The First Dragon Bride

The Dragon Overlords #1

by Riley Storm

I wasn’t supposed to fall in love with the enemy who killed my family.We were at war. The dragons claimed we kidnapped their heir, and they wanted him back.They were winning. Our tanks and guns didn’t stand a chance.Now they’re willing to agree to a truce, but only if we provide them with mates.My company says I’ve been given the ‘honor’ of being a dragon’s conquest, but in reality, the b*stards want to silence me for what I know.I should be using my newfound position to learn everything I can about the scaly jerks, including which one of them burned down my hometown, but there’s just one broad-shouldered, bicep-bulging, blue-eyed, no-nonsense, grumpy-gruff, smoke-show of a dragon… wants nothing to do with me either.So now I’ve been rejected by two species, I’m stuck in the dragon kingdom, and my only hope to save the shaky cease-fire between us, is to somehow seduce a dragon.And it’s only Monday.

Genres: Paranormal, Dragons, Fantasy, Shapeshifters, Romance, Enemies To Lovers, Paranormal Romance

360 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 9, 2023

About the author

Riley is one of those early-morning people you love to hate, because she swears she doesn't need caffeine, even though the coffee-maker is connected to her smartphone. She lives in a three-story townhouse by the good graces of a tabby-cat who rules the house, the couch, the table, well, basically everywhere. When she's not groveling for forgiveness for neglecting to pet her kitty enough, Riley is strapped in to her writing chair coming up with crazy worlds where she can make her own decisions of when feeding time is and how much coffee can be drank without her friends--of which she has three--holding yet another intervention that they threaten to post on the internet.

Sign up for her newsletter here: https://my.sendinblue.com/users/subsc...

Or email her: riley@highhousepress.com

Reviews

[Ra Ra · Rating 2 out of 5]

2/5 ⭐️
Oh noooo… I have to mate with a sexy dragon man???? Darn! Dang! It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it.

•••

Possible Triggers - Fantasy standards (War, violence, blood, death, injury)

•••

Tl;Dr - The terms of a the dragon/human war say that the dragons get women. Katie is that woman. Ajax is the very conflicted dragon that is paired with her. Why is he conflicted? Well, Ajax the dude HATES humans. Ajax the dragon thinks that Katie is the best thing ever and obsessed with sexing her up. So… conflicted. To add onto that issue, Katie was actively an enthusiastically conducting research that would hopefully exterminate the dragons. Things are a bit tense.

•••

The Characters -
Katie: A dragon hating science lady.

Ajax: A human hating dragon guy.

•••

My Thoughts - We had HOT sexual tension and the first chapter. I was excitedly looking forward to some enemies to lovers dragon smut.

First kiss at 50%. Fifty. Percent. I was let down on the smut. It was okay.

Also, Ajax and Katie were inconsistent in their personalities. Ajax was vocally anti human but then after spending 24 hours with Katie, the dragon man is whipped. He is willing to sacrifice a powerful political position so Katie’s family can get justice. A noble mission, but he’s only know her for a day????? And then he flips again.

And Katie, she oscillated between unthinkably horny and snarky and terrified at a speed that made my head spin. When she saw Ajax and his dragon form, she had a full raving meltdown. How long did it take her to recover and hop on the back of dragon she was terrified of? Maybe 5 minutes????

I skimmed the last 25% of the book.

[tattootheskywithstars · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was ok, the beginning was interesting, But it was nothing new and lacking….

[Jenni · Rating 5 out of 5]

The First Dragon Bride is book one in the series The Dragon Overlords. The series follows a war where many lives are lost humans and dragons. now as a peace treaty, humans must provide women to find their fated mates with the dragons. They are supposed to be volunteers but the human government use less-than-savory threats to make them comply.
The story is interesting as humans and dragons navigate their way through relationships neither are sure about.

