Branded by Flames

Dragon Soul #1

by Sean Michael

Introducing a brand-new male/male dragon shifter series from bestselling LGBTQ author Sean Michael!

Meet the Beteferoce brothers. Five dragon shifters, each with a strong elemental power. And each with a fierce desire to find his soul mate…

For years, dragon-shifter-slash-firefighter Jake has been searching for his mate, but he's beginning to tire of the search. Maybe soul mates are only for the lucky few.

Then he meets Shae.

A former navy welder, Shae is handsome, talented, into power play and rough sex, and covered in dragon tattoos. All of this suits the shape-shifting dragon just fine—until he finds out that Shae literally has Jake's family crest already tattooed on him. A coincidence? Or something more…

Jake must convince Shae to trust him as a man and as a Dom before the heat between them burns out of control. Becoming a dragon's mate is not without danger, and Shae will need Jake's guidance—and love—if he's going to make it through alive.

This book is approximately 76,000 words

One-click with confidence. This title is part of the Carina Press Romance Promise: all the romance you're looking for with an HEA/HFN. It's a promise! Find out more at CarinaPress.com/RomancePromise.

Genres: M M Romance, BDSM, Dragons, Paranormal, Shapeshifters, Romance, Fantasy

216 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 30, 2017

About the author

Often referred to as "Space Cowboy" and "Gangsta of Love" while still striving for the moniker of "Maurice," Sean Michael spends his days surfing, smutting, organizing his immense gourd collection and fantasizing about one day retiring on a small secluded island peopled entirely by horseshoe crabs. While collecting vast amounts of vintage gay pulp novels and mood rings, Sean whiles away the hours between dropping the f-bomb and persuing the kama sutra by channeling the long lost spirit of John Wayne and singing along with the soundtrack to "Chicago."

A long-time writer of complicated haiku, currently Sean is attempting to learn the advanced arts of plate spinning and soap carving sex toys.

Barring any of that? He'll stick with writing his stories, thanks, and rubbing pretty bodies together to see if they spark.

Reviews

[Heather K (dentist in my spare time) · Rating 3 out of 5]

If it wasn't for the fact that I was into the kink, I would give this book 1 or 2 stars. However, it just so happens that I'm a dirty girl, and spanking, fingering, and non-stop booty play... well, it called to me.

This book is 95% sex. I'm not exaggerating. The ENTIRE book revolves around sex.

Branded by Flames is a dragon-shifter book, but the paranormal stuff is really just an excuse for dragon-themed tattooing, piercing, and super-human strength... all of which serve to further the kinks in the book.

Pain play? Check! LOTS of butt plugging, power plays, and dildo work? Check!

Plot... not so much.

Okay, listen, this book isn't going to win any awards for writing or world-building. It is basically two guys having super hot sex and eating dozens of steaks, over and over again. But something about it turned my crank. It is that magical Sean Michael dirtiness that just worked for me!

If you want a book that is mostly PWP and are into some BDSM stuff, but mostly just lots of sex, I'd try this book. I'm actually really looking forward to the rest of the series.

*Copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review*

[Sophia Triad · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you have read even just one book by Sean Michael, you will know what to expect when you start this book.
i.e. an MM smut read
i.e. more sex than story
i.e. an honest story without pretence
i.e. BDSM that can vary from light to really heavy one

This is what I got from this book. The bonuses were
1.the paranormal romance part of the story with the Dragon shifters
2.the fated one trope that I absolutely love
3.the fact that the submissive guy was a bit older that the one you usually read in this kind of books.

The story-although not very strong-, it is still engaging. It didn't bore me.

So there is a family of Dragon shifters and the first story is about Jake the firefighter/Dragon and Shae the sculptor who really likes dragons.

[True Loveislovereview · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shae and Jake...
One super sexy read about beautiful hot dragons.
Shae a sculpture artist, covered in dragon tattoos, somewhat lonely after a bad Dom/s experience.
Jake, firefighter, looking for his one and only soulmate for over hundreds of years. Never met him but then he sees Shae...he knows it... But how can he convince Shae and not scare him away.
They fit well and bit by bit Jake takes over Shae's life, to bond and be forever.
Only Shae has deep trust trouble. First he thinks he is to old for Jake and second he doubts Jake will fulfill all his needs and as third.... he is hurt before and is Jake honest?
Only Shae doesn't know Jake is precisely what he needs and now Jake has a goal.
Bond and earn trust so he can fulfill ALL Shae's needs.

