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Drakon #2
The Dream Thief
In the remote hills of northern England lives a powerful clan with a centuries-old secret. They are the drákon, shape-shifters who possess the ability to Turn—changing from human to smoke to dragon. And from the very stones of the earth, they hear hypnotic songs of beauty and wonder. But there is one stone they fear.
Buried deep within the bowels of the Carpathian Mountains lies the legendary dreaming diamond known as Draumr, the only gem with the power to enslave the drákon. Since childhood, Lady Amalia Langford, daughter of the clan's Alpha, has heard its haunting ballad but kept it secret, along with another rare Gift...Lia can hear the future, much in the way she hears the call of Draumr. And in that future, she realizes that the diamond—along with the fate of the drákon—rests in the hands of a human man, one who straddles two worlds.
Ruthlessly clever, Zane has risen through London's criminal underworld to become its ruler. Once a street urchin saved by Lia's mother, Zane is also privy to the secrets of the clan—and is the only human they trust to bring them Draumr. But he does nothing selflessly.
Zane's hunt for the gem takes him to Hungary, where he is shocked to encounter a bold, beautiful young noblewoman: Lia. She has broken every rule of the drákon to join him, driven by the urgent song of Draumr—and her visions of Zane. In one future, he is her ally. In another, her overlord. In both, he is her lover. Now, to protect her tribe, Lia must tie her fate to Zane's, to the one man capable of stealing her future—and destroying her heart.
Buried deep within the bowels of the Carpathian Mountains lies the legendary dreaming diamond known as Draumr, the only gem with the power to enslave the drákon. Since childhood, Lady Amalia Langford, daughter of the clan's Alpha, has heard its haunting ballad but kept it secret, along with another rare Gift...Lia can hear the future, much in the way she hears the call of Draumr. And in that future, she realizes that the diamond—along with the fate of the drákon—rests in the hands of a human man, one who straddles two worlds.
Ruthlessly clever, Zane has risen through London's criminal underworld to become its ruler. Once a street urchin saved by Lia's mother, Zane is also privy to the secrets of the clan—and is the only human they trust to bring them Draumr. But he does nothing selflessly.
Zane's hunt for the gem takes him to Hungary, where he is shocked to encounter a bold, beautiful young noblewoman: Lia. She has broken every rule of the drákon to join him, driven by the urgent song of Draumr—and her visions of Zane. In one future, he is her ally. In another, her overlord. In both, he is her lover. Now, to protect her tribe, Lia must tie her fate to Zane's, to the one man capable of stealing her future—and destroying her heart.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published September 26, 2006
93 people are currently reading
2638 people want to read
About the author
Shana Abe
30 books2,000 followersShana Abé is the award-winning, New York Times, USA Today, Publishers Weekly, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of seventeen books, including the acclaimed Drákon Series and the Sweetest Dark Series.
She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Southern California, and currently resides in the mountains of Colorado with her very patient husband and a lot of pets.
She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Southern California, and currently resides in the mountains of Colorado with her very patient husband and a lot of pets.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 333 reviews
June 23, 2009
Beautifully written just like “The Smoke Thief”, this book just sings and lulls you into a fairytale world. Everything is so vivid and bright making even the most banal things sparkle. Abé just keeps you turning the pages to see what will happen next all the while slowly building the sexual tension between Zane and Lia.
Zane is a fantastic hero. He’s so jaded. The dry humor and “digs” in this book are top notch. Lia turns out to be a lot stronger than I thought she would be too. The two of them make for a very well-matched couple. Their adventure to find the diamond is filled with twists and turns really giving you the feel of going to the far reaches of the earth.
My only complaint is that it’s missing some outright steam scenes early on. When it does happen it’s quite “explosive” and it’s a wonderful love story but I’d have like to have seen a little bit more. It all seemed a bit too bunched together at the end.
Like the first book, this is one of the best written novels I’ve come across –not necessarily the best story but the writing style is really in a class by itself. 4 ½ stars and on to book 3 :)
Zane is a fantastic hero. He’s so jaded. The dry humor and “digs” in this book are top notch. Lia turns out to be a lot stronger than I thought she would be too. The two of them make for a very well-matched couple. Their adventure to find the diamond is filled with twists and turns really giving you the feel of going to the far reaches of the earth.
My only complaint is that it’s missing some outright steam scenes early on. When it does happen it’s quite “explosive” and it’s a wonderful love story but I’d have like to have seen a little bit more. It all seemed a bit too bunched together at the end.
Like the first book, this is one of the best written novels I’ve come across –not necessarily the best story but the writing style is really in a class by itself. 4 ½ stars and on to book 3 :)
November 13, 2009
I loved the hero in this one. Zane was perfect: started as a bad boy and selfish (which fitted with his personna in The Smoke Thief), but when he came to care for the heroine he was super protective, tender, sweet, seductive and caring. Couldn't find a fault with him:) And if I didn't love him enough, the ending assured that I did!
Zane and Amalia are searching for the Draumr diamond: a stone that has magical abilities where the drakon are concerned. Lia has been having some very terrifying dreams for years; dreams that her family is destroyed by the man she loves. The source of all evil, is the Draumr. Zane has been asked by the drakon, to bring them the diamond, for a hefty price. Lia plans to get to it before he does and realizes its power. As they get nearer to the diamond, their attraction gets stronger and stronger, until they can't deny it any longer. However, there can't be any future for the two of them, since Lia's family will never accept a mere mortal as her husband. Their heartache, passion and love was so vibrant for me, I almost cried for them. Great couple with great chemistry. I just couldn't get enough of them.
If I have one tiny-miny complain, is that the romance took the backseat in the first half, as opposed to the adventure. But other than that, it was great. And did I already say I loved Zane?
I'm not sure whether I want to go on with the rest of the series however. Reviews for the next one are not so good it seems. Decisions, decisions...
Zane and Amalia are searching for the Draumr diamond: a stone that has magical abilities where the drakon are concerned. Lia has been having some very terrifying dreams for years; dreams that her family is destroyed by the man she loves. The source of all evil, is the Draumr. Zane has been asked by the drakon, to bring them the diamond, for a hefty price. Lia plans to get to it before he does and realizes its power. As they get nearer to the diamond, their attraction gets stronger and stronger, until they can't deny it any longer. However, there can't be any future for the two of them, since Lia's family will never accept a mere mortal as her husband. Their heartache, passion and love was so vibrant for me, I almost cried for them. Great couple with great chemistry. I just couldn't get enough of them.
If I have one tiny-miny complain, is that the romance took the backseat in the first half, as opposed to the adventure. But other than that, it was great. And did I already say I loved Zane?
I'm not sure whether I want to go on with the rest of the series however. Reviews for the next one are not so good it seems. Decisions, decisions...
September 27, 2009
Zane is the perfect bad-boy-you've-gotta-love. We know from The Smoke Thief why Zane is such a consummate thief and why he trusts no one (except Lia's mother Rue). And it's easy to understand why he keeps giving Lia the cold shoulder - he understands perfectly what horror awaits any human who messes with dragon girls. And that leads to Lia's other problem - her dragon powers have not fully developed; she can't Turn to smoke and she can't fly; what's the fun in being a dragon if you can't fly?! She does dream, tho, and the future she sees for herself and her family is not reassuring - can she change it? Can she trust Zane? Can Zane learn to trust Lia? They'll find out when they (reluctantly) join forces to find the Draumr diamond - Lia knows it must be destroyed; Zane wants the money he's been promised for bringing it back.
I love the dragon world that Shana Abé has created, and she expands it beautifully in this book. She creates beautiful mind pictures of dragons in flight - makes you want to look up to try to see one flying and looping through the sky. Will definitely be reading the next one: Queen of Dragons
I love the dragon world that Shana Abé has created, and she expands it beautifully in this book. She creates beautiful mind pictures of dragons in flight - makes you want to look up to try to see one flying and looping through the sky. Will definitely be reading the next one: Queen of Dragons
June 5, 2020
It's been a while since I've read the first book in this series. It doesn't take too much to get into the world again.
I can't be bothered to write a proper review of The Dream Thief. Most of it is in the summary and the title itself anyway. Lia dreams about the future and is trying to either prevent it or make it not horrible.
Lovely ending without too much of a fuss regarding Lia's family.
I can't be bothered to write a proper review of The Dream Thief. Most of it is in the summary and the title itself anyway. Lia dreams about the future and is trying to either prevent it or make it not horrible.
Lovely ending without too much of a fuss regarding Lia's family.
January 25, 2009
I don't follow series as a rule--but I do follow Shana Abe's Drakon series. It is rare that a writer combines both mesmerizing story telling with mesmerizing prose. Shana Abe does exactly that in her Drakon books, combining beautiful, precise, yet sweeping world-building with intimate, passionate love stories between equals. I can't get enough of those dragon shapeshifters.
