Scan barcode
marilanoire's review
5.0
I really enjoyed this series. It would be really nice if there were more books in this series. I’d love to read about the sister and the sword...
see_sadie_read's review
4.0
3.5
Note: I read/listened to this series while traveling, so I didn't have access to review each individually. So, this is a review for books .5-6.
I’ve read several of Buroker’s books by now and enjoyed them all. The Death Before Dragons series is no exception. I really liked Val and her sarcasm, especially when she bantered with Willard. I loved that she was over 40, even if the fact that she didn’t look it kind of made it only half as satisfying as it would be to have a 40yo heroine who looked her age too. I adored that Val was biologically a mother, but not maternal or raising her child. This is a reality authors very rarely allow female characters, especially ones we’re supposed to like. I appreciate the diversity of the cast. And each of the books wrapped up nicely, which I prefer over an overarching plot where you have to read the whole series to get any conclusive satisfaction. All in all, I would be happy to continue the series.
I did have a few complaints. Some of the humor was over the top silly at times. There was a running joke about the shoes the hero wore and if they made him look gay or not, which trod a little too close to a gay joke for my taste (pun intended). This was somewhat mitigated by a loved and important gay character (who wasn’t cliched). But it shouldn’t be a tit for tat situation. Similarly, Val’s refusal to learn to pronounce the dragons’ names was a sign of rebellion, but it also reminded me a lot of Westerners who can learn to pronounce Dostoevsky but not names from the African continent. Uncomfortably close to a problem, close enough to recognize, but not quite there.
Lastly, I liked Zav and appreciated him as a love interest, but I never truly felt the passion. There was only one sex scene and it was fade to black, so I suppose passion wasn’t the point. But I might have liked to feel the love more strongly.
I stopped at book six because that’s the last the library had. But if I came across book 7 I’d happily read it. But I’m not sad to have a break here either.
Note: I read/listened to this series while traveling, so I didn't have access to review each individually. So, this is a review for books .5-6.
I’ve read several of Buroker’s books by now and enjoyed them all. The Death Before Dragons series is no exception. I really liked Val and her sarcasm, especially when she bantered with Willard. I loved that she was over 40, even if the fact that she didn’t look it kind of made it only half as satisfying as it would be to have a 40yo heroine who looked her age too. I adored that Val was biologically a mother, but not maternal or raising her child. This is a reality authors very rarely allow female characters, especially ones we’re supposed to like. I appreciate the diversity of the cast. And each of the books wrapped up nicely, which I prefer over an overarching plot where you have to read the whole series to get any conclusive satisfaction. All in all, I would be happy to continue the series.
I did have a few complaints. Some of the humor was over the top silly at times. There was a running joke about the shoes the hero wore and if they made him look gay or not, which trod a little too close to a gay joke for my taste (pun intended). This was somewhat mitigated by a loved and important gay character (who wasn’t cliched). But it shouldn’t be a tit for tat situation. Similarly, Val’s refusal to learn to pronounce the dragons’ names was a sign of rebellion, but it also reminded me a lot of Westerners who can learn to pronounce Dostoevsky but not names from the African continent. Uncomfortably close to a problem, close enough to recognize, but not quite there.
Lastly, I liked Zav and appreciated him as a love interest, but I never truly felt the passion. There was only one sex scene and it was fade to black, so I suppose passion wasn’t the point. But I might have liked to feel the love more strongly.
I stopped at book six because that’s the last the library had. But if I came across book 7 I’d happily read it. But I’m not sad to have a break here either.
koops333's review
4.0
3.75
Sorry, not exactly relevant to the story, but random fun regardless. Still...RTC
"Later, I would find him a T-shirt that said he was my #1 Dragon."
Sorry, not exactly relevant to the story, but random fun regardless. Still...RTC
sionna's review
5.0
Another great addition to this series! There is some major movement in the relationship and even in the plot! I have no idea where this story is going to go now-- are there any loose threads hanging around that I've forgotten about?! Perhaps we will enter a new arc or get a new enemy.
It is fantastic how through the series, we see Val's life changing and adapting with the friends she makes. She isn't stagnant, always in the same place, doing the same thing. It really helps make her and the other characters feel more realistic.
It is fantastic how through the series, we see Val's life changing and adapting with the friends she makes. She isn't stagnant, always in the same place, doing the same thing. It really helps make her and the other characters feel more realistic.
monadh's review
5.0
I would love to read more stories in this world!
I admit it: I felt compelled to write this review so that this book won’t be the last in Lindsay Burokers riveting and entertaining Urban Fantasy series Death Before Dragons.
This is the 6th installment in the series and I jumped on it as soon as it was released after reading the first five books in the space of less than a week.