The moment that Jake shifts into his real dragon form was endearing and emotional.
Shae is hard to convince but when he sees the real Jake his heart does strange things.

All the details were hot and a delight for the eye/imagination. There was a tremendous bunch of sexual interaction which was necessary for their future. I can say it was exhausting :) .....
There was some story but it was mostly about their bonding. And that was hot as hell.
All the other side-story would distract the purpose of the main course.
The end was unfortunately a bit flaw. It stopped at a point where Shae should be more convinced about their future, he was almost at the same point as before in this story.
Luckily it has an HEA or HFN I'm not sure.
Overall a very sexy hot read. It was sweet, entertaining and good strong written.

[Anne · Rating 2 out of 5]

As you can see from my OK rating, I didn't mind reading Branded by Flames but it didn't impress me. It was a fairly standard shifter erotic romance with destined mates. What I thought would be novel, having an older main character, older in this case being about 40, and hints of more exotic BDSM in the blurb, let me down. Shae reads more like a 20 year old and the BDSM was primarily spanking (BDSM 101). We have a dragon shifting fire fighter as the dom. Why not have some fire play (which I've only read about in one book by Kristine Cayne)? The book was essentially one long sex scene broken up briefly by a scene with one of Jake's brothers which was tedious and repetitive (as is all the sex which was mostly the same). Enough with the pork chops. Since the focus was on the two characters bonding by having lots of sex, there's little character development. We get the barest of facts about Jake's long life and a bad sexual past is alluded to with Shae but not fleshed out. They both mentioned the use of safe words, but strangely it was never discussed in their relationship.

So what did I like? The writing style was pleasant to read and enjoyable enough that I didn't give up. In this book, Michael didn't have the dom yak on endlessly explaining what he was doing to the sub and why. This book is all about the fun. I read one or two books by the same author where the sub was emotionally damaged and this was one of the dom's way of helping the sub. It got irritating to be lectured to, yet part of me appreciated the lesson because I have a problem understanding the psychological aspects of the lifestyle.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

[Notthatcatwoman · Rating 1 out of 5]

Copy received from NetGalley in exchange for honest review
If you like sex and nothing but sex give this book a go! Otherwise, save your money. 1/2 a star out of 5.

Full review with spoilers: http://catswhoread.blogspot.com.au/20...

[Sadie Forsythe · Rating 2 out of 5]

This has dragon shifters. Dragon shifters! I should have loved it. But I'm afraid I just didn't. The book is too long by half and it's all sex. I mean ALL SEX.

I understand that it is erotica, not romance. (Though, I didn't realize that when I requested it from Netgalley.) So, it's fine that the focus is on sex not relationships, but it is not enough to carry such a long book. I got so tired of sex scenes. You wouldn't expect them to bore a person, but when it's just the same thing on repeat, that's what it is, boring. I literally fell asleep at one point!

And it was painfully repetitive. I mean, there are only so many ways to describe two men having sex. The word ass is used 168 times and cock 202 times, in the novel. Now, the book is 216 pages long. That means that once you take out the front and back matter, it's basically once per page. So, you can estimate how much non-sex plot there is. Hint: essentially none. It might have worked for 75-100 pages, because Shae and Jake are likable, but not 200.

It also uses one of my personal pet peeves. I hate the whole 'boy' thing in BDSM books. Totally personal, that; probably doesn't annoy others like it does me. But it's nails on a chalk board, as far as I'm concerned. Maybe it's because I'm from the American South and, while there is definitely a traditional power play involved in the term, it's not one I find sexy in the least. In fact, I always unconsciously read it with an unnatural emphasis that rips me right out of a narrative. I just really hate it.

I also disliked that Shae started the book as a somewhat butch, tattooed, pierced, ex-Navy welder and as soon as Jake showed up, he turned into a rather camp 'queen.' Either would be fine, but the personality shift was jarring.

