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Friday, July 17, 2015

Book Review: Burned by Darkness (Dragons of Eternity #1) by Alexandra Ivy

Burned by Darkness (Dragons of Eternity #1)
by Alexandra Ivy
Kindle Edition, 179 pages
Published June 30th 2015
by Deborah Raleigh, LLC
The Dragons of Eternity were once creatures of myth and legend. Now they’ve returned to the world, prepared to claim what’s rightfully theirs…

Tayla is desperate for a place to call home. After years on the run, the young imp impulsively buys a teahouse and is determined to build a new life. Unfortunately, she’s barely opened the doors when she’s tracked down by the dragon who purchased her from troll slave-traders. He demands she pay off her debts…in his harem.
Baine has devoted a quarter of a century to tracking down his beautiful concubine. And now that he has her in his grasp, he’s not about to let her go. But it’s soon apparent that he isn’t the only demon hunting her. He must uncover her secrets or risk losing her forever.

$2.99

An imp on the run, Tayla spent years avoiding capture yet she always yearned for a home of her own. Determined to have her own life, she impulsively buys a teahouse and tries to start her own business but before she can start over, the dragon who purchased her from slavers shows up at her doorstep demanding she pay off her debts.

After searching for his latest acquisition for 25 years, Baine is in no mood to argue. Tayla is his concubine for as long as it takes her to work off her debts and he’s determined not to let her out of his sight anymore. But Baine is not the only one who wants Tayla, someone else wants to destroy the imp for unknown reasons.

The great thing about Burned by Darkness is that while it’s the first in an all new series, author Alexandra Ivy didn’t spend pages and pages explaining everything in this new world the story took place in. It all felt familiar while still being something new and Ivy kept everything at a swift but generous pace. It’s why I love her books so much, she doesn’t babble on and on in places where a few succinct sentences will do.

Burned by Darkness had an arrogant alpha male who thought the sun rose and set on his perfect smile and that all women wanted him. Baine had the well known arrogance of a dragon, complete with the “I’m a sex god” complex. He was just so darn serious when he would voice his obvious superiority over pretty much anyone that I couldn’t dislike him. He was so sexy even when he was delusional about what he could control, which was Tayla.

Tayla was no weeping female. She may have been sold to an arrogant dragon but she wasn’t just going to roll over and die. I loved her intelligent and caring nature that sometimes got her into trouble but the best part of Tayla was her unwillingness to submit to the fate that had been forced on her. She was a fighter and she demanded that Baine treat her better than just another treasure to add to his horde. That’s a good paranormal heroine for you, and Alexandra Ivy knows that’s what her readers want: A heroine who can be brave, tough, smart and self sufficient but also vulnerable, frightened and angry.

Ivy knows where readers’ true affection lies though, and that’s with a very familiar character who continues his unique brand of mischief in Burned by Darkness. To me that was a good move on the author’s part, putting the darling of the Guardians of Eternity series in this new series. He served as an attention getter and as a link to the Guardians.

The Dragons of Eternity series is off to a strong start. It seems to be similar to the Guardians series except with dragons this time around. Not necessarily a bad thing but if you’re looking for something different from the previous series then this isn’t it. That didn’t bother me though. The mystery of just who was after Tayla and why served to force Tayla to rely more and more on Baine for help which in turn helped take them from Master and Slave to Lovers, something I feel would not have happened without that particular plot twist. 

Ivy crafts a fun, paranormal romance with a sexy alpha male and a take no crap female and while this book may have a slight connection to the Guardians series, there’s no need for new fans to worry, Burned by Darkness can be read as a standalone. There’s plenty to experience in and I’m curious to see if the half breed dragons like Baine’s friend Char, get their own stories as well. 

4 Sheep





Adria


About Alexandra: 
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Alexandra Ivy is the New York Times bestselling author of the Guardians of Eternity series, the Immortal Rogues series and the Sentinels.

Alexandra graduated from Truman University with a degree in theatre before deciding she preferred to bring her characters to life on paper rather than stage. She currently lives in Missouri with her extraordinarily patient husband and teenage sons.

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