Tuesday's Treasure: Day of the Dragon by Rebecca York

Ramsey Gallagher has lived a long time. More than 2,000 years. He knows more about the Earth’s ancient history than most scholars, but very little about himself, about his dragon heritage.

Dr. Madison Dartmoor may have stumbled upon the secret to Ramsey’s origins. Her archeological excavation, in the region where Ramsey lived as a child, has unearthed an ancient artifact that might be the missing link that he’s been hoping to find. He travels to Las Vegas where she is scheduled to give a presentation on her research only to discover that the lecture has been cancelled at the last second.

Madison refuses to discuss the small statute made from an unidentified substance that shifts from man to dragon by moving its arms. The attack on her crew at the dig site in Italy has convinced her that someone doesn’t want her discovery made public. And it seems that person will do anything it takes to ensure that her research is reburied, forever.

Ramsey and Madison join forces to uncover the truth about the ancient artifact while outrunning the ever-present danger of a madman bent on preserving mankind’s dominance in evolution. Only when that danger is eliminated do they realize that a bigger threat lies in an enemy who is closer than they think.

Day of the Dragon is a contemporary paranormal, action-adventure story with a little romance along the way. It has an Indiana Jones flair, without the comedy. There are lots of suspenseful twists that intrigued me and drew me into the plot so that I was trying to ferret out the answers to solve the mystery along with the characters.

I did feel that the beginning of the relationship between Ramsey and Madison was a little forced. Madison is an intelligent woman with a mission and she seemed to fall too quickly for Ramsey’s seductions, especially in light of the harrowing situation they were escaping. However, this bump was smoothed over a bit when it came to light that the two are likely soul mates.

I noticed a tiny reality slip when Madison’s assistant is shot at point blank range in the chest while they are in Vegas. Not only did he survive, he showed up at the dig site in Italy a few days later. The assistant is not a preternatural being.  Even though he’s described as pale and on massive pain-killers, it seems unlikely to me that a mere mortal would be capable of such a long journey so soon after (what I took as) a life-threatening injury.

The only other issue that had me rubbing a worry knot was how Madison came to be Dominic Coleman’s protégé after her parents died. I kept wondering why he chose her, especially after Madison asks him if he was responsible for her parents’ deaths and he refused to answer. I would’ve liked to have known Dominic’s motivation for choosing Madison since his relationship to her is a vital thread in the plot.

In the end, the little hiccups I experienced when reading this story didn’t stop me from enjoying the read.

Rebecca York fans will be happy to learn that Day of the Dragon begins a new shifter series for the author, so more stories will follow.



This review is also posted at Good Reads and The Season.