Malac

Brides of Driegon #1

by Ava Ross

An alien dragon king meets his fated mate in a woman from Earth. With conflict brewing in the kingdom, will he be forced to make a heart-breaking choice?

Bella

When I came to the subterranean kingdom of Driegon as a mail-order bride, I didn’t expect the dragon king to sweep me off my feet, take flight, and claim me as his mate. He says a mythical mating ritual called the Torrent proves we’re fated. Yeah, sure. Then I find out he’s almost engaged. He insists he’ll find a way for us to be together, but I’ve fallen for pretty lies before, and I won’t give my heart again easily.

Malac

To end a war among the factions of my Driegon people, I must marry the daughter of a rival warlord. I’ve accepted my fate. Until I meet Bella, one of three Earthlings brought to my kingdom as mail-order brides. One touch, and my blood roars through me—the first sign of the Torrent. We’re fated and I ache to claim her, yet I cannot betray my people. But the heart of a dragon will not be denied.

Malac is Book 1 in the Brides of Driegon series. This standalone, full-length story has on-the-page heat, aliens who look and act alien, a guaranteed happily ever after, no cheating, and no cliffhanger.

Genres: Aliens, Science Fiction, Romance, Science Fiction Romance, Fantasy, Audiobook, Dragons

233 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 29, 2021

About the author

AVA ROSS fell for men with unusual features when she first watched Star Wars, where alien creatures have gone mainstream. She lives in New England with her husband (who is sadly not an alien, though he is still cute in his own way), her kids, and assorted pets, including a yorkie pup and three cats.

Reviews

[Niki {Still a Widow but reading more} · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF @ 28%

I tap out.



I can't do it. I had such high hopes for this one!! The cover was gorgeous! And I lurve SFR where the aliens are really weird. In this one they are dragons with feathers and spines, a tail (forked for her pleasure lol), and 3, yep count 'em, 3 cocks that entwine and thicken to make one big one. So I was super stoked!!




Then I started reading.......




(As you see this gif, in your head hear: womp, womp, womp, wooooomp music)

The writing and characters were so juvenile. Belle has been burned by her cheating ex, who ran away and eloped with her best friend, so she signs up for a mail order bride program on an alien world. She knew that the Dragons have fated mates and if they come in contact with their fated mate a reaction would occur. Yet as a nurse for 6 years, when this happens to her and she has fire and sparks that erupt over her skin but doesn't burn, she keeps exclaiming it's an allergic reaction or something to Malac.



Then Malac who doesn't know what laughing is or sarcasm or eye-rolling or how mating would really work between them, Somehow knew exactly what a clit was and how to touch it?!!

But what made me tap out was Belle, who was the "mature one" and the "mom" of the group of earth ladies. When she finds out she's his mate, she is too scared to let go and give in because of her cheating ex, even though she knows Torrent bond-mates are for life. She keeps waffling back and forth, between I can't give in, but I want to give in. Over and over. When she finally let's go a little this is what she says and is a prime example of the juvenile writing I couldn't continue to read:

“Malac. I… Do it. It’s wild and amazing and I’m going to fall apart in your arms, but I want this so much.”

Another example and note to author please find better ways to give us the physical description in the future. This is not a believable thing someone would say in the throes of getting tail banged:

Her swollen clit called to me and with the tip of my tail, I grasped it with infinite care.
She moaned and pumped her hips slowly. “It’s smooth and firm, and that forked end. Oh, jeez, don’t stop!”

I almost stopped right at that sentence. But I thought I could push through. Then 2 pages later when she waffled again....

[Ꮗ€♫◗☿ ❤️ ilikebooksbest.com ❤️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

A whole new world!



The following ratings are out of 5:
Romance: 💙💚❤️💜
Steam: 🔥🔥
Story/Plot: 📕📗📘
World building: 🌏🌍🌏
Character development: 🤓😉☺️😍
Narration: 🎙🎙🎙🎙
Narration Style: Dual Narration

The Hero: Malac - he is the king and his uncle, who is his advisor, has asked him to marry the daughter of a rival warlord in the Zoad clan, in order to bring peace to the land. Though he wanted to hold out for a love match through the torrent. A torrent match is like a fated mate which is very unlikely since a plague killed most of their females.

