Dragon Touched by JB McDonald

Title: Dragon Touched
Author: JB McDonald
Cover Artist: BS Clay
Publisher: Torquere
Genre: fantasy
Length: 63 pages/17,500 words
Rating: 3 stars out of 5

Being called a demon and given suspicious looks has become old hat for Ashe, depressing as it is. But a mob attack leaves him shaken, aware of the danger he's in every time he walks out of the palace. With no purpose, no friends, and a culture that hates him, Ashe is barely putting one foot in front of the other. He wants to go home.

Katsu wants to go home, too, but first he has to fulfill his duties. The problem is that every time he finishes one thing, something else needs his attention. If Ashe will just be patient, Katsu will figure it out. But Ashe is running out of patience, and the boys are learning that sometimes, love isn't enough. Katsu knows the solution is there, if he can just find it... before everything falls apart.

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I’m invested enough in this undisclosed serial to keep reading, but that may not last. Again, we don’t have a complete plot arc—it feels like we left off at an inciting incident last time. (For a more complete discussion of three act structure, look here.) Here the stakes get higher, but resolution? What resolution?


The writing is smooth, and the characters vivid, particularly if one has been reading all sections as I have. Should you stumble on this one cold, it will be unsatisfying, because the dragon is an established fact, Ashe’s fish out of water state is clear but has no background, Katsu’s divided loyalties are clear and even have context for part but not all of it. The state of the relationship is seen only as “troubled,” with no build up, no resolution. You need at least 3 of the previous six installments to know, or care, about what is going on.

If you have that background, this is a wonderful section. If you don’t, quite a lot of this is pointless.
This would be much less of a problem if anyone was being upfront that this IS a serial. The author is coy about it, the publisher’s site says nothing about it, not even installment numbers, though you can find them at Goodreads. Supplied by readers. The lack of honesty, transparency, and continuity here bothers me greatly. The assumptions by author and publisher that we are patiently following along and not noticing how things are being strung out is apparent from the blurb, which doesn’t bother to state that Ashe is an elf and Katsu is a deposed prince amongst his human folk. Readers are assumed to know something as basic as species from having followed so far, and not need any explanations.

Katsu, who started off with grumpy as the new charming, here is only harried. If it’s for good reason, it’s still only a fragment of his former appeal. Again, without the background, the question is open as to why Ashe has stuck around this long, because the city is slowly killing him. Everyone, from Ashe, to Chieko, (Katsu’s beloved sister) to the queen (Katsu’s mother) to Daisuke (a figure from Katsu’s past and Ashe’s guide to local culture) is working at cross purposes, all pulling Katsu one way or another, and that part is beautifully portrayed. How this resolves is yet to be seen,  although the battle lines between factions are growing clear.

What I’d like to do is wait until the complete story arc is available to rate this. It would probably be a 4.5 to a 5. What I have to look at in this one file is approximately a third of a story arc, and that, no matter how well done, is incomplete and being sold without disclosure that it’s incomplete. So, JB McDonald and Torquere, get honest about what you’re offering and I’ll read the next part, otherwise, I’m done. 3 marbles
 

Dragon's Lair by JB McDonald

Title: Dragon’s Lair
Author: JB McDonald
Cover Artist: BS Clay
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 82 pages/22,200 words

Being a demon is no fun at all. This doesn't particularly come as a surprise, but his constant escort and rarely seeing his lover does. When Ashe agreed to come to Katsu's land, he did so hoping to spend time with Katsu. Instead, he spends time locked within the palace grounds, ostracized as a monster. This will continue, he knows, until the princess Chieko is healed... or dies.

Dying looks like the greater possibility, and Katsu is already mourning his sister. Then something happens -- something terrible and wonderful. The ground trembles and opens up, and Katsu nearly falls through. At Ashe's greatest need, the dragon responds, saving Ashe's lover. If they can make it happen again, it might just save the princess's life -- and mean Ashe and Katsu can go home.

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I’ve been reading through this “series” and while I’m enjoying the story, I am not so much enjoying the chunks being doled out at intervals. This section comes closest to having a plot arc that can stand on its own, but still very much feels as if it should be directly attached to the section that came before (Dragon Soul) and it doesn’t have a definitive ending, probably because it’s scheduled for release in a few months. I would be less grouchy about this if the publisher and the author were more upfront about the serialization but nowhere is this mentioned at either the publisher or author’s website, nor is correct reading order. Someone coming in cold is likely to flounder around, because none but the first section entirely stands on its own. This one is close, but the beginning is sketchy without the prior installment, and the ending is not exactly there.


