The Dragons of Rancho Mirage

by David Gray

A fanciful tale of dragons at the gym

Serge, a powerlifting trans man, has trained with Ken for years, working together to build his impressive physique. When Serge brings his shy boyfriend Zeke to the gym for personal training, Ken could never have imagined the world of magic he would discover. Serge and Zeke transport him to a secret enclave that protects a race of dwarf dragons, hunted almost to extinction by dark magicians. Leviathan, the oldest of their new brood of young dragons, is unusually large and unable to fly, so Ken must now face many difficult questions. Are free weights or machines best for building strong wing muscles? How do you manage a secret program of flight training in the California desert? And what about Serge and Zeke? Are they really open to a triad? Join Ken as he discovers how to get a dragon in the air and a polyamorous relationship off the ground.

“The Dragons of Rancho Mirage” is a stand-alone novel with LGBT themes and is intended for mature readers.

gay romance ~ cozy contemporary fantasy ~ friendly dragons ~ polyamory ~ low angst

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Amazon, LGBT, M M Romance

241 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 1, 2025

About the author

David Gray is a retired scientist who finally has time to explore the adventure of writing fiction. His novels and short stories live somewhere in the intersection between romance, fantasy, and science fiction, with cozy themes and happy endings. He lives with his husband in sunny San Diego, where they dote on their jungle kitty Bagheera.

Reviews

[Олександр Грозов · Rating 4 out of 5]

Продовжую розбирати гору безкоштовних книжок, що я придбав на розпродажах Амазон.
Головний герой цієї історії - хлопець Кен. Він працює фітнес тренером та вже дуже давно закоханий у свого клієнта Сержа. Серж, дуже великий бородатий трансгендерний чоловік, купляє абонемент для свого хлопця Зірка, дуже тихого та сором'язливого чоловіка. Кен дуже швидко закохується і в Зіка. Хлопці ж відповідають взаємністю та запрошують у особливе місце. Так Кен потрапляє на ранчо Міраж, де у безпеці живуть водяні дракони подалі від темних чаклунів, що використовують тіла драконів для своїх ритуалів.
Кену пропонують тренувати одного з драконів, який все ще не навчився літати.
Книжка подається як затишне фентезі, і це дійсно дуже приємна та затишна історія.
Єдине, що мені не сподобалося, це темп розповіді. Всі події дуже швидко з'являються та зникають. Хотілося б більш повільної розповіді, щоб насолодитися драконами та стосунками головних персонажів.

[Ray Evan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super cute, cozy read! I loved the trans representation, the queer relationships, and the healthy polygamous depictions! The dragon worldbuilding was pretty well explained and I really enjoyed the way the magical world intersected with the mundane world. I loved watching the characters evolve and come into their own!

I want to rate it 4.5 but this platform doesn't do that...

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such good world building! I have questions, though. When will the story continue? Were the pregnancies magical? Did Serge carry the twins?
What's dragon mating behavior like? Expound, Mr. Gray.

[Ish · Rating 5 out of 5]

A joy and delightful pleasure to read. Happiness sings in my heart.

[Yasmín · Rating 5 out of 5]

Que belleza de historia! Muy bien redactada, se disfruta conociendo a los personajes, cada uno con sus matices y profundidades muy bien logrado. Son todos super queribles. Me encantó ver el desarrollo de los personajes de forma saludable y lo que juntos van construyendo.
Ken es un personal trainer en un gimnasio super común, pero de golpe se ve arrastrado a entrenar a dragones en un rancho en el medio del desierto. Progresivamente se va haciendo un lugar en la comunidad, donde la magia está presente en el día a día.

El mundo de los dragones me pareció original y divertido. Bien construido, con detalles super curiosos como el osario.

Amé cada detalle. Cada vez que lo leía me relajaba y hacia feliz entrar en Oasis. Lo sentí como un respiro entre otros libros del género fantástico con dragones y batallas que venía leyendo.

Una joya que conocí a través del stuff your kindle day. Muy recomendado para los amantes del género

------☆------

What a beautiful story! Very well written, it’s a pleasure to get to know the characters, each with their own nuances and depth, all masterfully crafted. They are all incredibly lovable. I loved seeing the characters develop in a healthy way and watching what they build together.

Ken is a personal trainer at a very ordinary gym, but suddenly he finds himself dragged into training dragons on a ranch in the middle of the desert. Gradually, he carves out a place for himself in the community, where magic is part of everyday life.

The world of dragons felt original and fun—well constructed, with fascinating details like the ossuary.

I loved every detail. Every time I read it, I felt relaxed and happy to step into Oasis. It was a breath of fresh air compared to other fantasy books with dragons and battles that I had been reading.

A true gem that I discovered through Stuff Your Kindle Day. Highly recommended for fans of the genre!

[Silver · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great idea, less great execution sadly. Everything came a bit too easy for the characters- if they wanted or needed something, they got it without any struggle. The romance was a bit lacking too. It was mostly telling and not showing, though they had some cute moments. I really enjoyed the first 40%, but after that less so. I’d have liked some real conflict and to watch the MCs fall in love rather than what we got. That said, unique idea and I enjoyed the dragons

[Angelena · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a cute and cozy story that manages to stay upbeat despite touching on heavy issues like poaching/hunting. The romance is slow and steady and the book is zero to low spice with no real details and any bedroom scenes being closed door/fade to black. I respect the author's choice in that but I do wish we got just a bit more of the triad. Either way the book kepy my attention well, it's a fantastic quick read for a dragon lover as Ken gets to live our dream of discovering dragons and magic are real and having that become his every day life.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

cute

This was a fun if syrupy sweet story. Dragons, magic and sorcery all in one fun book. Fairly creative including the fitness/workout piece into the story line. Cute but not overwhelming in plot.

[omar ☆ · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not doing a super detailed review cause this was not my kind of book.
some scenes were creepy and I found myself not shipping the mc with his love interests