This book ruined my sleep schedule. I rarely if ever read summaries, and skim them at best, so I was expecting this to be more high fantasy, but I was delightfully surprised that it was urban fantasy, as I may have overdosed on high fantasy of late. It could have used one more line edit, but the voice and story really made it so that I didn't mind. I will note, this is an urban romantasy thriller if I've ever read one, so if you're a fan of murder mysteries with a bit of magic, this is for you.

Is it a bit slow to start? Yes, but that is true of most fantasy, as worldbuilding is usually frontloaded. This book had me hooked by about chapter 2, though, which is still pretty fast for the genre.

The suspense mingled with the absolute horniness of this book is my kryptonite. I was guessing left and right, but the reveals were done in a way that kept me guessing because there was always more to it. Add in a fun romance and I kept wanting to pick the book up, despite my pesky day job expecting me to do WORK.

I will absolutely be keeping an eye out for the next installation in this series!

NetGalley ARC Educator 550974

This is part one of the series, hopefully. It's Livi and Riley's tale, witch and dragon. Of you're into paranormal, magic and shifter romances, this book's for you. Can't wait for part 2.

Cant wait for the sequel! I need to know more... A brilliant start to a series. A witch, a dragon and a serial killer, what more could you ask for.... Oh yes, a smouldering slow burn. It doesn't get better than this.

I really wanted to enjoy this; I love all things magic living amongst oblivious humans.

It started off very well. The prologue was intriguing and so was the introduction of the main characters but then it went downhill.

I could not feel any chemistry between Livi and Riley. Their backstory was not enough to warrant a deep connection and the main story didn’t help. It all happened in the course of a few days during which they haven’t even spend much time together but were mostly just fantasizing about each other instead. For their connection and chemistry to be credible I’d like to see more getting to know each other and bonding. I’m sure there would be a lot to unpack after 15 years apart.

The plot twists were scarce and not used to their full potential. I would have appreciated more tension buildup and maybe some suspense. I would have loved to see and feel how the events impact the characters.

The pacing felt off, and most of the time it was more fact dumping than getting on with the story or getting to know the characters. I missed the point of including a sexist incident or random sentences in (grammatically incorrect) German. Unfortunately the banter didn’t work for me either, the jokes felt forced and were just not funny.
It also took me a while to understand how the murder subplot fit in the story as it felt detached and wasn’t even that mysterious, (only gory). I enjoyed the last 10-15% though; it finally got exciting as it all came together at the end.

What I also liked was the descriptive language; most of the time I could easily imagine the scene which I find important especially when reading fantasy.

All in all I think both the author and the story have potential but this book would need a lot of editing before I would recommend it.

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This wax a very different take on how shiftrs come to be. Alaska and.. see the prologue. And we have childhood loves that become more.

More with surprising powers and links, but there is also jurders and murderers and issues within families.
So a good plot but not conceived or produced in a way that really appealed enough to me. Too serious maybe? Style too rigid? I shan't read the sequel.

4 ⭐ well earned. Nice book to get out of a reading slump! Mystery, romance, slow burn, HEA - this book has it all.

The beginning is a little bit confusing -you have to learn names- but once this first part is passed, the story is hooking and what I liked is that the end wasn't the one I was expecting.
The main characters are Liv and Riley, and let me tell you, Riley is hot as hell and sweet as candy. He cries for Liv and I LOVE a strong man capable to cry in front of others without feeling shame.

There are just two minor things that bothered me: 1. how the dragon description is. I mean, chapeau to A.J. Wildman for trying to be original, but for me, it's a hard no, I prefer the classical dragons. 2. I really don't like when Liv calls Riley "my dragon" every two seconds, the dragon is a he and he has a name.

Since I love dragons I found it only fitting to read a novel based on dragons. I found this novel thoroughly amusing and entertaining. I would certainly highly recommend it to friends and family.

A little different Fantasy Dragon paranormal romance with action,drama,suspense and romance.
Liked Oliva and Riley.
Was a little slow to get into but in the end it is a good story.
Would read a sequel.
Voluntarily reviewed.

4.75 stars out of 5 stars overall
5 out of 5 spicy stars
4.5 out of 5 reading experience stars
4.5 out of 5 plot stars
5 out of 5 stars for likability of characters

"For anyone who ever doubts themselves and deals with imposter syndrome: catch your stars, folks. Trust me, you'll never regret it" With a book dedication like that, you KNOW this story is going to be amazing.

Excerpt of Book Description: "Dragons are coldblooded things. Prone to violence and doused in magic.
He’s the Protector of his kind, heir to a cursed throne. She’s the one regret that’s stung his heart for nearly two decades. Olivia Probst. His family has called him home to fix his brother, but he’s only there for her. If she’ll have him."
The blurb definitely kept my attention after the word "Dragon" in the title caught my eye. I enjoy stories with dragons in them (except for GOT), particularly stories where the dragon isn't the villain or a brief feature. This book sounded promising with mentions of love, adventure, and some crime fighting, so I was quick to request it.

