Fianna the Gold – Louisa Kelley

4.5⭐️ – Fianna is a dragon with a mission. Along with her sisters Guin and Orla, she’s been sent to the human side to find a new hybrid shifter. A task she hopes will get her back in her people’s good graces after a mistake she can only blame on her impetuous nature. Abbie is going through a change she doesn’t understand and discovering she’s part dragon makes a lot of weird sense. And then there’s Miriam, who would give anything to catch a dragon.

This was such an exciting story. Dragons, right? Not only are dragons fantastic and wonderful and awesome but these specific dragons are badass and witty and fun. Shapeshifters stories are always entertaining but dragon shifters! Louisa Kelley did a fabulous job of describing the dual nature of the characters, the freedom they enjoy in dragon form, the balance they have to find within themselves. The bond between Fianna, Guin and Orla is lovely and I can’t wait to read more about each of them, together and individually.

Abbie’s discovery of her hidden self was exhilarating, the author perfectly conveyed her feeling of finally being herself (even if she has to compromise with her other self on some aspects, because can dragons be vegan?). Fianna’s journey to redemption gives a more serious undertone to the story but it all remains rather lighthearted.

One of my favourite aspects of shapeshifter stories is that the animal part of the characters gives authors the perfect excuse to go full instalust in a very plausible manner. Fianna and Abbie face a slew of false starts, the result of which is an increase in sexual tension between them. Their dragon selves don’t exactly need their fire stoked to begin with, and it all gets very explosive.

Louisa Kelley’s lively writing style is a really good fit for bubbly and vibrant dragon adventures. This is another book I wish was made into a movie. I mean, kickass women and dragons, what more could one want?

The second book in this series, Guin the Emerald, will be released in July and I can’t wait to spend more time in this universe.