Outside of these irritants the writing is fine and there is some humor in the book. Plus, I rather enjoyed Jake's uncertainties, though I also thought they didn't match the rest of his character. I appreciated that Shae was supposed to be almost 40. It's so rare to find older romantic leads. And, of course, the whole this is about dragons, which is always a plus for me.

In the end, I think this may just be a case of a poor pairing between a reader and book.

[Morgan Skye · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was so excited when I read this blurb because I love the idea of fated mates and dragons and thought the whole tattoo thing sounded fascinating. I, however, missed the whole DOM thing and that’s a big drag because I would have skipped it had I noticed that because I don’t like BDSM as a rule.

On the one hand there were things I really liked about this. The world building is interesting, there are a few brothers and I’m sure we’ll get their stories. I thought Shae was a great character in that he was submissive but didn’t let Jake run him over. The tattoo artist is compelling and I’m betting there’s a story there, too. I loved the magic and the bonding and the nuances that occur once a pair is bonded – that was pretty cool!

What didn’t work for me: Most of the book is sex. Like, almost all of it. It’s one sex scene after another and I’d barely call it Porn with a plot as it’s mostly porn. The sex DID NOT add to the story and I skimmed it at best. (Partly because there was so much of it and partly because it’s not my cup of tea as far as kink goes.) There wasn’t much relationship building – unless all the sex was meant to be that. I think there could have been more attention spent on the plot and the world building and the romance and less on the sex – or it could have been a much, much shorter book.

I didn’t like Jake or bond with him. I hated how he called Shae BOY all the time – and not in a D/s way but in a degrading way and I didn’t really care if they became a couple by the end of the book.

So… in general I might be interested enough to read the blurb on others in the series but I’d wait for reviews before I pick it up. If the entire series is as sex-laden as this, then I’ll be skipping it. If there’s more romance in future stories I’m intrigued by the world building enough to give it a shot.

This just didn’t work for me but if you like loads of sex and pain is your kink you might like this.

[Ije the Devourer of Books · Rating 2 out of 5]

Beer, pizza, steak, a lot of sex, and a few dragon shifters here and there.

When Jake Beteferoce is called out to check on a man who is welding in his back yard, little does he know that the man will end up being deeply intwined in his future. Shae is used to neighbours calling the fire service whenever he starts his welding but the fireman who checks up on him moves something deep within Shae. There is a tangible pull between the two men which seems to grow into something combustible. What Shae doesn't realise is that fireman Jake is a dragon shifter and Shae's tattooed body bears Jake's brand.

What follows next is a story about a dragon shifter who seeks to claim his mate.

I thought this story had some real potential because the two main characters had such great push and pull, and I really enjoy shifter stories, but what should have been a really good shifter story, was lost in the very long sex scenes. These sex scenes took over the entire book and so for me the real story was suffocated and the entire book became very boring.

It is a missed opportunity because the characters are great and the actual premise of the story is a good one. Of course there may be plenty of people who enjoy this kind of writing but alas I am not one of them. I need a story more than I need unending, repetitive sex scenes.

Alas I wont be continuing with this series because quite frankly if you read one sex scene in this book, you have basically read the entire story.

Boring.

Copy provided by Carina Press via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

[xxoabbey · Rating 1 out of 5]

So so disappointed.

When I saw the blurb on netgalley, I was like yes.. a dragon shifter love story, this I could do. It held so much potential, but failed so badly in my opinion.

It was pure sex, don't get me wrong - I love a good sexual relationship between two guys as much most m/m fanatics but this was just too much.

I got to around 70% and started rolling my eyes and skimming the scenes waiting for dialogue that wasn't sex related and I struggled so much so I ended up clicking off the book in frustration.

Where was the drama? The angst? Where was the storyline?

Like I said, I am so disappointed that this book was a failure and will not be continuing on in the series. I hardly DNF a book, especially a review copy but I felt like my brain was bleeding.

