The Dragon Mistress: Book 2 (PAPERBACK, LGBT)
The Dragon Mistress: Book 2 (PAPERBACK, LGBT)
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ONE
THE SOUND OF VOICES raised in anger greeted us as we picked our way closer to the entrance of the secluded mountain cave. From the corner of my eye, I caught Nyx’s flinch. The green dragon—whose damaged wing he was supporting with careful hands—made a low groaning sound in her chest. Her emerald eyes rolled as she canted her head first to one side and then the other, eyeing the way ahead nervously.
“Let Eldris take care of things,” I said, keeping my voice as calm as I could manage. “I trust him, Nyx. He hasn’t let me down yet.”
Nyx squeezed his eyes shut, shaking his head as though trying to dislodge something before opening them again. I tried not to stare at the glowing viridity that lit his gaze from within.
“I can’t think straight,” he whispered. “Frella, what’s happening to me?”
As much as I wished I did, I had no real answers for him.
“It’ll be all right,” I reassured him. “Let’s just worry about getting your new friend to the cave so we can help her.”
It seemed unbelievable that I’d only learned about the existence of the last five remaining dragons a day ago. Everyone in Utrea believed the creatures had been hunted to extinction years ago, after the great purge ordered by the current king’s father as part of a peace agreement with the neighboring Alyrion Empire. Now, I’d managed to blunder into the middle of a drama that rivaled the most fantastical legends ever immortalized in song and verse.
The three soldiers-for-hire I’d met on the trade road to Safaad were hiding a secret—one that could end up getting all of us killed if we weren’t careful. Their leader, Rayth, had unexpectedly come upon a cache of viable dragon eggs some two years previously, and successfully hatched five dragonettes by setting fire to the forest around the cave where the nest was hidden.
He and his two comrades—a dark-skinned giant named Eldris and a silver-tongued shadow called Aristede—had been watching over the beasts ever since, trying to tame them and keep them safe from the king’s bounty hunters. Ultimately, though, the five dragons wouldn’t be safe until they formed soul-bonds with five humans. According to the others, that connection would change them from wild beasts into intelligent partners. Only with the soul-bonds could the dragons understand the necessity of hiding themselves away and remaining undiscovered.
How painfully ironic that more than two years after Rayth had found the nest, Nyx had stumbled in and—to all appearances—fallen directly into a soul-bond with the delicate green female dragon. She had always been skittish, and the others had given her up for dead after she disappeared weeks ago. This new development would have been fine if Nyx were anyone else. In fact, it would have been a blessing. But fate was cruel, and the gods’ sense of humor capricious.
Nyx had been born Leannyck, and some years ago he’d been Rayth’s steward in the Utrean cavalry. He’d been young at the time—sixteen. When he’d lost his nerve and fled during a battle, his moment of cowardice led to the death of three of the soldiers under Rayth’s command. For that, Rayth had never forgiven him. And indeed, after the initial moment of shock when the two unexpectedly came face to face yesterday morning, Rayth had made a rather spirited attempt to kill him.
I’d stopped Rayth from putting a crossbow bolt through Nyx’s heart by the somewhat extreme method of skewering him through the bicep with a small throwing dagger, in order to ruin his aim. Nyx ran away immediately afterward, disappearing into the mountains. That should have been the end of it. Instead, Nyx had stumbled upon the injured green dragon during his headlong flight, and somehow formed a soul-bond with her.
I didn’t have to imagine what Rayth’s reaction to that was likely to be; I could hear it with my own ears as we got closer to the cave entrance.
“Impossible!” he was shouting. “It’s… it must be some kind of trick… a ruse to save that worthless deserter’s life!”
Eldris wasn’t yelling, exactly, but his voice sounded like boulders grinding together, poised on the verge of an avalanche. “Stop and think very carefully before you call me a liar to my face, Prince Rathanii.”
I winced, because, yeah, that was another thing. If Nyx was to be believed, the wine-soaked asshole who’d been rubbing my hackles the wrong way since pretty much the first moment we’d met was actually a prince, and had for some strange reason neglected to mention that tiny fact.
