Book Review: Kiss of Fury by Deborah Cooke

A scientist on the run. A reluctant dragon-protector. A firestorm that will not be ignored.

After reading the first Dragonfire book, I knew I would want to read the next book. Sexy, free-spirited Donovan Shea had caught my attention and I wanted to see more of him, and his book Kiss of Fire, second book in the series, did not disappoint.

Alex is a brilliant scientist who has invented The Green Machine, an eco-friendly car who will be able to run on salt water. After her lab was destroyed, and her partner tortured and killed by sadistic Slayers (bad dragons in this book), Alex is on the run, not entirely sure of her own sanity, after all she is seeing dragons, but desperate to meet the deadline for her invention.

Donovan, on the hand, is sent to protect her, not knowing that she is his firestorm, the human that will be able to mate with him and give him a dragon child. With his own childhood issues of parental abandonment, Donovan is determined not to consummate the firestorm, not matter how much he finds the human sexy and attractive.

Meanwhile, the battle for the world’s survival between the Pyr (good dragons) and the Slayers (bad dragons) is escalating to scarier proportions as the Slayers use dark magic to create zombie-like dragons of friends and family members of the Pyr. To ensure their victory, Alex and Donovan will need to face their fears, embrace their destinies as Wizard and Warrior respectively, and harness the unwanted firestorm into a power that can tip the scales of the conflict.

Kiss of Fury is a mixture of romance, action, magic, humor and excitement. I like the pairing of Alex and Donovan, two strong-willed characters but with soft hearts. I like that Alex was strong and confident enough to go after Donovan. I’m starting to like more and more heroines that know their hearts and are willing to go after their guy. I also like the secondary characters, like Rafferty, Donovan’s mentor and Sophie, the Wyvern, the only female dragon who serves as some sort of prophetess.

Cooke’s world of shape-shifting dragons is getting more fleshed out here, and it is a fascinating place. With magic, prophecy and fated lovers, she has me hooked. I know the next book is going to be Eric, the leader of the Pyr, and I’m glad that I found this series just now, because I don’t have long to wait for its release on Feb 2009.