December 9, 2010
This was a HORRIBLE book.
The premise of the book sounds good: an ancient race of dragon-people, living in secret, and gemstones sing to them. There is a legend of one stone that is powerful enough to control all of the drakon. Drakon-girl goes out to find it, falls in love with a human (forbidden). My problem with this book was the detailed sexual content. The heroine (and I use this term loosely) has detailed sex dreams about the hero (again, loosely). The hero’s also gives the reader a detailed description of his own sexual fantasies regarding the heroine. Once they do begin having sex, the author spends pages and pages describing it in pornographic detail. One would have to skip half the book to avoid this, as the author can’t seem to get away from the idea of them sleeping together. On top of that, the characters don’t even seem to like each other. They make each other miserable throughout the book until the very end, when all of a sudden, they’re in this sweet, loving, functional relationship and you, the unfortunate reader, are left saying, “… are these even the same people???” One of the worst aspects, too, was the author’s perspective on love. The heroine at one point states that “being in love is the absolute worst feeling in the world.” Really?! I realize that love isn’t always sunshine and roses, but being in love, real love, especially at the beginning of a relationship like these characters are, is a glorious feeling. The abrupt transition from loathing and lusting after one another to sweet and caring is not only confusing, but plain unbelievable. I, as a reader, don’t really think they’re going to end up happy. I think they’re going to be the kind of couple that one of them poisons the other twenty years from now. They were both horrible people, that I didn’t like at all. And I REALLY didn’t want to know about their sex life. REALLY REALLY didn’t want to know.
This book gets 1.5 stars. I liked the concept of the plot, but the execution was awful. I sincerely hope that the author’s love life has not been like the characters in this book, because she cannot be happy if so.
The premise of the book sounds good: an ancient race of dragon-people, living in secret, and gemstones sing to them. There is a legend of one stone that is powerful enough to control all of the drakon. Drakon-girl goes out to find it, falls in love with a human (forbidden). My problem with this book was the detailed sexual content. The heroine (and I use this term loosely) has detailed sex dreams about the hero (again, loosely). The hero’s also gives the reader a detailed description of his own sexual fantasies regarding the heroine. Once they do begin having sex, the author spends pages and pages describing it in pornographic detail. One would have to skip half the book to avoid this, as the author can’t seem to get away from the idea of them sleeping together. On top of that, the characters don’t even seem to like each other. They make each other miserable throughout the book until the very end, when all of a sudden, they’re in this sweet, loving, functional relationship and you, the unfortunate reader, are left saying, “… are these even the same people???” One of the worst aspects, too, was the author’s perspective on love. The heroine at one point states that “being in love is the absolute worst feeling in the world.” Really?! I realize that love isn’t always sunshine and roses, but being in love, real love, especially at the beginning of a relationship like these characters are, is a glorious feeling. The abrupt transition from loathing and lusting after one another to sweet and caring is not only confusing, but plain unbelievable. I, as a reader, don’t really think they’re going to end up happy. I think they’re going to be the kind of couple that one of them poisons the other twenty years from now. They were both horrible people, that I didn’t like at all. And I REALLY didn’t want to know about their sex life. REALLY REALLY didn’t want to know.
This book gets 1.5 stars. I liked the concept of the plot, but the execution was awful. I sincerely hope that the author’s love life has not been like the characters in this book, because she cannot be happy if so.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 5, 2017
I love this series. I've never been much for dragon shifters, but after reading this series, I think I have to reevaluate. True, Zane isn't a drákon, but Lia was and I think I have a little bit of a girlie crush on her.
I've loved Zane since the first book of the series, The Smoke Thief, and was really looking forward to reading and learning more about him in The Dream Thief. And TDT did not let me down. I adore him even more now. He is sarcastic, uncouth, and vicious, with seemingly no morals, but he is also caring and gentle, with a great capacity for love. Plus, he's pretty damn sexy. What more could a woman ask for? And then there's Lia. So different from her brothers and sisters, mother and father. She appears Giftless, but no one knows that she actually has Gifts that none of the drákon appear to have possessed before. She is the only one in her family that cannot Turn, but once she gets past the fear that is holding her back, she Turns into a beautiful dragon. She's witty, intelligent, protective, and just like Zane, she has a great capacity for love and she shares that love with her parents, brothers, sisters, and Zane. These two really are a great couple.
I am also very intrigued by Princess Maricara. Since I already knew that she ends up being the heroine of the next book, Queen of Dragons, and ends up with Kimber, it was a bit of a surprise to see that she was so young in The Dream Thief. Clearly QoD will take place years later, but it was an interesting development. Also, she was quite an intriguing character, so I look forward to reading more about her.
As I said before, I've fallen in love with this series. I think that I really need to thank new_user, again, for recommending The Smoke Thief to me.
I've loved Zane since the first book of the series, The Smoke Thief, and was really looking forward to reading and learning more about him in The Dream Thief. And TDT did not let me down. I adore him even more now. He is sarcastic, uncouth, and vicious, with seemingly no morals, but he is also caring and gentle, with a great capacity for love. Plus, he's pretty damn sexy. What more could a woman ask for? And then there's Lia. So different from her brothers and sisters, mother and father. She appears Giftless, but no one knows that she actually has Gifts that none of the drákon appear to have possessed before. She is the only one in her family that cannot Turn, but once she gets past the fear that is holding her back, she Turns into a beautiful dragon. She's witty, intelligent, protective, and just like Zane, she has a great capacity for love and she shares that love with her parents, brothers, sisters, and Zane. These two really are a great couple.
I am also very intrigued by Princess Maricara. Since I already knew that she ends up being the heroine of the next book, Queen of Dragons, and ends up with Kimber, it was a bit of a surprise to see that she was so young in The Dream Thief. Clearly QoD will take place years later, but it was an interesting development. Also, she was quite an intriguing character, so I look forward to reading more about her.
As I said before, I've fallen in love with this series. I think that I really need to thank new_user, again, for recommending The Smoke Thief to me.
December 11, 2009
ok, so what happens with me quite often when I read a series back to back is I get distracted. Like certain things I've heard already and don't need to hear again, etc. I know this about myself and should not read the next in line in a series without a break. So, what did I do? I read the second book in a series right after reading the first one.
I'm giving this 5 stars because it deserves it, but I felt more like 4 stars. Zane is great. Rough around the edges. From the street urchin he was, he certainly grew up to be quite the guy. Lia was great too. Interesting to see her character develop.
My problem with the H/h was I continuously compared them to the characters in the previous book and I think Christoff and Rue had more depth to their characters.
ok, I'll stop bitchin'. Truly, this is a great read and I recommend it.
I'm giving this 5 stars because it deserves it, but I felt more like 4 stars. Zane is great. Rough around the edges. From the street urchin he was, he certainly grew up to be quite the guy. Lia was great too. Interesting to see her character develop.
My problem with the H/h was I continuously compared them to the characters in the previous book and I think Christoff and Rue had more depth to their characters.
ok, I'll stop bitchin'. Truly, this is a great read and I recommend it.
July 31, 2015
It seems that I have the most to say about books I do not enjoy.
This book was better than the first book in the series, The Smoke Thief. But not by much.
Basic plot: The Street Urchin, Zane, a little starving, dirty, wounded, human boy, is saved from bleeding to death by Clarissa Rue, a weredragon. That was in the previous book. Now he's all grown-up and super-hot, apparently.
The weredragons can hear jewels and precious metals singing to them. Clarissa Rue, now grown with grown children of her own, can hear the song of a big, blue diamond that is super-powerful. All the weredragons want it to be brought in. But only a mortal can go. So they pick Zane, the only trustworthy human.
The female protagonist is Clarissa Rue's daughter - Amalia. She is the only one of her family that cannot Turn. But she has other gifts. She dreams of the future, and she can hear the call of gems and metals better than anyone else in the clan. Amalia never tells anyone about these gifts.
An important plotline in the book is that Amalia constantly dreams (I mean nocturnally) about an accurate future. She can predict the future, essentially. Unfortunately, she's been dreaming since she was 14 that Zane and her are lovers. Well, lovers isn't exactly the right word. She dreams that Zane has the diamond and is now her master. He can command her to do anything and uses her talents to steal lots of stuff and to kill off her family. She really enjoys the dream-sex she has with him, but hates to think that he has turned evil and that she is his slave and that he is ruthless in his quest for money and doesn't hesitate to kill her family members when the try to save her/kill him.
Remember, this is only the future appearing in her dreams. From age 14-19 she really hasn't much to do with Zane. But when she's 19, he gets sent on the quest, and she hunts him down and tags along because she can hear the Diamond and guide him to it.