To anyone, judging by Eldris’ reaction.
The beat of silence that followed was answer enough, if you asked me. When the pause threatened to grow too long, Aristede filled it.
“Perhaps we should wait for the others arrive so you can see the situation firsthand, rather than—”
Rayth muttered something low and angry, the words too hushed for me to make out.
“You’re toeing the line with me right now, mate,” Eldris said, in the same dangerous tone of voice as before.
Nyx and the dragon came to a halt behind me, perhaps two-dozen steps from the entrance. I continued forward, setting my jaw in preparation for jumping into the fray. Three pairs of eyes settled on me as I poked my head inside the cave.
“Rayth,” I said, “shut your trap. One of your dragons is badly hurt, and she needs help. Oh, and she’s also not your dragon anymore. She’s Nyx’s dragon now, and Nyx is terrified of you. With good reason, from what I’ve seen. So get the fuck out of this cave for an hour or two. And I swear if you so much as look at him sideways as you leave, I’ll aim my next knife at your princely cock instead of your princely arm.”
Tense silence reigned for the space of several heartbeats.
“What color are the boy’s eyes?” Rayth asked eventually, which was admittedly not high on the list of responses I was braced for.
My eyes narrowed. “He’s not a boy, and they’re glowing with an unnatural green light,” I told him. “They were hazel before, brown with only a small ring of green around the edge of the irises.”
Rayth cursed softly under his breath.
Nyx had evidently gathered his courage to approach the rest of the way. I heard another low rumble of distress from the injured dragon, and turned to find them right outside the entrance.
“Come on, let’s get her inside. It’s fine,” I told Nyx, throwing Rayth a glare that said it had damned well better be fine.
Nyx reluctantly led the dragon through the cave’s opening. I watched Rayth with wary eyes, seeing the instant when he really took it all in and accepted the truth. For a moment, his face paled, and he looked like he’d been punched. Or, more accurately, he looked like a man whose entire world had just been knocked off its axis.
My sympathy for him hovered right on the verge of nonexistence, if I were being perfectly honest.
Aristede frowned and stepped forward, his attention centered on the dragon’s injured side and ripped wing. “This needs sewing, and setting,” he said. He came around to Nyx’s side, with eyes only for the wounds that needed treatment. “I could probably—”
Nyx flinched at his approach, and the dragon arched its neck, hissing. A gout of flame shot from its open mouth, singing the shoulder of Aristede’s jerkin as he ducked to the side with a gasp of surprise.
“Nyx!” I cried, suddenly remembering his unaccountably fearful reaction upon his and Aristede’s first meeting. I still had no idea what was behind Nyx’s distrust, since they’d never met before and Aristede had been nothing but pleasant toward him as far as I’d seen. It didn’t matter, though—the dragon was picking up on Nyx’s fear, and that could have deadly effects for anyone on the wrong end of its fiery defensiveness.
“S-sorry,” Nyx said. “I don’t… I can’t…”
“Nyx, breathe,” I commanded, stepping in front of him to block his view of the others. “Try to stay calm.”
But Nyx looked like he was on his last nerve. “It’s too much! I can’t… keep things straight inside my head.”
He was shaking, despite the warmth of the morning and the remaining heat from the fire inside the cave. I looked back and forth between the four men in the cave and made a quick decision.
“All of you, give them some space,” I told Rayth, Aristede, and Eldris. “Go stand on the far side of the cave until Nyx and I can get the dragon away from the entrance. Then leave.”
Aristede met my eyes and gave a slight nod, backing away.
“You gonna be all right in here alone with the two of them, Frella?” Eldris asked.
“Yeah, don’t worry about me, big man,” I said. “Though I might need you in a bit to run messages back and forth. Aristede, I take it you know something about healing and medicine?”
“Battlefield medicine, yes,” he replied, sounding admirably calm after his recent brush with being flambéed.
