The Dragon Who Loved Me (The Dragon Kin #5) by G. A. Aiken
Review by Cynthia F. (frazerc)
I love Shelly Laurenston, even when she’s being G.A. Aiken. Maybe especially when she’s being Aiken since that is pen name she writes her Dragon Kin books under. As always, these books are full of quirky characters, lots of action, fun [and frequently snarky] dialog set in a complex world full of dragons, mages, humans and witches. And the gods, LOTS of gods, each with their own agendas. The living embodiment of the Chinese curse: ‘May you live in interesting times…’
The hero is Vigholf, brother to Ragnar [hero of the last book], and seemed a somewhat typical Northerner in the last book. In this one you become aware of his intelligence, and the fact that his people skills are at least as strong as his warrior skills.
The heroine is Rona, one of the many Cadwaladr cousins. Despite the fact that all her siblings [and her mother the general] are Dragonwarriors or are soon to be so, Rona is a sergeant. She likes being a sergeant. Sergeants do what they’re told; they don’t make policy, or decisions, or disobey orders because they think their way is better. It leaves her more time to do the important things: like taking care of her siblings, her cousins, and fighting with her mother.
The story starts five years after the end of the last book. The dragon war against the Iron dragons and the human war against the Quintilian Provinces are both stalemated, Garbhán Isle is under attack and the Gods have decided to stir things up.
Queen Annwyl deserts her troops and heads deep into the Quintilian Provinces [accompanied by Izzy and a young dragon] to foment rebellion…
Kieta and Ren [with Rona and Viegholf] head back to Garbhán Isle to rescue the twins…
The Dragon Queen orders Rona to retrieve Annwyl so she and Vigholf march off to the Quintilian Provinces to repossess the obviously insane queen…
And then things start to get intense!
Warning these books are VERY connected, reading them out of order is NOT recommended.
Dragon Kin
0.0 Grandfather Ailean’s story ‘Can’t Get Enough’ appears in Everlasting Bad Boys (with Cynthia Eden and Noelle Mack)
0.5 “Dragon on Top” in Supernatural
1. Dragon Actually which contains the short story Chains and Flames – chronologically this appears between ‘Can’t Get Enough’ and Dragon Actually