[Claudia · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was not impressed. 90 % of this book is sex and that is way too much. I hoped really for some kind of development but nada .... I read the first half and skipped through the second ....this could have been nice but so all I got was annoyed

[Courtney · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars

I feel like I asked for this, to an extent. It became a trend that I would read gay romances, for some reason with BDSM elements, and then send live updates to a friend as I was reading. It's been a while, and the paranormal, shape shifting element to this piqued my interest. I even talked with the friend about going through all five books in the series.

Let me tell you that's not gonna happen.

I'm not even sure when and where to put spoiler brackets if at all because this book literally has no plot. Jake and Shae meet. They have sex. They have sex without a condom and bond. They fuck and eat and fuck some more. Jake tells Shae he's a dragon, and then they eat and have more sex. Shae has doubts about Jake and the nature of their relationship and trusting Jake and then he gets over it in two pages and they have sex again.

The least of my problems with this book is the writing. It's not only repetitive, which is probably an effect of the repetitiveness of the "plot", but gross. The choice of vocabulary is disgusting, the dragon lore is hardly ever explained, and there were a bunch of times where I had no idea who was talking. It's worse when, as soulmates, Jake and Shae talk to each other in their heads, which are at least signified by italics. But there's no difference in the italics when Jake speaks vs. when Shae does. It makes these interactions confusing.

But my biggest problem with this book is really the only thing it should have going for it, it's only selling point. The "romance." If you even want to call it that. I don't.

Because I swear to God, Jake is abusive to Shae.

I don't know if it's my lack of understanding of BDSM culture or just that every fiction story I've read on it is a shitty portrayal of it. But this one really takes the cake in terms of consent, or lack thereof, possessive nature, and coercion.

Jake has no sympathy for or respect of Shae's boundaries. He plays big bad Dom practically in their first sexual encounter, with no prior conversation or warning. He slaps Shae around, and by ways of explanation, says something along the lines of he knows Shae best, knows what he needs and how to provide it for him.

I'm pretty sure Mother Gothel in Tangled said almost the exact same thing, who kept Rapunzel locked in a tower for 18 years and is probably the poster girl for abusive parenting.

Sure, soulmates can read each others thoughts in this, and I guess sense each other's needs. But if Shae doesn't know that Jake knows what he needs, it feels like manipulation. And then Shae consents and orgasms, and it all just feels like coercion.

Shae isn't any better. He plays hard to get, insanely flirty. I can imagine him with a sneaky grin on his face every time he says no. That still doesn't mean you disregard said no. Never, not once were any clear cut rules put in place, certainly none that Shae verbally, or in writing, agreed to. Never was there an acknowledgement of any type of "scene" or roleplay, or anything to signify that Shae was only pretending to reject Jake, despite how his smile might imply otherwise. And in terms of writing, these smiles were implied anyway. This is "no means yes" at its finest.

And all of this is supposed to be romantic.

But I think Mr. Michael here says it best himself. All of the following are real quotes from the book. I'll try to keep spoilers out as much as I can. But again, when there's not plot, what's a spoiler.

He pulled off and slapped Shae's cock to remind him who was boss. Shae needed to shut the fuck up and submit.

"Mmm. Did you ask if you could play down there?" he teased.
"Nope. And I'm not going to either." Jake pushed his fingertip in.
"No? That's rude, huh?"

"We could play a game, boy. Something where we trade orgasms for secrets. How does that sound?"
He whimpered.
"That wasn't a yes, but it wasn't a no, either. I need an actual answer." Jake pegged his gland. "Please."
"I--Yes?" He didn't even remember the fucking question.

He swatted Shae once, demonstrating what he meant by a spanking.
"Don't touch! No fair!"
He chuckled softly. "Who said anything about fair?" He certainly hadn't. And he wouldn't. There was nothing fair about any of this. This was power and love and instinct and soul and forever. He smacked Shae's ass again, just for fun.
"Stop!" Please. Please, yours. Make me glow.

