Review: I need a highland dragon!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 09 5, 2013
Somewhere in modern day Scotland a dragon shifter awakens from a deep sleep.His cave is intact and yet things  are not as they should be. Many years ago he had agreed to share his life force and body with the mage Lachlan Moncrieffe.Poor Kheladin has somehow slept for over three hundred years and the world is an inhospitable place. Lachlan convinces him that he should take form and seek out answers to their questions. Why did they sleep so long and does their evil adversary Rhukonstill exist in this time.Lachlan is horrified as he explores the surrounding countryside that so much has changed and by chance is found by  Maggie who is spending a year working on a psychiatry fellowship nearby. Her appearance is a shock as this new world allows scantily clad females to roam in public! Even more surprising is her sassiness and confidence, a woman quite unlike any that Lachlan has ever before encountered. Maggie is intrigued by this stranger and feels drawn to him. In an effort to understand him better she offers to get him a meal and tries to unravel this oddity of a man. His dress and behaviour hark back to much earlier times and his reactions awaken suspicions in her that maybe Lachlan is exactly what he appears to be, a man from a different time!Trusting in her instincts Maggie sets out to help Lachlan. Their mutual attraction is off the charts but Maggie is a woman who has always guarded her heart. Luckily for Lachlan Maggie comes from a long line of witches and although she tries to deny her heritage her innate instincts prove invaluable. It quickly becomes apparent that Rhukon the fabled black dragon has also survived into this modern time and his actions are affecting the environment . His hatred for Kheladin and the body he shares with Lachlan has not diminished and time is not on their side.This was completely different to any other dragon shifter book I have ever read. Both Kheladin and Lachlan are separate individuals and truly sentient. They just happen to share a body that through ancient magic can transform them into their true selves. It's not a case of a man with an animal inside ,its truly " one flesh" . Either one or the other appear . I'm sure others may have tried this concept but Ms. Gimpel has succeeded in making it simple to grasp.Lachlan is one very sexy man! His libido is definitely unquestioned but its his depth of character that springs from the page. His unselfish actions make him a hero to truly drool over and his playful counterpart Kheladin just adds to the mix. I loved the character Maggie as she's full of life and unafraid  to stand up for what she believes. She has overcome a harrowing childhood loss and continues to help others.Myriad characters abound. From cantankerous witches to irascible gods this story has it all.Yet again this talented author has written a book that's a deight to read. The writing flows so easily that it would be a crying shame to miss it.Definitely recommended!