Friday, May 30, 2014

Book Review-Legend of the Highland Dragon by Isabel Cooper

The Legend of the Highland Dragon
Highland Dragon (1)
Isabel Cooper
Sourcebooks Casablanca
Paperback
Published December 3 2013
329 Pages
Regency Paranormal Romance
ISBN: 978-1-4022-8467-0
Authors Website
Synopsis
The MacAlasdairs are not like other men.

Descendants of an ancient alliance, they live for centuries, shifting between human and dragon forms. Some wander the earth; some keep to their lands in Scotland. And Stephen MacAlasdair, the newest lord of the family, must go to London to settle his father’s business affairs. He brings an object of great power and greater darkness. He finds an enemy from his past, whose wrath is still living and deadly. And he meets an ally he’d never have expected.

1894 London, doesn't provide an easy life for women of the lower class, but Mina Seymour has managed to work herself up to a position as the secretary of a famous scholar. When a tall, dark Scottish stranger demands to see her employer, Mina is irritated; when MacAlasdair's departure leaves the professor worried, she’s suspicious. Determined to figure out the situation, she investigates further - and finds a world and a man she could never have imagined.
My Review

 Mina has spent her whole life, trying to put food on the table and having been born a member of the lower class, she knows her life will be full of strife and hardship. Her only support is her family. Working as a personal secretary to a well known scholar, she bumps into Laird MacAlasdair. Mina becomes suspicious of MacAlasdair and when she goes searching for answers, she ends up face to face with a real life dragon. Stephen is the laird and leader of his people. He has a deceptive enemy, and must find him before he destroys all the hard work he has put in to protect his people. As dragon shifter, he has to keep his identity a secret, even if that means holding a certain attractive woman at his home. But when the danger escalates, and Mina and Stephen begin to form a bond to one another. Will Stephen be able to protect Mina from a enemy that could easily destroy her

The Legend of the Highland Dragon is the first book of this new series by Isabel Cooper. When you combine my two favorite sub genres and mix them with some solid romance, you sell me immediately. This story is a combination of paranormal and historical romance. However I did feel like the romance level could have been higher. It had many aspects that made a highly enjoyable story, but I felt like the focus on the relationship between Stephen and Mina was a bit less than you would expect from a story like this. Now with that said, let us move on to the more delightful and positive elements of the story I really enjoyed. The characters in this story were such fun and very adaptable to new situations and I loved both the hero and heroine, and even some sub characters adds a fun spice to the story. I really felt like Stephen and Mina were pretty well constructed. Stephen is your typical alpha male, but he does have some beta in his personality, which I felt like overall was a good balance for his character. Mina is not your typical heroine of this regency era. Being a member of the lower class, you would think she would be a bit less bold and daring...but no, she just has to know the answers to every little mystery. She learns the truth about Stephen pretty early in the story and I loved how she doesn't fight the truth. She adapts to her situation and the danger pretty well, and she isn't afraid of defending herself. She does some fighting spirit and she interacts pretty well with Stephen and his brother. Not some side characters I fell in love with:  one of the house maids, was sweet and when they get attacked early on in the story, she fights alongside with Mina and I really loved the idea of this young girl's courage against a enemy you can't fight unless your a dragon...however it doesn't stop them from trying!! Now Stephen's brother Colin...was delightful, a rogue and so funny to watch him tease his brother and I loved their relationship. I felt like bringing in Colin's character really lifted up the plot and added a sense of playfulness to the story.

The Villain in the story is pretty formidable, and this is where you see a strong magical element enter into the plot. Wade is definitely is the type of enemy you want to destroy, and he is pretty bad. So much so that you wonder how Stephen and Colin are going to defeat him. The bad guy in the story really adds a dangerous element to the plot, I guarantee you will be at the edge of the seat once the danger starts to really threaten Stephen and Mina. I felt like this story was so different from what I expected, but it turned out to be packed with such depth and much more magical elements than I expected. There is such a paranormal edge to the story you almost forget the time period that this story takes place. We also see a more intense focus on the relationship between Stephen and Mina toward the later half of the story, a immortal creature and a mortal woman, how will they make it work right?  I did feel that the ending wasn't what I expected, I kinda felt a little disappointed, because I felt like it didn't completely tie off all the loose ends, maybe we will see more of them in the next book (which is Colin's Story-so excited) 

Overall a entertaining romance, with a paranormal edge, sexy dragons, fighter of a heroine, and some delectable moments to leave you thirsty for more.

Favorite Quote


My Grade
4 Blossoms

Heat Rating
Warm

Other Books In Series
The Highland Dragon's Lady
 

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