Most of the book consists of them travelling by carriage in Hungary and Europe, going towards the Carpathian Mountains. Abé does a nice job of creating this kind of Transylvanian/Dracula atmosphere full of mountains, mines, peasants, and superstition.
Zane does his best to keep his lust for Lia under control. He sleeps on the floor numerous times in order to separate himself from her. Lia even offers to sleep with him multiple times, but he refuses, trying to be noble I guess. But this plotline is very inconsistent. At times he's all "I want to have sex with you" and then when she says "okay" he's all "Wait, I changed my mind, get away from me. I'm trying to be noble and stuff."
When they finally DO have sex...wait for it...she's unconscious. I couldn't believe it. Here Abé has set us up with what I thought was a noble, caring (if thieving and slightly immoral) hero. But here he is taking away Lia's physical virginity and SHE SLEEPS THROUGH THE WHOLE THING. This I do not understand at all. 1.) Since she is not conscious, this counts as rape. Moreso because they have never had sex before, so it's not like he's doing a loving, sexy wake-up here. 2.) How on Earth could a man have sex with a virgin (what is portrayed as great, hot sex to boot) and SHE DOESN'T WAKE UP?!!?!? WTF? And he's supposed to be great in bed. But even if he was the worst lover ever, I still think she'd wake up if someone was having sex with her for the first time!!! I mean, seriously. It's not like they were lovers before and she's used to him rolling her over when she's half asleep. She's never had sex with him...or anyone for that matter!
I'd also like to address the fact that Abé wants to have her cake and eat it too. While Lia is a virgin physically, she supposedly knows all about sex and men and techniques and tricks since she's been having these erotic dreams since she was 14. O.o I have never read something with this kind of idea before. It's mind-boggling. I'm surprised this was written by a female for a female audience. It's saying, "Hey, men. Here's a woman who's pristine and has never been touched by anyone but you, but don't worry, she's automatically an amazing lover who knows everything you like." Holy crap. This is very disappointing, not to mention disturbing.
Minus points AGAIN for Abé making the female a virgin and the male a sex expert.
And another thing. Amalia is a weredragon. She's from a powerful clan of weredragons. Even though she can't Turn (for the first 2/3s of the book, at least) she should be a strong female character. But she's not. She has no self-confidence, follows Zane around like a little lost lamb, doesn't assert herself at all, or even make suggestions on courses of action. She is SO WEAK. It's terribly sad. Even though Zane is a mortal and she is a weredragon, he's dominant and she's meek. ALSO, when she does want Zane to do something or promise something, she begs him for it. Why is she begging? Shouldn't she have the upper-hand here? It's as if dreaming about him being her master in the future has just taken all the fight out of her. When she's 14, she stands up to her family a little bit, by letting a bird go free that they wanted her to kill. And she sneaks out a few times. So I know when she was 14 she had a little backbone at least. But after the dreams start, that's all out the window.
Zane is, I think, supposed to be seen as a decent guy. But it's a little hard for the reader to believe that since we're privy to Lia's dreams in which he plans on killing her family and orders her to help her steal from tons of people.
She also develops the ability to breathe fire, which is an unheard of Gift, I guess.
Let's talk about Maricara. Unlike Lia, Maricara is a strong female character. She is an 11-year-old weredragon forced into marrying an evil prince. She is enslaved to him, practically, because she has a family and he whips them and tortures them when she disobeys him. Even though she is married to him and more or less obedient to him, she is always looking for a way to escape or kill him. I like her because she takes action, puts herself out there, and risks everything ruthlessly for a chance to escape from bondage. Unlike Lia, who usually just sits there, simpering.
Finally, after about 4/5s of book, Lia has a dream about an alternative future, in which Zane is not her cruel master, but instead her loving husband. They have children together and create a caring family. So it seems as if Zane could go either way here.
And that brings me to another disturbing thing. When, 4/5s into the book, Zane discovers that if they find this stone he can enslave any weredragon - he seriously considers it. I was so, so disappointed in him. What a piece of sh*t. He was thinking about how he could have everything, he could have Lia. He already has Lia. They have had sex (multiple times consensually after the unconscious rape fiasco), she has told him that she loves him, she has told him that she wants to get married to him. What is he thinking!? If you loved someone - no scratch that. If you even care for or respect someone AT ALL you wouldn't ever considered making them your slave. Him having these thoughts is horrifying. Clarissa Rue, Amalia's mother, saved his life TWICE when he was a child, for Pete's sake. And now he's thinking about not only enslaving Amalia but her family too - a family that cares for him and trusts him and that he owes a life-debt to?! What a (expletive deleted). Lia even asks him point blank not to use the stone against her and her family and he refuses to promise such a thing. Dick!
Of course in the end he makes the right choice. Not letting anyone have the stone, but instead destroying it. But there are pages and pages of him considering it. Despicable.
Sidenote: The way men dress is in the 1700s is NOT sexy. It's just NOT. I don't care how Abé describes it.
Sidenote 2: I like how Abé addresses the fact that since Zane starved on the streets for years as a child, he has to really struggle to control his eating now. He wants to eat everything in sight, but exercises strong self-control because he thinks "you can't be a fat thief and be successful." I appreciate her mentioning the strong hunger and uncontrollable urge to eat and get fat that is experienced by people who have gone through long periods of hunger. This is true to life.
Sidenote 3: This book reminded me of the Terminator 2 quote "The future's not set. There is no fate but what we make for ourselves." Yay, Terminator movies! So fun.
Regarding Abé. She's not a bad writer. Her prose is pretty. Her book has beautiful borders in the margins of every page (at least in the copy I checked out). I know that, as a person, she loves animals and takes in shelter pets and encourages people to spay and neuter their pets. I would also like to mention that her weredragon book series for Young Adults (The Sweetest Dark, The Deepest Night) is much better than this series and features a female protagonist who actually is fierce and more or less capable. So. Not hating on Abé, just on this book.
ONE REAL STAR, ONE ROMANCE STAR
This book was better than the first book in the series, The Smoke Thief. But not by much.
Basic plot: The Street Urchin, Zane, a little starving, dirty, wounded, human boy, is saved from bleeding to death by Clarissa Rue, a weredragon. That was in the previous book. Now he's all grown-up and super-hot, apparently.
The weredragons can hear jewels and precious metals singing to them. Clarissa Rue, now grown with grown children of her own, can hear the song of a big, blue diamond that is super-powerful. All the weredragons want it to be brought in. But only a mortal can go. So they pick Zane, the only trustworthy human.
The female protagonist is Clarissa Rue's daughter - Amalia. She is the only one of her family that cannot Turn. But she has other gifts. She dreams of the future, and she can hear the call of gems and metals better than anyone else in the clan. Amalia never tells anyone about these gifts.
An important plotline in the book is that Amalia constantly dreams (I mean nocturnally) about an accurate future. She can predict the future, essentially. Unfortunately, she's been dreaming since she was 14 that Zane and her are lovers. Well, lovers isn't exactly the right word. She dreams that Zane has the diamond and is now her master. He can command her to do anything and uses her talents to steal lots of stuff and to kill off her family. She really enjoys the dream-sex she has with him, but hates to think that he has turned evil and that she is his slave and that he is ruthless in his quest for money and doesn't hesitate to kill her family members when the try to save her/kill him.
Remember, this is only the future appearing in her dreams. From age 14-19 she really hasn't much to do with Zane. But when she's 19, he gets sent on the quest, and she hunts him down and tags along because she can hear the Diamond and guide him to it.
Most of the book consists of them travelling by carriage in Hungary and Europe, going towards the Carpathian Mountains. Abé does a nice job of creating this kind of Transylvanian/Dracula atmosphere full of mountains, mines, peasants, and superstition.
Zane does his best to keep his lust for Lia under control. He sleeps on the floor numerous times in order to separate himself from her. Lia even offers to sleep with him multiple times, but he refuses, trying to be noble I guess. But this plotline is very inconsistent. At times he's all "I want to have sex with you" and then when she says "okay" he's all "Wait, I changed my mind, get away from me. I'm trying to be noble and stuff."
When they finally DO have sex...wait for it...she's unconscious. I couldn't believe it. Here Abé has set us up with what I thought was a noble, caring (if thieving and slightly immoral) hero. But here he is taking away Lia's physical virginity and SHE SLEEPS THROUGH THE WHOLE THING. This I do not understand at all. 1.) Since she is not conscious, this counts as rape. Moreso because they have never had sex before, so it's not like he's doing a loving, sexy wake-up here. 2.) How on Earth could a man have sex with a virgin (what is portrayed as great, hot sex to boot) and SHE DOESN'T WAKE UP?!!?!? WTF? And he's supposed to be great in bed. But even if he was the worst lover ever, I still think she'd wake up if someone was having sex with her for the first time!!! I mean, seriously. It's not like they were lovers before and she's used to him rolling her over when she's half asleep. She's never had sex with him...or anyone for that matter!
