Dragon Witch

Rating:
Summary: DRAGON WITCH ~ A SPECIAL STORY!
Review:

One night while a dragon battle rages outside, Lady Christiana struggles to give birth inside the castle walls. S'rdonne, the black dragon is on the brink of successfully destroying his enemy, a much younger golden dragon. The only dragon capable of stopping S'rdonne and his desire to rule over Dragondom as the Great Wyrm. As the mortally wounded golden dragon, plunges to his inevitable death, a girl child takes her first breath and cries. "At that moment, child and dragon become one, bonded irrevocably, eternally." Miraculously, the golden dragon survives.

Tempest, as the child was named, is better known as the Dragon Witch. A title given by her superstitious clansmen, resulting from her unusual birth and healing abilities. Her two allies are Tristan, her father's bastard son and Miriam, her devoted nursemaid and sage counsel. At her coming of age and betrothal, S'rdonne reappears and so does a badly injured Adrian, the golden dragon. What began 16 years ago continues, as Tempest and Adrian's destiny and love unfolds. All the while, they are unknowing pawns in a centuries old game of vengeance, observed and controlled by two game masters via their crystal ball.

This is Dolly Lien's first book and I read it because, frankly, I was intrigued. A dragon lover. Certainly a new concept in a genre with werewolves and vampires aplenty. I have to say unabashedly - I loved it! This author has created an extraordinary world filled with dragons, sorcerers, and witches. Plus, for those that yearn for it (myself included) - a love story to match. This an exceptional book guaranteed to give pleasure to those that have waited a long time for something special and new.

Ms. Lien, I'm waiting for Tristan's story!

Rating:
Summary: What could have been a good story........
Review: Dragon Witch boasts a very intriguing plot: dragons who shapechange, a soulbond that must be denied, an evil sorcerer intend on destruction! Unfortunately, while all those elements are there, the plot itself is so uncontrolled that it is almost impossible to enjoy the story at points. The characterization is one-dimensional and the worldbuilding haphazard at best.

The book shrieks of cliche and poor plotting. For example:
The heroine is hated by her mother. (birth mother, no less!) They bicker and fight. People die and are resurrected because the "gods" don't think that the heroine needed to deal with her actions. The author consistently shies from any and all character-building conflict, changing events through blatant deus ex machina most often.

The dragons are inconsistent and close to unbelievable. There aren't too many of them, and the rules that govern their existence are never explained. The magic of the world seems to draw from wicca practices and, possibly, druidic, but hints are only mentioned in a few places. Most of the time Tempest's amazing supernatural powers are never explained besides the constant refrain of "she's a Dragon Witch!" What exactly a Dragon Witch is the reader is left to wonder -- it seemed that she was just a dragon witch simply because a dragon was fighting as she was being born!

The hero and heroine never actually fall in love, and you certainly never feel that they are *in* love -- the hero feels that he is predestined to marry her, and she clings stubbornly to an agreement her father made -- an excuse that seemed more and more flimsy as the novel moved forward. The sorcerer is vanquished with remarkable ease for someone so old and evil.

To top it all off -- it takes FOREVER to get to the meat of the book. The backstory should have been quartered -- or more, and the characters seemed to wander from room to room, spending lots of time in bed or in the forest when an evil sorcerer was haunting the castle!

It is clear that this is one of Lien's first efforts - she doesn't have a firm control over the characters or the setting. While I intend on reading another Imajinn book before giving up entirely on the imprint, I firmly believe that some major revisions and plot reworking could have made this a remarkable book. This is certainly not a good example of the excellent small press (and electronically published) fiction that is being produced nowadays.

