Devon’s Review of Playing with Fire (Silver Dragons, Book 1) by Katie MacAlister
Paranormal Romance released by Signet 6 May 2008

Katie MacAlister’s books are a mixed bag for me. I haven’t enjoyed her contemporaries, but I quite liked several of her paranormals. I enjoy her sense of humor, but after awhile the books in the ongoing series start to suffer from a certain sameness and forced hijinks. Holy Smokes, the fourth book in the Aisling Grey series (see my review, and please excuse the formatting issues), definitely felt like an ending. There were a number of loose ends and so, despite my disenchantment with the series, I was sufficiently intrigued to pick up Playing with Fire. This book features Gabriel Tauhou, the wyvern of the silver dragons and an appealing character in the Aisling Grey books.

A big problem I have with MacAlister’s books are the heroines. The author writes in the first person voice, and after awhile, they all seem to sound the same. And I do enjoy some hero POV, so I miss that. More troubling is the stupidity that some of the heroines display (Aisling, I’m looking at you). They like to do insanely stupid things, without thought or preparation, just to show they won’t be told what to do.

Thankfully, May Northcott comes off quite differently. She’s more skilled, thoughtful and serious, and seems to have a lot more on the ball. Although she does succumb to the “No dragons gonna boss me around” syndrome, she’s seems better equipped to handle the situation she gets into. May’s a doppelganger, and that’s got to be one of the weirder paranormal creatures I’ve seen around. But she was a very likeable heroine.

Gabriel was an interesting character in the Aisling Grey books, and he’s likeable here as well. But he was also inconsistent. I liked that he was different than the over-the-top Alpha Drake Vireo. He’s a healer, and seems a bit more gentle. Don’t be scared, he seems strong and intelligent, just…quieter. Then there were times that he did the chesting beating thing and it just didn’t ring true. I wonder if the fact that that we always see him from May’s POV adds to the problem. I hope the more we see of him, the more consistently developed he’ll become. And he’s pretty hot.

Gabriel and May had good chemistry, despite the fact that the romance seems rushed. Gabriel has been cursed to never have a mate born to him. But May was made, not born. There are times May wonders if he just wants her because he’s so thrilled to have an available mate, and I shared her doubts. But by the end, I was definitely enjoying them as a couple.

The change in direction has definitely rejuvenated the series. I really liked being back in the world of the dragon septs, and it was good to see Aisling, Drake and Jim again, in small doses. Bits of May’s storyline were confusing, but everything came together by the end. I was entertained, interested and amused, and I look forward to Up in Smoke (October 2008), which will continue May and Gabriel’s story. I hope the storyline doesn’t get dragged out too much, but in the world MacAlister’s created, there’s lots of directions to go.

Grade: B-

The Summary:

Gabriel Tauhou, the leader of the silver dragons, can’t take his eyes off May Northcott. Not even when May, who has the unique talent of being able to hide in the shadows, has slipped from everyone else’s sight.

May, however, has little time for Gabriel – not when she’s hiding from the Otherworld law, hunting down a blackmailer, and trying to avoid a demon lord’s demands. But her ability to withstand Gabriel’s fire marks her as his mate, and he has no intention of letting her disappear into the darkness she seems to prefer.

Then May is ordered to steal one of Gabriel’s treasures – an immensely important relic of all dragonkin – and he must decide which to protect: his love or his dragons…

Read an excerpt here