"That's enough," Shae moaned, and Jake shook his head.
"Not yet." Not until Shae was in his subspace, was flying for him. Shae was still fighting--not Jake so much as himself--and Jake could feel the tension in the slender body. "You can take more, and you're going to show me."
"I said that's enough!" He answered the snarl with a sharp volley of swats, fast and hard, enough to shatter Shae's thoughts, to push Shae past his worries. Shae was not in charge here, He was. And the sooner Shae learned that...Well, spending a long, long time trying to learn it would not be a bad thing. Chuckling, he kept spanking, bringing his hand down even harder now. The struggles started again, Shae beating on his leg, fighting his hand.

I'm having alone time.
Alone time. Why would you want that when you could have me?

And the clincher:

Like you'd hurt me. He knew that. Jake treasured him. He didn't know if he could trust Jake, but he did trust that.

This is spousal abuse disguised as BDSM romance. Jake is a terrible Dom with no respect for consent from his submissive, or his needs and feelings. That's washed away by the telepathic connection. There is no conversation about expectations, wants, needs, feelings, which in a BDSM romance needs to happen almost immediately. I may not know much about BDSM, but I know there is no relationship if there is not trust. And if there is no trust, how can there possibly be love?

I gave it an extra half a star because the flying scene was wonderful and sweet. This book should have been more of that and less of literally everything else.

God, I need a fucking break.

[Charly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Average Sean Michael fare

Warning: This review might contain what some people consider SPOILERS.

Rating: 5/10

PROS:
- Putting aside the whole dragons-live-for-centuries thing, which puts an interesting spin on Jake’s actual age… I like that Shae appears to be quite a bit older than Jake, at least physically. (Jake refers to Shae as a “sexy silver fox” when they first meet.) It makes for a different angle to the BDSM stuff, with an older sub and younger Dom.
- Jake is a fantasy Dom, just like most of the ones this author writes. Not just his ability to play his sub like an instrument sexually, but also his tendency to ignore other surroundings or stimuli because he senses that the sub is flighty if unsettled somehow and needs his attention.
- I liked that initially, there was more to the story than just sex immediately and then nothing else. (But see CONS below also)

CONS:
- The sex takes a while to start, particularly for a Sean Michael story (the first orgasm doesn’t happen until 20 percent in, which is practically unheard-of in a book by this writer), but once it *does* start, that’s basically all that happens.
- Shae is hot and cold, which I found annoying. He’s confused by the supernatural changes happening to his body, so it makes sense that he gets snappy sometimes. But then the desire comes back all strong and undeniable almost immediately, and that was the part I found annoying. It’s like their bond is so strong it takes over his personality a little bit.
- The four other dragon brothers make for a convenient setup for 4 more volumes in the series, but their interactions get a bit muddled at times simply because the author doesn’t do the best job of clearly differentiating them. Having two with names that are very similar--Mark and Mike--certainly doesn’t help matters.

Overall comments: I was intrigued early on by the dichotomy in Shae: he alternates between come-hither flirtations and cynical insistence that he needs someone who’s older and more experienced than Jake to dominate him. But then when they come together the first time, the Shifter-Has-Met-His-Mate-MagicTM materializes and they don’t even have to work at it that hard, so the story turns into just another Sean Michael book with tons of sex scenes and not much else. I’m sure I’ll read the other books in the series, but at this point I’m not overly impressed. I’m just a fan of this author.

[lady_knight · Rating 2 out of 5]

Branded by Flames by Sean Michael is an entire book about sex, sex, and more sex. If there was a plot to this story it was hard to find. I was so bored by the sex scenes I skipped a good chunk of them because they kept going. I don't mind a few sex scenes here and there, but I really wanted to read a good story and I didn't get that with this book. There's a good chance I won't be reading the rest in the series.

[Susanna · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,5 stars

"Jake brought their mouths together, seeking to distract his boy from those worries."

This quote sums up this book perfectly. All of the coversation about conflicts and trust issues runs the same cycle and is never actually resolved.
I still liked this book, and the world a lot. Dragon-shifters are interesting enough that I'll continue with this series, and smut is good even if overflowing.

[Mimi · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Typical Sean Michael.

[♥️Victoria ♥️ ♥️love books♥️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

SEX - SEX and More Sex it was a bit over the top

[J.P. Sayle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series intrigued me as it was my first dragon type shifter. I found myself going to find the others. I loved how they linked and they were very sexy.

