Rion

Publisher's Summary. Marisa Rourke is a beautiful, fearless telepath who tames dragonshapers on Earth. Rion is a tall, dark, and sexy space explorer whose home planet is a galaxy away. The attraction between them is undeniable, but Rion is hiding a desperate secret that will change Marisa's life forever.

Marisa's gift is the only way Rion can communicate with his people, enslaved by a powerful enemy. He knows that kidnapping her is wrong, but saving his planet is worth sparking the fiery clairvoyant's fury. Yet hotter-and more explosive-is the psychic bond growing between Marisa and Rion. Could their passion be the key to freeing Rion's people? Only if he and Marisa can discover how to channel their desire . . . before a vicious enemy destroys them all.

Review. by Renee A.J. Rion by Susan Kearney immerses the reader in a future Earth where the population is learning to cope with the side effects of vaccine from the planet Pendragon, which saved humanity for extinction. The vaccine cured humanity’s fertility problem while instilling a genetic shift that requires humans to periodically morph into dragons. Our heroine, Marisa, has abandoned her job as a reporter and become a ‘dragon whisperer’ since she is able to use her telepathic powers to calm the highly sexed and aggressive tendencies of humans when they take to their dragon forms. While Earth begins to cope with its’ new beginning, political leaders shut the portal that allows travel between Earth and other planets. Rion, the son of royalty from the planet Honor, came to the United Nations seeking support for the Honorians’ fight against the Unari Tribes’ who have invaded and enslaved the planet of Honor. With the closure of Earth’s portal, Rion is trapped on Earth unable to communicate with his planet and unable to convince Earth politicians that that the Unari will attack Earth once they have completely subdued Honor. Since the Honorian people are also dragonshapers, Rion kidnaps Marisa in the hopes that she will agree use her telepathic talents to help him rally and organize his people to fight against the superior forces of the Unari Tribes. Thus, begins the anger and attraction between Rion and Marisa, which will grow to passion and compassion as they are forced to protect each other in their travels.

Betrayed by the kidnapping and by Rion’s continuing secretiveness, Marisa fights her attraction for the handsome dragonshaper. Yet she is impressed by the depth of his commitment to his people and stirred by the just war. In addition, to being a dragonshaper Rion has the gift of visions. He is constantly haunted by scenes of the chaos and suffering of the Honorians under the yoke of the Unari. Ultimately Rion and Marisa are able to lead the fight for the Honorian’s freedom, while fulfilling their romantic destiny.

Overall, I enjoyed reading Rion. Although there were a few too many twists and turns in the plot, the characters were well-drawn, the growth of the romance between Rion and Marisa was intriguing, and the rebel fighters were inspiring. Rion is the perfect antidote to a cold January night!




Publisher: Forever; 1 edition (December 1, 2009), 384 pages
Advance Review Copy Provided Courtesy of the Publisher