Hi there! Today I’m excited to share an excerpt, review and giveaway for a new paranormal romance from best-selling author Donna Grant. FIRESTORM is the tenth book in her Dark Kings dragon shifter romance series, and features a solitary dragon falling for the archeologist who lovingly uncovers the skeleton of one of his lost comrades. Though this book is part of a larger series, it mainly features the love story of this couple. I’ve read book nine, SMOKE AND FIRE, and liked it enough to read on in the series.
Be sure to enter the giveaway below for your chance to win a signed copy of DRAGON FEVER, or an ebook.
About the book:
SCORCHED BY DESIRE
Dimitri lives to protect the secret of the Dragon Kings from the human race. Bound by a bond stronger than blood to the Kings, Dimitri uses his strength and prowess to defend a thousand-year-old secret. But when an oh-so-sexy, slightly absent-minded archaeologist wanders into his midst, Dimitri will have to give up his rules, and give in to desire…
When Dr. Faith Reynolds stumbles upon an ancient skeleton that appears it comes from a dragon, she’s completely taken aback. A woman of science, there’s no way in her mind that this mythological creature can exist. But when a devilishly handsome man named Dimitri intercepts her path to uncovering the truth, Faith’s curiosity turns into all-consuming passion. She’s never felt this way about any man before. But when Dimitri reveals his biggest secret, can she learn to love the man—as well as the dragon within?
How about a little taste?
Dmitri still hadn’t decided about Faith Reynolds. Her dedication to her job was unquestioned. He wasn’t accepting her answer of just finding the cave, though.
To have chosen this cave above any others? This one, which happened to have a dragon skeleton inside?
While he’d walked the site after meeting Dr. Reynolds, he overheard conversations. Many of the volunteers didn’t believe it was a dragon. They suspected it was a new species of dinosaur. The few locals he saw milling about were curious, wondering how the new find would help tourism.
He spotted a few “crazies” as Tamir called them, watching from a distance, but no one got close. Though he was curious about the two men Tamir had encountered earlier.
The way Tamir had acted as he spoke about the incident made Dmitri wonder if word hadn’t somehow reached the Dark Fae.
Or Ulrik.
Once volunteers began leaving for the night, Dmitri found himself climbing back down to the cave. He’d expected to find Faith shutting things down for the day, but she continued to work.
He didn’t want to be intrigued by her, but he was. If only his fascination had to do with how she’d found the dragon. He would discover what had led her to the skeleton, but that wasn’t what kept his gaze locked on her.
It’s not what kept his body strung tight as a bow.
She was average height, but there was nothing typical about her looks. Much to his dismay. His tastes ran toward the Fae since he preferred to stay away from humans. Yet, there was no negating the fact that lust burned through his body from the first moment her sherry eyes locked with his.
There was a . . . simplicity about Faith that he appreciated. No makeup was needed to enhance her natural beauty. At first glance, she seemed almost ditzy since her mind ran a million miles a second, but her intelligence and zest for life were apparent with one look.
Her sandy blond hair hung straight and glossy to her shoulders and was parted to one side with long bangs that she swiped out of her eyes repeatedly. The locks tantalized him by exposing the slender column of her neck and the delicate skin behind her ear.
Unblemished fair skin beckoned him to touch, to caress.
To lick.
He clenched his teeth at the need that surged through him. When she turned, he watched the pulse at her throat and fought the longing to press his lips against it to feel the warmth of her body.
Her oval face held a look of innocence and excitement he hadn’t seen in a long time. While her high cheekbones and sensual mouth added to her beauty, it was her eyes that caught him. They looked at the world as if it were a large sandbox waiting to expose its treasures.
His palm still prickled from their brief touch earlier. The shock that had gone through him had been electric. The charge surged through him faster than lightning and left him reeling—and aching for more.
Unable to look away, he watched as she stood and then bent over at the waist. The sight of her firm ass high in the air had the blood rushing to his cock. No mortal had ever had such an effect on him before. It unsettled him—and angered him.