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book but who wouldn't like a hot dragon shifter. The sex the fiery hot and Shae & Jake are awesome together. Looking forward to the brothers books.

[Ruthie Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

~~I received a free copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads ~~

This is the first of a news series from Ms Michael and I think that the dragon brothers will grow on me as the series develops. Jake is the first to find his mate, but we also get to meet his brothers. I hope that we get to understand better the fae's behaviour, as that remains a mystery, and that now that there is a human mate, future ones will have a less rocky ride.

It is super kinky, and a fun read - loved that Jake worried what would happen if Shae were a veggie! I am looking forward to future installments and seeing how the big picture is filled in.

[Cee Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

¸.•´¸★*´¨) ¸.•*¨)
(¸.★¨*.¸¸.•`★¤ "You’re the right man for me." ~ Jake¤★¨*.¸¸.*ˑ˞★

3 stars for the heat. What I love about shifter/paranormal books: the fact that anything goes. Soul mates are real and Insta Love is never taboo. There is no need to believe the impossible because the impossible is true.

They were going to join, at the cellular level. Corryn had been right—this human had been born for him, to be his eternal companion. He’d finally found him. His soul mate.

Jake had been a dragon for centuries, a firefighter to soothe the ache and not looking for his legendary second half. Meeting artist Shae was like the icing on the cake.

Shae felt alone in the world, just him and his art. Having been ostracized from the BDSM world, he thought he would never find the one. When a neighbour decided to call the fire department on him, yet again, he had the opportunity to meet the man of his dream.

Realizing they were compatible was like saying the world was not spinning on its axis. And they had matching tats to prove it. I liked the interaction between the men and laughed a lot at Jake's "Dom". As a sub, Shae was beyond mouthy and used to having his way. As a team, they were like lightning. The chemistry was surreal and they burned the pages and the sheets and sizzled the water!

As the first of a series, this book set the tone for what is to come. Hot, wordy and a legend to be explored. As Jake said: "Here I am. Man and beast. Yours for eternity... I will give you the world if you ask for it. You are my soul, and there is nothing more precious than that."

I love the paranormal/ shifter genre and get a kick out of seeing what the author will run away with. I wanted more depth with this book. I am sure beyond the erotica (note: sex galore), the storyline could have been more cohesive and explored. After all, one was dealing with a human bonded to a shifter. I guess I was looking for more angst, more explanation of certain things. This is not to say it was not enjoyed. I have read many a Sean Michaels books and the BDSM aspect always comes true. This was more softcore than I expected. I have no problem tuning into the rest of the series. I just want more depth with my meat and potatoes.

I voluntarily and honestly reviewed this book without bias or persuasion from Carina Press.
Reviewed by Cee from Alpha Book Club

[Christi Snow · Rating 3 out of 5]

My Review:
You need to go into this book knowing that this is an erotica. Honestly, I'm not even sure it classifies as erotic romance because the sex is first and foremost before anything to do with a fairly shallow plot line. There is sex...a lot of it in this book. BUT that's not a bad thing if that's what you're expecting and looking for. Overall the book is extremely readable. I didn't ever think about DNF'ing it, although by about sex scene #25 or so I started skimming them, because enough already...but that's a personal thing.

The premise overall is interesting though. The series features a group of 5 dragon shifter brothers. None of them have mates, although one did have once upon a time. (his mate was murdered). A local fae tattooist though has predicted that they all have mates coming. The first to find his is Jake. Coincidentally enough, he finds out they're mates through Shae's tattoo.

I like the lore and the premise. I also really like that all male dragon shifters are gay Doms. Talk about sexy. In fact, there are hints at what is to come for a couple of the other stories and I'm intigued.

I've been torn on how to rate this book...between a B (4 star rating) and a B- (3 star rating). Eventually I decided to go with the lower rating. Mainly I decided that because of the last 10-15% of the book where there was a new conflict for Shae that arose...seemingly out of the blue...and then was never truly resolved. I don't want to get into spoilers with all of that, but basically the conflict was wiped away with sex. I did mention that this was a very sexual book, but that seemed like a cheat to me. I would have liked to have seen something more...maybe even something from the fae who started it all with Shae.

