Rating: 
Summary: Better than the First--but Not Great
Review: Bertin draws heavily on Asiatic cultures to build her kingdom of Jehanglan (no, the linguistics don't always make sense), and it and the story of ambitious concubine Shei-Luin form the best part of the book. Unfortunately her tale is alternated with that of the tiresomely boring Maurynna (who is still as coy and flouncy as a really obnoxious 13 year old) and the men aren't much better. They are still gorgeous, and have pretty horse companions who are smarter than Lassie, and have dragon soul-twins--a combination of Pern and Andre Norton tropes that aren't getting any fresher. Maurynna's 'problem' (she can't Change) is a very dull plot device that makes one skim the pages in search of some real story.The prose in the Shei-Luin portion is also much tighter; in the other, sounds still 'shatter' and 'pierce' the air, and everyone seems to lift one eyebrow a lot. Bertin shows talent. If she tried to jet the old fantasy cliches, both in prose and plotting, she would be someone to watch.
Rating:
Summary: Good ideas but too many irritating plot devices
Review: I enjoyed Ms Bertin's first book "The Last Dragonlord" because of the of the original idea of 'weredragons' and the interesting romantic sub-plot between Maurynna and Linden - especially the clever way they were kept apart, increasing the romantic tension. However I must admit I was disappointed by her second book "Dragon & Phoenix". Although I found the sub-plot revolving around Shei-Luin interesting, and I thought the water-dragon Miune adorable, there were quite a few irritating plot devices. For starters, I really didn't like the way Ms Bertin constantly tried to leave us in suspense at the end of every other character's segment. For example: "The blue eyes burned with rage and the whip came up to strike." *change characters*. Instead of building suspense and making me desperate to find out whether or not the whip would strike, I found it irritating and unsubtle. Especially since when we returned to those particular characters the negative consequence suggested never occured. (E.g. "The whip fell, but only to strike against Redhawk's boot.") Also, I like changes in character viewpoint and plot as much as the next person, but changing viewpoints (and continents) nine times in a single chapter does seem a bit excessive! (not to mention confusing) I also thought the book was too long. Maurynna, Linden and the rest dont even reach Jehanglan until over half-way through the book! Instead we have irritating passages about Maurynna and Linden standing together brooding about the fact that she's going into danger without him. After about the third of those I wanted to yell "Yeah ok they're going to miss each other. I get it!" And sure we have all this interesting character and culture development when Maurynna returns to her family, but is it really relevant to the plot(s)? Therefore although I enjoyed parts of this book, I found the negative aspects almost balanced out the positives. I dont think I'll be reading the next book in the series.
Rating: 
Summary: Triumphant Sequel to The Last Dragon Lord
Review: I would not recommend that readers begin with this book. The Last Dragon Lord comes first. That having been said... Bertin has created a word in which weredragons, otherwise known as Dragon Lords, dwell. Dragon Lords are humans with whom half a dragon's soul has bonded. The other half resides in the Dragon Lords soul twin. Together they are bonded into a lifelong pair. A very long life. Dragon Lords can live thousands of years. In this tale Linden and Maurynna join a band of true humans and Dragon Lords in a fantastic journey across the world to the land of Jehanglan. Jehanglan is modeled after the far east, a closed society where violence is shunned as barbaric, yet the art of assassination thrives. A man presenting himself as an escaped slave brings word to Dragonkeep that a truedragon is being held hostage in Jehanglan. After a desparate and failed gambit by the truedragons, it is up to the Dragon Lords to uncover the truth in a harsh, deadly, beautiful country--one that hides a deadly secret. Besides the familiar cast of characters from The Last Dragon Lord, an intriguing new character is introduced. Shei Luin is the emperor's concubine, and while her story is somewhat of a sideline, she is non-the-less a facinating character whom you will love, hate and admire.
Rating:
Summary: Compelling story.
Review: I found both the story and the characters to be very compelling. I picked this book off the shelves inthe bookstore one day because I had some time on my hands, and it was cheaper than the other Fantasy novels. It became one of my favorite books of the year! I can't wait for the next installment to come out. I just hope I don't have to wait too long.
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