Review: The Smoke Thief by Shana Abe

The Smoke Thief by Shana Abe

Drakon Series, Book 1

Publication Date: January 1st, 2006

Published By: Bantam Books

Paperback, 352 Pages

Source: Purchased

Summary from Goodreads:

"In this bewitching novel, Shana Abe transports us to an exhilarating world of romance, adventure, and magic. Here, among northern England's misted hills, live a race of extraordinarily beautiful and sensual beings with the ability to shape-shift from human to dragon and back again. Now their secret—and their survival—is threatened by two forbidden lovers...and a passion that will break every boundary.

Dubbed the Smoke Thief for a series of daring jewel thefts, Clarissa Rue Hawthorne didn't expect the drakon leader himself to come to London dangling the tribe's most valuable jewel as bait: the Langford Diamond. But Christoff, the charismatic Marquess of Langford, had to catch Clarissa before anyone else did—or risk exposing the entire clan to the world of ordinary mortals. He never expected that the outcast halfling he pursued would have a proposition of her own to save the drakon—a proposition so dangerous, so tempting, that Christoff will find it impossible to resist: to join forces with her."

Review by Jackie:

I enjoyed this book immensly. It gives a totally different look into the world of dragons. You come to love, and identify with, the main characters.

The two main characters, Christoff and Rue, are part of a society of dragons. That is until one day, Rue flees. They don't see each other for many years and they run into each other when Christoff and his council are searching for The Smoke Thief.

This book has been out for a few years now so I feel I can tell you that... Rue and Christoff become close. Their relationship starts off rocky, with him knowing she is his mate, and her aware of her feeligns but unsure of his. As time goes on, her feelings change and they become mates. I had a sense from the get go that they would be together, and I'm glad that's the direction that the author took.

The Drakon Society as a whole, tries to blend in with humans while keeping itself hidden.. When The Smoke Thief starts stealing gems, we see the society take action so others don't discover them. It was interesting to me how the dragons sense gems, and how Christoff desinged the ploy to catch the thief using gems.

I found myself skipping ahead and I had to go back so as not to miss anything. I have the other three books in the series and I can't wait to read them!

***FYI These are adult books and do contain sexual behavior.

Jackie:)