In a way if follows the setup of the previous books where the heroine, Val is tasked with a dangerous mission to save the earth. Earth in general (and Val in particular) continues to be plagued by unfriendly dragons, the only exception to this is Val’s sort of boy friend Zav, who is like an enforcer of the dragon council. The dragon homeworld is beset by an internal power struggle among the ruling families, and the conflict has spilled over to other worlds, among them earth. This may be Val’s most dangerous mission yet, but not entirely unexpectedly she succeeds, thanks to the help of friends and her own ingenuity.
The book wraps up the overarching thread of the dragon conflict, Val finally get her living situation sorted and she even starts to do some home improvement. She also gets to spend more time with her daughter and her relationship with her ex-husband and mother are also on the mend. And last, but not least, she also gets to finally bang her dragon, after we as readers have been teased with deferred gratification over the previous 5 books.
So in a way many of the lose threads have been wrapped up, but Val has also grown as a person. She started out as this solitary government assassin that was estranged from her family and had practically no personal relationships to speak of, but in the course of her adventures, she not only was reconciled with her family and even found new family members, she also deepened existing bonds with her boss, and her magical arms manufacturer and friend Nin, and even fostered new friendships with various creatures from the magical world and assumed the role of foster parent / guardian to an orphaned troll.
I feel there are many stories left to tell, like the origin story of Val’s magical blade and what it can do, how mated life is with her dragon (now that they are finally officially hitched), the stories of her elven father and half-sister, whether her boss, Colonel Williard is going to give the prehistoric shifter who has a thing for her, a chance, whether the dark elves return to cause more trouble and whether Nin can save enough money to buy a house and bring her family over.
I, for one, would love to read more stories in this world!
I admit it: I felt compelled to write this review so that this book won’t be the last in Lindsay Burokers riveting and entertaining Urban Fantasy series Death Before Dragons.
This is the 6th installment in the series and I jumped on it as soon as it was released after reading the first five books in the space of less than a week.
In a way if follows the setup of the previous books where the heroine, Val is tasked with a dangerous mission to save the earth. Earth in general (and Val in particular) continues to be plagued by unfriendly dragons, the only exception to this is Val’s sort of boy friend Zav, who is like an enforcer of the dragon council. The dragon homeworld is beset by an internal power struggle among the ruling families, and the conflict has spilled over to other worlds, among them earth. This may be Val’s most dangerous mission yet, but not entirely unexpectedly she succeeds, thanks to the help of friends and her own ingenuity.
The book wraps up the overarching thread of the dragon conflict, Val finally get her living situation sorted and she even starts to do some home improvement. She also gets to spend more time with her daughter and her relationship with her ex-husband and mother are also on the mend. And last, but not least, she also gets to finally bang her dragon, after we as readers have been teased with deferred gratification over the previous 5 books.
So in a way many of the lose threads have been wrapped up, but Val has also grown as a person. She started out as this solitary government assassin that was estranged from her family and had practically no personal relationships to speak of, but in the course of her adventures, she not only was reconciled with her family and even found new family members, she also deepened existing bonds with her boss, and her magical arms manufacturer and friend Nin, and even fostered new friendships with various creatures from the magical world and assumed the role of foster parent / guardian to an orphaned troll.
I feel there are many stories left to tell, like the origin story of Val’s magical blade and what it can do, how mated life is with her dragon (now that they are finally officially hitched), the stories of her elven father and half-sister, whether her boss, Colonel Williard is going to give the prehistoric shifter who has a thing for her, a chance, whether the dark elves return to cause more trouble and whether Nin can save enough money to buy a house and bring her family over.
I, for one, would love to read more stories in this world!
sarzwix's review
4.0
This would be 5 star, I really enjoyed it. Finally, finally the romance gets somewhere, although I wouldn't have objected to a more Ruby-Lionsdrake-ed version of that scene... (If you read this Lindsay, a compilation/anthology of scenes from your books written by 'Ruby' would definitely be welcome!)
However. I had to remove a star for the suggestion that this might be the last book in the series. Even though there are still stories that need to be told - the sword, the sword! for a start. It has powers we still don't know about! And what about the elvish stuff, I'm sure there's more to know there? And what about Nin, she's gotta get her romance? And Freysha, I'm sure things must be about to happen to her that we all need to know about?
Ugh. Imagine me as Oliver Twist, hands out, "Please ma'am, can we have some more?"
However. I had to remove a star for the suggestion that this might be the last book in the series. Even though there are still stories that need to be told - the sword, the sword! for a start. It has powers we still don't know about! And what about the elvish stuff, I'm sure there's more to know there? And what about Nin, she's gotta get her romance? And Freysha, I'm sure things must be about to happen to her that we all need to know about?
Ugh. Imagine me as Oliver Twist, hands out, "Please ma'am, can we have some more?"
julieannec's review
5.0
Excellent read and nicely ties up all the characters into a satisfying conclusion. There is room for more as the author herself suggested. I concur. Go Lindsay!
A magical cure for Val’s asthma might be good too.
A magical cure for Val’s asthma might be good too.
More...