When we left our intrepid medic and elf, they had just been notified of Katsu’s sister’s dire illness and summoned back to Katsu’s native land to heal her. A number of revelations regarding Katsu’s background were made, and they follow up here nicely interspersed with the story. He has a complicated relationship with his family and with the local culture, and even Katsu’s relationship with Ashe gets a bit messier because of where they are.

We hadn’t seen much of Katsu’s POV in prior installments, so it’s nice to get deeper into his head here—he’s the guy who makes grumpy into the new charming, and we can see a bit more of why. Now he’s the one who has a place, and Ashe is the outsider, although the dragon Ashe’s bonded to buys him some acceptance.

There are some great interplays between Ashe, Katsu, the dragon, and various figures from Katsu’s past. The queen, his mother, might as well be a dragon, but she has her reasons. Magic is thick on the ground here, and Ashe is the one who can manipulate it the most. Elves such as he have a Moran-given duty to recirculate the magic through the world, which is a special challenge when the jungles are oppressively full of magic. Even the dragon feels overstuffed with magic, to the point of growing fat with it.

I was delighted by how Katsu and Ashe supported one another in many ways, and how this spilled over to Princess Chieko, Katsu’s sister and the pregnant heir to the throne. Some elements of this were wrenching and dark, but even so, led into greater understanding between the couple.

A great many things that have been building through the series have come to fruition here. Several plot arcs combine to make the dénouement possible, and there’s where we are left. The definitive ending isn’t here, so we need to travel with Ashe and Katsu for at least one more installment for total satisfaction. 4 marbles

Dragon Soul by JB McDonald

Title: Dragon Soul
Author: JB McDonald
Cover Artist: Alessia Brio
Publisher: Torquere
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 11,800 words

Everything was supposed to work out. They had the dragon under control, they were back with the mercenaries - things were supposed to be good now. That was the plan. Then word of plague in Katsu's country arrives, and with it knowledge that will shatter everything Ashe thought he knew about his lover.

When Katsu has to make a choice between Ashe or sailing overseas to a country that abandoned him to save a beloved sister—Well, some choices are harder than others. Some are nearly impossible to make.

**************************

At the end of the last section, reviewed here, I griped about having to make a grumpy Katsu-face and snagging the next installment just to find out what happens next. After reading Dragon Soul, I have no reason to change that assessment, and in fact, I’m getting really annoyed about it.

Don’t get me wrong, I liked the story, all 44 pages of it. It’s well written, has a lot of character development for Katsu, whose eternal grumpiness hides a caring heart, and moved the overall story along. Katsu’s been an enigma all along, and here we find out a lot of what he’s been hiding. Ashe’s troubles with the dragon are at this point manageable, and he’s showing some nice growth in the relationship now that he’s not being sucked dry. I’d worry a whole lot more about spoilers except that the blurb pretty much makes it a moot point. It doesn’t hide a thing. Frankly, trying to maintain any sort of mystery in each segment is probably really difficult by now, since each blurb spoils the story before.


Anyone coming in at this point would probably be okay with knowing what’s going on—the author gets the world-building and backstory out without turning it into giant infodumps or chunks of exposition, but what is missing here is a complete story arc. An entirely new problem has been presented, but it is in no way resolved.

At this point, there are five installments out, and according to a note from the author, at least another three after this one, all with that serial novel feel. I’m glad this couple’s adventures continue, and I want to read them, but not forty or fifty pages at a time at intervals of months. I think I will wait until the entire arc has scrolled out and is finally compiled into an omnibus edition, at which time I will happily pay a novel price for a novel’s worth of story. Possible this could be two novels’ worth of story, although the dragon/Ashe story line didn’t feel completely wrapped up.

Consequently, this is really, really hard to rate. What’s here is good, but what’s here is one installment of a serial novel, though not advertised or sold as such. That’s an issue, but an even bigger issue is that there isn’t a complete story arc here, just the first act of something more complex. I can hope that the author and the publisher will confer and decide to present the entire story arc in one package, because I am probably not the only reader grumbling at being strung along like this.

What I’d like to do is hold onto the rating until I read the rest of the story. It's probably a 5. What I’m supposed to do is rate what’s in the file in front of me. It’s smooth, it’s a good read, it’s not complete. 3 stars

Dragon Whisperer by JB McDonald

Title: Dragon Whisperer
Author: JB McDonald
Cover Artist: Skylar Sinclair
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: fantasy
Length: 55 pages
 
Getting magically eaten by a dragon wasn't part of the plan. Really, there hadn't been much of a plan to begin with, but it had definitely involved more dragon slaying and less getting knocked unconscious. Even the unconsciousness wouldn't be so bad if it didn't push Ashe closer to death each time.