I'd also like to address the fact that Abé wants to have her cake and eat it too. While Lia is a virgin physically, she supposedly knows all about sex and men and techniques and tricks since she's been having these erotic dreams since she was 14. O.o I have never read something with this kind of idea before. It's mind-boggling. I'm surprised this was written by a female for a female audience. It's saying, "Hey, men. Here's a woman who's pristine and has never been touched by anyone but you, but don't worry, she's automatically an amazing lover who knows everything you like." Holy crap. This is very disappointing, not to mention disturbing.
Minus points AGAIN for Abé making the female a virgin and the male a sex expert.
And another thing. Amalia is a weredragon. She's from a powerful clan of weredragons. Even though she can't Turn (for the first 2/3s of the book, at least) she should be a strong female character. But she's not. She has no self-confidence, follows Zane around like a little lost lamb, doesn't assert herself at all, or even make suggestions on courses of action. She is SO WEAK. It's terribly sad. Even though Zane is a mortal and she is a weredragon, he's dominant and she's meek. ALSO, when she does want Zane to do something or promise something, she begs him for it. Why is she begging? Shouldn't she have the upper-hand here? It's as if dreaming about him being her master in the future has just taken all the fight out of her. When she's 14, she stands up to her family a little bit, by letting a bird go free that they wanted her to kill. And she sneaks out a few times. So I know when she was 14 she had a little backbone at least. But after the dreams start, that's all out the window.
Zane is, I think, supposed to be seen as a decent guy. But it's a little hard for the reader to believe that since we're privy to Lia's dreams in which he plans on killing her family and orders her to help her steal from tons of people.
She also develops the ability to breathe fire, which is an unheard of Gift, I guess.
Let's talk about Maricara. Unlike Lia, Maricara is a strong female character. She is an 11-year-old weredragon forced into marrying an evil prince. She is enslaved to him, practically, because she has a family and he whips them and tortures them when she disobeys him. Even though she is married to him and more or less obedient to him, she is always looking for a way to escape or kill him. I like her because she takes action, puts herself out there, and risks everything ruthlessly for a chance to escape from bondage. Unlike Lia, who usually just sits there, simpering.
Finally, after about 4/5s of book, Lia has a dream about an alternative future, in which Zane is not her cruel master, but instead her loving husband. They have children together and create a caring family. So it seems as if Zane could go either way here.
And that brings me to another disturbing thing. When, 4/5s into the book, Zane discovers that if they find this stone he can enslave any weredragon - he seriously considers it. I was so, so disappointed in him. What a piece of sh*t. He was thinking about how he could have everything, he could have Lia. He already has Lia. They have had sex (multiple times consensually after the unconscious rape fiasco), she has told him that she loves him, she has told him that she wants to get married to him. What is he thinking!? If you loved someone - no scratch that. If you even care for or respect someone AT ALL you wouldn't ever considered making them your slave. Him having these thoughts is horrifying. Clarissa Rue, Amalia's mother, saved his life TWICE when he was a child, for Pete's sake. And now he's thinking about not only enslaving Amalia but her family too - a family that cares for him and trusts him and that he owes a life-debt to?! What a (expletive deleted). Lia even asks him point blank not to use the stone against her and her family and he refuses to promise such a thing. Dick!
Of course in the end he makes the right choice. Not letting anyone have the stone, but instead destroying it. But there are pages and pages of him considering it. Despicable.
Sidenote: The way men dress is in the 1700s is NOT sexy. It's just NOT. I don't care how Abé describes it.
Sidenote 2: I like how Abé addresses the fact that since Zane starved on the streets for years as a child, he has to really struggle to control his eating now. He wants to eat everything in sight, but exercises strong self-control because he thinks "you can't be a fat thief and be successful." I appreciate her mentioning the strong hunger and uncontrollable urge to eat and get fat that is experienced by people who have gone through long periods of hunger. This is true to life.
Sidenote 3: This book reminded me of the Terminator 2 quote "The future's not set. There is no fate but what we make for ourselves." Yay, Terminator movies! So fun.
Regarding Abé. She's not a bad writer. Her prose is pretty. Her book has beautiful borders in the margins of every page (at least in the copy I checked out). I know that, as a person, she loves animals and takes in shelter pets and encourages people to spay and neuter their pets. I would also like to mention that her weredragon book series for Young Adults (The Sweetest Dark, The Deepest Night) is much better than this series and features a female protagonist who actually is fierce and more or less capable. So. Not hating on Abé, just on this book.
ONE REAL STAR, ONE ROMANCE STAR
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 30, 2018
I’m inordinately fond of this series and have a big fat crush on Zane.
August 31, 2011
Earlier this year a friend of mine dragged me aside, thrust a copy of The Smoke Thief into my hands, and told me to read it or die. So I did, and it was good. Clever, not your typical romance novel, and not your typical fantasy-oriented romance novel (which is the hot new trend these days. Vampires and Dragons and Werewolves, oh my!) In it, a young girl had run away from her secret clan of human-to-dragon shapeshifters (the Drakon) and was plundering her way through London’s jewel chests. Obviously, this broke a ton of rules and the clan Lord or ‘Alpha’ sets off to find her. It was pretty nifty. The heroine, Rue, was spunky and relatable. The action sequences in London were nifty. The only thing that really bothered me was the way Rue settled down so easily at the end. You’ve been saved by your Lord and Master, honey. Your adventuring is done. But it was, in the grand scheme of things, a minor irritation and I let it go. (Although the more I dwell on it, the more it bothers me, to be honest.)
I was browsing the new releases at the library this week when I discovered Abe’s sequel, The Dream Thief. I excitedly snatched it up, ran home, and ripped through it. …it was okay, but I’m not in love. I’m not really sure I’m in like.
The Dream Thief features Rue’s youngest daughter Lia, the only one of her siblings who cannot shift to dragon form. Lia has gifts of her own though, and they lead her and Zane (Rue’s scrappy little urchin sidekick, all grown up,) on a dangerous journey through the Carpathiens. The quest is to recover the Draumr, a mystical diamond that can be used to control the Drakon. The Draumr ’sings’ to Lia, demanding her attention, causing her to be come increasingly singleminded as she nears it. Lia also sees visions of the future that seem to indicate that Zane will use the power of the Draumr against her and her family, to no good end.
First off, I don’t find Lia all that a compelling a character. Sure, she runs off from finishing school to go adventuring with Zane, but does it strike her that maybe she doesn’t have to, heck, she shouldn’t follow along with what her dreams foretold? At points it becomes quite clear that they aren’t 100% accurate and that the future can be changed, but she seems resigned to making them come true regardless. She’s also a little too timid, and too thoroughly engrossed in her love for Zane to really come across as anything but a lovesick kid. I had hoped for her to have a little more of her mother’s spunk and flair, but it never really emerges.
Zane surprised me, too. Not that scrappy little urchins don’t often grow up to be articulate, reasonably successful adults in sequels (often retaining their original line of work,) but he grows up to be surprisingly multisyllabic and, dare I say it? Suave. Except when he’s agonizing over how he’s not good enough for Lia and how her family won’t accept him — at which point I wanted to smack him upside the head. Also, the parts where he was fantasizing about being able to have Lia and control of the Drakon by virtue of having the Draumr were a little creepy. Romantic Heroes are generally not so much about wanting to have total control over their brides and their families. When they are, they’re usually called Villains.
The one thing that struck me over and over reading the novel was how much the journey reminded me of the myriad incarnations of Dracula and other vampiric stories that I’ve seen and read, going through the little towns, dealing with the superstitious countrymen, that sort of thing. The key difference here was instead of Vampires, we had Dragons.
The last lines of the book certainly leaves the series open for a third novel. I will probably read it when it comes out. The Dream Thief isn’t a bad book. It’s decently plotted, thought out, and eminently readable. But if the previous novel was more like a fantasy-adventure novel with a romance sub-plot thrown in, this read more like a romance with a fantasy-adventure subplot thrown in. I would have preferred to read about the further adventures of Rue, and I think this book would have been better suited for her.
I was browsing the new releases at the library this week when I discovered Abe’s sequel, The Dream Thief. I excitedly snatched it up, ran home, and ripped through it. …it was okay, but I’m not in love. I’m not really sure I’m in like.
The Dream Thief features Rue’s youngest daughter Lia, the only one of her siblings who cannot shift to dragon form. Lia has gifts of her own though, and they lead her and Zane (Rue’s scrappy little urchin sidekick, all grown up,) on a dangerous journey through the Carpathiens. The quest is to recover the Draumr, a mystical diamond that can be used to control the Drakon. The Draumr ’sings’ to Lia, demanding her attention, causing her to be come increasingly singleminded as she nears it. Lia also sees visions of the future that seem to indicate that Zane will use the power of the Draumr against her and her family, to no good end.
