Thursday, March 28, 2019

Review: Dragon Bites (Stormwalker #6)

Maya and Janet are just trying to have a girls’ weekend in Vegas. Kick back, take in some shows. Then Gabrielle decides to tag along.

Dragon Bites, by Allyson James, is the sixth novel in the Stormwalker series. The ladies -- Maya, Janet, and Gabrielle -- are heading to Las Vegas from Arizona to have some fun. Casinos, clubs, nothing strange could happen on the strip. As long as Gabrielle keeps her Beneath powers under control, right? However, Janet notices Mick, her dragon fiance, walking the halls of the casino hotel where they're staying. But Mick isn't supposed to be in Las Vegas. Then everything comes tumbling down: A dragon slayer after Mick, gladiatorial games from hell, and a Vegas hotel full of trapped demons. When Gabrielle and Janet charge in to assist, they don’t realize that they're awakening an ancient and terrible evil … This evil is now after Gabrielle and her all-powerful magic, and it’s going to take Janet, Mick, Colby, and the rest of the dragons to keep Gabrielle safe.

This was the first book in the series that focused explicitly on a side character, Gabriella. The previous books focused on Janet and Mick as the main characters. Finally, fans got to see the character development of Gabriella and how much she has improved since her debut in Dreamwalker. I was disappointed that Dragon Bites was much shorter (288 pages) than the previous novels. (averaging over 300 pages). Still, the plot felt rushed with action scenes but not much substance on where the villain came from or the mystery behind the Beneath world. I would have liked for these themes to be explored in the novel. Nonetheless, I was delighted to read that Gabrielle found her own purpose and no longer lives under Janet's shadow. Allyson James stated that she plans to focus on other side characters in future books using multiple points of view. This is a writing style that is becoming more common in young adult paranormal series. There is a bonus feature in the back of the book that explains how Allyson James got the inspiration to write this series which was very touching. Stay tuned for the next novel in the Stormwalker series.

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