“Good,” I said. “I used to assist the healer in my village sometimes, after she got too old to do the physically demanding part of things. But the only thing I’ve ever sewn is cloth. If you think that wing can be stitched up, I’m going to need a quick and dirty education on how to do it.”
He nodded.
“Nyx,” I said, “are you going to let me look at her wing properly? It may hurt her, and it’s going to be up to you to make sure she understands I’m helping, not attacking her.”
He was breathing hard, and when he didn’t answer right away, I took a chance and cupped his cheek, making him look at me with those eerie, glowing eyes. “Nyx,” I said more softly.
Nyx blinked, the glow fading until I could see a hint of his natural eye color behind it.
“Yes,” he managed in a hoarse rasp. “I’ll make sure she understands.”
“Glad to hear it,” I replied dryly, lowering my hand. “Now, let’s get her over to the fire so I’ll be able to see what I’m doing.”
Nyx urged the dragon deeper into the cave, cutting nervous glances at Rayth and the others as he did. To my relief, the three men left quietly once they could get past to the entrance without crowding us. I noticed that Eldris had a hand around Rayth’s uninjured arm, but from the brief glance I was able to spare them, it looked more like support than manhandling.
There were so many invisible riptides swirling beneath the surface right now that I feared being dragged under if I let my focus slip from the task in front of me. Nyx urged the dragon to lie down with her injured side facing the flickering glow of the firelight. She did so clumsily, another small bleat of distress escaping her as her right hind leg crumpled awkwardly on the way down.
I forced myself to take note of everything—she’d been limping on that leg on the way here. Nyx tried to help her the rest of the way down, but even though she was smaller and thinner than the other dragons I’d seen, she was still far too large for him to support. She ended up with her forelegs tucked in front of her and both hind legs stretched out to the side like a resting cat. Her good wing was neatly folded against her body, but the damaged one lay twisted and limp once Nyx settled it carefully on the ground next to her.
I’d been right in my initial assessment —it was not only torn, but also broken. A feeling of helplessness tried to overwhelm the rational side of my mind, but I shoved it down.
“Nyx, help me out here,” I said. “I see a large tear in her wing’s webbing, and at least two broken bones. Also, there are scrapes on her side and underbelly with some scales missing. And whatever’s wrong with her right hind leg. Pretend she’s an injured horse. Tell me if I’m missing anything.”
I was banking on Nyx’s experience as a stablehand, combined with whatever extra insight the soul-bond might give him. My impression from the injuries was that they could have come from either a rockslide or a flying mishap. And while the exact details might not matter, I didn’t want to miss anything major in my concern over her wing.
“There’s swelling over the middle joint in her hind leg,” he said uncertainly. “Could be bruising, or it could’ve gotten twisted. I think those are all the major injuries, though.”
“Are you able to communicate things to her?” I asked. “Can you keep her calm while I straighten out the wing to see where the breaks are?”
His features twisted with worry. “I’m… not sure. Let me do it instead, just in case. She won’t hurt me.”
“All right,” I agreed, crouching down to get a better view of the expanse of scales and webbing as Nyx gently unfurled it. He winced as he did it, his face going pale. My heart sped up in worry. “Nyx… do you feel what she’s feeling right now? Are you feeling the pain from her injuries?”
Because, crap—I was not prepared for that. Would he be able to keep the dragon calm if he were also in pain from the things I was doing as I tried to treat her?
His brows drew together. “Not exactly. It’s—I can’t explain it very well. I can feel that she’s in pain, but it’s not my pain. I don’t feel it in my body… if that makes sense?”
It didn’t—not really—but as long as it meant Nyx wasn’t living through the experience of the dragon’s bones being reset, that was probably a good thing.
“All right,” I told him. “I was just checking. I see three breaks here. Does that seem right to you?”
He was still pale, but he appeared to be coming back to himself a bit now that the others were gone. He nodded.
“I think so.” He pointed. “The second large bone, there, and the first two that look like long fingers, about halfway along… here and here. Is that what you’re seeing, too?”