First off, I don’t find Lia all that a compelling a character. Sure, she runs off from finishing school to go adventuring with Zane, but does it strike her that maybe she doesn’t have to, heck, she shouldn’t follow along with what her dreams foretold? At points it becomes quite clear that they aren’t 100% accurate and that the future can be changed, but she seems resigned to making them come true regardless. She’s also a little too timid, and too thoroughly engrossed in her love for Zane to really come across as anything but a lovesick kid. I had hoped for her to have a little more of her mother’s spunk and flair, but it never really emerges.
Zane surprised me, too. Not that scrappy little urchins don’t often grow up to be articulate, reasonably successful adults in sequels (often retaining their original line of work,) but he grows up to be surprisingly multisyllabic and, dare I say it? Suave. Except when he’s agonizing over how he’s not good enough for Lia and how her family won’t accept him — at which point I wanted to smack him upside the head. Also, the parts where he was fantasizing about being able to have Lia and control of the Drakon by virtue of having the Draumr were a little creepy. Romantic Heroes are generally not so much about wanting to have total control over their brides and their families. When they are, they’re usually called Villains.
The one thing that struck me over and over reading the novel was how much the journey reminded me of the myriad incarnations of Dracula and other vampiric stories that I’ve seen and read, going through the little towns, dealing with the superstitious countrymen, that sort of thing. The key difference here was instead of Vampires, we had Dragons.
The last lines of the book certainly leaves the series open for a third novel. I will probably read it when it comes out. The Dream Thief isn’t a bad book. It’s decently plotted, thought out, and eminently readable. But if the previous novel was more like a fantasy-adventure novel with a romance sub-plot thrown in, this read more like a romance with a fantasy-adventure subplot thrown in. I would have preferred to read about the further adventures of Rue, and I think this book would have been better suited for her.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 21, 2018
This is such an amazing series. Such a great concept, crossing historical romance with dragons. And I love the men in it so far! I loved Zane even more than Kip, but they were both so naughty yet still dignified. Zane isnt even Drakon but there was still something about him that was just magnificent and Alpha. I am slightly in awe of him. I really cant blame Lia for being in love with him most of her life. For making a move on a man in his mid-thirties when she was only 14. I am sure she couldnt have helped herself. But the way she was dedicated to him was inspiring. She knew him her whole life, him being a friend of her mother, and she knew what he was. A criminal, a thief, a liar. But she loved him. She knew his future (or a possible future), and the terrible things he was capable of, yet still she loved him.
The story in this was much grander than The Smoke Thief, which was about a jewel theft in London. In The Dream Thief, Lia and Zane go to Hungary to track down a legendary diamond that can control the Drakon. There is much at stake. There are powerful new enemies, and powerful new allies, and you dont always know which is which. There is sacrifice and love, and a possible dark future. The sense of desperation between Lia and Zane, caused by her dreams, was nearly intoxicating. The scene where they made love just after Zane had found out the power of the diamond, was heartbreaking and beautiful. The more I write about this book, the more I wonder why I didnt give it 5/5. The writing is breathtaking, its beautiful and hypnotizing. I added 12 quotes from the book to Goodreads. Nearly every word is worth remembering and making note of. Its like a song.
I cant stop thinking about this series, and I have to order Queen of Dragons from my library right away. It is about a character we met in this book. She was only 11, but Zane was only 13 in The Smoke Thief, so I'm sure several years will have passed. I am extremely excited to hear her story. The rest of the series has lower ratings than the first 2 books, but I hope I will love it anyway.
The story in this was much grander than The Smoke Thief, which was about a jewel theft in London. In The Dream Thief, Lia and Zane go to Hungary to track down a legendary diamond that can control the Drakon. There is much at stake. There are powerful new enemies, and powerful new allies, and you dont always know which is which. There is sacrifice and love, and a possible dark future. The sense of desperation between Lia and Zane, caused by her dreams, was nearly intoxicating. The scene where they made love just after Zane had found out the power of the diamond, was heartbreaking and beautiful. The more I write about this book, the more I wonder why I didnt give it 5/5. The writing is breathtaking, its beautiful and hypnotizing. I added 12 quotes from the book to Goodreads. Nearly every word is worth remembering and making note of. Its like a song.
I cant stop thinking about this series, and I have to order Queen of Dragons from my library right away. It is about a character we met in this book. She was only 11, but Zane was only 13 in The Smoke Thief, so I'm sure several years will have passed. I am extremely excited to hear her story. The rest of the series has lower ratings than the first 2 books, but I hope I will love it anyway.
October 11, 2011
Once again I find myself in awe of Ms Abé's ability to weave words into a story tapestry. Beautifully written prose, a plot that made me think, and characters that puzzled, charmed and sometimes frustrated me but remained firmly in my head even when I put the book down.
These characters are so unlike Rue and Kit from The Smoke Thief, that I'll admit to wondering at first how they could possibly compare in my esteem. Though a continuing story, the world created here was different from the previous book, geographically and more linked to the legend which ties both books together. Lia and Zane lacked the witty dialogue and cheeky spark so redolent in Kit and Rue, but didn't lack for intensity of purpose. I didn't empathise with these characters as much as I was hoping to: Zane is aloof, condescending and often a complete bastard to the heroine, and though he redeems himself well, I spent the majority of the book wondering why Lia felt so tied to him. Lia is young and naive, though by no means TSTL, she lacked a backbone where Zane was concerned. Despite these traits, the plot was entirely compelling.
It is a cleverly crafted story which kept me guessing til the end how all the threads would come together, but leaving me ultimately happy at the artwork I've encountered.
I am now curious to read more of Maricara's story.
These characters are so unlike Rue and Kit from The Smoke Thief, that I'll admit to wondering at first how they could possibly compare in my esteem. Though a continuing story, the world created here was different from the previous book, geographically and more linked to the legend which ties both books together. Lia and Zane lacked the witty dialogue and cheeky spark so redolent in Kit and Rue, but didn't lack for intensity of purpose. I didn't empathise with these characters as much as I was hoping to: Zane is aloof, condescending and often a complete bastard to the heroine, and though he redeems himself well, I spent the majority of the book wondering why Lia felt so tied to him. Lia is young and naive, though by no means TSTL, she lacked a backbone where Zane was concerned. Despite these traits, the plot was entirely compelling.
It is a cleverly crafted story which kept me guessing til the end how all the threads would come together, but leaving me ultimately happy at the artwork I've encountered.
I am now curious to read more of Maricara's story.
February 25, 2012
Another series flames out. I liked "the Smoke Thief" quite a bit. It had interesting characters, a lively plot and a fun take on dragons and the people who can turn into them. "The Dream Thief" has Lia, the youngest daughter of Rue, the smoke thief. Lia can hear the future and is destined to find the mystical diamond of her people in the Carpathian mountains. Lia is also in love with Zane, a man she's known since childhood which makes their eventual sexual relationship more than a little icky.
There are about a 150 pages which can be summed up as followed: Lia and Zane travel to the Carpathian mountains. It is a hard journey in a horrible carriage with nightly stays in flea infested hotels. When they run out of hotels, Lia and Zane travel on foot through the forest growing increasingly hungry, tired cold, both of them unbathed and not having seen a toothbrush in days. Then they pause to have violent sex with each other on top of a pile of dead leaves.
Like I said, icky.
Princess Maricara is the most interesting character in the book. Unfortunately the story doesn't focus on her. We're left with a story about Lia, a whiny, immature little rich girl who's in complete conflict with herself and Zane, a thief who has an affair with a 16 year old girl he's known since she was baby. And the whole bit of looking for a magical stone is so trite it makes for a poor excuse for a novel.
Overall, a huge disappointment.
There are about a 150 pages which can be summed up as followed: Lia and Zane travel to the Carpathian mountains. It is a hard journey in a horrible carriage with nightly stays in flea infested hotels. When they run out of hotels, Lia and Zane travel on foot through the forest growing increasingly hungry, tired cold, both of them unbathed and not having seen a toothbrush in days. Then they pause to have violent sex with each other on top of a pile of dead leaves.
Like I said, icky.
Princess Maricara is the most interesting character in the book. Unfortunately the story doesn't focus on her. We're left with a story about Lia, a whiny, immature little rich girl who's in complete conflict with herself and Zane, a thief who has an affair with a 16 year old girl he's known since she was baby. And the whole bit of looking for a magical stone is so trite it makes for a poor excuse for a novel.
Overall, a huge disappointment.
