Dragon Bound by Thea Harrison
Dragon Bound

TEST

Please have patience with me because I am about to gush unabashedly. I hadn’t really expected to enjoy this paranormal; I felt they had become formulaic and boring, and I had more or less given up on them. It’s been a very long time since I’ve read a paranormal I enjoyed as much as this one, and I’m excited to be back in the saddle.

In Dragon Bound the world is divided up into a number of sectors. There is the normal everyday world, where regular humans and wyr exist together, and there is also a second plane of existence, which is comprised primarily of magical creatures. This place, inhabited by gremlins, elves, and other magical beings, is steeped in magic. Wyrs can travel freely between the two planes.

The everyday world is broken up into provinces, each ruled by a powerful leader. New York City is ruled by the feared Dragos Cuelebre, a shape-shifting dragon as old as time, created with the universe. He has spent eternity amassing a fortune and finds himself bored with the same old, same old. His power is so encompassing that few ever challenge his authority. But his ennui is suddenly shattered when someone dares to steal from his horde of treasures, a feat that has never been accomplished.

Pia Giovanni, the gutsy thief, finds herself between a rock and a hard spot. She has allowed her boyfriend to manipulate her into stealing from the dragon. After discovering that Pia is a half-wyr, half-human with extraordinary powers, her boyfriend blackmails her into stealing a penny from the dragon’s horde. Upon discovering that she has been had, Pia boots her now ex-boyfriend to the curb, but not before she comes under the scrutiny of Dragos.

Dragos tracks Pia down in order to punish her, but her guts and spunky attitude instantly intrigue him. She is the first female who has stood up to him in an eternity, and though she is terrified of him, they instantly have a spark of sexual interest. Despite the immediate attraction, they find themselves in danger from Dragos’ old enemy, the Dark Fae King. This leads them into the world of the wyr, to which Pia has never been introduced, and into a war between good and evil. The conflict and world building resemble the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and anyone who enjoys this style of plot and characters should enjoy Dragon Bound.

I loved, loved, loved the relationship between Pia and Dragos. First, Dragos, is super alpha. However, he is the perfect mix of alpha, protective, and totally bewildered by Pia. Despite the fact that he’s as old as dirt, he spends most of his time delighting in her quirks and idiosyncrasies. I think Harrison really managed to flesh out his character past the typical alpha warrior. The end result is a well-rounded hero who ticked all the boxes for me.

I also really enjoyed Pia. She has a few hang-ups, lots of quirks, and enough independence and gumption to be really intriguing. Though she is often reckless, she does not come off as too stupid to live. The sexual tension between her and Dragos is amplified by his need to protect and shelter and her need for independence. Their developing relationship is both fun and sincere.

The best part is the fact that there is going to be another book in the series featuring secondary characters with whom I fell in love. As soon as I finished Dragon Bound, I checked to make sure they would be getting their own story. So not only will you get Dragon Bound but you will also be getting an extension of the story. Fingers crossed that the second installation is as good as the first.

Buy it at Amazon/Barnes & Noble/Apple Books/Kobo

Reviewed by Jacqueline Owens

Grade: A-

Book Type: Paranormal Romance

Sensuality: Hot

Review Date: 27/06/11

Publication Date: 2011/05

Review Tags: Elder Races series

Recent Comments …

  1. excellent book: interesting, funny dialogs, deep understanding of each character, interesting secondary characters, and also sexy.

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lee
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10/01/2017 8:02 am

Let me get in line to gush. I almost never read paranormal anything. Yet, I could not resist this series. The characters were wonderfully individual without a stock personality among them,