazed at the depth of the descriptions. Truly this novel has set up a fantastic and wondrous world filled with new adventures.

Fantasy lovers who are looking for a new, rich, world to explore are sure to find that in The Lizard Queen.

Filed Under: Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , ,

Three Dog Day: A Mae December Mystery by Lia Farrell

January 8, 2015 By Leave a Comment

THREE
Three Dog Day: A Mae December Mystery by Lia Farrell
Publisher: Camel Press
Genre: Contemporary, Suspense/Mystery
Length: Full Length (288 Pages)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Cyclamen

It’s bitter cold in Rosedale, Tennessee, the most frigid January in decades. The kind of chill they used to describe as requiring sleeping with three dogs just to make it through the night. Mae December has found yet another body, this one on the banks of the Little Harpeth River. It’s another murder for her boyfriend, Sheriff Ben Bradley, to investigate. Only Mae’s broken her wrist, which makes helping out with the case difficult. That’s okay, because the murdered man was found near a puppy mill, and all evidence points to the owner as the killer. Surely the case will be a slam dunk. Mae’s injury also hampers her ability to run her dog boarding business and care for the three pit bull puppies she’s fostering, so she hires Ray Fenton, the kid who blew the whistle on the now-shuttered puppy mill. Meanwhile, Sheriff Bradley’s office manager, Dory Clarkson, struggles to pass the physical tests that will allow her to fulfill her dream of becoming a deputy, Mae and her friend Tammy are busy planning Tammy’s Valentine’s Day wedding to the brother of Mae’s deceased fiancé, and Detective Wayne Nichols must revisit his painful past as he fights to free his foster mother from prison. Rosedale is the last place you’d expect to harbor a killer. Now the sheriff’s department must solve its third murder in a year.

Mae December has found another body. She is out walking Lulu, one of the dogs in her boarding kennels, along a trail that a friend had recommended when Lulu finds a body at the edge of the river. As Mae and Lulu make their way back up the bank to get back on the trail, Mae slips in icy mud, breaking her left wrist as she falls.
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Thus begins the third Mae December mystery, and while Mae is slowed by a broken wrist, she is not stopped. She is soon involved in investigating a puppy mill as well as the murder.

Mae is a wonderful main character, well-developed with both strengths and weaknesses, so that she seems very real. She is supported by a host of characters, including her boyfriend, Sheriff Ben Bradley, her best friend Tammy, and one of my favorites, Dory Clarkson, who runs the sheriff’s office and aspires to become a detective.

The plot has several different threads, some closely linked and one, more distantly. The story does stand alone, in that the reader doesn’t need to have read the first two books in the series. However, the plot thread that revolves around Detective Wayne Nichols might be a bit difficult to get into right away if you haven’t read the first two. While there are a few references to Wayne early in the novel, we don’t actually meet him until Chapter Nine, and the transition to his story seemed a bit abrupt. That being said, Wayne’s case is one of deep complexity, concerning issues of social justice, so I found it to be compelling.

The chapters are titled by the date and the name of the person from whose perspective the chapter is told and this allows for a variety of perspectives without any confusion on the reader’s part. The different points of view allows for a greater depth to the plot, and I enjoyed that aspect of this novel.

Three Dog Day is a wonderful cozy mystery, and a great addition to a lovely series. It is sure to offer a lot of entertainment for mystery fans.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

There’s Always Love by Joycie Russ

December 18, 2014 By Leave a Comment

LOVE
There’s Always Love by Joycie Russ
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary, Suspense/Mystery
Length: Short Story (135 Pages)
Rating: 2.5 Stars
Reviewed by Cyclamen

Jade, a young homicide detective has strange dreams that lead her into reopening a cold case. As she searches for answers, she discovers old family secrets and a world she never knew existed.

This story caught my interest on the first page and I liked Jade Simmons as a young homicide detective working to make her mark in her chosen field. She discovers that her recurring dream is related to a cold case and she decides to investigate the unsolved crime.
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However, midway through the first chapter Jade gets sidetracked as she falls in love with Jasper, a fellow policeman. The mystery falls by the wayside, and Jade becomes weaker and less focused. This change proves to be a less than ideal role model for either women or marriage in today’s world. The mystery does eventually get solved, but more as a sideline than as the main point of the novel.

The novel lacks depth and reads more like a detailed outline of a book. The characters are flat and two dimensional, and the dialogue is obvious. Jade and Jasper repeatedly say “I love you,” followed by “and I love you back.” This is said so often, on most pages and sometimes even twice on one page, that it really became annoying. There are no bedroom scenes, but there are many references to the fact that Jade and Jasper spend much of their time in bed, and even those references, using terms such as fireworks repeatedly, become very stereotypical.