April 20, 2011
Okay, I just have to say it. I have a huge problem with girls falling in love with men they have known since they were babies. If they grow up together, that's one thing, but when the guy is already fourteen when she's born, a family friend whom she's grown up knowing, it simply has a bit of an ick factor for me. That is the problem here. The whole time their love story is developing, this little voice in my head keeps saying ewwwww. Never a good start in a romance.
I still enjoy the lore of the drakon in the stories, although it was never made clear why Lia wasn't able to change, other than she was somehow linked to Draumr.
I did like the characters, interesting and multi-faceted. The thief does some things that I didn't care much for. Each man in these stories, once he's finally decided to 'take' the woman in question, seems to be somewhat 'wham, bam, thank you maam' about it, whether she likes it or not. I can't imagine a virignal young woman enjoys being suddenly rammed into without even being told, "brace yourself" first. And characters doing it up against a tree or column or standing in any way, isn't really romantic.
I'm giving this one three stars because I enjoy the fantasy elements and the legends interwoven in the story. I wish I liked it better.
I still enjoy the lore of the drakon in the stories, although it was never made clear why Lia wasn't able to change, other than she was somehow linked to Draumr.
I did like the characters, interesting and multi-faceted. The thief does some things that I didn't care much for. Each man in these stories, once he's finally decided to 'take' the woman in question, seems to be somewhat 'wham, bam, thank you maam' about it, whether she likes it or not. I can't imagine a virignal young woman enjoys being suddenly rammed into without even being told, "brace yourself" first. And characters doing it up against a tree or column or standing in any way, isn't really romantic.
I'm giving this one three stars because I enjoy the fantasy elements and the legends interwoven in the story. I wish I liked it better.
May 11, 2015
This one was such good brain candy!
June 18, 2018
Much better than the first. As always, Shana Abe's writing is a dream, and the dynamic between Amalia and Zane was so inventive.
December 30, 2010
This is book two in the Drakon Series by Shana Abe' that started with "The Smoke Thief". I actually liked this book quite a bit better than the first one. It helped that I knew to expect a story that was more of a romance than a fantasy.
This book follow's Rue's daughter, Lia, and Rue's ex-assistant thief, Zane. In this book Rue hires Zane to go and retrieve the Draumr, a dangerous diamond that can control drakon. Little does Rue know her daughter Lia has been hearing Draumr's song her whole life and has also been dreaming of Zane. Shortly after taking off on his quest Zane is joined by Lia who has abandoned her boarding school in her own search for the diamond. They are uneasy partners through the wilderness and two questions must be answered; will they find the diamond and when they do what will Zane do with it?
I liked this book much better than the first one. Zane is a much more like-able lead man; he has that "I am tough" thing going on with a good dash of vulnerability. He is not so overly alpha like a lot of the romance leads are. Lia is also an interesting character; she has interesting magical abilities and a toughness that comes and goes.
This book is more of an adventure, a quest, than "The Smoke Thief" was. There is less intrigue and more drudging through the wilderness; which I actually enjoyed. The intrigue is still there, the romance is definitely still there. Overall this is a fantasy romance. The characters spend of a lot of time thinking about each other and dreaming about one another. There is some explicit sex, but it is tastefully done.
Overall this was a sweet story and a pleasant read. I thought both the plot and the characters were more enjoyable than the last book. If there is one thing Abe' does well it is sensual writing. Everything in her books is sensual from the description of a room, to the description of a fight, to the sensual love scenes. Everything is saturated in silky golden colors, or dripping in diamonds, the wind caresses, and Lia's hair tumbles in gentle waves of gold. Abe's writing is a bit over the top in sensuality but it is still a pleasure to read. It's a bit like a cupcake with heaping loads of frosting, sprinkles, sugar, and a cherry on top. It is something I read once in a while and enjoy but I don't think I would like to read it all the time. Abe' is very creative in her descriptions and really makes the surroundings in her stories come alive to all of your senses.
I liked that this was more of a fantasy than the first book. So far it looks like there are two more books coming up for this series "The Dragon Queen" and "Treasure Keeper". I will probably read them both...eventually.
This book follow's Rue's daughter, Lia, and Rue's ex-assistant thief, Zane. In this book Rue hires Zane to go and retrieve the Draumr, a dangerous diamond that can control drakon. Little does Rue know her daughter Lia has been hearing Draumr's song her whole life and has also been dreaming of Zane. Shortly after taking off on his quest Zane is joined by Lia who has abandoned her boarding school in her own search for the diamond. They are uneasy partners through the wilderness and two questions must be answered; will they find the diamond and when they do what will Zane do with it?
I liked this book much better than the first one. Zane is a much more like-able lead man; he has that "I am tough" thing going on with a good dash of vulnerability. He is not so overly alpha like a lot of the romance leads are. Lia is also an interesting character; she has interesting magical abilities and a toughness that comes and goes.
This book is more of an adventure, a quest, than "The Smoke Thief" was. There is less intrigue and more drudging through the wilderness; which I actually enjoyed. The intrigue is still there, the romance is definitely still there. Overall this is a fantasy romance. The characters spend of a lot of time thinking about each other and dreaming about one another. There is some explicit sex, but it is tastefully done.
Overall this was a sweet story and a pleasant read. I thought both the plot and the characters were more enjoyable than the last book. If there is one thing Abe' does well it is sensual writing. Everything in her books is sensual from the description of a room, to the description of a fight, to the sensual love scenes. Everything is saturated in silky golden colors, or dripping in diamonds, the wind caresses, and Lia's hair tumbles in gentle waves of gold. Abe's writing is a bit over the top in sensuality but it is still a pleasure to read. It's a bit like a cupcake with heaping loads of frosting, sprinkles, sugar, and a cherry on top. It is something I read once in a while and enjoy but I don't think I would like to read it all the time. Abe' is very creative in her descriptions and really makes the surroundings in her stories come alive to all of your senses.
I liked that this was more of a fantasy than the first book. So far it looks like there are two more books coming up for this series "The Dragon Queen" and "Treasure Keeper". I will probably read them both...eventually.
June 5, 2011
Wow! I read this in two sittings - long ones though! I love this author's writing and so glad I discovered her and this series. Romance, humor, adventure, fantasy, and wonderful characters all woven together with beautiful descriptions of people and places. Although I understood the legend of the drakon through reading the first book, The Smoke Thief, I did find it confusing at first. The two page prologue in The Dream Thief is shorter, and I wish i had read it before starting the first book. It's an incredible legend going back many many generations to a time of beautiful dragons who were drawn to gems and heard their songs. These dragons ruled all in their domain. Over the centuries the Others (mankind) hunted them and discovered their secrets, but the drakon also discovered the secrets of man. They became shape-shifters and learned to deal with their environment, but never forgot that they are not human and have a loyalty to the tribe to keep their secrets.
This second book in the series is the story of Zane who we met in the first book as the street urchin whose life was saved by Rue, the smoke thief. Now Zane has grown up and I loved the wonderful man he has become. Shaped by his childhood and relationship with the drakon as the only human they trust, he is tough, hard as nails, competent, ruthless, but capable of great loyalty and in the end.....well, no spoilers. Then we have Lia, daughter of Kit and Rue, the tribe alphas, from the first book. Lia is a princess of the drakon but apparently with no gift or powers like her older sisters. Zane is sent on a dangerous quest by Kit and Rue and that quest is the story within this book. Innocent little Lia should have had no part in this quest, but Lia is not all that she seems to be which Zane finds out along the way. There is intrigue and danger and of course a beautifully written romance as the story unfolds.
I think I liked The Smoke Thief just a little bit better than this one, perhaps because there was more of the amazing descriptions of disappearing from human form into smoke and then, at times, into a dragon. Those segments of The Smoke Thief are so beautifully done and magical, and not as much a part of this story. But having just finished this book, it is a five star for me and I am awaiting the third book!
This second book in the series is the story of Zane who we met in the first book as the street urchin whose life was saved by Rue, the smoke thief. Now Zane has grown up and I loved the wonderful man he has become. Shaped by his childhood and relationship with the drakon as the only human they trust, he is tough, hard as nails, competent, ruthless, but capable of great loyalty and in the end.....well, no spoilers. Then we have Lia, daughter of Kit and Rue, the tribe alphas, from the first book. Lia is a princess of the drakon but apparently with no gift or powers like her older sisters. Zane is sent on a dangerous quest by Kit and Rue and that quest is the story within this book. Innocent little Lia should have had no part in this quest, but Lia is not all that she seems to be which Zane finds out along the way. There is intrigue and danger and of course a beautifully written romance as the story unfolds.
I think I liked The Smoke Thief just a little bit better than this one, perhaps because there was more of the amazing descriptions of disappearing from human form into smoke and then, at times, into a dragon. Those segments of The Smoke Thief are so beautifully done and magical, and not as much a part of this story. But having just finished this book, it is a five star for me and I am awaiting the third book!