“It is,” I told him. “I’m going to go talk to Aristede about how best to do this. You just stay here and keep her calm, all right? I won’t bring Aristede here, but I might bring Eldris as far as the entrance so he can ask Aristede any questions I might have while I’m working, and bring back the answers for me.”
Nyx swallowed and pressed the heel of his palm against his right eye socket. “I’m sorry, Frella. I know it would be easier to let Aristede do this. I just… everything’s all tangled up in my head, and I can’t help it. I didn’t mean for her to breathe fire at him like that.”
I tried to smile, but I suspect it ended up being more of a grimace. “I know. I’m sure he knows, too. Now, you two rest for a bit while I go learn how to sew up a torn wing. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
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- 5 stars: 16 (80%)
- 4 stars: 4 (20%)
- 3 stars: 0 (0%)
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- 1 star: 0 (0%)
This book is so hot! Excellent storyline with lots of action and adventure. Nice strong characters. The dragon’s are adorable. Gwendolyn is fantastic.
I absolutely love her writing style! This book is full of steam and adventure. The narration is great and kept me entertained. This author does a great job with the character builds and plots for each of her stories. I have read so many books by this author and always look forward to reading more. I was given a free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
The second installment of the dragon mistress was less about the dragons and more about the soul bonds between the misfits in the group. Sure winning the dragons trust and getting close to them was part of the story, but it was more about the five of them living and working together as a family in that little cave in the mountains. I imagine things will really beast up in the next story!
This book is entertaining, action packed and thoroughly enjoyable. The chemistry between the characters is wonderful. I can't wait for more from this author. I received this book as a FREE copy to read and I voluntarily leave this review.
(This review is for the entirety of the Dragon Mistress series, as they are now all available)I have enjoyed all of the Eburosi Chronicles, but The Dragon Mistress is my favorite arc.We've met Frella in the previous stories, seen her grow up. In The Dragon Mistress she shows that she has become the sassy adult she showed promise of in her youth. She is off on her own adventure, and, much like her sibling and her guardians, that adventure leads her to several lovers and discovering they all have something supernatural in common. The lovers have to overcome their personal issues to be with Frella, and each other (yes, that's a hint, there's M/M).As usual R.A. Steffan interweaves this story with a lot of detail that makes for rich world building. I do suggest reading The Horse Mistress and the Lion Mistress first, as those stories will help you understand the world around this story.
All the books in the series are great reads. Wonderful characters with storylines that keep you wanting more. I highly recommend this series.
After finishing book 1 I jumped right into book 2 to continue the series. The Dragon Mistress book 2 was a great sequel. It furthered the plot lines and we got to know more about the characters and the dragons, which was fun. I liked seeing the story progress and it was another enjoyable read.There is however a lot of waiting in this book. waiting to see what happens, waiting to see if they get discover and waiting to see how some characters will behave. While I didn't mind the slower pace in terms of plot to further more of the relationships and show more about the characters, it also felt that the relationships didn't progress as much as I had hoped, at least at first. Most of both the plot and character progression is toward the end of the book. That made the end action packed and full of excitement, but the rest of the book felt less eventful in comparison. There are plenty of interesting scenes along the way and the author does a good job of speeding up the less eventful parts.At the end of book 1 there is an interesting development regarding Nyx and I was curious to see how that would progress in this book. It sure was interesting how this changed things and the dynamic between the characters. In this book you see Nyx and Frella slowly getting closer and it becomes a bit more clear why Nyx is so broken. For most of the book the pace is a bit more leisurely and I liked the focus on the characters. It was great to see Frella and Eldris grow more comfortable with each other and open up a bit as well.There are some secrets and stories of the past that come to light in this book and I liked how we got to know the men a bit better, but the two big reveals where one of the characters tel their story felt a bit forced and unnatural. I would've liked a bit more build-up or having the confession come from themselves instead of someone else telling them to get over it basically and tell the story. It just felt a bit off to me the way it happened. But I did like that some of these secrets now come to light. And it does explain a lot about the two men who reveal some of their past.Frella is a great main