Katsu is worried sick at Ashe's descent. He's worried enough to find a dragon whisperer to help, despite the fact that he hates her. He hates her appearance, he hates her attitude, and he especially hates the way she's helping his lover when he couldn't. Despite this, he hopes she succeeds -- or soon Ashe won't be alive at all.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Katsu and Ashe are back, and the dragon hasn’t left. The story arc continues from the previous book, where magic activated a dragon egg Ashe had kept as a curiosity. The dragon that hatched from it bonded with him and feeds on his elven magic. He’s a tasty meal and harder to drain than a mere human, but the dragon is a hungry little beast. Katsu, the curmudgeonly human medic and Ashe’s new lover, doesn’t know what to do to free Ashe from what is basically a parasite, and now the dragon is feeding on others. To protect their friends and to find a way to save Ashe, the two set out to find a dragon scholar.


The dragon part of the story arc follows on directly from the previous book; the dragon was a danger then and a bigger menace now. Their searches bring them to Tabitha, whose knowledge and help they need just to keep Ashe alive while he learns how to cope with a dragon that’s permanently attached to him. Tabitha has an interesting affinity to the dragons and some parallel skills; everyone around her save Katsu is smitten with her, and even Ashe is submitting his will to her in some alarming ways.

The relationship between the men is blooming. With worry, caretaking, and a little bit of panic to drive them, Katsu gets to show his grumpy version of love, finding the person with answers, and then making sure she doesn’t get to define all the questions too. Perhaps Tabitha understands dragons, but Katsu understands Ashe. Ashe is kind of passive here, but given his near-death and reliance on others just to find a way to cope, he’s not doing too badly. He needs Katsu’s clearer thinking to guide him. They go from mere sex partners to lovers over the course of these stories, and it’s not quite solidified yet.

Their relationship with the dragon undergoes some changes. “Look how cute” quickly turned to “dangerous and hateful beast” but once Ashe learns some skills to conserve his magic, there is almost fondness, and even some appreciation for it.

My one annoyance with this series is that it seems to be more of a serial novel, since the parts are standing less alone as they come out. However, these are big meaty chunks of story with real development in each, so I’m probably going to just make a grouchy Katsu-face and grab the next one when it’s out.4 marbles

Dragon Hatching by JB McDonald

Title: Dragon Hatching (Dragon #3)
Author: JB McDonald
Cover Artist: Alessia Brio
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: fantasy
Length: 57 pages

Becoming a host for a parasitic dragon wasn't part of the plan. Actually, there wasn’t really any plan to begin with, but when the dragon egg hatches, Ashe figures it's time to come up with one.

Katsu's plans are failing miserably. His vast medical knowledge isn't helping Ashe's dragon situation, he's having problems staying detached, and the other mercenaries are concerned about their lifeforce being sucked dry and want Ashe to leave. Katsu is determined that if Ashe leaves, so will he. First, though, he has to make sure that his people aren't killed in battle... something they seem determined to do.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is the third installment in JB McDonald’s series with Ashe, the mercenary elf who’s not too clear on how to use his magic, and Katsu, the human medic for the mercenary band, who’s far too grumpy to admit he cares about anything besides a successful healing.

This time, an elven ritual of redistributing the magic wakens more than Ashe could imagine. A dragon egg he kept in his magpie’s nest of souvenirs and pretty things wasn’t supposed to hatch, but next thing he knows, he’s playing parent to the hatchling, who slurps up the deliciousness of elven magic with a side of life force. Getting rid of this unwelcome freeloader is now his and Katsu’s top priority, until the other mercenaries do what mercenaries do, and there are casualties to treat.

The relationship between Katsu and Ashe remains a delight—-Ashe has learned what not to take at face value. What sounds like a chewing-out from Katsu falls like love poetry on his ears, and Katus’s growls about even asking a question have meaning that gladdens Ashe’s heart.

Ashe is a sunny sort, not asking much from life except adventure, which he’s gotten in far greater quantities since connecting with Katsu. He’s still pretty independent, and having to rely on Katsu for staying alive and free as keeps happening is still something he’s getting used to.

Tha pair have been together for two adventures by now; the story works okay as a standalone, though it’s stronger for reading the other two first. The relationship arc is still in the getting solidified zone, but if the readers are waiting for Katsu to declare love in a way that doesn’t have to be translated from “grouchy”, I think we all may be waiting a long time. His actions speak for him.

The issue of the dragon isn’t quite as clear cut: the story ends on an impasse, though the beast turns out to have a few redeeming qualities. Major issues remain, which smells like sequel bait. This and a couple of scenes from the POV of a secondary character who is apparently the designated asker of questions took away from the overall story, but not so much that it isn’t an enjoyable read. I did feel at this point, where I didn’t in the other two, that I hadn’t gotten all my questions answered.