The heroine: Bella - when the plague that killed most of the females in the kingdom of Dreigon also killed the majority of the males on Earth, the King of Dreigon found that the dreigon’s and humans of Earth are compatible and can form Torrent bonds. So, Bella decided to be one of the first twenty women to go to Dreigon to find a mate.

The Story: The dreigon people are different than humans, they are scaled and reptilian and have to get used to the ways of humans. Though they are physically and genetically compatible and humans would not die carrying a clutch of dreigons. Malac knows as soon as he is introduced to Bella that she is his torrent mate.

Bella is a bit damaged due to the fact that her ex-boyfriend cheated on her with her best friend and they ran away to Las Vegas. So she has some pretty severe abandonment issues and is afraid to fall in love again. Though she wants to have children so joined the lottery to come to Dreigon. I didn’t like her character all that much since she was so fearful but also she was brash in some ways, but she wasn’t too bad. I did like Malac, though the Dreigon males were a bit too different from humans for my liking.

This audiobook was told in dual points of view via dual narration and was narrated by Tawnia Murray and Teddy Hamilton. I like Teddy Hamilton’s voice and style. He has a sexy voice and shows a lot of emotion through his voice. Tawnia Murray has a kind of deep voice for a woman, and it isn’t my favorite, but she isn’t bad either.

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[Angie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This. This was the Torrent. A meeting of two souls who'd been torn apart by death only to be reunited again.

4.5 stars!

Ava Ross has once again created a breathtaking alien world filled with romance between swoony dragon-like warriors and human woman looking for love. There's Torrent mate-bonding, flying, lush alien scenery and curious creatures, and plenty of danger and conspiracies trying to keep Malac from bonding with his mate Bella. But love conquers all in Ava's stories, so sit back and enjoy this intergalactic love story between an alien dragon king and the human healer who initiated his Torrent ♡

*ARC provided by the author, and I voluntarily reviewed it*

[Sweet and Salty Reviews by DD · Rating 4 out of 5]

Y’all this was a fun read! Sassy with a little comedic relief and some action! Really enjoyed this! World build was great! Storyline was wonderful making a lovely lead up to future books in the series.

FMC was good. A little weak and quick to give in which isn’t a fav but her humor made up for it. MC is hot and sexy and dare I say I think I have a thing for tails now! 😲 Secondary characters are very interesting. I can’t wait to see where their stores lead.

Happy reading,
DD💕

[Mika · Rating 1 out of 5]

Emotionally unavailable nurse with trust issues, the maturity of a 15-year-old and the intelligence of a cucumber, signs up to be an alien bride.

Her “fated mate” is an already betrothed alien dragon king, naturally. 🙄

Insta-lust er I mean ‘love’ ensues, but cucumber nurse is indecisive and won’t commit to this rushed train wreck farce of a relationship, which...whatever. It’s irritating. But so is the rest of this story.

A lot of the typical “Mine!” growled by possessive alpha dragon alien dude. Yawn.

Unexplained alien vocab, boring politics and that’s about when I DNFed it.

[SheLove2Read · Rating 2 out of 5]

If your boyfriend cheating on you gave you a ridiculous hangup, why would you join a bride program? 2 stars

[Regina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wanted to enjoy it

This had a great sounding plot. Earth mail order bride ,kinna ,king getting engaged for political purposes ,finding true mate, conflict because of the engagement and assassination attempts..... and it not only was rushed it fell flat.
Another book that leaves a lot out and tells you instead of showing you. I was disappointed, I wanted to enjoy it .... Firstly I found the female character annoying. Sorry I just could handle the constant phrased she would say ,Like he'd understand.. It was like the writer just had to do the slang \ phrases or the characters couldn't talk to him, annoying ..and little background on her ..all we know is her boyfriend cheated on her with her best friend and tainted her views forever on the male race so why not be a mail order bride to ...aliens????
A little more on him and his assassinated siblings, A little on his family as well as friends but again just told basics not depth at all. It was fast ,rushed through things that could have been expanded upon. I mean we hear about the to engaged woman ,then bam she's there attack the human mate , same with guard that was kin to woman ,meet then bam attacking.. No depth at all.🤷 could have been good ,.........

[Mira · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don't know what I expected, I have apparently read another of her books before. But forgot about it too late.

The writing is almost comical, not literally, the way the story flows is cartoonish, things just happen, one scene flows into the next without much thought of natural reactions, not a lot of details for the setting.