[CB · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first I wasn’t sure about this one and I came pretty close to DNF’ing it around the 20% mark, but I stuck with it and I’m glad I did. Part of my issue is I’m not a fan of the whole “enemies-to-lovers” trope and these two just hated each other so much in the beginning that it turned me off. But little by little they each continually showed in their actions that they were at heart good people, and trust slowly started to develop, as did emotions. Then by the time the truth about Katie’s background came out, Ajax felt betrayed but that thankfully did not last long as he was deeply in love with her and he came to her rescue almost immediately.

This ended up being an interesting arranged mating plot and both MCs were intelligent and aware enough that they were able to see quickly through their respective biases, which I liked. The author also did a nice job in crafting the dragon world and society, along with the intricacies of the politics involved which clearly will be a theme in this series. Looking forward to reading the next book about one of the other arranged couples. 4 stars.

[Ali · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good Idea. Poor Delivery.

This book was a good idea. The world building could’ve been amazing. However the dialogue, and the characters were just super strange at some points. The story flow wasn’t there. If this book had a stronger edit, it would be absolutely amazing.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

New series new author

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5-3 stars. I don't know about this one. I guess I'm kind of on the fence. On one hand it had a good base so to speak. I liked the story of two races putting inside their differences and getting together. I like Ajax the male character although he was a bit non-alpha for me at times which I didn't like. But it was a cinnamon roll lol! But the female character I didn't like. She was too back and forth with her inner thoughts. I know that she did not like the dragons in the beginning because they killed her family(except for her sister)and her town. She was too much "can I be with him, can I not be with him, how can I feel this way when he's a dragon. I haven't slept with a man since my ex that's why I don't spend the night in his bed."(and yes she would leave right after sex to go back to her bedroom). And I hate it when secrets are kept from the love interests. Yes he had alternative motives wanting to be on the council but her secret! Just wow! And here's one thing I did not get she meets Ajax in an elevator going down to her lab and he never puts two and two together? According to her file that he has, she worked as an administrator in an office. But he remembers her from an elevator going down to rescue the heir to the throne who was kidnapped by the people she worked for and was doing experiments on and yes she was part of those. And he doesn't remember where he saw her? Don't buy that one. He keeps saying that she volunteered to be a bride but she knows that she was not as well as most of the other women that are sent over there we're all against their will. If she didn't want to tell him where she worked she should have spoken up and said from the very beginning that she did not volunteer and that it was against her will that she was sent there. And for her sister, she was all worried about her sister being harmed by the people she worked for but the two times she was in the states she never once reached out to her sister to see how she was doing? It wasn't until the very end when Ajax brought her over to the dragon Island for their wedding did we get to see them together. If it was me and I was worried about my sister I would be calling or trying to get in touch with her everyday I was stuck there on that island. I would have made sure the sovereign and anyone with an earshot would have known I was there against my will. Yeah I know the politics etc etc but no! The spice was nice. I would have liked to see an epilogue a couple years down the road to see where they're at, if they have any kids or not one more thing, I don't like Mass punishments. The dragons conquered most of the East Coast of the United States and kept that territory for themselves to remind humans about what happened. Not cool! They should only punish the people who started the war not innocent people. I don't know if the author was bashing humans or what but that doesn't sit right with me.

[Tammy Moldovan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love, hate and romance