If you’re coming into the series at this point, you won’t be totally confused, though you’ll want to go back and catch up. And if you’re reading along, as I am, you’ll definitely want to know what happens next. 4 Marbles

A Thousand Word Thursday Story by JB McDonald

True Love

Robert did his very best to keep a straight face as Jasper pulled the pair of dirty long johns off his head.

With one look, Jasper obviously knew it was a losing battle. "This isn't funny," he hissed, and that was the end of it.

Robert burst into laughter. He managed to clam up after that single loss, but his eyes watered with the effort and his chest burned. "Oh, but it is!" he exclaimed, leaning back against the rough brick of the tavern. Inside the building he could hear songs raging onward, goaded by the bard who'd wandered into the city. Out here in the alley, the moon and reflected light made the long johns look even dirtier.

"It's not," Jasper hissed, furious. "I'm getting so tired of--"

"You're the imbecile who decided to take a true love potion. Explain to me again why you thought it was a good idea?" In the dark, Robert couldn't see Jasper blush, but he was sure that fair skin was going pink, anyway. He'd known Jasper far too long.

"It was supposed to reveal the person who loves me, not make everyone in the city go crazy!" Though he'd started out sounding proper, the sentence ended on frustration. His next words were almost bitter. "Not everyone is a golden child, Rob."


Robert's smile faltered. For a moment, he considered laying a hand on Jasper's arm, offering some sort of emotional support. Robert's own family adored him, the only child and heir to their merchant business, a son who even enjoyed working with what he'd someday inherit. Jasper's family had sent him away as an outcast when they'd learned of his sexual proclivities, at the tender age of sixteen. Jasper was from a backwards town; that sort of behavior was to be expected.

Luckily, he and Robert had already known each other then, through Robert's summers in the country. Robert's monthly stipend had gone to support Jasper, though Jasper had quickly gotten work in the merchant business. Still, Robert knew that the way Jasper's family had locked him out hurt.

Hurt so much that Jasper was blind to anyone else. Robert's grin returned, though he had to force it, and he clapped his hand hard on Jasper's shoulder. "Well, you have no one to blame but yourself for this particular stupid idea. True love potions, indeed. Whoever heard of such a--" He was interrupted by a squeal.

Both men turned their heads, looking in alarm at the mouth of the alley. A barmaid stood there, her eyes wide in the moonlight, body frozen as she stared at them. "You," she said in reverent tones. "You're the most beautiful man I've ever seen..."

She took a step toward them. Then another.

"Run!" Robert laughed, and together the men turned and fled down the alley while the barmaid gathered her dress and ran after them.

In good shape, and not hampered by skirts, they managed to outrun her even with Robert laughing like a loon.

"It's not funny!" Jasper snapped, battering Robert about the head and shoulders as Robert bent double, hands on his knees. "You're such an ass!"

"Hey," Robert protested. "I'm the one getting you to that healer, aren't I?" Good thing one of them had an idea about how to solve Jasper's problem. Robert's laughter aside, he didn't much like the thought of everyone in the city harassing his best friend. Only he was allowed to do that.

They kept to deserted streets as they walked, Robert occasionally recalling the look of mixed awe and horror on Edward's drunk face as he'd been drawn inexorably toward Jasper. Apparently, it didn't matter what your usual sexual proclivities were; everyone was falling in love.

"Marry me!" someone shouted from above, and a moment later a brassiere plopped on Jasper's head, one cup covering his nearest ear.

Jasper sighed heavily. Robert nearly killed himself laughing.

They got out of the city without any more incidents -- at least, none that they weren't able to escape -- and headed down the dirt road under star- and moonlight, Robert slinging one arm around Jasper's shoulders. He tried to ignore Jasper's flinch; it had, after all, been a long night of getting grabbed.

"Soon you'll be your charming, totally unimpressive self again," Robert assured him grandly.

Jasper seemed to wilt. "That's not really want I want, either, you know," he mumbled. "Rob, you might be able to attract people, but I don't! I just want to have someone to--"

"Have and hold, snuggle and cuddle, all that other puke-worthy stuff you like so much." Robert shook his head, clinging to disdain. It was all the armor he had against Jasper's romantic notions -- notions that didn't involve Robert in the slightest.

"I know you think it's stupid," Jasper began hotly.

Again, Robert interrupted. "I don't think it's stupid," he muttered. "I just get tired of hearing about it." He got tired of thinking about it: Jasper and some unknown male, tucked in a Jasper's little apartment. Cooing at each other. Eating with each other. Touching each other. The very idea of someone else laying hands on his best friend-- it made his heart hurt.

"I just want a nice little life, with a nice little--"

"Jasper." Robert stiffened, staring out into the dark fields.

Jasper came to a quick stop. Robert didn't move his arm off Jasper's shoulders, ready to pull Jasper aside if needed. Never mind that of the two of them, Jasper was the taller, the broader, the more muscular. It had always been this way: Robert watched out for him.