Bella is extremely selfish. Which is kinda funny considering she's supposedly a nurse. While her reaction to being set on fire isn't very nurse-like. "I'm having an allergic reaction to you" jesus christ woman. She's only thinking about her own emotions, she was literally pushed off a balcony and has no concerns for the other earth women who might also be targeted because she convinced herself he's "abandoning" her to investigate the matter. So she have a temper tantrum because her feelings are hurt by herself.

It's such an immature book. But eh if you like that stuff. Enjoy.

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick read and cute romance

I have been waiting to meet our driegon buddies since they were mentioned in the Crakair series. The characters were endearing and I really enjoyed the sweet nature of the romance. The story was short and I felt that it would have benefited from more in-depth details but otherwise it was a fun read. I was however, slightly irritated with Bella and her dilemma. As much I empathize with her past I felt like she used it as an excuse to fight off the King. It didn't even matter in the end because she pretty much just gave in without having that huge aha moment and coming to terms with her pain and past. The situation was less about healing and more about ignoring those feelings because she really wanted his tri—🍆( if you read the book you'll see what I mean). All in all, I still fully enjoyed this book. In fact I'm particularly interested in Drace and Teran because broody men have my heart. I look forward to seeing how this series progresses.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay. We're hanging with the Driegon now and...well, things aren't exactly more complicated than with the Crakair, but there is a little more intrigue and political maneuvering. By that, I mean Malac has to weigh a potential alliance against getting frisky with the alluring Earth lady looking for a mate.

Does it need to be pointed out that potential alliances got NOTHING on fated mates? Yeah. Malac and Bella feel the call and THINGS HAPPEN. As you might imagine. But with Bella's safety at risk (because not everyone's thrilled about the Earthling ladies in their midst), Malac has his hands full.

I mean, it's not easy finding time to woo your mate and sex her up properly when you've got a kingdom on the brink to run. *thumbs up*

-Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal

[Lisa Bing · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fab series opener, although you can get a free prequel with the author's NL signup that's also fab, full of interesting characters, cool world building and sizzling chemistry. I loved the idea of the Torrent as the indicator of fated mates meeting. Bella and Malac were a wonderful couple and it was entertaining to follow them along with humourous cultural differences and turns of phrase. That lightness balanced out the serious plot of attempted murder and hard change. Can't wait for the next book to come out as I expect we'll be seeing past characters in them - which lets me spy on how they're doing 'now' ;) Good fun!

[Sydney M Neblett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Expect the unexpected

What a fantastic series starter! This is the first book I’ve read by this author and I may have grabbed the rest of the series because I just can’t wait to read more. I love the characters! The king was nothing like I expected him to be which made him the perfect match for his queen. The drama of the unknown enemy was the perfect addition, and I love the hints we get to see of the other girls and their possible matches. This book made me fall in love with this series and the author. I hope she has another book ready by the time I finish reading the rest of the books in her library.

[Coco.V]

🎁 FREE on Amazon today (11/19/2021)! 🎁

[Ariel Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story

Interesting premise that held my attention. I'd be willing to go on to the next story. Dragon alien King, worth the read.

[Kristy Mills · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was ok. There were things that annoyed me and things that I really liked.

In the beginning Malac is having a conversation with his uncle. His uncle is trying arrange a marriage for him to unite two warring factions. But Malac is hesitant because he wants to find his torrent, his soulmate basically. So he doesn’t agree because he just can’t give up on that possibility. But when he finds her he holds back from touching her which would start the second phase of torrent. No maybe I misunderstood, maybe he was planning to touch her eventually. But I was under the impression he might not have ever touched her if he wasn’t forced to. What the heck? He didn’t agree to become engaged because he wanted his torrent, then he finds her and holds back because of the possibility of an engagement? I hate wishy washy Heroes.

Then I felt like the heroine started arguments and got angry over things that were minor. I realize it was to create conflict, but I didn’t think it matched the scene or their setting. Or maybe it was that she was upset at what I considered the wrong things. I don’t know it was hard to put my finger on but it just didn’t quite work for me.