Normally, I would never consider continuing to read a series where I gave the first book 3 stars. This is the exception which is why I'm explaining my rating. The book was extremely readable. There were a couple of details in the story I had issue with, but the setup for the upcoming books is good enough and I enjoyed this story enough that I definitely will read book #2 if given the opportunity. So take that into account as you read this review. It most definitely wasn't a bad book. I won't ever reread it, but I don't regret reading it the first time. I just hope that book #2 is a tiny bit better.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in return for an honest review.

[Deborah · Rating 3 out of 5]

The blurb hooked me when it mentioned dragon shifters-which I love, but sadly the book didn't work well for me. It is non-stop repetitive sex with very little plot.

Shae is a welder by trade, taught by the Navy's finest and now uses that skill to craft commissioned metal art. His current project-a larger than life dragon. Shae is a fan of dragons. His body is covered in tats of them. He meets Jake, a firefighter when a neighbor calls in a fire complaint. Jake and Shae have immediate sparks. Jake questions his immediate connection to Shae, but after he sees his name literally tattooed on Shae, he begins to think its fate. His secret of being a dragon shifter is sure to scare Shae, so Jake sets out to woo Shae.

I liked that Shae is totally not falling for Jake in the beginning. He's been burned in a bad relationship and just doesn't want to set himself up for disaster again. Jake feels that after looking for his soul mate for what seems like forever, Shae is the one, and he knows he must foster this connection they have prior to just spilling his secrets and scaring Shae off. I also loved the scene with Jake revealing himself to Shae. It was very emotional and moving. I think I enjoyed that time the most.

What I disliked is that the sex got very repetitive. And it wasn't very inventive. I understand the necessity given the bonding, but it is literally all they did... and eat rare meat! I would've liked to see some everyday activities between them-anything else. There was a lot of pain involved too, but it was totally consensual as Shae loved it. Because of the never-ending sex, I did get bored though. Maybe if it was shorter it would've worked better for me?? I truly don't know. I'm sure its a personal thing and this book may work better for you, than it did for me.

Overall, the Dragon Soul series still intrigues me and I am definitely looking forward to the next brother's book.

3 stars/4 flames

This book was gifted to me by the Jeep Diva for an honest review. The rating and review are solely my opinions.

[Avid Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Branded by Flames (Dragon Soul #1) by Sean Michael
3 stars
M/M Dragon shifter
Triggers: BDSM - sub is in to pain
I was given this book for an honest review by Wicked Reads.

Jake is a firefighter and dragon shifter. He has kind of given up on ever finding that one person to complete his soul. However, when he comes across Shae, a welding artist, something calls to him. While he knows what it is, he doesn't want to scare Shae off. Instead, he is slightly deceptive about his motives and, I think, breaks a cardinal rule of being a Dom - he lies by omission. I had a difficult time with Jake's constant half truths or no truths. I think that if this were a true story with a healthy, good BDSM dynamic, none of these communication errors would be happening.

Shae is an older guy - he seems to have some type of a complex about it. He has always been fascinated by dragons and is covered with tattoos and piercings that he derives a lot of pleasure from. Shae, once he realizes what is going on, is almost brought back to his horny teenager days.

Normally I love Sean Michael stories, but this one just didn't quite fit my taste. There was a lot of sex, but I think the characters lacked chemistry and communication. They also didn't really ever have a relationship without the sex - that was their entirety. Now, having said that, I am looking forward to see if Shae's good friend gets a story and I am intrigued by the dragon brothers. Hopefully those books are slightly more developed.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was given a copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads.

The premise behind this new series caught my attention. Dragons are sexy and I enjoy shifter stories and books that straddle the romance/erotica line. This story does what it says on the tin - it is a simple, sexy shifter story with more sex than plot. Relying on familiar shifter tropes, the story is predictable and safe with a tiny bit of BDSM lite thrown in for spice.

Jake is a sexy, ancient dragon shifter masquerading as a sexy twenty-something firefighter. His fated mate, Shae is an artist who creates dragons. Shae is slightly older than the average erotic hero but the silver fox is definitely sexy.