Rating:
Summary: 4 Stars for Dragon Witch
Review: Flame haired Tempest is born to Lord Wendall and Lady Christiana on a day when two dragons, one golden and one black, are battling in the skies above. Just as the evil black dragon S'rdonne seems ready to destroy the golden dragon A'dryan, the mid-wife Miriam removes the caul from the face of the newborn Tempest to allow her to breathe. The cries of the newborn flow into the wounded golden dragon, healing him and binding the two irrevocably, allowing him to send the black dragon fleeing. S'rdonne must wait for another day to kill the last of the golden dragon hatchlings and rule supreme as the Great Wyrm over Dragondom. Thus begins the life of Tempest Sanct Joliet, called "beloved" by her father and "Dragon Witch" by her unforgiving mother, Lady Christiana. But even though Tempest does not have her mother's love, she has allies in others - Miriam, Lady Christiana's healing woman, and Tristan, Tempest's half brother. From the young age of five, Tempest has a shadow hanging over her head - the black dragon S'rdonne, in recognizing the witch's power Tempest has, plots to kill her and steal her power so that he may destroy the last of the golden dragons. When he is unsuccessful, he returns later plotting to make her his slave. But there are other forces at work here. Two immortals are manipulating events and the people like pieces on a chessboard, and the golden dragon L'ysira is determined that Tempest is meant to be her son A'dryan's mate. Shortly after Tempest's 16th birthday, she is betrothed to Lord William, and though she doesn't love him, she knows that the marriage will please her father. Then one day, Tempest finds a severely wounded, handsome young man in the forest and brings him home to help him heal. He does not recall his name or what happened to him so Tempest names him Adrian. Tempest and Adrian are immediately drawn to each other, but they have many obstacles to overcome. Tempest has been pledged to Lord William and Adrian has no memory of who and what he is. The evil S'rdonne is determined to end the life of the young dragon, who has become the young warrior Adrian, and enslave Tempest. This is a story you will have difficulty putting down. Ms. Lien has woven a wonderful tale of fantasy, romance and intrigue. You'll fall in love with the spirited Tempest and the handsome Adrian as danger and intrigue swirls around them! This is a marvelous first novel for Ms. Lien, and if this is an example of what she can write, I'll be standing in line to buy her next book! Karen K.

Rating:
Summary: Bad writing and a cliche' plot...
Review: The summary on the back of the book makes it sound really great, right? That's what I thought too. Basically a romance novel with a little less romance, it combines fantasy and dragons in a world which she hints at the layout of, but never tells you about.

The plot, after reading, folds out to be as cliche' as any other classical fantasy novel. Girl and guy fall in love at first sight (literally), evil wizard tries to kill the protagonist for his girl, the protagonists kill the wizard and all lived happily ever after.

The writing lacks in detail, first off, leaving you outside the world -- wherein a good author wraps you in it. It has a rushed undertone, as may be why there is so little detail in the writing, making it seem so base. The author refers to other cities, the gods, religious ceremonies and other people in the book, but never expands on them at all, leaving you as more of an outsider -- like hearing an inside joke.

Basically a trashy romance novel complete with bad writing and an unknown publisher. There is more "plot" than porn, but even the plot is left lacking. I'll be selling my copy.

Rating:
Summary: An enchanting tale of dragons, an evil sorcerer & true love
Review: The witch: Tempest, born during a storm and a dragon fight, her birth saved the life of the golden dragon which forever bonds the two. As the daughter to the Lord of the keep she has promised to marry another when she meets the man of her dreams - seriously injured, and unable to remember his own name, she names him Adrian and takes home to heal.
The Dragon: Seriously injured, Adrian doesn't remember anything about himself. The only thing he is certain of is that the red headed witch caring for him is his mate.
The Sorcerer: In human form masquerading as a priest to Tempest's betrothed, Sardon is surprised when he discovers the man in her care is none other than the last of the Golden Dragons, whom he thought he had destroyed.

I think Ms Lein has done a wonderful job with this thoroughly engaging story. I was hooked from the beginning and by the end of the book there was no way I could put it down (and expect to sleep) without finishing it. I thought the secondary characters were well written and added a layered effect with the different plots. You fall in love with her half-brother, love her nurse, hate her mother (harsh I know) and are shocked with the trickery Sardon performs to get what he wants. (He is a bad guy you will love to boo!) My only real complaint is that this book has excessive punctuation errors that became confusing at times. There is also narration during the story that at points seems forced and choppy. However this is an awesome dragon tale and I would recommend it in a heartbeat.

Rating:
Summary: An enchanting tale of dragons, an evil sorcerer & true love
Review: The witch: Tempest, born during a storm and a dragon fight, her birth saved the life of the golden dragon which forever bonds the two. As the daughter to the Lord of the keep she has promised to marry another when she meets the man of her dreams - seriously injured, and unable to remember his own name, she names him Adrian and takes home to heal.
The Dragon: Seriously injured, Adrian doesn't remember anything about himself. The only thing he is certain of is that the red headed witch caring for him is his mate.
The Sorcerer: In human form masquerading as a priest to Tempest's betrothed, Sardon is surprised when he discovers the man in her care is none other than the last of the Golden Dragons, whom he thought he had destroyed.

I think Ms Lein has done a wonderful job with this thoroughly engaging story. I was hooked from the beginning and by the end of the book there was no way I could put it down (and expect to sleep) without finishing it. I thought the secondary characters were well written and added a layered effect with the different plots. You fall in love with her half-brother, love her nurse, hate her mother (harsh I know) and are shocked with the trickery Sardon performs to get what he wants. (He is a bad guy you will love to boo!) My only real complaint is that this book has excessive punctuation errors that became confusing at times. There is also narration during the story that at points seems forced and choppy. However this is an awesome dragon tale and I would recommend it in a heartbeat.