The focus of this novel needs to be clarified. If the author is writing a mystery, then the mystery–which in fact is a very good mystery–needs to be developed more fully and should become the primary focus of the novel. If the author prefers to have this as a romance, then that also needs to be developed more fully. Currently the novel is floating between genres, neither mystery nor romance.

The events in this rather short novel take place over more than a year, and this too is an indication of the lack of depth. There are many threads in the plot which beg for expansion. In fact, the material in this work could easily be the source for an entire series. Short chapters which lack details are followed by further chapters beginning with phrases such as “Three weeks passed,” or “Over the next two months.”

There’s Always Love has a great deal of potential. The mystery itself has a lot of exciting possibilities, and if it was fully developed, with fewer, more complex characters, then this could become an excellent novel.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

The Heart of the Kingdom by Sasha L. Miller

December 15, 2014 By 1 Comment

HEART
The Heart of the Kingdom by Sasha L. Miller
The Kingdom Curses Book 1
Publisher: Less Than Three Press LLC
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Length: Full Length (289 Pages)
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Cyclamen

All Cenric wanted was a necklace to gift to his lady love, in the hopes it might persuade her to actually become his lady love. Instead of love, however, Cenric is informed of her engagement to someone else, wakes up to find his house burning down around him, and is dragged away by a man who might have saved him, but won’t say much about why one necklace has Cenric running away from someone willing to kill to get it back.

Some people may consider this to be a laughing viagra cheap canada valsonindia.com matter. These schools have taken it upon themselves to provide education to differently-abled children. levitra 20 mg It is a magical drug that turns your inability to get an erection and/or maintain an erection during sexual activity. viagra generika valsonindia.com This problem may viagra fast shipping be for some duration or permanently. Cenric is his town’s scribe, having lived in Lansdale his entire life. But his life changes dramatically when he buys a necklace from a peddler’s cart. He thinks about giving it to a girl he admires, only to find out that she has just gotten engaged to someone else. Then, his house catches fire in the night and Cenric barely escapes with his life. He’s lost everything, but before he can absorb his losses, a stranger grabs him and hustles him out of town, just ahead of a specter bent on killing him.

The world described in The Heart of the Kingdom is a rich and believable world, replete with a variety of characters and places. My favorite spot was the tree inhabited by dwarves, a spot I’d really like to visit in person. The characters are also well-drawn, three-dimensional, and interesting. I especially liked Cenric and Rylan. The dynamics between them rings true and I enjoyed watching their relationship develop.

The plot is exciting with a lot of twists and plenty of curses. The mystery of who is behind the curses is well plotted and it took me quite awhile to figure things out. Parts of it I didn’t deduce until the very end, so the book is a real page turner. It is hard to decide who can be trusted and who can’t.

I liked the way the point of view changed from Cenric in the first part to Rylan in the second. It was fun to see the love develop between them, how each was uncertain about the feelings of the other, and how they managed to resolve their feelings. It is really very sweet indeed.

The Heart of the Kingdom is the first book in The Kingdom Curses series and it is one that fantasy readers will really enjoy. Personally, I’m looking forward to reading more in this series. It has really captured my interest.

Filed Under: Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , ,

Visiting Lilly by Toni Allen

December 11, 2014 By 4 Comments

ILLY
Visiting Lilly by Toni Allen
Publisher: Booktrope Editions
Genre: Paranormal, Suspense/Mystery
Length: Full Length (318 Pages)
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Cyclamen

Why should a man at a Surrey police station go ballistic because someone tries to visit Lilly, his elderly grandmother?

Detective Inspector Jake Talbot is intrigued, and this little puzzle might serve to distract him from sorrows of a Christmas past. Soon he is entangled with Frankie, an odd young man who claims to have met Lilly in her youth.

Talbot dismisses the notion of time travel, but then discovers the Ministry of Defence has been monitoring Frankie since his friend disappeared ten years previously.
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Forced to work with the MOD, Talbot unearths family secrets and betrayals. The families act ruthlessly to prevent him from discovering the facts, colluding to ruin him.

If Frankie is innocent, Talbot won’t let him be victimised. An uneasy understanding grows between them as they follow the evidence, for only the truth will allow Frankie to visit Lilly.