April 12, 2012
Rüya Hırsızi Shane Abe kenara uzun zaman önce koyup unuttugum kitaplardan.Ingiltere'den Romanya'ya Karpat Daglarina kadar uzanan Historical Fantastik bir hikaye ilk roman Duman Hirsizindan daha cok begendim. Bu daha soft bir ejderha hikayesi. Shane Abe'nin büyülü kalemi ile hala daha tanısmadıysaniz cok sey kacıriyorsunuz bence. Seriye
Duman Hirsizi ve Rüya Hirsizi kitaplari ile başlayabilirsiniz.
Rüya Hırsızi serinin ikinci kitabi. Ilk
kitapta Rüya Hirsizindaki Amelia Longford'un anne ve babasi Rue ve
Christoph Longford'un hikayesini okumustum. Ikinci kitapta bu büyülü
çiftin çocuklarından en farkli olani Amelia ve Sokak hirsizi Zane'in
hikayesi vardı.
Ciftin diger cocuklari normal bir drakon yani ejderhaydı. Tek farkla
Lia'nin diger kardeşleri gibi yeteneginin olmadigi saniliyordu aslında gerçek
cok farkliydı. Lia Rüyalarinda gelecegi görüyordu. Rüyalarinin erkegi
cani,eski Duman Hırsızinin çıragi Zane idi. Zane Rue Langford'un
hırsızlik günlerinden yardimcisi bir sokak çocugu idi. Rue onu bir
gece bicaklanmış olarak bulup hayatini kurtarmis bu aykıri cocuga
evinde barindirarak işlerinde yardimci olmasina karar vermisti.
Iste Lia annesinin bu aykiri karizmatik yakisikli yardimcisina
cocuklugundan beri asikti. Ama Zane'in isi aşk ile özellikle ne
olduklarini bildigi Langfordlarin kızi ile isi olamazdi.
Fakat yıllar sonra Rue'nun ricasi ile Dragonlar icin çok önemli olan
bir elmasi bulmasini rica etmısti.Bu elmasi bulmaya çalisirken Lia ile
yollari tekrar kesişir. O kücük kiz sahane bir kadina dönüşmüştü.
Aralarindaki cekim ise farkedilemeyecek hıssedilemeyecek gibi degildi.
Amelia yıllardir sevdigi ve rüyalarinda geleceginde gördügü erkek ile
yollarinin kesişmesi onun icın harikulade bir şeydi. Zane başlarda
istemese de Ingiltere'den,Macaristan,Romanya ve oradan Karpatya
Daglarindaki başka bir Drakon prensi Alfa Imre'nin kalesine kadar
sürecek bir macera onlari bekliyordu. Harika bir macera idi.
Bu değiişik romantik,tutku dolu macerayı okumak istiyorsanız Rüya Hırsızını tavsiye ederim...
Duman Hirsizi ve Rüya Hirsizi kitaplari ile başlayabilirsiniz.
Rüya Hırsızi serinin ikinci kitabi. Ilk
kitapta Rüya Hirsizindaki Amelia Longford'un anne ve babasi Rue ve
Christoph Longford'un hikayesini okumustum. Ikinci kitapta bu büyülü
çiftin çocuklarından en farkli olani Amelia ve Sokak hirsizi Zane'in
hikayesi vardı.
Ciftin diger cocuklari normal bir drakon yani ejderhaydı. Tek farkla
Lia'nin diger kardeşleri gibi yeteneginin olmadigi saniliyordu aslında gerçek
cok farkliydı. Lia Rüyalarinda gelecegi görüyordu. Rüyalarinin erkegi
cani,eski Duman Hırsızinin çıragi Zane idi. Zane Rue Langford'un
hırsızlik günlerinden yardimcisi bir sokak çocugu idi. Rue onu bir
gece bicaklanmış olarak bulup hayatini kurtarmis bu aykıri cocuga
evinde barindirarak işlerinde yardimci olmasina karar vermisti.
Iste Lia annesinin bu aykiri karizmatik yakisikli yardimcisina
cocuklugundan beri asikti. Ama Zane'in isi aşk ile özellikle ne
olduklarini bildigi Langfordlarin kızi ile isi olamazdi.
Fakat yıllar sonra Rue'nun ricasi ile Dragonlar icin çok önemli olan
bir elmasi bulmasini rica etmısti.Bu elmasi bulmaya çalisirken Lia ile
yollari tekrar kesişir. O kücük kiz sahane bir kadina dönüşmüştü.
Aralarindaki cekim ise farkedilemeyecek hıssedilemeyecek gibi degildi.
Amelia yıllardir sevdigi ve rüyalarinda geleceginde gördügü erkek ile
yollarinin kesişmesi onun icın harikulade bir şeydi. Zane başlarda
istemese de Ingiltere'den,Macaristan,Romanya ve oradan Karpatya
Daglarindaki başka bir Drakon prensi Alfa Imre'nin kalesine kadar
sürecek bir macera onlari bekliyordu. Harika bir macera idi.
Bu değiişik romantik,tutku dolu macerayı okumak istiyorsanız Rüya Hırsızını tavsiye ederim...
April 2, 2008
After some consideration, I have decided that it's not that writing in this book is exceptional, it's just that I've read so much godawful writing recently that the merely decent is beginning to look like genius. However, it is decent.
I have the impression the book is the second in a series, and if I should stumble across the first, I'll probably read it. I think this book falls into the interesting-to-me category of "paranormal romance," which I will admit I find silly, although I'm more likely to read romance of the paranormal flavour than almost any other.
The settup is that there is a race of "drakon", which you might suspect is dragon with a needlessly exotic spelling, and you would be right. Drakon are people(ish), some of whom can change themselves into dragons at will, but they are, even in their people-shape, a collection of somewhat random mystical attributes: they are uniformly beautiful, terrify animals, and have an almost spiritual empathy with, and desire for gemstones.
So, Amalia Langford, Drakon, has had prophetic dreams since she was a child, although she didn't understand what they were until she grew older. Eventually, she realized that the future she was seeing involved a stone that would allow the bearer to command any and all Drakon, suspending their will, and in that future, she's the enslaved lover of one Zane, a human thief who sometimes does favours and acts as an agent for her family. Without telling anyone, she sets out to change this future.
While I'm happy to say the novel avoids going to the rapey place, it doesn't seem quite aware that that's the territory it's avoiding, which made it less than entirely comfortable to read.
I have the impression the book is the second in a series, and if I should stumble across the first, I'll probably read it. I think this book falls into the interesting-to-me category of "paranormal romance," which I will admit I find silly, although I'm more likely to read romance of the paranormal flavour than almost any other.
The settup is that there is a race of "drakon", which you might suspect is dragon with a needlessly exotic spelling, and you would be right. Drakon are people(ish), some of whom can change themselves into dragons at will, but they are, even in their people-shape, a collection of somewhat random mystical attributes: they are uniformly beautiful, terrify animals, and have an almost spiritual empathy with, and desire for gemstones.
So, Amalia Langford, Drakon, has had prophetic dreams since she was a child, although she didn't understand what they were until she grew older. Eventually, she realized that the future she was seeing involved a stone that would allow the bearer to command any and all Drakon, suspending their will, and in that future, she's the enslaved lover of one Zane, a human thief who sometimes does favours and acts as an agent for her family. Without telling anyone, she sets out to change this future.
While I'm happy to say the novel avoids going to the rapey place, it doesn't seem quite aware that that's the territory it's avoiding, which made it less than entirely comfortable to read.
May 7, 2015
It's been a while since I read the first book in the series, but I remember finding it original and very engaging. The same is true for this second book, which tells the story of Zane, Rue's protege, and Amalia, aka Lia, her youngest daughter.
Lia is seemingly Gift-less, unlike her siblings who are all Gifted and admired. That is not quite true, however, since she has the very rare gift of seeing the future in her dreams, and it looks grim. Zane plays a significant part in them, and, deeply in love with him, she is desperate to change their dark outcome.
Zane is tasked by the Alpha pair to retrieve a mystical, mythical diamond that is of great importance to their race and on his way there, Lia intercepts and joins him.
They spend a lot of time together and their relationship changes, bringing them closer, but it's unclear if that will be enough to make a difference.
Pretty dark, from start to finish, yet very engaging.
Next in the series comes Queen of Dragons and princess Mari's and Kimber's, Lia's eldest brother's story. I'm curious to read their story as they should make an interesting couple.
Lia is seemingly Gift-less, unlike her siblings who are all Gifted and admired. That is not quite true, however, since she has the very rare gift of seeing the future in her dreams, and it looks grim. Zane plays a significant part in them, and, deeply in love with him, she is desperate to change their dark outcome.
