REVIEW: Mercy Burns (Myth and Magic #2) by Keri Arthur

 

Author: Keri Arthur

Series: Myth and Magic

Pages: 352

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Publisher: Dell

AMAZON: Mercy Burns (Myth and Magic, Book 2)

Synopsis: (Goodreads)

DARKNESS DESCENDS.
LOVE ABIDES. BUT . . .  MERCY BURNS

Mercy Reynolds is a reporter in the San Francisco Bay area, but she’s also more—and less—than human. Half woman, half air dragon, she’s a “draman”—unable to shift shape but still able to unleash fiery energy. Now something will put her powers to the test.

Mercy’s friend Rainey has enlisted her help to solve her sister’s murder. Then a horrible accident claims Rainey’s life, leaving Mercy only five days to find the killer: If Mercy fails, according to dragon law, Rainey’s soul will be doomed to roam the earth for eternity. But how can Mercy help when she herself is a target? With nowhere else to turn, she must join forces with a sexy stranger—the mysterious man they call “Muerte,” or death itself, who’s as irresistible as he is treacherous. But can even Death keep Mercy alive for long enough to find her answers?

REVIEW: 4 out of 5 stars

‘Mercy Burns’ is the story of Mercy Reynolds who is the sister of Trae from ‘Destiny Kills’. She is a reporter and a Draman, half-dragon half-human. She is on the hunt for those responsible for the death of her best friend, Rainey; if she is unable to find them within a certain number of days then Rainey's soul will be doomed to roam the earth for eternity.

Mercy believes the accident that caused Rainey’s death as well as her own injuries are the result of a case they have been working on which involves the ‘cleansing’ or deaths of other Draman in some towns, when she starts asking too many questions it starts to get noticed and whilst interviewing a possible lead, she is drugged and taken captive, in the same holding cell is a 'Muerte' who has been weakened by the darkness, his true name Damon 'aka Death' who is also working the same case as Mercy but for reasons of his own.

I absolutely loved Damon! he is a trained assassin working under the direction of the Council of Dragons, he is a loner, liking his solitude; he is from a long line of muerte who breed for necessity rather than for love so meeting Mercy and realizing she was a Draman had him baffled and she seemed to be the only person who didn't fear him, she actually felt safe being around him. 

Dramans are classed as inferior to full breed dragons and aren’t treated all that well, Damon is reluctant to work with Mercy for this reason but admires her abilities and sees she could be useful for his own purpose.

I loved the relationship and banter between Damon and Mercy; they fight their feelings despite their attraction and chemistry, he was a bit of a jerk at times when it came to their ranking and privilege of sorts but they eventually succumbed to each other and gave in. The dialogue was snappy and the tension between them sizzled.

I was really drawn in to this story and enjoyed everything about it - the romance, action, adventure and mystery, the concept of the Dragons and Draman is fascinating, the world building is unique and captured my attention from the very first page. 

I enjoyed seeing Damon and Mercy work together to resolve not only the issues within themselves but also that of the Draman deaths, it was a nice resolution. It was also nice seeing the reappearance of Destiny and Trae from Book 1, Destiny Kills.

The cover is also gorgeous!

A wonderful read; it is just a shame there won’t be anymore books in this series - I'll definitely be reading more books written by Keri Arthur.