And a thing that a lot of alien romance authors do that drives me insane is when the heroine uses phrases and words known to humans. That would only make sense in our world. And then the Hero is left confused. It works in some cases like when she called him cute and had to explain it. But when she says stuff like “I thought we’d date maybe dinner and a movie” or something along those lines… it irritates me. It’s not cute, it’s annoying Would you actually go to another planet and constantly reference the things on your planet like they would know what you’re talking about? Or when the Hero is explaining something to her and it’s similar to something on Earth and she’s like “oh (insert earth word)” like that’s the correct term he was looking for when trying to explain it. I get it if she thinks it, but saying it out loud just looks so… conceited? Like your world and your experiences are what matters and are correct. Annoys me.

But what I did like was that when the heroine had a hunch about something she didn’t dismiss it. Instead of keeping quiet like so many heroines do when saying something could change so much, this heroine said something. She even had the thought I hate dumb heroines who don’t say something. Me too! Thank you for not being a dumb heroine.

I also liked that the author had different words for time. Like days, minutes, years. They mostly all sounded similar to English so it was easy to understand, but also different enough that it sounded foreign. I hate it when I read an alien book and there is pretty much nothing different from being on earth except that the Hero has a tail or something. I wasn’t to read someone else’s imagination. And I liked this authors imagination. I liked what she dreamed up.

[Jackie · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF - quit at 10%
Wow, this book has a lot of language barriers that discourage a reader. By language barriers, I mean the actual alien language used by the Driegon with no explanation or even a glossary at the end or beginning of the book. (lunair, durclaws, Torrent, yaro, aleern feathers, sever spikes, as examples all with in the first page) Some have a bit of a suggestion towards the word but no conformation. It’s hard to follow along, when you don’t know what the characters are talking about, which led to me loosing interest. The same if an author chooses to use a lot of wording that I have to constantly google the meaning of in a contemporary romance (I think they are trying to impress by using big words or just trying to find different words to use than standard), that takes the fun out of reading as well as pulls me out of the story. I don’t read to broaden my vocabulary but to immerse into the story. Needless to say I won’t finish this book or continue with the series, which is a shame, this book might have been good had I been able to get past the problem for me.

At my age (approaching 60), life is way to short & my time is to important to force myself to read a book I'm not enjoying, especially when there are so many other books out there waiting to be read.

[Ellen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to love this, but it was hard to get through, and I seriously considered giving up several times.

The main character Bella really annoyed me, going on and on and on about how her ex broke her, and then falling in love with Malac after knowing him like 2 days? Her reasoning for going to this planet seemed weak, and she flip flopped between wanting a partner to be friends with, fall in love with and have kids with, and …. Honestly I don’t understand what her other perspective was 🤷🏼‍♀️

Malac seemed sweet, but remarkably relaxed considering how many attempts he’d had on his life. I could understand his obsession with Bella more than her obsession with him- he had the “torrent” mate bond at play which urged him to be with her.

Neither MC was particularly deep, they could both have been written to be more solid characters.

Won’t be reading the rest of this series 🥲

[Cindy Wiltz · Rating 2 out of 5]

Couldn’t hold my attention. It was hard to keep my interest.

[Caz · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 40%. "Someone just attacked my immature bride-to-be but forget it and let's have sex." JFC.

[Javi Cofré · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit childish

It's a book poorly written in my opinion. There's not character development at all, no real plot. It felt way too rush. I couldn't finish it.

[V · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was too much and not enough tall at once.

[Petra Horváth · Rating 3 out of 5]