Reading Experience: I started reading on the NetGalley app, but quickly switched to my Kindle app (purely ended up being a preference issue). I did have some formatting issues with the book on my kindle (unsure if the same issues would be present on the NetGalley app). It was mainly just randomly blank pages (between chapters, thankfully not during one), or a new chapter starting on the same page as the last chapter, or weird spacing. It's mostly a file issue rather than something wrong with the story; however, the formatting issue broke me away from the story.

Plot and Likability of Characters: I enjoyed the plot a lot. The dual perspectives allows the reader to get a better understanding of the FMC and MMC's past. The book begins with a prologue that is key to the story, but honestly I was a little confused by it. It connected to later on in the book and explained everything, but it was confusing and a little difficult to get through. It lost half a star for me in the sense that I felt there could've been more to it. Maybe a deeper explanation as to what a Zauberin is, the history of them, and further exploration of their powers. It felt almost forgotten in relation to the rest of the story. The spice? I was NOT expecting, but boy did I enjoy it.

Overall, I truly enjoyed the book and characters. If there is a sequel, I'll absolutely read it!

Free RC provided by NetGalley in exchange for honest review

This book was really my first in this kind of fantasy, so I thought why not. It was slow in the beginning but once it picked up, there was lost love return, dragons, witches and murder. It was not my favorite book but there were parts I liked. The relationship between Riley and Liv, Riley's family though weird were relatable and I ended up loving them at the end. I thought book lacked some depth, and sometimes lost me between human and creature.

I am still going to keep reading fantasy as I know there is so much out there. Also, I read this book while sick with covid, so I am not sure I was all in.

Thank you to NetGalley for gifting me this book for my honest review.

This was a little slow to hook me, but once I got to know Olivia and Riley I was in there.

Character-wise Olivia is fun and outgoing. Riley is strong, commanding and yummy.

In my opinion, the history of the dragons would have been better in a flash-back type scene after meeting the main characters of this book.

Riley is a talented man, he has powers that are scary and some that we all wish our hubby's had 🔥😀.

"They moved together, two oceans
overlapping, in time with each other’s
heartbeat, both in sync, thumping as
one in their chests."

There's romance and suspense in this book along with steam. ❤️

I'd definitely read another in this series.

3.75 - 4 stars

This book was very enjoyable very quick and easy read super fun I loved the characters so much will definitely recommend.

The Zauberin and the Dragon

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: Romance, Sci-fi and Fantasy

well, an intriguing premise but it didn't live up to potential for me. Some things that bothered me was the transition from cursed mosquitos back to cursed dragons. The transition between “ordinary” carrier and becoming an out of control killer wasn't ever explained – or I missed it. I wanted to know what it was the tipped the balance, was it something they did, a choice they made or just something that happened without their control?
There were some silly spelling/grammar errors too that irritated, not enough to spoil story but enough to stand out.
Riley and Olivia are good as a couple, searingly attracted but I found it hard to believe that a) he broke her heart and b) he seriously expected one kiss and she'd just wait five years because he asked? Despite that I loved the pair of them as a couple, just would have liked events to have had a longer time span, to grow organically.
Riley's family are weird, and the turnaround equally so – I found that hard to believe in.
The story line is quite dark at times, but it fitted the plot and was balanced out by other events, and some subtle humour. There some serious drama building up and a very satisfying ending.

Stars: Three, a mixed bag. Some parts I loved, others were harder to believe in.

ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers

Thank you to NetGalley, AJ Wildman, and
BooksGoSocial for a copy.

An interesting premise, I was eager to start reading. First off, what was a Zauberin? A quick google search showed it it was German for magic/magician/practitioner of supernatural magic. Huh, sounds even MORE intriguing.

However, a couple pages in and I just couldn’t handle what I was reading… 😔
Evil cursed mosquitos? Listen, I live in Canada, they’re bad, but the winter wipes them out. Also, why are they living deep in a cave?

Apparently, once you get through the first few chapters the plot and writing improve. I just couldn’t do it, the premise and confusing prologue/beginning just turned me off the story completely.

So if you can push through the beginning, you’re apparently in for a great story full of romance, action and suspense.

This story is darling, very quick to read and very enjoyable. I liked the characters, they are relatable, they have good chemistry and are real in their emotions. The annoying characters, well, we all probably know people like them, and they were fleshed out well, too. What really made this tale, for me, was the appropriate use of scriptures in the lives of the hero and heroine. Overall, a story to cherish!.

I actually loved this book! The first chapter/beginning was horrible and I almost stopped but I’m glad I kept reading to the part about the actual characters because I really enjoyed it. This book was easy to read, fast paced, and had likable characters. I would definitely read more from this author in the future.