Zane is tasked by the Alpha pair to retrieve a mystical, mythical diamond that is of great importance to their race and on his way there, Lia intercepts and joins him.
They spend a lot of time together and their relationship changes, bringing them closer, but it's unclear if that will be enough to make a difference.
Pretty dark, from start to finish, yet very engaging.
Next in the series comes Queen of Dragons and princess Mari's and Kimber's, Lia's eldest brother's story. I'm curious to read their story as they should make an interesting couple.
August 26, 2011
Amazing! This series just keeps getting better! So far, Zane and Lia (the main characters in the Dream Thief) are my absolute favorite! They go on one hell of an adventure together searching for a Drakon diamond that has called to Lia ever since she was a young girl.
Zane is the love her entire life, literally. She's dreamt of him for as long as she's heard the diamond. The only problem is Zane is a notorious thief and the diamond they seek will give any human who holds it the power to control the Drakon...
I really encourage any and all to read this series! It is the best fantasy novel I've read since the Tairen Soul series... YES! IT IS THAT GREAT!
For those of you put off by the "Historical" genre, don't be! The only thing historical about this series is the time it is set in. Everything else is fantasy and beautiful romance. No major historical events or boring history lessons... TRUST ME!
Zane is the love her entire life, literally. She's dreamt of him for as long as she's heard the diamond. The only problem is Zane is a notorious thief and the diamond they seek will give any human who holds it the power to control the Drakon...
I really encourage any and all to read this series! It is the best fantasy novel I've read since the Tairen Soul series... YES! IT IS THAT GREAT!
For those of you put off by the "Historical" genre, don't be! The only thing historical about this series is the time it is set in. Everything else is fantasy and beautiful romance. No major historical events or boring history lessons... TRUST ME!
April 9, 2022
What’s unfortunate about this book was that I really liked it, but there’s a single line in the scene where the couple get together for the first time that clearly shows that it is not fully consensual that ruins the whole book. It was totally unnecessary to even put in that line as both parties clearly wanted to sleep together, but the author chose to make sure that Zane purposefully didn’t want Lia to wake up while he raped her. Even for 2007 this author should have known that when she wrote that first sex scene she was clearly depicting a rape. Why? Why did he not want to wake her up? Literally this book would have been great if instead of saying Zane didn’t want to wake her up it said that Lia awoke, looked at him and then jumped his bones. Literally one sentence ruined this whole book, that first time could have been consensual. WHAT WAS THE REASON???? Why is this series so goddam rapey???
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 5, 2018
This book came with an inscription from my mother-in-law.
"The best were-dragon book I've ever read. I have to share it. Enjoy, Ruth "
Dragons may be the thing, but this is also a quest story, romance, and historical fantasy. The dragons are shape shifters, going from human to smoke to full on dragon. Humans, weak little things, are Others.
,
The main characters deal with fleas, bad roads and cold. The descriptions of the weather, rarely a high point, is excellent. Details like this make the story real and the characters vivid. There are a few surprises along the way. I enjoyed this were-dragon world
"The best were-dragon book I've ever read. I have to share it. Enjoy, Ruth "
Dragons may be the thing, but this is also a quest story, romance, and historical fantasy. The dragons are shape shifters, going from human to smoke to full on dragon. Humans, weak little things, are Others.
,
The main characters deal with fleas, bad roads and cold. The descriptions of the weather, rarely a high point, is excellent. Details like this make the story real and the characters vivid. There are a few surprises along the way. I enjoyed this were-dragon world
April 13, 2017
I thought the first book in this series was just ok, but I liked the idea enough to give the story another go. I'm glad I did, because this one's better.
I don't think this would work well as a stand-alone, because the dragons and their origins are explained in the first book. Also, I would have liked a little more explanation as to how Lia sees different visions of the future (and how outside factors change what she's seen), but overall I liked it.
I don't think this would work well as a stand-alone, because the dragons and their origins are explained in the first book. Also, I would have liked a little more explanation as to how Lia sees different visions of the future (and how outside factors change what she's seen), but overall I liked it.
February 21, 2024
3.5. I started this trilogy at the second book & and though it’s fantasy-romance, it’s much more heavily fantasy and I wished I would have grabbed the first one before this. Overall I enjoyed this unique dragon-shape shifter world. I never fully loved or found or main characters believable, hence the lower rating. I am intrigued enough to pick up the last book of the trilogy if I can find a copy.
July 17, 2018
I enjoyed this second book in the series and felt that it was enjoyable but, not as interesting as the first novel.
October 1, 2011
Intrigue, adventure and romance await when you open up Shana Abe's second installment in the Drakon series.
The Dream Thief picks up a few years after the events of The Smoke Thief. Rue and Kit went on to lead their tribe in Darkfrith and have a family of their own. This sequel surrounds Kit and Rue's youngest and seemingly unremarkable daughter, Amalia (or Lia for short), and Zane, Rue's 'street urchin' whom she took in when she found him as a child dying on the streets of London.
Zane is now an adult and is asked by Rue and Kit to retrieve a gem special to their people...the Draumr diamond. Gems of the earth sing to the drakon--some more than others--and Draumr's melodies are becoming quite urgent, and more and more of their tribe are hearing its song... especially Lia who has been hearing it since she was a child but no one believed her. Due to their obligations as heads of their tribe, and neither willing to let the other go alone to find the diamond, they ask Zane to find it for them.
Zane is the only human fully aware of the drakon people and the only human whom they trust. He is also the only one who can handle the Draumr diamond without feeling the intoxicating and madness-inducing effects of touching the powerful stone. Zane will be paid VERY handsomely if he returns with it. They have no idea where it is or who has it, so it will be a bit of a wild-goose chase, but if anyone can find it, it would be Zane, being an accomplished thief in his own right, as he learned from the best...Rue. So, of course, he accepts the challenge, with the promise of HUGE riches in the end.
Lia has been away at a women's finishing school learning the fine art of languages and how to be lady. But she perhaps hears the diamond's song the strongest and learning of Zane's quest to find Draumr, she arranges a run-in with Zane at the beginning of his journey. Lia also has prophetic dreams and sees Zane integrated into every single one of them.
Lia is very similar to her mother, in that she has been in love with a man much older than herself since she was a young girl. Lia is fourteen years Zane's junior but has always adored him. Now, at 19, she is every bit as beautiful as any drakon female, if not more so. However, Lia has never been able to make the Turn nor does she demonstrate any Gifts. However, she does hear the song of Draumr more so than anyone, but she keeps that and her prophetic dreams to herself.
Both Lia's and Zane's lives take dramatic turns upon their first meeting in years, after which, she talks Zane into allowing her to help him find the diamond because she has a greater sense of being able to locate it. He reluctantly lets her join him. He knows her parents will not be too happy with him for allowing this, but he has always had a fondness for her, as well, and he soon realizes he could certainly use the help.
Their journey to finding the diamond is not only a physical quest but also provides the backdrop to their growing relationship. He obviously notices her beauty and he admires her tenaciousness and her candor. She is smart and they seem to make a great team but Zane fights the urge to pursue a romantic relationship with her because her people will never accept him because he is not Drakon. As well, Lia cannot trust Zane--being a thief first and foremost--to find the diamond first because if he did, he could not only control her but her people to do his bidding. So it comes down to a question of trust.
Zane is a worldly character, who has lived the tough and dangerous life of a thief, but it is truly a profession for him...it is a way of life and he is extremely good at it. It is hard to love a character that steals for a living but you just do. You know that underneath that tough exterior, is the heart of a true gentleman capable of giving his all to the one that unlocks his heart and I particularly enjoyed that process.
I also loved their little teasings with each other...endearing and delicious.
I've grown accustomed to Shana's unique prose in The Smoke Thief, of which is really quite beautiful writing and that beautiful writing continues in The Dream Thief. She can write romance and erotic scenes with such eloquence as not to make it dirty. Her character development was wonderfully established, and left me with a huge appreciation for both Lia and Zane, and the supporting characters.
However, upon closing this book, I still found I had several questions I needed clarification on. Thankfully, I was able to discuss some of them with two wonderful friends who have also read this series, and we were able to at least resolve some of my misunderstandings and musings.
The Dream Thief was every bit as intriguing as its predecessor despite my lingering questions but overall I did enjoy the story as a whole, and the ending was perfect. And I hope there is more to Lia and Zane's story in the remaining installments.
September 20, 2021
Finished this one last night and wow! It was every bit as good as the first, another great read! Hero of this book is a main character from first book, and that's all I am going to say, but he is very cool, liked him from first introduction in book one. I love the way the author sets the story up, never a boring page, just good stuff from start to finish. Again, highly recommend this series to anyone who enjoys fantasy romance....these books are keepers!
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