Now he was watching eyes, glowing in the darkness, steady on their progress. Bandits hadn't been seen in this area since the mercenaries had begun camping out, but who knew if the mercenaries weren't waylaying people? Or if Jasper's stupid love potion was attracting them out? There were no alleys to escape down out here, no buildings to duck into. His unoccupied hand slid to the short sword at his belt; if he had to defend them, he would.

Moonlight glittered along skin, shining orange and gold, as the creature came closer. A shadow, a glow, both at once and yet neither. Small, Robert realized with relief. Small, and non-human, and...

And...

"It's a dragon," Jasper breathed.

Only as big as Jasper's head, it glided up to them on gossamer wings, tail weaving to keep balance, and hovered.

Slowly, Robert stepped away. The dragon bobbed in the air before Jasper. Jasper's dark brown hair, having come unbound during one of their narrow escapes, wisped around his clean, delicate bone structure, framing him. Jasper's full lips parted as he took a deep breath.

And then the dragon plastered itself across his face. Jasper yelped from beneath its belly, and Robert couldn't help it -- the perfect, beautiful moment was broken, and he couldn't stop from laughing as Jasper hopped and twisted around, trying to rid himself of the beast without actually touching it.

Muffled underneath the tiny golden dragon, Jasper tried to say, "This is not funny!"

It only made Robert laugh harder.

Finally, with a frustrated screech the dragon let go -- it had been clinging via Jasper's ears -- and flapped madly around his head.

Jasper ducked, pulling his coat up to hide, and started at a much faster pace down the road. The dragon followed.

"This is what you get when you mess with potions," Robert said with glee. "You should just be happy with what you have in life!"

"And what is that?" Jasper snarled. "You? Because last I looked, you were all up in Franq's trousers!"

That was true. Robert shrugged philosophically, not that Jasper could see.

"Is the dragon gone yet?"

Robert glanced up at it, reaching out automatically to correct Jasper's course before he went off the road. "Nope." In fact, it was buzzing around them like a rather irate beetle. "It looks angry."

"Oh, great," Jasper muttered. His voice echoed strangely from the confines of his coat. "An angry dragon."

"Well, you have kept it from its one true love. No one understands inter-species romance."

Jasper kicked at him, but aimed in the wrong direction.

"If you're trying to convince it you're insane, I don't think that'll work."

"I hate you so much right now."

Robert smiled, content. There was little in the world he liked more than hearing Jasper say such things; he knew it really meant that Jasper liked him quite a lot.

Not enough, and not in the right way, but still. A lot.

"I think I see lights," Robert said, ducking to keep the dragon from flapping into his head as it swerved and twisted in a valiant attempt to join with its long lost love.

"Oh, thank the gods," Jasper breathed.

It didn't take long for Robert to realize that the healer, ensconced in the mercenary camp, might be a tad bit hard to get to. Personally, he didn't want to fend off twenty large, armed people who were all after Jasper in their pursuit of love. "Jasper?" Robert said carefully. "Perhaps you'd better wait out here."

Jasper opened his coat enough to peer up ahead, at the numerous cookfires illuminating the night. He closed his coat again when the dragon tried to wiggle its way in. "Good idea. You just bring the healer out."

**

"I'm really not so sure we need so many people," Robert said again, though there was only the healer and his... friend. An elf; there were enough of them that it wasn't too surprising, but Robert couldn't exactly call them common, either. More unusual was the human; even in the firelight Robert could see he was golden-skinned, with black hair and dark, slightly tilted eyes.

"Well," the elf said with a thoroughly annoying grin, "You can haven't him without me, so... besides, a true love potion? This has got to be hilarious."

Despite the fact that Robert had been thinking just that same thing all evening, he scowled. Elves were pretty. Long limbed and graceful. This one had pale skin and light brown hair, braided into a hundred different plaits that clicked as he walked, decorated with beads and feathers and bits of things that glinted in the moonlight. He wasn't Jasper's type, but he was still attractive. In Jasper's current fragile state, Robert would have preferred not to have attractive people around.

Next to the elf, the medic -- not healer, the medic had said -- was shorter and broader, but still slighter even than Robert. He was also quiet and rather cranky, Robert thought. Of course, if Robert had been pulled from his off-time, he'd probably be cranky, too.

"Just make sure you keep your hands to yourself," Robert grumbled. They were nearing the road where he'd left Jasper; a dark shaped marked the man, while a flitting of gold marked the dragon. More eyes peered from the brush. One brave rabbit was humping Jasper's leg.

The elf started to snicker. "Oh, the things he's doing for inter-species relations!"

"It's not funny," Robert muttered darkly.