A szépség és a malac… ja bocs, ez Belle és Malac szerelmi története. (A röfitől széjjel röhögtem magam minden egyes alkalommal, amikor a neve felbukkant.)
Első regényem Ava Ross-tól. Azt nem tudnám rá mondani, hogy rossz volt, de őszintén jónak sem nevezném. rövid, könnyen emészthető, haladós olvasmány. Legnagyobb problémája, hogy nem tud annyira elmélyülni benne az ember, kicsit felületesen mennek benne a dolgok és hiányérzetem van tőle. Másik gondom, hogy bár rövidke, mégis kicsit unalmas szegény. Ezzel szemben a világ érdekes, szerethetőek a karakterek (a mellékszereplők is). A katarzis egy csettintésre lezajlik, elmarad a nagy dirrel-durral történő grand finálé, ami miatt egy jót izgalhatna az olvasó. Úgy érzem ez egy lightos 3-4 csillagos sorozat lesz, tervezem végigolvasni/hallgatni majd.
A sztori nagyon originál: betegség a Földön az emberi férfiak nagy részét megölte, a Driegon bolygón pedig nők alig maradtak. A felek megtalálják egymást és megegyeznek, hogy mivel a tudósok szerint a két faj egymással kompatibilis, így emberi küldöttséget indítanak (3 hét űrutazással) a SÁRKÁNY ősökkel rendelkező idegenekhez. Az első csapatban 4 nő keres magának új férjet (önként).
A matek egyszerű: ha a driegoni krapek meglátja a párját megkezdődik a Torrent nevű szertartás/kapcsolat, melynek első jele hogy a pasas szarva elmozdul, meghosszabbodik (haha). A második lépcsőfoka a Torrentnek, ha egymáshoz érnek, ilyenkor a nő szó szerint lángolni kezd. A harmadik pedig a kufircolás.
A két faj közti különbségek elég szórakoztatók, mert az emberi nevetés, a fogak megmutatása nem szokás a driegoniak között, sőt ott amolyan inzultusnak számít. Náluk a nevetés azzal egyenlő, hogy az orrukon füst pöfékel ki, így elég mókás amikor a pasasok mosolyogni próbálnak és inkább vicsorognak.
A driegoniaknak nincsen hajuk, így furán néznek a nőkre. Nincsen mellük, ami eléggé szimpatikussá teszi a csajokat. Kemény, kékes színű bőrük van, tüskékkel borítva. Van szarvuk és a hátuk mögött önálló életet élő huncut farkuk… himbilimbijük viszont van konkrétan 3. Mivel a sárkányoktól származnak, így tudnak tüzet csinálni és a szárnyaikkal repülni is (huncutkodás közben is szokás).
Az első részben Malac a király, akinek nősülnie kellene. Eszébe sincs embert elvenni, már kinézték kit kellene megkérnie, de amikor az emberek megérkeznek, egyből érzi hogy Belle az ő párja, így ugrik a királyi esküvő és ebből lesznek később a bonyodalmak.
Megismerjük Malac testőreit, akikkel gyerekkora óta barátok, és akik mind szemeznek egy-egy nővel... belőlük lesznek a folytatás románcok.

[Alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Malac is the Driegon king, after a virus that has killed a large portion of the females on their planet it is learned that this same virus also hit Earth and killed most of their males. So it is decided that the Driegons will host willing human females to see if couples will pair up to want to be mates. And maybe, just maybe they can enter the Torrent with.

My father once called me a dreamer. He said I flew too high and wanted too much, that I needed to ground myself in my future role as heir to the kingdom. Perhaps he was right. I had dreamed too long about what could not be. It was time to accept the duties that came with the crown I now wore. This included marrying the Cuzon’s daughter.

I needed to put aside my own needs and focus on those of my kingdom. Peace was more important than love. My uncle leaned forward, compressing his forearm aleern feathers on the arms of the chair. “I will tell the cuzon you have agreed?” For some reason, I could not force a yes past my mouth. Why did I hesitate? I had met almost every surviving female in the kingdom and a Torrent spark had not been lit. It did not matter if I loved this Zoad match or not, though I would do my best to care for her and treat her kindly. I could find a way to be happy.

All is going well until Bella the female that Malac some arrive at the palace and had decided to avoid is put in danger and he has no choice but to touch her.

A yelp from above made me freeze, and I peered upward. Someone was falling through the air, and I recognized her clothing. Bella. With my wings flicking outward, I leaped off the ground, flying rapidly in her direction. I caught her before she hit the ground. When her skin met my scales, heartspire blood bellowed through my body. Tipping my head back, I roared, shooting fire toward the top of the cavern. “Oh, my god!” she cried, struggling. Heat poured down my arms, crossing the barrier from me to her. Her skin lit on fire.

I really enjoyed this book, it is different enough not to be predictable and familiar enough at first glance to make you want to pick it up knowing that it will be entertaining. I loved the worldbuilding the characters have original backstories. This series gives new meaning to someone setting you on fire.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

bargain is made. Earth women head to Driegon to meet the draconic alien males and see if they can ignite the Torrent, a mating ritual that is very literally fiery. Malac, king of the Driegon, did not expect to find his mate among the three Earth women who arrive in his kingdom, but the Torrent cannot be denied.

