Review: Good debut - 3.75 stars
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 09 14, 2013
Very brief synopsis - Lucy is determined to help her twin brother Joey out of yet another jam caused by his gambling habit. The help involves setting up the heist of some jewels from Alec, a Las Vegas casino owner. Who, by the way, happens to be a dragon. And it seems Lucy is his destined mate. And the guy who is harassing Joey to steal the jewels is Alec's arch enemy. Tangled web, much?I liked the set up. Lucy is a world renowned gemologist who has been retained to appraise Alec's collection of jewels. As per collective mythology, the dragons are attracted to treasure, to shiny, sparkly things, and to decadent wealth. To that end, Alec has erected the Crown Jewel Casino, complete with a dragon themed show. Hiding in plain sight, so to speak. The language is descriptive and concise. I like the inclusion of the accepted dragon traits, as well as the addition of some traits unique to this world.What worked - An awful, awful lot worked. The writing was crisp, the plot was interesting, the prose was straightforward and funny. The world building was seamless and effortless. No big info dumps, just a good weaving of this particular world's mythology into the story. There was not a lot of backstory for the dragons, but it didn't feel like I needed more information than the author provided.Alec, king of the dragons, is as alpha as you might expect. However, he is also considerate and patient. When Lucy hurts him, he is so angry, so hurt. His pain radiates off the page. Very well done.Great secondary characters - Anxious to see more from Darius and Mei, Lil, and Jane. I am left wondering who will get the next story? Will it be Joey, who is currently being chased down by one of the female dragons?Lucy worked at the end of the book, once she gave up on trying to save her brother. She was genuinely remorseful for the gross stupidity she showed throughout most of the novel.What didn't work so well - Okay, I am an only child, so maybe I don't get the sibling bond, particularly the twin bond, but gee whiz, the heroine crossed so many freaking lines to save her brother. The lengths Lucy went to for her brother defied my believability meter. I get that the trouble with the brother was a plot device, and the lesson of not being able to control another person's actions is a good one. I just felt like Lucy's willingness to go against her better judgment went a few steps too far. Even so, she was a likeable character, for the most part.Bottom line - Time well spent. Chances are good I will pick up the next novel in the series. I liked the writing style quite a bit. Overall, a good read.***A copy of Luck of the Dragon was provided to me by the author in exchange for an honest review.