The healer -- medic -- paused and took a deep breath. A moment later the elf did the same. Then the elf took several steps forward. Somehow, even his walk looked suddenly reverent.

"Ashe." The healer reached out and grabbed the elf by his elbow, stopping him. "It's just a spell."

"Right," Ashe breathed. "Just a spell. But don't you think he's--"

"Ashe," the medic said sharply.

Ashe looked entirely put out.

"Jasper!" Robert called, relatively sure that neither the human -- Katsu, he remembered -- or Ashe was going to pounce. "I brought help!"

"Get the rabbit!" Jasper yelled back. "It's ruining my shoes!"

Robert snickered, but stopped when he realized with some distress that neither the human nor the elf was snickering; they were looking distraught on Jasper's behalf, a glazed appearance in their eyes. "Hey!" Robert punched the medic's shoulder. "Do something!"

"Right, right, something," Katsu mumbled. He shook his head as if shaking free of a trance, and setting his satchel down, started to dig through it. "Try this. This might work." He offered up a stoppered jar.

"I'll take it to him," Ashe offered.

"I don't think so." Robert took the jar and hurried forward, not at all liking the way that no-good elf was smiling. Dreamy and wondering. Any minute now skinny, four-fingered hands would be on his Jasper. He unstoppered the jar, cringed at the horrific smell, and offered it to Jasper. "Try this."

"How much?" Jasper asked from inside his coat.

"I don't know. Drink all of it."

Behind him, he heard the elf sigh, "He's so beautiful."

"You can't even see him, he's still in his coat!" Robert snapped over his shoulder.

He saw Katsu frown and look at Ashe, then back at Jasper, then at Ashe again. "You're both idiots."

Robert prayed for patience. If that was how the medic wooed people, then Jasper was safe from Katsu's advances.

"Oh, gods, this tastes even worse than it smells," Jasper choked out.

"Keep drinking. The rabbit's losing interest." And sure enough, it had stopped humping and was blinking rather perplexedly; or as perplexedly as a rabbit could blink.

"Oh, Moran preserve me," Ashe breathed with great relief. "That was terrible. He doesn't even look like my type."

Katsu's head whipped around to Ashe, dark eyes narrowing. Then he frowned and twitched his shoulders as if re-settling knowledge more firmly around himself, and tried to look like nothing at all had happened, and he hadn't been staring dreamily at Jasper a moment before.

"I guess that worked, then." Robert tossed the jar back to Katsu while the dragon, with a screech, sailed off over their heads.

Ashe nearly hit the ground when it soared, screaming, above him, and then with a weak laugh said, "Sorry, it just sounded... familiar."

"Right," Robert drawled. "Well, thank you. You have your money? Good. Then we'll just be going now." Gratefully, he turned Jasper -- just starting to peek over his coat -- and herded him back down the road.

"No more love potions!" Katsu shouted after their retreating backs. "Of all the stupid..."

Robert bristled, even though he agreed.

Jasper ran his fingers through his hair, pulling it away from his face for a moment. "That was something I don't wish to repeat," he said, clearly glad to be done with it.

"No, I agree. And you owe me a small fortune. That healer -- medic -- didn't come cheap."

Jasper looked distinctly put out. "And the potion didn't even work. Just everyone acted crazy, but no one single person--" He stopped.

Robert stopped a few steps later, looking back expectantly.

"It didn't affect you, did it?" Jasper asked curiously.

Robert rubbed the back of his neck, thinking over the evening. "No," he said at last. "It's faulty, I suppose."

But the look on Jasper's face said something else entirely. Jasper smiled slowly, dark eyes softening. "It was supposed to show me the one person who-- and you were the only person who didn't change when falling in love with me--" He looked a little wondering. "Rob -- why didn't you say something?"

"Perhaps it really was just faulty," he tried to say quickly, heart beating too fast in his chest. Jasper's eyes, normally a deep blue, were almost black in the darkness. Moonlight painted him with a soft glow; straight nose, high cheekbones, narrow jaw. It even iced his hair, making dark brown locks shimmer. Robert couldn't stand losing Jasper, and Jasper had never been interested. Jasper was the only person who'd never been interested. Robert swallowed.

He really wanted to pretend like he had no idea what Jasper was talking about. Instead, he stared hard toward the city and wished it would move closer and envelope them. "What was I supposed to say, Jasper? 'Gee, I know you don't like me, but'--"

"Who said I didn't like you?"

Robert stared at his toes. They were closer than the city, at least.

Jasper chuckled. "I feel like such a fool. You were right here, the whole time."

"I'm always right here," Robert snapped. "Nothing has changed."

Jasper's hand slid against his neck, making him shiver. Like silk against his skin, warm and caressing. Jasper's fingers cradled Robert's jaw, softly insistent, and pulled his head upward. Reluctantly, Robert met his eyes. "I know that," Jasper murmured. "Now."