I loved Ajax and Katie’s enemies to lovers, forced proximity, forbidden romance with a side of prejudice and danger. This story was the perfect balance of humor, heartwarming love, real life issues, intrigue, danger, and spice. Ajax and Katie are portrayed as real, relatable beings who have flaws, but are really just trying to do their best as messy fallible beings. Dragons and humans are in a war. The humans claim it started with an unprovoked dragon attack. The dragons claim it started because the humans kidnapped and imprisoned the son of their sovereign. When a ceasefire is negotiated, it included the requirement of eight human women to serve as mates. Ajax is a dragon and a member of the ruling family. He believes in isolationism and wants humans and dragons to continue to live completely separate. Katie is a human scientist who was the head of the project attempting to design a weapon to take down dragons. With the exception of her sister, her entire family and home town were destroyed by a dragon attack. Katie’s employer forces Katie to be one of the eight mates but when she arrives, Ajax rejects her as a mate. Nevertheless, Ajax is ordered to accept Katie. It is a rocky, push-pull, journey to Ajax and Katie’s HEA and to get there, they’ll need to learn to trust each other while trying to wade through the politics and backstabbing of both dragon and human society and unpack their own baggage. The story was well written and included witty dialogue, great world building, three dimensional characters who grow, and an engaging storyline as shown through sweet moments, steamy scenes, chuckles, supportive friends, messy families, painful pasts, mystery, plot twists, evil actors, henchmen, political machinations, missteps, and heart squeezing love. I am looking forward to reading more in this series.

[K Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not gonna lie, I rage read most of it.
I did kind of like the politics, and the lack of utopia of the dragons.

But the main characters were incredibly unlikeable to me.

Kate was lead scientist to experiment on a captured dragon. She knew the dragon was captured before the war, and thought it was justified because it was something new and strange and they didn't know it was intelligent right away.

Then she kept inhumane experiments going without caring he was a real sentient being trapped and experimented on because dragons are evil.

They tried to make it all about what she had to do to "keep her sister alive" when she is given to the dragons but she barely thinks about her sister. She is entirely out for herself. She is constantly pointing out how she is at risk, she could be hurt, she needs more protection...

She is traumatized by a former marriage where, she says they agreed they wanted kids before marriage but then when time came she was just too smart to be just a mom, and couldn't believe he still expected her to want to.

I think the author is going for empowered, which I love, and found just obnoxious instead.

Ajax seems a bit dull. He is constantly being attacked, they don't just immediately check the footage around the royal dragons they know are anti human which would see obvious and save like, all the time.

And she meets Laura but doesn't know her? Or who she is mated to? That never comes up? Her experiment fell in love and escaped with a scientist and the lead scientist doesn't even know?

Also she had NEVER seen another golden dragon but she had been experimenting on one for months?

Anyways this just irked me.

But the smexy scenes were pretty hawt.

I don't know that I'll continue.

[Kimberly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Snarky Human Meets Grumpy Dragon - Pure Chaos

I am a sucker for a good dragon shifter romance...
...Especially with the D.E.L.I.C.I.O.U.S. banter between these two!?

My favorite quotes:

"You like it?" "Something like that," I said, the words trailing off into a growl. Mine.

"How long are you going to hold that one over my head?" "Until I can no longer lift my arms that high," I informed him. "At which point, I expect you to kneel down so I can still reach."

"I'm going to come," I told him, putting all my weight on one elbow and grabbing his head, pulling it in hard. "Don't you dare stop. Don't stop. Fuck. Oh my god. Oh, god. Ohmygoddd."

What I loved:
🐉it's a dragon shifter romance, I repeated D.R.A.G.O.N.
🪖the premise of a human vs dragon war
📝the storyline with their opposing motives: him loating the idea of having to chose a mate to ensure his species survives (not even bothering to meet her in his human form #LOL) and her being blackmailed into "volunteering" to become someone's mate
🤣their banter, oh my god the way she gives as good as she gets - dissing him constantly #LOL
🙂‍↔️how he takes her shopping (for clothes, for furnishings), albeit "begrudgingly" (allegedly)

What you need to know:
🫂dual POV, 1st person
🔮romantasy
🐉dragon shifter romance
🤬enemies-to-lovers
👩dragon shifter x weak human
⛰️forced proximity
😤grumpy dragon x snarky human
❤️HEA

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The First Dragon Bride" is the first book in this new series and begins with a ceasefire from a war between humans and dragons. Humans kidnapped a dragon prince and were doing testing on him trying to find ways to hurt the dragons. The dragons are demanding eight human women every year to volunteer to become dragon mates but the problem is the women are being forced by their government instead of given the choice. This first book is Ajax and Katie's story and it is a fast paced story full of deception, danger and drama. I couldn't put it down and am looking forward to reading the next book in this series. I read an Advanced e-copy and am Voluntarily leaving a review.

