Hunted Warrior (Dragon Kings, #3)

by Lindsey Piper

When the head of the Five Clans of the Dragon Kings wants something, he gets it. Raised among the most privileged of his dying race, Malnefoley conceals a devastating tragedy from his youth. Now, many call him the Usurper because of his unconventional rise to power. His influence is waning while the Dragon Kings must solve the puzzle of their slow extinction. So when a particularly important captive escapes his compound in the Greek mountains, Malnefoley leaves nothing to chance. She is his prisoner to retrieve.

The woman is known as the Pet, a former associate of a sadistic doctor from the Asters, a human crime cartel. Her loyalties cannot be trusted, even when she claims to hold the secret to conception-an invaluable secret for a race unable to procreate. Neither can her unique gift from the Great Dragon be believed. She's a soothsayer, able to see glimpses of the future. Her quest is to find and save a Cage warrior on the verge of her first match-a young woman whose destiny is bound to a timeless prophecy.

Malnefoley has no respect for the ancient superstitions that brought about his childhood trauma. His only goal is to return the Pet to his compound and use her knowledge for the betterment of their people. Yet her restless energy and raw sensuality are as intriguing as her predictions about the rise of the Great Dragon. He dares not trust the crafty fugitive's loyalties, but as their treacherous chase turns passionate, can he even trust himself?

• ISBN10: 0349403058
• ISBN13: 9780349403052
• Publish Date: 28 April 2015
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
• Imprint: Piatkus Books
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 368
• Language: English

Reviews

[Melanie]

3.5 stars

My review and an extended sample of the audiobook are posted at Hotlistens.com.

I've been a huge fan of the Dragon King series since I picked up book one back in 2013. I will admit that I was surprised when I first started to read this series. With a series title called "Dragon Kings", I was expecting dragons, and there were none. At first, I was disappointed and was trying to figure out when the dragons would appear. Then I got so engrossed in the story of the characters, that I completely forgot about the lack of dragons.

The world that Ms Piper has built here is fabulous. It is also dark and gritty. Dragons are a deity that is worshiped. Dragon Kings are their worshipers that are in one of five factions. Each faction has a different superhuman ability. Some have super speed and strength, others have mind powers, etc. In Hunted Warrior, we have Malnefoley, who is the leader of the all five factions, a king if you will. He is charged with finding out why the Dragon Kings are having such difficulty reproducing.

There is also a woman known only as The Pet. She has been the plaything of a sadistic doctor. She is a psychic and able to see the future. She was used to help in reproduction of the Dragon Kings.

There is a lot of excitement and suspense as Mal and The Pet are on a mission to stop the cage fighting that are killing off Dragon Kings. Mal is not a fan of many of the traditions of his past and of his people. The sex is well written, if not always timely. This book reads like the end of the series (though there is another novella coming out). While I thought this Hunted Warrior was slow to start, it does end with a bang. I was very happy with how it all ended.

Narration
This book was narrated by Jim Frangione, which is a change of narrator for this series. I don't know why the change in narrator. I've never listened to the previous narrator. This is the first one that I've listened to. I had always read the previous books and didn't even know that these were available on audio until I saw this on the list for review. I'm a big fan of Jim Frangione, from listening to the Black Dagger Brotherhood series. He does just as good of a job with this series. It is everything you would expect from him, if you've listened before. His men's voices are very alpha and sexy. His women's voices are a little overly feminine, but that has never bothered me. I think is his fight scenes and sex scenes are very passionate. I've always liked his pacing. He is a narrator that I'm always willing to listen to.

I like to thank Recorded Books for providing me with a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.