DRAGONMARK is book two in Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dragons Rising Trilogy, which is set within her Dark-Hunter world. Because Sherrilyn Kenyon's world-building is so intricate and because some familiar characters from other books show up in this story, you would get more enjoyment reading DRAGONMARK if you've read at least a few of the other books in this series first. Characters in DRAGONMARK travel through time and across different dimensions, but I think Sherrilyn Kenyon creates a nice balance. The beginning of DRAGONMARK tells of how an unsociable dragon and a warrior woman met, fell in love, and were torn apart. After Illarion is separated from his beloved, he is confronted by love in all its forms -- the love he and his brothers have for each other, and the love he sees between other couples he comes across on his journey.

From the beginning, DRAGONMARK has a somewhat fairytale feel to it. In this particular fairytale, the pure- hearted maiden is a warrior and winds up catching the eye of a dragon prince. Although a romance between Edilyn and Illarion is something of an oddity, since she was a dragonslayer whose father was eaten by a dragon and he is a dragon who has a justifiably bad impression of humanity, I love their love story. Illarion is somebody who is no stranger to tragedy, but he's not so bitter that I dislike him, and I can't help but cheer him on as the story progresses. The tender affection that Illarion and Edilyn have for each other, their steadfast loyalty, and fighting spirits make them great characters to read about. There are lots of villains to go around in DRAGONMARK, but thankfully there are a lot of kickass heroes and heroines as well. Complications caused by family members on both sides jump start a lot of the conflicts in DRAGONMARK, and act to alternately help and hinder Illarion and Edilyn on their path to finding happiness together.

DRAGONMARK has an abundance of otherworldly delights, kickass characters, and dragon romance done right. There are a few supporting characters in DRAGONMARK that I'd like to see more of in future books, like Edilyn's nightmare demon brother Virag. With key appearances by the always enigmatic, delightfully snarky, and vastly powerful Savitar in DRAGONMARK, this book only increases the hunger fans have for him to get a book of his own. I can't wait for Falcyn's story in the next Dragons Rising Trilogy installment!

Book Summary

The next Dark-Hunter novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Sherrilyn Kenyon, now in mass market!Centuries ago, Illarion was betrayed– a dragon made human against his will, then forced to serve humanity as a dragonmount in their army, and to fight for them in barbaric wars, even while he hated everything about them. Enslaved and separated from everyone he knew and from his own dragon brothers, he was forced into exile in a fey realm where he lost the only thing he ever really loved.

Now he has a chance to regain what’s been lost— to have the one thing he covets most. But only if he gives up his brothers and forsakes the oaths he holds most dear. Yet what terrifies him most isn’t the cost his happiness might incur, it’s the fact that there is just enough human in his dragon’s heart that he might actually be willing to pay it and betray everything and everyone– to see the entire world burn...

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