[Judy Barmore · Rating 4 out of 5]

The First Dragon Bride #1 08/01/2024

Ajax is on a rescue mission to save one of his people from being experimented on when he sees her. Kate know that something has happened but she doesn’t think it has anything to do with her till she’s call into her bosses office then thing go to really strange. She has been chosen to be giving the dragon as part of the cease fire agreement. She didn’t volunteer she was forced. Now she need to be chosen by a dragon. Ajax doesn’t want anything to do with it but his leader gives him no choice.so enjoy this good read and see what’s before them!!

[Bookangel · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just keep striking out on paranormal romance novels this year. Honestly Katie aggravated me - so at no time during your insta love/lust you do not tell him the truth and then you felt hurt. ... Ma'am be for real. Ajax also was a contradiction he wanted them to be separate but like within 5 minutes you are taking her shopping etc. Did I miss when it skipped ? I also was confused why no one ever checked the anti interspecies persons. Also if Katie was a scientist should she not have been smarter and had a better strategy? The whole thing was quite odd...

Anyway I would like someone to summarise the rest of the books and post it so I can see whether I want to try this series again.

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

She’s a scientist trying to find a way for humans to defeat dragons. He’s… well… he’s a dragon.

When a number of female humans are sent to mate with dragons as a peace offering to end the war between them, of course she’s offered up.

Will they or won’t they?

You’ll have to read it to find out!

This isn’t a terrible book (although it’s riddled with terrible writing and whoever edited it didn’t do it any favors) and it’s got passable spice. I’m even tempted to read the second installment sometime in the future.

[Sharon Hendrix · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great dragon tale!

The war between humans and dragon kind didn’t work out too well for the humans after they kidnapped the heir to the throne and then experimented on him.
Rescued and returned to his home, there is an end to the war. As a concession, 8 women are sent to the dragon isle, hopefully to mate with one of the males. What follows is the story of Alex and Katie, complete with awkwardness, half truths, war crimes, bigotry, harassment, and last but not least, smoking hot spice!

[Michelle Curtis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I guess you want to know what I think about this sample of the story!

I thought that I was into reading the story of this new section of the series. So far from what I've read in the sample, I would really like to continue on reading of the story.
I thought I was actually continueing reading the story of the new section of the story.
I would really like to go on reading into the story, to find out what really happens, and how the story continues.

Please let me continue on reading this involving the new section of the series!

[Bev · Rating 5 out of 5]

Katie works in a lab heading up a program to find a way to kill the dragons. Ajax is a dragon shifter and member of the royal family of dragons. To stop the war, a deal is set between the humans and dragons. The deal is that eight women be sent to live with the dragons as mates. Katie's boss sends her as one of them with threats to harm her sister. Ajax is told that he must choose one of the women as a mate. Fun times ahead. Such a fantastic story.

[Merry One Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s an easy read

This is book one of the series. It’s easy to read and low angst. I liked the overall storyline but I was unable to connect with the lead characters Katie, Ajax, and Cyrus. I liked the leader of the dragons, she was called the Sovereign. The other characters were so one dimensional and too predictable. It wasn’t until the last couple of chapters that the main characters felt real. Disappointed.

[Dirty Little Secret Book Blog · Rating 5 out of 5]

The First Dragon Bride (The Dragon Overlords Book 1)
Riley Storm

Ajax is a dragon, a member of the ruling family.
Katie works in the lab experimenting on Vicek.
Ajax is matched up with Katie and he rejects her thinking humans are beneath him.
The characters in the story are well written including the villians.
Really enjoyed reading this book. ~ Diana

5 ⭐
author_books_friends
Released November 9, 2023

[Terran Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting concept

The book is good. I think it could be a lot better with some additional time put in on world development. More thought and background on how the war started, impacts to humans, and dragon culture would really flesh it out and make for a great story, rather than just good.
Hopefully that will take shape in the rest of the books in the series. Right now, this book reads like a fast, superficial, dragon shifter romance and it could be a lot more.