character. I like how she knows what she wants and how she sometimes blurts things out. She has this joy for adventure and jumping right into things, but it becomes clear in this book that she also has been spared much of the cruelty that is out there and she has to face some hard things in this book. I also like how she clearly has how own troubles and fears and those come a bit more toward the surface in this book. I am looking forward to see how she will develop over the course of the series.I didn't really care for the multiple point of views the author did with this book and would've rather stayed with only Frella's point of view. We know the most about Frella and I like seeing things unfold form her point of view. Most of the men their chapters didn't really add much and ruined some of the mystery to me. Their inner thoughts also felt off as they sort of skirt around the secret that Frella doesn't know, which wouldn't make sense for them to do in their own head. I wish it had stuck with just Frella as I didn't really care for havign the additional point of views, I can only hope book 3 goes back to only Frella.While at first the dragon situation mostly stays the same, there are some big developments later in the book. I just wish we knew more of the dragons and dragons riders of the past and how the whole thing worked, but maybe we find out more in future books. There isn't as much furthering of the world building, except for some small tidbits.To summarize: this was a solid sequel and I enjoyed seeing where the story went next. It's another enjoyable read and read through this one quite fast. There are some interesting changes and reveals and secrets that come to light. But I felt most of the big events where clustered toward the end, which made the rest of the book feels a bit slower and less eventful. The ending is packed full of action and developments and I am curious how that will shape the next book. I really like reading about Frella and seeing how she handles things. It also was interesting to see the relationships among the characters develop. Although I found some of the reveals and how they got there feel a bit off and sudden with lack of build-up and then just everything being revealed at once. I didn't really care for the additional point of views in this book, having the men point of views ruined some of the mystery and I didn't think their chapters added much. I would've preferred to only have Frella's point of view. There is a bit more we see of the dragons, which was interesting. All in all I liked how this series continues and am looking forward to book 3.
I re-read book one before starting book two and I Binged it! I couldn’t put it down. Steamy, exciting and totally badass. I want more!
The Dragon Mistress 2 takes up from where the Dragon Mistress ends, and it doesn’t let you go. Our not exactly merry band of 5 has to learn to work together, and it’s a journey for everyone. We get injured dragons, bonding, and a very dangerous bandit attack. While middle installments of multi-volume books can get flabby, this work was trim and promises a great finale. Having read several of Steffan’s books, I feel this could be at least a 4 book series, but I’m not sure how many the author actually has planned.Other books from this author have tended to be from a single character’s point of view. Steffan mixed it up a bit by giving us three different characters’ points of view in this story. It was necessary to move the action along at an interesting pace. I also like how we got to see the other characters and learn of their backstories and character arcs. The prince is presented as a ****, and I don’t mean parentage. I wondered how in the world he would be redeemed as a character. I was definitely with Frella as far as skepticism, but by the end of the book, we get the first hint of things to come.By this point, I’ve been reading Steffan (or more accurately listening to Steffan as performed by Druyor) for three years now. She’s a prolific writer, but this book feels like a level up in some ways because she’s allowing herself to try new things. I would say it’s definitely working, and it’s keeping my interest.Performance-wise, Gwendolyn Druyor brings the high level of skill she always has. My favorite voice in this story is the one she uses for Eldris (in my mind Idris Elba, but not). It is a male version of the lilt she uses for the female vampire Oksana from the Circle of Blood series, and it’s fun to hear.I have a cover art nitpick. It makes better sense to me that the cover where Frella is holding knives should go with the first book where she’s seen using the knives; and the cover with Frella and a crossbow should go for the second book where she’s using a crossbow. I know this won’t change because the art has already changed once. It’s not a deal breaker for the book inside. It was just something that bugged me.Bottom line:The book is for Steffan fans who’ve already read this series.It’s for new fans who like dragons and/or reverse harem fantasy.Caveat: If you’re a new fan, this is not a series where you can skip books. Do yourself a favor and go back to book one. Or... stick around a while and wait for Steffan to release an omnibus edition as she has done with the other series within the Eburosi Chronicles.