There isn’t a great deal of character development in this story and most of the relationship development happens in bed - or at least while naked. This is rightly advertised as erotica. The sex is hot - and constant. There might have even been a little too much sex for me - I did find myself skimming through some of the scenes at times. Personally, I need a little more kink or a wider variety of sexual practises if a book that is mostly sex is to keep my attention.

So - sex and shifters. I enjoyed this simple story but it didn’t entirely capture my imagination. It is an easy read, the writing is solid and there are some fun fantasy moments here.

[Angie · Rating 5 out of 5]

~I received a free copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads Review Team~
HOLY CRAP ON A CRACKER!!!! I really like all of Sean Michael’s books but this one I fricking LOVED!! I don’t even really like shifter books and I had never read anything about a dragon shifter but good golly Miss Molly this one did it for me! I couldn’t put this book down, didn’t want it to end and I fell in love with Jake and Shae instantly! This also one of those times I wish the book had pictures so I could see all these hot tattoos on Shae!!! I can’t wait to read about the other brothers in the upcoming books, I can only hope I don’t have to wait too long.
Characters: well written and connected with them.
Sex: yes
Religious: no
Would I recommend to others: yes
More than one book in the series: yes
Genre: M/M Paranormal/Shifter
Would I read more by this author: yes
~Wicked Reads Review Team~

[Robyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 guilty pleasure stars!
I love Sean Michael's books. Not everyone will, but that's okay.
I love the filthy sex, the amazing dirty talk, and the kink...ooh, the kink! I love how the characters lose the ability to speak coherently during sex - because that's what great sex should do!

I received a copy of this story through NetGalley and was so excited to dive right in! Everything I love about Sean Michael books was there, but this time with dragons! I thought that there was a very good balance of dragon-ish things, and real life things. At times the guys could get overly gooey and sappy, but that's to be expected from this author and if I skimmed over some of the love-fest, I balanced that by devouring the kink and power play scenes.

I loved this book. Not sure a first-timer would agree, but I'll keep my fingers crossed that they do!

[Stephanie GooglyEyes · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really loved Jake and Shae. The idea of Shae as a human, basically preparing his whole life to be mated to a dragon shifter. That's freaking awesome. Throw in some extra kink and BOOM! Oh, Shae's a silver fox with a "younger" Dom? color me intrigued!!

Needless to say, I really, really wanted to love this book. I did. It has the potential to be great, but, it fell short for me. Why?? WAY too much sex!
I understand the concept of the "needing", hello? BDB... but it wasn't every other page throughout the entire book. It was so overdone that I got bored, I need more storyline and action with my sex.

I give this book a 2.5* and I really hope the next book has toned down the sex! because seriously, this could be great.

[Nix Buttons · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5- stars - I'm having a difficult time rating this, because honestly, it kind of sucked. It was sex and angst and more sex. Sadly, the sexy times weren't actually erotic, even kind of boring - because of the way they were written rather than the content (a needy pain slut size queen pushy bottom boy and his dragon Dom should be quite erotic if written well)
There was no plot, no interesting dragon magic stuff, the fire affinity wasn't even a magical thing that got any real attention, there wasn't even a strong ending!
The big question now is... do I go for the second book hoping for something better? Or do I giveup on this series?

[llv · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 3 stars
Reading this book reminds me why I’ve been sticking with Sean Michael’s Manny series lately. Too much sex and not enough plot. When the sex didn’t kick in until about the 20% mark, I was hopeful that this book would turn out different but no just basically one sex scene after another. Frankly the beginning and the part where they meet Jake’s brother Deke were the best parts of the story. So I’m going to be generous and give this 3 stars. I probably won’t be reading the remainder of the series because I really don’t want to fork out 20 bucks for more of the same.

[Courtney Bassett · Rating 4 out of 5]

I quite liked this book! Sure, there was LOTS of sex, but that was not a negative for me, especially since it was SMOKING hot!! (: I thought the dragon soul mate thing actually made the constant sex fit with the story. I am looking forward to seeing the brothers all get their own books!