[Trey U · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF @ 14%

Don’t get me wrong, I love smut. But this book is just trash. All the male dragons look the same, they repeatedly had yellow dragon eyes but ice blue normal eyes, and the downright hatred the MMC has for the FMC but their “connection” being solely sexual. Not even mention that she’s beautiful or anything…just how bad he wants to fuck her. This ain’t smutty love, this is lust coming from an absolute prick.

Lack of individuality and no sincerity in their connection? SNOOZE.

[Hilary Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant Series

The First Dragon Bride (The Dragon Overlords Book 1) by Riley Storm. Humans kidnap the dragon heir to the throne and start a war which the dragons are winning. A cease fire is agreed if humans send 8 females as mates to dragons. Head of the research lab, Katie, is ordered to go as one of the 8. Katie is paired with Ajax, a royal dragon. After a while they fall in love then it is revealed what Katie was doing in her lab.

[Cheryl G · Rating 3 out of 5]

This could have been better if things had been fleshed out more. For example, the MCs can speak to each other when the MMC is in dragon form. It's never discussed that it's mind speak although you have to assume it is as a dragon opening his mouth and English coming out is a level of ridiculous that nobody could accept. However, that doesn't negate the need to explain how they can communicate. Also, the FMC automatically accepts her situation. She hates dragons, is forced to go to them as a mate/breeder and she's all "wow, you can tell a female doesn't live here" and is excited to go shopping? There should have been angst and there wasn't, at least not from someone who knows that a dragon killed her entire family. The angst displayed by the MMC at the choosing (or whatever) seemed so fake especially as quickly as he accepted her.

This book was fine. I doubt I'll go on to other books in this series.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little interesting at the beginning, but then the romance spirals very quickly without, what I can tell, much cause. This threw me off and the story doesn’t really rectify this afterwards.

I got very bored at chapter 28 and put it down because the time it would have taken me to finish was better spent on anything else. I am sure this is a story and a series that would be enjoyed by some, unfortunately not me.

[Kelly Alberti · Rating 4 out of 5]

A decent story, plot well thought out. Dialogue was good. It was difficult to feel sympathy towards the female lead, not because she was bad, but because she was well educated and still opted to be part of the science team that started the war. She was participating in torture of a sentinent being, and that was before any war atrocities occurred.

[Ashante Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked where the author was going with this but it took way too long to get there. I love the concept of a war between humans and dragons over land and using human females as a way to bring peace of they are mated but I feel like this has been done before with alien romance books. I wish there was a little more mystery, more thriller, more drama to the book.

[Brittany · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had this recommended to me and decided to give it a try. I just wasn't in love with it. It was a pretty good read but wasn't jumping up and down about it. It was some solid world building but would have liked some more background on the dragons. It almost seemed like there was maybe a prequel I missed somewhere.

[Lizette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Action, steamy romance, dragon's world

The points of view sections give us the inside track on Ajax's and Katie's worries, values, and attraction to each other. The Sovereign Dragon, dragon politics, Katie's egomaniac boss, and the human-dragon war provide an interesting context for this story.

[Luna Ambrose · Rating 5 out of 5]

great start to a great series ?

i loved book one!! i’m about to start book two.

having just started this series yesterday, i’m really hopeful that this if going to be an amazing series. as with all the truly great series i’ve read i wish there were more books in the series than what the are.. i fully expect to be teary eyed when this series ends.

[Georgena Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Smoking Hot

These was an awesome read. I live how life will in the end. The adversities faced by the leads and the heroine acts to overcome days adversities were inspiring. I also love the commonalities between the Dragon world (politics and social views) and the Human world. It showed that we she the same even when we are different.