Robert's uncertain laugh was silenced by Jasper's kiss. He hesitated a moment as lips pressed against him -- and then melted into it, his shirt flattening between their bodies, feeling the hard yet soft planes of Jasper's chest against his own. He ran his hands up Jasper's back, measuring the contour of muscle, and pulled Jasper to him. He was wrong after all; everything had changed.

--End

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Somehow nothing goes as expected for Ashe and Katsu, even when they are only wandering into someone else's adventures.  Dragon Hunted has a 5 marble review here at the Bookshelf, and Dragon Traders is on the TBR list for sure. Thank you, JB, for sharing this!


Getting abducted by slavers wasn't part of the plan. Not that there was much of a plan to begin with, but it definitely involved more payment and fewer chains. Ashe can't help but feel a bit of panic when the meeting to sell dragon eggs, which were hunted down weeks earlier, turns sour, and he ends up drugged, caged, and on his way to a land where elves are pets.

To make matters worse, the only person who has a chance of saving him is Katsu. Katsu, who after two weeks of sex is still an enigma. Katsu, who isn't exactly the best combatant on the team. Ashe can only hope that this enigma might still have a few tricks up his sleeve, or Ashe's fate is sealed.

More news and tidbits can be found at JB's website or livejournal.

Dragon Hunted by JB McDonald

Dragon Hunted by JB McDonald
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: Fantasy, GLBT
Length: 55 pages


Summary: Getting eaten by a dragon wasn't part of Ashe's plan. Not that there was much of a plan to begin with, but it had definitely involved more chasing and less running. Ashe supposes there's one good thing about all this: if he has to be trapped in a cave with a very large predator outside, at least he's with Katsu, the company medic and Ashe's current crush.

Even better, Katsu has enough knowledge of dragons and medicine that he might just be able to hatch an escape plan. Even better than that, Ashe is discovering that Katsu might not dislike him after all. It's a small step, Ashe hopes, from not disliking him to something significantly more. That is, assuming they don't get eaten first. A new series!

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The title says it all—Dragon Hunted plops the main characters right into peril. Katsu and Ashe have been pleasant antagonists as long as they've known one another, but JB McDonald gives them a common enemy and lets them sort it out.


Opposite in every way, Ashe, the willowy, irrepressible, exuberantly horny elf, is fascinated by Katsu, the human medic. Secretive and terminally but cutely grumpy, Katsu can make the faintest sign of approval into cause for celebration. The romance takes place in the action; these two haven't gotten along particularly – Ashe's methods for catching Katsu's eye usually make him look like a fool. Faced with an angry dragon, though, they manage to learn enough about each other and to work together well enough to remain uneaten. They approach almost everything from completely opposite directions, but they do eventually meet, or agree to try to meet in the middle on everything from the best way to elude the dragon to how to deal with the power that surges in them both. It's not easy: Katsu complains, "You know, just about the time I start to think maybe you're a halfway decent guy, you get all high-handed and elfity."

There's a marshmallow very well hidden under Katsu's prickly exterior, and when Ashe manages to uncover it, it's all in character, no sudden personality transplant and mush pouring forth. There are hints and glimpses of the wider world here, not so much that it becomes world-building-dump and takes away from the action, but enough to raise my thirst to read more. I love this odd couple and am very glad to know there are further adventures. 5 marbles

A Thousand Word Thursday Story by JB McDonald

An Excerpt from Dragon Hunted

He whipped around, yanking a knife free before he even realized the voice was just Katsu. He grinned and tucked the blade away. "Katsu! I didn't think anyone was around here!"

"What, you thought I'd leave everyone to get gored by a dragon on their own? What's the point in having a medic?" Katsu tromped through the forest, heedless of breaking branches or snapping twigs. It was almost like he was daring the dragon to come back and eat him -- and Ashe doubted even a dragon had those kind of guts. Katsu'd probably give it indigestion.

Ashe fell in beside Katsu, relieved to have company, glad it was the medic. Somehow, things seemed better with Katsu around. "Do dragons gore people? I don't think they have horns to gore with." Ashe squawked as Katsu slapped the back of his head, sending him stumbling forward. He caught his balance, rubbing his skull. "Bad medic."

Katsu snorted. "Bad medic? Bad elf. Shouldn't you be up with the others trying to kill yourself? Or do you save that for your off time?"

Ashe fell back into step with Katsu. "I save that for my off time. How else am I going to get to see you?"


Katsu gave him a sharp look, but kept walking.

"And if I don't get to see you," Ashe put his hand to his chest, faking heartbreak, "my day would just never be bright."

"I hate elves," Katsu muttered. "You're all drama queens."

