Customer Reviews

The Treasure Keeper (The Drakon, Book 4)

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Treasure Keeper is really a bit better than a three star read, but not quite a four. I disliked the third series in this book so much that I went with the library for Treasure Keeper. I think Abe is back on my purchase list. Treasure Keeper sidesteps most of the issues with the council that plagued prior reads, placing the heroine and hero firmly away from them. The flaw in this book comes in the ending - while there is a fair twist, that twist is presented too late in the book to do anything but bring the action to a halt, at which point the exposed evil doer begins to suffer from that most frustrating trait, sudden illogic. The twist opens the door to a fair number of "yes, but" questions while allowing for the resolution of none. (Which means there is certainly a book five.) Given the tools at the villain's disposal, the method chosen to destroy the Drakon makes little sense.

The strong aspect of Treasure Keeper is the heroine. It is very easy to understand the conflicts Zoe experiences and to become interested in her. The primary conflict in the book is Zoe coming to understand the artificial restrictions she's placed on herself in her attempt to achieve what she thinks her life should look like. To please others, to conform, to avoid conflict, Zoe has defined who she is and who she loves by the needs of other people. When events force her outside of her constrained world, she is forced to redefine herself. The romance isn't weak, but it's definitely secondary to her self discovery.

I just finished the Treasure Keeper (had pre-ordered it on my Kindle2, and it came right on time!). I highly recommend it. I thought it was wonderful. I actually liked it better than the third in the series, Queen of Dragons - more satisfying in some way. The relationship between the H/H was so interesting and the secondary characters were strong. I do believe you need to have read the other three books in the series to understand the nuances of the book, but for fans of the Drakon series I think this is definitely a keeper. Kudos to you Ms. Abe. Can hardly wait for the next in the series!

I've enjoyed Shana Abé's 'Drákon' series ('The Smoke Thief', 'The Dream Thief' and 'Queen of Dragons') but this fourth novel in the series was slightly disappointing. Not because of the writing style - Abé continues her lyrical, descriptive writing of the life of the Dragons - but because somehow the plot in this story didn't quite work for me.

Zoe Cyprienne Lane is a mere seamstress's daughter and nothing special, even if she did have a close childhood friendship with the Alpha's son Lord Rhys Langford. But life and Rhys have moved on and she's engaged to a good man. However, when he goes missing she decides to travel to Paris to find him. Unknown to all those back home, Zoe does have some drákon skills which may help her to find Hayden, her fiancé.

But Zoe also sees the dead and when Rhys Langford starts haunting her, things get more complicated. Especially as he is able to do strange things in his ghostly form. Together they search for Hayden and yet Zoe's feelings may well be changing. And who is the mysterious trapped dragon, and can he also be rescued?

Although an enjoyable read, I wasn't always too sure of Rhys's morality and behaviour. Zoe was a strong and self-reliant woman, which was appealing, but I didn't feel that I entirely got to know her. This felt more like a transitional book than a full story in its own right and, although resolved properly, I didn't entirely understand whether Zoe would be happy when she returned home.

Originally published for Curled Up With A Good Book © Helen Hancox 2009

Zoe Cyprienne was a perfectly ordinary dragon girl, dreaming of a family, a home. Like almost every other female dragon, she couldn't transform, but that was all right--until she developed an unusual talent. The fate of talented female dragons was written in the law--they were to be married into the chief's clan to preserve the magic in their genes. And when Zoe discovered she could turn invisible, she knew she'd be given to too-sexy Rhys Langford, younger son of the Alpha.

Rather than accept her fate, Zoe hides her talent and accepts the marriage offer of a male dragon. But when the dragons of England discover that they aren't alone, and that a group of humans have sworn themselves to eradicate dragons from the earth, Zoe's fiance is sent to investigate. And when his letters abruptly stop, Zoe decides to violate the laws of dragonkind and seek him out. What she doesn't expect is to run into the very active spirity of Rhys.

Author Shana Abe combines fantasy and romance in her intriguing dragon stories. Readers will both empathise with Zoe's struggle to create a normal life for her and shake their heads at her blindness to Rhys's attraction and affection. Abe's ornate prose lends an air of gravity to her story-telling, as if she were recounting ancient legend rather than spinning a modern tale. The historical setting (18th Century England and France) adds to this other-worldly air.

I confess I struggled a bit with Zoe's blind holding onto the idea of her loser-fiance. After all, she couldn't stand his smell and he didn't seem to be attracted to her at all. I know it was important to the story, but I would have liked to see some reason for her to continue to want him rather than Rhys. Also, I thought there was a lot of time spent setting the stage rather than moving the story forward. Still, I thought Abe did an excellent job creating a story that will appeal both to romance and straight fantasy readers.

I have read all four installments of Abe's Drakon series and absolutely love her work. The Treasure Keeper is beautifully written and Abe proves once again she can weave her magic spell. The plot was a bit hazy, the book ended too shortly, and we as readers are, quite regretfully, given very little satisfaction of seeing our true Drakon nemesis. The conclusion simply lacked; but her words and her characters are once again, spellbinding!

I want to start by saying that I've become a fan of Shana Abe- she knows how to write romance. I enjoy the way she is able to really show two people falling in love and not depend on sex scenes to provide that element. In fact, Ms. Abe's books don't need sex at all- the emotional intimacy between her characters is quite well-done. She also does very well introducing supernatural elements without depending on them to make her story move.
I've been following her Drakon series and pre-ordered The Treasure Keeper months before the release date. I was even a fan of Queen of Dragons, which earned mixed reviews. However, I was disappointed with The Treasure Keeper. Zoe Lane seemed a cold, aloof heroine. Rhys spent the majority of the story in a ghostly form which I think severly limited the development of a proper relationship between him and Zoe. Other elements of the story were problematic- why was Zoe so aloof from Rhys in their youth? Why is she so determined to locate a former suitor who had always been emotionally distant and had finally abandoned her? What is the significance of the blue cloak that contains other ghosts? That never made sense to me. I had been intrigued to learn more about the enemy, the sanf, but this story just didn't hold my attention. I kept skimming pages to cut to the chase- something I never do! I will probably still buy the final book in the series and hope Ms. Abe returns to her original style as seen in The Smoke Thief and The Dream Thief, my two favorite titles from this series. If you haven't read those, you should. They are wonderful. As for The Treasure Keeper, I'd check that one out from the library.