He forced his eyes away and turned his mind to more pressing matters. He’d been sent because of the skeleton, but there was something about Faith that didn’t seem to add up.
The most important question: how had she known where to look to find the bones?
Faith became so engrossed in her work that she didn’t hear others talking to her. Even when Tamir called her name, she was often too preoccupied with digging up the skeleton.
Dmitri had watched her for hours. In that time, he’d listened to her hum and watched her touch the bones with such reverence that it shook him.
Though he’d come to the cave to watch her, it gave him time with the skeleton, as well. By the size, he knew it was an adult. Which of his dragons had gotten left behind? They’d been his responsibility, and he’d failed.
The longer he stared, the more he felt the weight of regret. The world had been created for the dragons. It was their birthright, their home.
Yet they were no longer welcome.
And he feared nothing would ever change that.
The Dragon Kings who found mates with human females were lucky. Those mortals welcomed the dragons and the Kings. But most of the globe was made up of individuals who wanted nothing more than to destroy the Dragon Kings, imprison them, or run tests on them.
So he and the others remained hidden.
But the dragon inside him—the fierce, savage creature that he was—silently cried out for revenge. And his family.
My Review:
Dr. Faith Reynolds, an archeologist working a Fair Isle dig, has discovered a new world–in the form of a dragon skeleton. She’s sure this is a bona fide discovery, but most of her crew is skeptical, thinking it’s likely a new species of dinosaur. Dmitri, Dragon King of the Whites, knows this “find” is one of his family, somehow left behind and hidden eons ago after he’d ushered all the rest of his dragons through the portal that removed them from Earth and the humans that were constantly attacking.
Dmitri has never forgotten the anguish of sending his family on, and never bedded a mortal human in all these years. Still, he’s struck by Faith, and her quiet, studious ways. She wants to uncover the truth of her find, and that gets to the heart of Dmitri in ways he hadn’t expected. Dark Fae are about, messing and meddling with the humans, leaving two dead over the course of several storms that slow Faith’s pace on the site–but gives Dmitri and Faith time to bond–especially once Faith is attacked by the Dark Fae and Dmitri is compelled to rescue her.
I liked how they built a rapport of mutual esteem before it got physical, and I liked how Faith was willing to accept the truth of Dmitri’s heritage, too. It was interesting how the falling in love part happened quick, and there was time for more dangerous complications once Dmitri and friends got the skeleton back to Dreagan. For readers of the series, there is a lot of good stuff happening with previous couples, and naturally, Ulrik–the banished dragon who’s been stirring up lots of conflict–is back for more. As we near the end of this series, the conflict between Constantine and Ulrik seems to creep ever-nearer. This time, however, there were serious mind games happening, which made all the convictions to stay hidden and live secretly within human society seem foolish–and I liked that serious introspection. I also liked getting more of the backstory behind Con and Ulrik and what tore the rift between them. I’m anxious to see if Constantine finds a human to love, which I anticipate will be a big part of the end of this series. For readers new to the books, I felt the catch up in backstory was adequate for all this to make sense, more so that when I read SMOKE AND FIRE, so I’d recommend it to anyone who thinks dragon shifters are hot–and want to watch one fall for a studious and conscientious woman.
Interested? You can find FIRESTORM on Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, BAM, IndieBound, iBooks, Kobo, Audible, and Tantor Audio. I received a review copy of this book via NetGalley.
****GIVEAWAY****
Click on this Rafflecopter giveaway link to enter for your chance to win a signed copy of DRAGON FEVER, or an ebook.
Good luck and keep reading my friends!
About the Author:
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Donna Grant has been praised for her “totally addictive” and “unique and sensual” stories. Her latest acclaimed series, Dark Kings, features a thrilling combination of dragons, Fae, and immortal Highlanders who are dark, dangerous, and irresistible. She lives with her two children and an assortment of animals in Texas.
Catch up with Donna on her website, Facebook, twitter, Goodreads, Pinterest, Tumblr, Audible, and Tantor.
Sounds fun. Love the cover.
Me too! They are definitely eye-candy…