D.I Jake Talbot overhears Peter Charteris, a very wealthy young man, complaining to the desk sergeant about another young man who tried to kill Charteris’s grandmother, a resident in a rundown nursing home. The case seems strange and after dealing with a horrific case which hadn’t yet gone to trial, Talbot thinks it might be something to look into. His boss agrees, especially since everyone knows that Talbot is burned out and doesn’t handle the holidays well.

Talbot soon discovers that the case isn’t at all what it appeared to be. Talbot meets Frankie Hayward, the man who had tried to visit Mrs. Charteris and he discovers that Frankie has a story to tell, a story Talbot isn’t sure he can even believe. But Talbot listens and before long, Talbot has been drawn into a complex case, one where the Ministry of Defense is involved.

I was very impressed by the way the characters of both Talbot and Hayward develop in this story. Talbot receives information about Hayward from a psychiatrist, but Talbot soon realizes that the psychiatrist doesn’t know anything about Hayward, a brilliant if socially inept young man who has been mistreated by most of his family since birth. Talbot himself has suffered not only a burnout from overworking on a difficult and violent case, but a betrayal and rejection by his girlfriend. Talbot’s methods of detection have been criticized by his boss, but the truth is that Talbot, although not your usual detective, is very good at what he does.

The mystery is intense, and suspects abound. The pacing is excellent and the suspense builds, making this a real page turner. I did want to know how all the pieces fit together. But even more than that, I wanted to watch as both Talbot and Hayward grow as human beings, how they learn to navigate their pain, how they work to find their place in the world. I really cared about these two men, and there are a number of supporting characters who are also extremely well portrayed at a depth that is not usually found in mysteries. This novel is as much about the development of the characters as it is about solving the case, and both aspects are absolutely riveting.

I highly recommend Visiting Lilly to mystery lovers who are looking for something unusual, where the characters develop and change as the book progresses, and where the mystery involves a redefining of time and reality,

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

The Summerlark Elf: The Four Kingdoms Saga: Book One by Brandon Draga

December 10, 2014 By Leave a Comment

 

ELF
The Summerlark Elf: The Four Kingdoms Saga: Book One by Brandon Draga
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Length: Full Length (217 Pages)
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Cyclamen

Enna Summerlark has spent her entire life as a farmer’s daughter in the kingdom of Hallowspire, paying little mind to anything past what to sell at the next market day. When the next market day comes, however, strange events take place that will reunite her with an old friend, bring her into the world of a pair of sell-swords, and reveal a secret that will change Hallowspire forever, and cause ripples across the whole of the Four Kingdoms. The first book in “The Four Kingdoms Saga”, The Summerlark Elf introduces readers to compelling characters in an engaging world of swords and sorcery, personal turmoil and political intrigue!

The day starts out as an ordinary market day for Enna Summerlark and her father, but it quickly turns into something quite different and Enna’s life is forever changed. The Summerlark Elf is an exciting story set in a world filled with action and intrigue. The world is well constructed and very believable.
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I really liked Enna and she is a worthy main character, with strengths that surprise her at times. She learns a lot in a very short period of time which means that she has to re-define her reality, her life, her entire world. She does this with a wonderful strength, adapting to the new situation.

The supporting characters are well-drawn as well, and several of them lend assistance to Enna. The plot has a number of twists and turns as the tension grows. There are a number of characters who are very scary, and they definitely add to the suspense.

I would have given this book a significantly higher rating if it were not for some rather glaring grammatical errors. The author needs to have another round of editing, one that concentrates on such things a pronoun cases. She and I, for instance, are frequently used when they should have read her and me. For example, “a symbol that reminded her of the shackles he had put on she and Erasmus,” just stops the action in its tracks. There are also a few sentences where the author starts with one verb, but then changes his direction, resulting in a sentence with two verbs where only one is required. Since this is the first book in a series, and since the series has great potential, I would really encourage another round of close editing.

The Summerlark Elf has a lot going for it and I really enjoyed reading it. The world is engaging and the stage has now been set for further action. This novel ends in a satisfying way, where many of the conflicts have been resolved. But there are also many unresolved matters, and the reader is properly prepared for further adventures.

I recommend this novel to fantasy readers, and I look forward to following Enna on her further adventures.

Filed Under: Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , ,

Cats in the Cradle of Civilization by C. L. Kraemer

December 3, 2014 By Leave a Comment

CATS
Cats in the Cradle of Civilization by C. L. Kraemer
Publisher: Rogue Phoenix Press
Genre: Contemporary, Suspense/Mystery
Length: Short Story (146 Pages)
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Cyclamen

Glenda Nagel, editor for Getty Museum’s monthly magazine loves her home in the Juniper Hills and her cats. When an ivory and emerald statuette of the cat goddess Bastet makes its way to her home and sets her cats on edge, Glenda is panicked.