I kept asking myself "what just happened?" or "why would do they do that?" or "did I not read that correctly?"

Usually I catch on pretty fast and for the most part I was able to follow along but I have to stay I was struggling to understand what I was reading. Not all the parts were like this but at times I was confused. For instance, in the end a character dies...I was baffled. "Why, who, how?" I didn't get it.

We waited for this book for a while and while the first two in the series were pretty good...the rest have been lacking. This book should have been fixed before being printed. Proof-read and edited by someone besides the author. I could have given her a book of red marks. Dramatic interpersonal conflicts were necessary and not present. I wish I didn't buy this book.

The first thing I must start off with is this book is not romantic. If you're looking for a sexy romance this is not it. This book was a little hard to follow and I was pretty much bored throughout. The story and the characters never drew me in and I had to force myself to continue reading. I'll be honest, some skipping did happen.

The book starts off with a very long reading of Zoe's diary from childhood to adulthood, which I thought was odd at first, and actually became irritated when it just went on and on, but toward the end I understood and appreciated the journey the author had just taken me on. Unfortunately that was nearly the only thing I appreciated about this book.

Zoe grew up envying all the boys who could turn into dragons. Girls of her race rarely ever gained powers of their own, and if they did they were forced to wed the upper class and breed. Throughout the diary we find that Zoe realizes she not only has a gift but she must hide it or else she will be forced to wed Rhys, the clan leaders son. Zoe thus develops a relationship with another male who is very regal and never shows or expresses love for her--or even kisses her. But she convinces her self that she'll be happy with him because *puke* she wants to be able to chose her own husband.

When her soon-to-be husband disappears while on a mission for their clan Zoe defies her people and leaves the safety of her home to save him. Of course she has no knowledge of the outside world and has to learn as she goes. Zoe has no idea where or how to find her man so she just wonders around for a bit until she runs into Rhys who was also sent to find her soon-to-be husband.

What I mostly don't like about the whole thing is that Zoe resents Rhys, and only gives into him because it's expected of her by their dragon society (and the fact that her soon-to-be husband conveniently dies). Rhys maintains that he's loved Zoe from the start but Zoe never reciprocates the feelings...ever.

Since childhood Rhys has been in love with Zoe and when he discovers her powers he attempts wooing her but she never really gets wooed. Oh, she has sex with Rhys but there's no emotion in the act and I kind of felt that Zoe was physically unable to feel emotion in any way. I mostly felt sorry for Rhys.

THE TREASURE KEEPER, the fourth installment in the drakon' series, picks up where the previous installment, Queen of Dragons, leaves off. The brother of the Alpha, Lord Rhys Langford, had been attacked and is now being held captive.

Zoe Cyprienne Lane is the daughter of the town seamstress. Growing up, she thought herself plain and fervently wished that she would be granted the gift of smoke and the Turn. It was very rare for the females of their clan to shapeshift into smoke or dragonform, and Zoe was no exception. When young Rhys would float outside her bedroom window in dragon form, wanting her to meet him in the nearby woods, she turned her back on him. She knew without any exceptional gifts or beauty she would never fit into Rhy's league. Years later she catches the eye of Hayden James. After courting awhile, Hayden proposes and Zoe accepts. She doesn't love Hayden, but believes he is a good man and that they will make a decent life together. When Hayden is sent out by the council to journey to the Carpathian Mountains to gather aid, Zoe is patiend and waits. But when Hayden's letters abruptly stop, she knows something is wrong and leaves the shire to look for him herself. Unknown to anyone, Zoe has her own unique gifts that may be just the weapons they need.

Lord Rhys Langford believes himself to be dead. It is always dark and a melodotic tune is always playing in his mind. But when he sees a light for the first time, he pulls himself to it and is stunned. There she lies in overwhelming light and beauty, Zoe Lane. She can see and talk to him, but she cannot touch him. Rhys is in spirit form. Wherever Zoe is, Rhys can follow her as long as there is a reflection for his spirit to jump to and fro, such as a puddle, a mirror, a wineglass or a window. Zoe fights her attraction to him as she is betrothed to Hayden.

Rhys pleads with Zoe to return to the safety of their shire, but she is determined to find Hayden. She shows Rhys her unique gifts, turning invisible and catching thoughts, to prove that she can take care of herself. With Rhys's spirit by her side, Zoe unexpectedly runs into the young Prince of the Carparthians, who in a turn of events, leads her to Hayden.

Hayden and the Prince had been watching a ramshackle house they thought to be holding the Lord Rhys captive. The three of them make plans to infiltrate the house, but it may already be too late for Rhys.

THE TREASURE KEEPER is a beautiful addition to the drakon' series. As the plot twists and thickens, the bond between Rhys and Zoe strengthens. You won't want to miss a drop of this sparkling and magical adventure!


*Courtesy of Romance Junkies

As always another great Drakon book.Shana Abe grabs you from the start of the book and keeps you till the end of the book.I didn't want to put it down.She always leaves me waiting for the next book to come out. Great story well written. You can really feel like you are there as you read this book.
Thanks for another great time. Madonna