Malac is a very intriguing romance story! Like many interstellar mail-order bride books we have some cultural interaction, introductions to various men who will star in their own stories further down the series line, and one pair that stars in the story – in this case, Malac and Bella. The characterization is fun and the romantic development is intriguing, but it’s the world-building that really captures the reader’s imagination in this story. The Dreigon are very unique, with scales, tails, and a few more surprises for their brides. The story is smoking hot – and not just because of the fire the Torrent generates in the blood of the mates. I did enjoy the various subplots that built around the story and enriched the world that Malac lived in, and the development of the relationship between Malac and Bella. I gather that these Brides of Driegon books are related to the author’s previous series, Mail-Order Brides of Crakair, but I haven’t read any of those. I’m intrigued by that series now, but didn’t have any problem settling into the world that Ross has created around her alien species. That said, there are a lot of words that the Driegon use that are thrown at the reader, and while most are easily definable via the context of the story, there are a LOT of these foreign words at points. The distinctive sexual elements of the Torrent and the Driegon specifically are a neat touch to make the series stand out some, and I did enjoy those aspects of the story as well. There are two other Earth women in the kingdom of Driegon, and I can’t wait to see how their stories unfold!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Desert Lumens · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lukewarm start that got better

This one started out rough for me. At first it had me questioning why am I continuing these series of books because the last one the books got kind of frustrating. Well this book started off the same way. At first I really liked Bella because she was the voice of reason. Aria who seemed like the problem female of the bunch had to be talked down and consoled constantly by Bella. I know Bella had issues with a cheating ex boyfriend but she seemed to have a steady and stable head on her shoulders. But alas as the book carried on and she was alone with Malac her insecurities and ignorance surfaced big time. Her projecting her ex onto Malac constantly upset me. He internal bellyaching was a constant turnoff as well. Her hot and cold on again off again attitude was also driving me up the wall. But as the book wore on she started to come around and I started adding stars back 🤣 her attitude started to change and boy was I glad because she was really pissing me off. I am kind of upset at the lack of scruples of the “elite” guard because it seems they can’t really guard a thing. So many holes in their security I’m shocked no one wasn’t seriously injured or killed. That being said Malac and Bella had some amazing chemistry. The torrent really got them going lol. I really loved their “pets”. It seems the human women and their penchant for being able to tame dangerous species has carried over to this series as well 😌😝. I have no idea why but Aria intrigues me. I think it’s because of her shyness. I’m attracted to that. I hope she’s not a buzzkill. I’m actually looking forward to her book with Drace. I liked all of the Guard. I was kind of put out that we didn’t see more of Kruze and Clara like their book said we would. Just a small glimpse of them making out on a couch at the end 🤷🏽‍♂️😂. Also she didn’t tell Malac all of her “secrets”. Which kind of shocked me. Maybe next book? I did raise my review to 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. On to the next. LET’S GO!

[The Tunita · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars

I thought this one was a debut novel by this author, but it seems she published many other books/novellas before.

There are many things that hindered my enjoyment of the story and prevented me from fully immersing myself into this world, one of them being how choppy everything read.

The characters acted too juvenile for my liking, and the romance itself lacked depth, which is disappointing since romance is the primary theme of these books.

Some sentences were structured in a way that was challenging for me to understand what they wanted to convey, so I had to re-read some of these a couple of times before they made sense. For example:

⚠️↘️SOME SPOILERS↙️⚠️

"He was vigilant in his protection of Malac, and I wanted to cry I was so grateful."

Some of the exchanges among characters read too inauthentic, and the paragraphs/dialogues suffer from an overuse of ellipsis. Besides that, I found that some of it read more like an echo of an inner monologue rather than a conversation between two capable beings.

Some jokes landed while others didn't. Other scenes were unintentionally funny, which is not necessarily a bad thing as long as they are enjoyable.

While the joke on page 8 didn't make me laugh, it helped me to understand the overall tone of the book and allowed me to enjoy the ride more freely:

"Emmaline Jones," the Ambassador said, gesturing to the golden-haired female.
"Indie," Emmaline said, flashing her teeth.
"Excuse me, dear?"
"Remember? I'm Emmaline Indie Jones. I love archaeology so it fits, right?"

Overall, there's potential hidden among all my previous statements. Nevertheless. the book itself needs to be polished and more thought out.

I'm not continuing the series.

