Rating: 3.5 stars
Buy Link: Amazon | iBooks | Amazon UK
Length: Novel
Zale loves his life as a dragon rider and training with his brothers. He has everything he needs…except his mate. Zale knows that his mate is out there somewhere, but after seeing his oldest brother, Azaran, find his mate, Zale is feeling a little alone. Some time at the beach with his dragon is exactly what Zale needs, until both Zale and his dragon are kidnapped. With the dragon locked away, Zale is more alone than ever. Except…his captor just happens to be his mate.
Davis is a dragon hunter. He’s good at what he does and he never misses his target. However, when he captures Zale and his dragon, Davis learns that nothing is as it seems and his work has been built on lies. And, of all the things, as soon as Zale looked into his eyes, Davis knows who he is—his mate. Davis has some explaining to do as the men both realize that there is something truly wrong going on and, if they join forces, they can right the wrongs while becoming stronger together.
On the surface, this is an easy read about fated mates and their dragons. The characters are interesting, the dragons all have fun personalities, and I enjoy seeing the men find their mates. This is the second book out of four in the Brotherhood of the Ormarr series and it works best to read them in order, both for the character connections and the larger plot.
We met Zale in book one as he lives and trains with his brothers. He’s feeling a bit down and restless and a walk to the beach turns disastrous as he is kidnapped. The book opens with an enemies-to-lovers vibe as Zale in kidnapped by the man that is his mate, although neither knows it at the start. Davis believes he is doing the right thing, but quickly learns he and his family are being lied to.
The best part of this series for me is the men finding their mates and also the dragons. The dragons all have personalities and the authors show the bond that each man has with their dragon. The men fall for each other at first sight, but the fated mates aspect is highlighted well and makes it work.
The larger plot is not working out as well for me here and it’s not all clear what is going on. The brothers belong to a Brotherhood, where Azaran should be the leader, but he is not old enough yet. This leaves his uncle in charge. There is also an Order and dragons are being kidnapped and turned into wraiths and we know from book one that an unnamed person is trying to divide the group and cause unrest from within. It all reads as weak to me as it not really explained well what is going on. It feels to me that besides finding their mates, the men needed something else to do, and while this was what was chosen, it is not where the strength of the storytelling is.
I would really like more world building in many areas about their world in general, their dragons (how do they get them), and definitely more about the Brotherhood and the Order, as what we are given is superficial and there is way too much missing or not explained well for me. I do enjoy seeing the brothers at home and the family they have made for themselves, as well as visiting the island Davis is from and seeing the dragons and watching the men find their mates. It’s that aspect of the series I will continue to read on for to see the last two brothers find their happiness as well.
