Zebra, $6.99, ISBN 978-1-4201-0374-8
Fantasy Romance, 2008 (Reissue)
About a Dragon is published in print form by Zebra at pretty much the same time the ebook is released by Samhain Publishing. The ebook published by Samhain Publishing has a different cover and is available for $6.50, but the content in both the book and the ebook is the same. This book was previously released as The Distressing Damsel. The author’s name on the previous edition was Shelly Laurenston, but don’t worry, she and GA Aiken are the same person. However, I am not sure whether any revision has been done to this current edition.
It seems so simple. Our dragon hero, Briec the Mighty, who is – I quote – “the second oldest in the House of Gwalchmai fab Gwyar, second in line to the throne of the White Dragon Queen, Shield Hero of the Dragon Wars, Lord Defender of the Dragon Queen’s Throne and, as far as he was concerned, the only sane one of his kin”, wants our human heroine Talaith the moment he sees her. When he saves her from being burned to death by a bunch of enraged villagers, she should be happy to put out, right? Well, it’s not so simple, especially when Talaith is an unsuspecting pawn in the plans of a scheming goddess and some powerful, if not very nice, folks will be doing their best to retrieve Talaith for this goddess and destroy Briec in the process.
That is just a bare outline of the plot, by the way, but truthfully, I don’t think the plot is of any particular importance here as About a Dragon is a very over the top hilarious raunchy comedy full of fluster, bluster, and gratuitous sex plus violence. I can’t say that I find the idea of sleeping with a dragon, a real one, even if he takes on human form to accommodate the, uh, proportionate fitting, because… well, we’re talking about dragons here, people. With scales and tails and everything! I’ve worked with reptiles before and they smell. But still, even if I don’t find the romance particularly sexy or appealing, the story itself is too much fun for words.
Talaith unfortunately has the foot-in-mouth disease – she cannot stop being “feisty” even when she knows she should stop, which in a way makes her a weak link in this story. But oh, Briec is simply too adorable as this arrogant dragon who assumes that Talaith is obligated to put out to him out of gratitude as well as in recognition of his (supposed) awe-inspiring presence. This fellow’s hubris is unbelievable, which makes his continuous befuddlement at why Talaith isn’t fawning at his feet even more entertaining to follow. When he decides to take baby steps to become what he believes is Talaith’s idea of a Prince Charming, oh, the story is too funny. Briec is just too, too precious, and I mean that in a good way.
Various secondary characters, including the bloodthirsty Annwyl and her besotted beau (Fearghus is Breic’s brother, by the way) from Dragon Actually, show up here. They are just as mean and sociopathic as Briec, heh, and they actually have roles to play in this story.
My only complain here is one that is similar to my complain in the review of the previously related book – the world building is still vague, relying too much on the reader’s familiarity with a generic medieval fantasy setting to fill in the blanks. Still, that is just a minor grumble. I’m too busy laughing and having an unbelievably good time with these bunch of crazy, sociopathic, and bloodthirsty dragons who, for the women they adore and only for those women, roll over like a contented puppy and ask for a tummy scratch. These dragons are all so cute! I want one for a pet – I will pat its head and give it a bovine snack after it razes down the houses of my enemies.
About a Dragon is all about the fun, fun, fun. I can’t say the author’s outrageous brand of humor is for everyone, but this one is definitely for me. I believe there should be at least one more book in the series, no? Let me at it. I love these dragons!
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