[Carolyn Thomson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bella has come to Driegon along with three other women to find husbands among the dragon like warriors there. The King Malac is anxious for this to work out despite the critics as it will help to save his race. He is there to greet the women and their entourage and finds himself drawn to Bella. He is afraid she is his fated mate but does not want that to be true because he is being pressured to wed Jixon from a neighboring clan to cement a peace between the two clans. He has not given his promise to take her as his mate but it would be best if he did. That evening during a reception for the four females and the warriors who could be their mates Bella is standing on a balcony all alone watching the King down in the garden as she is smitten with him. All of a sudden she is shoved off the balcony and if it wasn’t for the King’s quick actions, he flew up from the garden to catch her before she hit the ground, she would have been killed. When he touches her the Torrent starts and, Bella’s arms burst into flames. Malac knows this is the sign they are fated to be together and explains this to her. Things are not that easy though. Bella’s heart yearns for Malac but she has had her heart broken before and she cannot have it broken again. She does not trust Malac not to break it again so Malac has his work cut out for him. Additionally Malac and Bella have to figure out why Bella was pushed off the balcony and then find him or her. There are a lot of red herrings and lots and lots of romance. This book is a page turner. I recommend it.

[Rebecca Grove · Rating 5 out of 5]

Malac is the Driegon King. His people are in serious danger of becoming extinct since a serious illness wiped out most of their females. He has made a deal with Earth who suffered from the illness too. On Earth the illness wiped out most of the males. The Driegon would provide advanced technology in return for Earth sending mail-order brides. Just before the first arrivals, Malac's uncle tries to convince Malac agree to an arranged marriage with a female from another clan. Malac wants to wait for his destined mate and go through the torrent with her but he also wants to do the best for his people. He finally asks for some extra time to decide and goes to meet the 4 human woman who just arrived/ The woman look strange and helpless to him but when he sees one of them he feels the Torrent stirring.

Bella was a nurse on Earth but is willing to go to Driegon to have her own family. Seeing the Driegons in person is startling. They have horns, scales, claws and a tail. They are very dragon-like. All the Driegons are huge and handsome in their own way but she feels a special draw to the king. Running from her strong feelings for him, she goes out to a balcony to have a little alone time. While out there she is pushed off and almost falls to her death. Malac saves her but her bare skin touches his scales and starts the second level of the Torrent. Malac flies away with her to explain to her what is happening and to claim her.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[JML · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 &1\2fabulous🌟a for the new Brides of Driegon series💖💖

Who doesn't want to fall passionately in love with a dragon😍? I so very much want one of my very own. Driegon is and under world kingdom on the planet Crakair. This kingdom also suffered from the virus that while out most of the makes of earth as well as most of the females on Crakair. The Driegon have formed an alliance with Earth that includes a bride exchange. The first group has arrived and hope to find mate. Malac is the king of his people and should be making a marriage alliance even though he longs for a fated mate he knows he must put his people before his own wants, until he sees Bella. Bella a nurse who was hurt by a selfish ex boyfriend decided to take chances and apply to be a bride in the mate exchange. She never dreamed she'd take one look at the king of this new alien world and her heart would be captured. Danger lurks here not everyone is happy with this new alliance and mingling of races. Murder plots, omissions, read and intense desire till this first book in the series. Malac is alpha in all the best possible ways and Bella is strong, sassy and so smart. Their chemistry is off the charts not and a pleasure to read. Awesome start to what I know is going to be a great series.💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖💖

[Adriannleigh717 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as much like the first series as I expected

The book is written fairly well, and the storyline is interesting and flowed pretty naturally. I loved the first series, Mail-order Brides of Crakair. I read that entire series via Kindle Unlimited, then immediately purchased them all, but I struggled to finish this book.
I think it was largely my fault, as I had expectations built up that this series would match the tone and heat level of the related series, or exceed it given the dragon/aliens. I was preparing for dragon level hest. That's on me. This book was sweeter, FAR less steamy, but still a decent read. I felt like the characters weren't developed or showcased well, and I didn't care about them nearly as much. That plus I couldn't get into the plot. Everything felt underdeveloped, so every little grammatical error, misspelling, missing word, missing punctuation, etc. were far more noticeable because I just wasn't that into it.
I'll read the next one and see if it was just a one off fort me, but if Drace is the same, I will likely not be continuing the series.
It could definitely have to do with my expectations, and like I said, it's not a bad read, but for me it was a no.