Dragonbane by Sherrilyn Kenyon – a Review

Dragonbane
Dark-Hunter / Were-Hunter series
by Sherrilyn Kenyon
Release Date: August 4, 2015

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Description:
Out of all the mysterious boarders who call Sanctuary home, no one is more antisocial or withdrawn than Maxis Drago. But then, it’s hard to blend in with the modern world when you have a fifty-foot wingspan.

Centuries ago, he was cursed by an enemy who swore to see him fall. An enemy who took everything from him and left him forever secluded. But Fate is a bitch, with a wicked sense of humor. And when she throws old enemies together and threatens the wife he thought had died centuries ago, he comes back with a vengeance. Modern day New Orleans has become a battleground for the oldest of evils. And two dragons will hold the line, or go down in flames.

Review:

I absolutely loved Dragonbane by Sherrilyn Kenyon. Book 26, I can’t believe it, 26 books in this series and it hasn’t dulled once, nor is showing any signs of slowing down. There’s just something about Kenyon’s writing, storytelling ability and imagination that makes each of her books fresh and exciting. This one had everything but the kitchen sink thrown in, oh wait I think a sink could have come flying from the kitchen in one the battles in Santuary in this one, LOL!!! Just kidding, I don’t recall an airborne sink in any scene. 😉

Dragonbane picks up where Son of No One ends. Maxis’ brother Illarion is now living at Santuary with him and adjusting to life outside of the Fey realm. We are also introduced to their other brothers; Blaise who is also part Mandrake and lives in Avalon, and Falcyn, I wouldn’t want to get on his bad side, just saying, he’s one ornery dragon. Along with meeting Maxis’ other brothers, we also learn he has a wife, who happens to be an Arcadian dragon and Amazonian dragon slayer. She comes to town to ask for his help in rescuing their children, twin dragonets Haydn and Edena. Since Maxis walked away from Seraphina centuries ago, thanks to her tribe, he never knew she was pregnant and that she gave birth to twins. Now thanks to her leader Nala who’s in league with the gallu demon Kessar, yes he’s back and wanting revenge in the worst way against everyone who’s wronged him, they must find a way to mend fences and work together. Easier said then done in Maxis case thanks to everything he’s suffered at the hands of Seraphina and her Amazonian sisters.

Throughout the story we are bombarded with tons of information about the Dragon race, how Werer-Hunters came to be, who the first one’s were, the cause of the hatred between the Arcadian and Katagaria, the creation of the Omegrion and how Savitar came to be it’s leader. There was so much information in this one at times I felt like my head was spinning and I was on information overload, but in a good way. It helped to keep everything in perspective and helps to answer any unanswered questions us as the reader may have still had regarding the Were-Hunters. We are also privy to flashbacks of Max and Sera’s life together in her Amazon tribe, what happened to him at her sisters hands and why he left her. His story is rather heartbreaking at times and I did shed a few tears for him. There wasn’t a single thing about Max I didn’t like, Seraphina however had a lot of groveling and making up to do in my books. By the end of the book I approved of her as Maxis’ mate.

Along with all the information we learned in this one, it was also fast paced and non- stop action when the battles ensued. Nothing like a Kenyon battle scene to get the blood pumping and nail biting happening. There was also plenty of Kenyon humour and sarcasm flying about throughout the story that had me laughing out loud and snorting many times. What can I say, Dev, Fang, Fury, Thorn and Styxx have to be the best at letting the sarcasm fly and use it at the most inappropriate times possible. Love it. Heck Fang was even rubbing off on Seraphina at one point when she tells her Amazon sisters to ‘arm up bitches’, then turns to Max and says; “You left me in Fangs company too long.” LoL!!! We also get to see many of our faves from Santuary and New Orleans come together to help Max, and due battle against Kessar, Apollo and company on Olympus. There’s also a new little tidbit about Savitar that we learn, and get to see some intriguing interaction between him and Apollymi, and a very touching scene with her and Styxx. I think one of my fave scenes has to be when Thorn drops in on the Omegrion council to inform everyone about what’s going down on Mount Olympus. It was perfect Thorn, he hit all the sarcastic high-notes and no other character could have pulled that scene off. That’s one of the things I love about Kenyon’s characters. No two are remotely the same, or have similar personalities. Each one has their own distinct nuances that make each unique to the story and keep me coming back for more.

For anyone who’s a fan of Kenyon’s Dark Hunter series this one is a must read, and won’t disappoint. All I can say is I can’t wait for Dragonmark. If the way this one ended is any indication of what’s to come, then in the words of Seraphina; “arm of bitches” cause there’s going to be hell to pay for Apollo, Kessar and company. Man I hate waiting……..is it August 2016 yet????

Until next time, happy reading my fellow Menyons!

Reviewed by Marcie