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Glenda Nagel has ordered her life just the way she wants it. She enjoys her job as editor for Getty Museum’s monthly magazine, and she has a home far away from the Los Angeles congestion and smog, as she lives in the Juniper Hills with her three cats. But then a new Director of Egyptian Antiquities is hired, and while Glenda admits that he is very handsome, she finds something strange about him. She doesn’t trust him.

I liked Glenda from the very beginning. She is smart and capable, and she’s worked hard to get to her current position. All of a sudden everything is threatened when she discovers an ivory and emerald statuette of the cat goddess Bastet. She only discovers it because Pandora, her Persian cat, takes an instant dislike to the vase it was hidden in.

It can be hard to write a convincing mystery when the reader knows from the beginning who the villain is and what he’s up to, but C. L. Kraemer manages just that. Much of the story is told from Glenda’s point of view, but we also get to know Dr. Dabir Omar Ben Rashid Yacoub Riyadh, and he is definitely a villain that I really disliked. His character is well-fleshed out and he has very few redeeming characteristics. But then we also get the viewpoint of another level of villains and the suspense builds as the reader follows Glenda’s actions. There are curses and a long history of intrigue and injustice.

The descriptions of not only the scene, but the history of Egyptian archaeology is fascinating and brings a real richness to the story. I learned things while I held my breath as Glenda faced one situation after another. The pacing is excellent and the author really keeps her readers on the edge of their chairs.

Mystery lovers are sure to enjoy this glimpse into the world of archaeology as they watch Glenda trying to stay ahead of Dr. Riyadh.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

Landslide by Robin Mahle

November 27, 2014 By 1 Comment

LANDSLIDE
Landslide by Robin Mahle
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary Suspense/Mystery
Length: Full Length (172 Pages)
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Cyclamen

In the sprawling suburbs of Seattle, Claire McKenna finds solace in her perfectly ordinary life. With the daily strain of raising a family and climbing out of debt, she and her husband Colin, work hard to hang on to what they’ve got.

So when Claire is offered an incredible opportunity to rise in the ranks of her firm, she jumps at the chance. Her joy, however, is short lived at the discovery that her close friend and colleague, Beth Graves has just been accused of embezzlement.

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Landslide has a plot which is intricate with many twists and turns. I was hooked from the very first page, and as the suspense built, I couldn’t stop reading. My afternoon plans changed as I read until I reached the end, an end which has its own twists.

Claire McKenna is a strong main character, fully realized with both strengths and weaknesses. One of her greatest strengths is her loyalty to her friends, especially Beth Graves who has been framed for embezzlement. However, Claire is soon in over her head, working with the FBI, but with a boss who always gets what he wants.

The world of high finance is revealed in full details, and I learned a lot while I was trying to figure out just how far the schemes ran. Claire is forced to endure a lot in her efforts to protect her family as well as clear her friend. There seem to be no limits to the power of those she must fight. The events test her on every level, but she refuses to stop. She has to reveal the full truth no matter what.

I really liked Agent Gordon Sanchez of the FBI. His character was well developed and he came across as intelligent and compassionate. He assures Claire that he knows Beth has been set up, but unless actual proof can be found, Beth could still go to jail.

Claire has to help her husband deal with the events. Colin is suspicious of Claire’s promotion and the speed with which she is being moved up in the firm, but he knows they need the money. However, when Claire starts working for the FBI, he tries to stop her. Colin is a bit of a stereotype of the overprotective husband, but certainly he has legitimate reasons for his concerns.

Landslide certainly lives up to its name. Once the action starts there is no stopping it. Mystery lovers are sure to find this to be a thrilling read.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

Absence of Reason: A Hilary Adams Mystery by Linda Y. Atkins

November 25, 2014 By Leave a Comment

REASON
Absence of Reason: A Hilary Adams Mystery by Linda Y. Atkins
Publisher: Turquoise Morning Press
Genre: Contemporary, Suspense/Mystery
Length: Full Length (231 Pages)
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Cyclamen

When a friend is accused of murder, a feisty attorney will have to outsmart a serial killer if she wants to prove her client’s innocence—and stay alive.
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Criminal defense attorney, Hilary Adams, is about to tackle the case of her career—defending an accused serial killer. In each murder, the evidence gathered against her childhood friend, Professor Tom Blackstone, was overwhelming; the motive obvious, at least to the police and the local prosecuting attorney. But to Hilary, nothing in this case has been right from the beginning. It has all the earmarks of someone systematically setting up her client. But who would want to and why? Coeds, sexually assaulted and murdered, are turning up everywhere. Time is short and the list of suspects even shorter. Hilary has to act fast to save her client and in the end to save herself.

