Review: Ms Lucas does a wonderful job catching stray threads and turning them into a wonderful tapestry.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 01 29, 2014
Originally Reviewed For: Tea and BookI admit it, I am a sucker for a dragon story. I can't help it.. dragons are cool. I have been intrigued by dragons most of my life. As a matter of fact, I don't remember ever not being crazy about them. And that was back in the day when dragons always lost in battle to the good guys. You just have to ask, who declared the dragons the bad guys? Fortunately for me dragons are in. They are cool are they still top of the food chain? You betcha.. just now as in all species, there are good dragons and bad dragons.From This Day Forward by Mackenzie Lucas is book two in her Derkesthai Academy Dragon Shifter Series. This series is based around the town of Mystic Spring and the Academy that has been built there. Mystic Springs is home of a pretty interesting magical community so building a Dragon Academy there just makes sense. Of course being a magical community it draws all sorts there..April Easton is a modern day oracle only she would rather just be a wife and mom. She accepts, in theory, her heritage but she doesn't like it when her talents include her. Having watched her Father walk out on her when she was a child and seeing her mother slowly fall apart, April doesn't trust easily. She also protects herself with the ever smiling, happy, positive woman. Always ready to please. No one ever sees the dark stuff inside. Of course that can be crippling all by itself. Even in her marriage she keeps part of herself back. It doesn't help that she married a military man, who leaves her alone for long periods of time. Or that he's a dragon and dragon law forbids a male dragon to live with children under five. So once a child is born, he needs to leave it until that child is five, or the youngest one is. So in a nutshell, a woman who is afraid of people leaving her marries a man who chooses a military career AND is a dragon... yeah that won't feed on any insecurities.Noah Easton, a Special Forces dragon shifter has spent the past ten years of his life serving the "mundanes" he feels that saving the world is saving the world, doesn't matter if it is for mundanes or magicals. But now he has been captured and something is off. All he wants to do is get back to his wife and daughters. To make sure they are safe and to be the husband and father they need.An interesting concept. There is no falling in love in this book. There is a couple who is committed to each other. Who believe in each other and who want to be with each other. Kind of sexy in and of itself. But as all couples have, they have issues. Some stem from Noah's job, his absence. But most stem from April's refusal to completely trust her talents. To accept her past and let it go, to accept that she can be angry, that she can be tough that she doesn't always have to smile.But there is so much more to this book. April and Noah are part of a much bigger plot. Someone is stealing Dragon Hordes and Noah is in the line of fire. His capture wasn't military based it was magically based. And the root of the problem, well this problem is based right there in Mystic Spring.. Of course the root of this problem is only part of the whole problem. And that is where the series begins to tie in. Ms Lucas does a wonderful job catching stray threads and turning them into a wonderful tapestry. A compelling story that makes you want more!Another book, I want to just go on and on about. This is a discussion worthy book. I love when an author tickles my brain.ShauniThis review is based on the ARC of From This Day Forward, provided by netgalley.