I enjoyed this book, like all of those in the Eburosi chronicles. Warning lots of **** of all flavors. But a very good story anyway.
Interesting storyline with a different take of The dragons and their soul bonded riders trying to survive and not be found by the king.
Officially love this series! I have read 2 books today and am downloading the third! Also this book finally got to a good M/M scene that i got Very excited about! Lol. I can't wait to see what happens next!
I love and adore this series. Each book is better than the last. I cannot say it enough, thank you RA Steffen for these books!
The continuation of the saga of Frella, Eldris, Aristede and Rayth along with Nyx are a combine force to be wrecking. The story started a little slow then the battle began to save the species and Frella. Waiting for next installment of Dragon Mistress.
Another great book by RA Steffan! It’s a great story set in a earlier century . Oulaws are saving dragons! They encounter all types of good and bad adventures! I can’t wait to see how they rescue the dragons in Book 3
* Polyamory* Feisty female* Nice range of men and different personalities* 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 H.O.T. **** scenesThis is my first time reading this author and I'm definitely a fan!✔ Descriptive with *believable action and fighting scenes.✔ Smooth prose and witty dialogue.✔ Scorching **** scenes: M/F, M/M/F (book 2) M/F/M (book 1 and 2)I guess this is considered Polyamory? I'm still learning the difference, so forgive my ignorance. But anyways, it's freaking hot. Lol.The best part is how RA Steffan's writes damaged characters with haunted pasts. No one is perfect in this story... ok, maybe Eldris. Haha. But it's a wonderful journey of a "band of brothers" and how their fierce female can help them overcome their demons.Book 3 comes out soon!
I just love how beautifully these characters are portrayed. The back history is rich and not overbearing. As with all the others in this series the world feels extremely realistic. I think honestly it's some of the best world building I've ever seen in a fantasy setting.I also love that the relationships are multifaceted. A lot of RH seems to only center around the female and while I don't mind that it's nice to have variety, and part of what always draws me to RH is the romantic and usually familial bonds the guys make as well. It's always an intriguing dynamic.Can't wait to devour the next book!
The journey continues with the gang. We learn more about their pasts and why they are the way they are.I felt the first half of the book dragged. It was the same circle of drama that happened at the last half of the first book - but we got some info. It picked up at the battle.Writing was good and had an easy flow. I didn't see any errors.Can't wait for the next installment.
I finished the first installment of The Dragon Mistress on a Friday night, right before I was supposed to play video games with my spouse and a friend. Instead, I devoured the next installment in a single evening while they played without me. I regret nothing.The dragons play a larger role in this story, as do Frella's companions. Bits of background and story are being revealed piece by piece, and while some of my predictions have come true, I'm continually surprised by other reveals.With so many characters (including the dragons) packed into such a small space, it might be easy for confusion or for someone to get short shrift. But I feel like I'm getting to know everyone, and this just makes me want to know even more.The climax of this story had me on the edge of my seat. I almost cried when I realized that I'd reached the end of what was currently available in this amazing series. Now I'm anxiously awaiting for book 3's release this summer. You have plenty of time to get caught up so that you can wait along with me.
Second in the Dragon Mistress series and ninth in the Eburosi Saga. This book delves into the characters of the five and how they interact with each other and with their Dragons. It also reveals some of the backgrounds of the men although not all of them, more to come in book three I assume. Ms. Steffan has a wonderful way of getting into the heads of her characters along with her signature wit. There are 4 men and 1 woman and the Dragons are 4 female and 1 male, get the picture? Three of the men have bonded with their female Dragons, the remainder are left to bond with the remaining 2 and that is the crux of the next book. With that of course, there are many complications outside of their little compound; the fact that one of the men is an estranged Prince, his kingdom wants to destroy Dragons, he wants to save them, bandits/mercenaries that hunt Dragons for bounty and an evil brother prince who just wants to have and control everything. Makes for a great tale and one you should definitely read. I have almost all of Steffan's books and she has never disappointed me. You will not be either. Start reading.