Ashe grinned but dropped his hand. "Is there anything you do like, Katsu?"

"Peace."

"I hate peas. They look like marsh griffin spawn. Have you seen a marsh griffin?"

Katsu gave him a disgusted look.

"They're about this big," Ashe held his hands a foot apart, "and they eat bugs."

Katsu kept walking.

"When they spawn, they squeeze out these nasty, ooze-coated egg things. The male—"

Katsu slapped the back of his hand into Ashe's chest, stopping them both. "Do you hear that?"

Ashe listened. Something growled. Slowly, carefully, he looked around the forest. It took two sweeps before he realized that he wasn't seeing fireflies, but rather the moon reflected off a scaled hide. He traced it with his gaze, up to a finely wrought head with a strong jaw.

This dragon wasn't as big as the last. More like a horse than a wagon. But it was looking right at them.

"Moran's teats," Ashe whispered.

"Is that bad?" From the corner of Ashe's eye, he could see Katsu looking around, the human's vision not quite spotting the dragon.

Ashe nodded slowly. "Start backing up. We need to find cover." They took a step backward, and the dragon's head lowered. A split tongue flickered out of its mouth, tasting the air.

"There was a ravine to the right," Katsu murmured. "Thought I saw some caves."

"Go."

Katsu bolted. Twigs and dry leaves underfoot turned Katsu's run into a clear trail. The dragon didn't move. Ashe waited, watching the dragon as it watched Katsu. He drew his knife once more, even though he knew it would do precious little against a dragon. It might do something.

The dragon's gaze flicked toward him for just an instant, as if aware he might be a threat. Then the creature moved. Like oil across water, it slid through the forest lightning fast, twisting around trees as if they were nothing. Ashe leaped for it, knowing he was too slow. Far too slow, even as he pushed through possibilities and drove his muscles harder, calling on the magic in his blood to aid him.

It wasn't enough. He'd waited too long.
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They’re always cute when they’re small, but dang, they grow…

This delightful tidbit is from JB McDonald’s Dragon Hunted, the first in the  the Dragon Series. It starts with Dragon Hunted and continues with Dragon Traders, available on the 17th of August, and will continue far, far after that! It could really be re-titled The Adventures of Katsu and Ashe, Fantasy Mercenaries and Male Lovers, but that might get a little lengthy. ;)
 


Getting eaten by a dragon wasn't part of Ashe's plan. Not that there was much of a plan to begin with, but it had definitely involved more chasing and less running. Ashe supposes there's one good thing about all this: if he has to be trapped in a cave with a very large predator outside, at least he's with Katsu, the company medic and Ashe's current crush.

Even better, Katsu has enough knowledge of dragons and medicine that he might just be able to hatch an escape plan. Even better than that, Ashe is discovering that Katsu might not dislike him after all. It's a small step, Ashe hopes, from not disliking him to something significantly more. That is, assuming they don't get eaten first.


Find JB’s news at her website here www.jbmcdonald.com or at her blog at jennabreen.livejournal.com, where she announces contests and things.

And we’ll get more story on the 17th when Dragon Traders comes out!

Off Trail by JB McDonald

Off Trail by J.B. McDonald

Recently widowed, with one dog now crippled and another about to give birth, Keith needs help. Problem is, he doesn't want it. When Spencer blows into his life, Keith does his best to shove Spencer back out. Spencer is everything his dead husband wasn't, and little too close to the wild side for Keith's taste.

Spencer can see that Keith is drowning in details, just as he can see how a little aid would go a long way. But Keith keeps refusing help -- for everything except the crippled dog. Spencer's way into Keith's house is through fur on wheels; finding his way into Keith's heart won't be so easy.
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McDonald does a beautiful job of drawing an overwhelmed and still grieving widower, who has to get a handle on life as it must go on. I really don't know how Keith has survived the previous year without his husband -- nothing could have been one bit easier back in town, except for intact walls and ceilings to keep the elements and wildlife out. He's reached that point of exhaustion where he will keep putting on foot in front of the other because he's too tired to stop, until he drops.

Spencer is a good guy, willing to break that cycle because he sees someone really worthwhile inside Keith's closed off feelings, and he has some great attributes -- I wanted to shake Keith and say "Listen to the man!"

There was a really great turn-about sequence, involving the dogs that are such an overwhelming part of Keith's life, the author clearly understands big dogs, but honestly, while I get why Keith struggled so hard to keep Sam going, it didn't seem fair to anyone, yet, how could he stop once he'd started?

The tone of hopeless exhaustion on Keith's part does go on a while, understandably, but not pleasantly and probably has something to do with why I didn't like it more than I did, and yay for him seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. For all that it isn't pleasant, it's well done, and when the tone lifts, it's all the better.

Buy here for ebook or here for print.