Hilary Adams is a very strong main character, who seems very real. She is whip smart, knows the law inside and out, and is determined to defend a childhood friend, Professor Blackstone, from charges of murder.  Combined with sexual assault, the charges could result in the death penalty if proven. Hilary seems to be the only one who doesn’t believe in the overwhelming evidence against her client. And her client isn’t helping her, as he slides into self-pity and depression. But Hilary can save him if indeed anyone can.

The supporting characters are also very well defined. There is Sam Monroe, ex-FBI and now a PI, who has a long friendship with Hilary. He does his job, even though he thinks that Hilary is blinded by her friendship with her client. Lieutenant Peter Elliott is certain that he has arrested the right man, but as things heat up and he is pressured to move faster than he feels is prudent, he begins to wonder about the case. He is in love with Hilary, although she isn’t ready for a steady relationship, but he also really respects her abilities as a lawyer. He agrees with her that the important thing is to catch the right murderer. Even the minor characters have depth, such as Hilary’s secretary Annie.

This is the first in a series, and I’ve already read the second, third, and fourth. Since this is the first, I was prepared that it might not be quite as strong as the others. I couldn’t have been more wrong. This is a very strong story which has been effectively crafted for maximum suspense. One technique that I found especially helpful in involving the reader and building suspense is the way the murderer’s point of view is used, not often, but most dramatically. I knew even before Hilary did that Blackstone was innocent. But I didn’t have a clue as to the identity of the real murderer until nearly the end. This meant that I was all but pushing Hilary, Sam, and Peter, in the directions they should go. As the suspense built, I found that the book was impossible to put down.

Mystery lovers are sure to enjoy Absence of Reason. In fact, I highly recommend the entire series of now four novels, a series which I hope continues to grow as I’m definitely a fan of Hilary Adams.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

Dragon Rising by Susan Brassfield Cogan

November 24, 2014 By 1 Comment

DRAGON
Dragon Rising by Susan Brassfield Cogan
#3 Black Jade Dragon Series
Publisher: CoganBooks
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Length: Full Length (198 Pages)
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Cyclamen

Go to Hell.

It’s such a delicious phrase. Angie Tanaka never thought she’d want to go there herself.
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Usually people spend their entire lives avoiding a trip to Hell. Not Angie. Long-ju is down there and it was all her fault. He is the Silver Dragon, magnificent, legendary, a work of art. He had sacrificed himself for her and she is only … Angie. She needed to put that right. She had to get him out of there. Nobody was going to help her with that, certainly not the other dragons.

All of that led to one question: How do you spring a dragon out of Hell?

Angie Tanaka is in over her head once again. Long-ju, the Silver Dragon, sacrificed himself for her and now she is trying to find a way into Hell so she can bring him back. As she says, “Welcome to my life. It often doesn’t make a heck of a lot of sense.” She’s a thief, and has been since the fourth grade. But she does care about the dragons, and she knows what needs to happen, at least according to her. So she fights demons and monsters, getting in a lot of trouble, all to save her friend. Before she knows it, she’s being framed for a bombing and the police are hunting her, saying that she’s a terrorist. But she keeps right on going.

I like Angie. She has strong ideals, even if she is a thief. The action never stops and she is caught in one disaster after another. The dragons help her and these dragons are really wonderful. It’s not hard to believe in dragons like these who can take any shape they want, usually appearing as humans. But they are always dragons, without a doubt. “Dragons can undo their molecules and assume any shape they want. That’s all fine as far as it goes. The bad part is they can do it to you. Daiyu disintegrated me. I really hate that. Really. No really. I woke up on a dirt floor. I could only hope she’d put all my molecules back where they belonged.”

The descriptions of Hell are very terrifying, as are the demons Angie has to fight. She gets help from some pretty unexpected places, which adds a lot of suspense to the story. She makes mistakes which she then has to try to fix. But she never gives up.

Fantasy lovers are sure to enjoy Dragon Rising. It is the third in the series, and can be enjoyed as a stand-alone. However, I’m glad that I’ve read them in order so I can watch Angie develop as a character. Either way, this is a most exciting and enjoyable read.

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