Lady of the Drake by JV Altharas Review/Excerpt





Title: Lady of the Drake
Author: JV Altharas
 
Publisher: Ravenous Romance (October 25, 2011) Book Rating: 4 Love Potions


Synopsis:

Lana's village is being consumed by a devastating plague. The last hope for a cure lies in a forbidden forest claimed by dragons.
Deep in the woods she finds a breathtaking realm of sorcery and untamed passion. Alaron, the seductive keeper of the forest, offers what she seeks and more.
She’s swept up in the mysterious keeper’s world of secrets, lust and magic; but the entire kingdom is dying--and there may be no way to save it!

Buy Links

Amazon, $6.99 (Kindle) - Ravenous Romance, $4.99 ($2.00 off retail), all ebook formats

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My Thoughts
 
Who says men can’t write good romance novels?

Lana is a strong woman and healer who does not allow others to push her around and does what she has to in order to protect her village.

Alaron is the powerful keeper of the forest who is as mysterious as he is dangerous. He is instantly attracted to Lana the minute she steps into his woods.

The relationship between these two was very passionate and beautiful and I loved seeing their world. I also really liked how Alaron tried to woo Lana very steamy. Lana was definitely no push over she was just as passionate and exciting as Alaron.

Fans of Fantasy romance will love “Lady of the Drake” by JV Altharas.


EXCERPT #1:

 
Lana heard the waterfall in the distance, speeding up with a second wind. The pool was as breathtaking as she remembered, a hundred feet across and fed by a spring flowing from a huge crack in the sheer cliff above. She dropped her pack on the shore and sat for a moment, bracing herself for the cold swim ahead. She took off her boots and breeches, letting down her fiery hair, catching sight of what looked like a pile of gear on the opposite shore. Her heart skipped a beat when a man burst from beneath the water with a handful of leafy, purple plants. Lana stood frozen in disbelief. In the middle of the wilderness, where she’d never seen another living soul, someone had beaten her to the dragon bane when she needed it most. She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
The man swam towards his gear, getting out of the water and laying the plants out to dry on a rock warmed by the sun. Lana stood silent and unnoticed, enjoying the view. Even at a distance her eyes caught the sunlight playing across his body, highlighting every ripple of flesh, allowing his thick cock to gleam in the sun. Perhaps this wouldn’t be a wasted trip, after all.
He noticed her as he turned and dove back in, swimming toward her. Lana was mesmerized as he cut through the water. Soon the man stood just off shore in water to his waist, matted dark hair showing a hint of curl, with a cockeyed smile that melted her. Lana was struck with the fact that she stood there wearing nothing but a tunic that barely reached mid-thigh.
He grinned. “Here to poach my garden again?”
She folded her arms. “Your garden? As far as I can see, this is open forest. Unless I’ve got my facts mixed up, only dragons claim these woods, and you seem a bit short on wings and scales.”
He laughed. “Ah, then you challenge my claim. Well then, I suppose it’s everyone for themselves. There’s more down there, but you’ll have to beat me to it.”
“Very well,” she replied. “Just turn around so I can finish undressing.”
“And if I don’t?”
Lana met his playful gaze, feeling a twinge between her legs, saying, “Then I’ll wonder if I can trust you to be a gentleman once I’m in the water.”
Stroking his chin, he said, “Hmm, I suppose that does present you with a choice to make. Still, the water is lovely. And who would expect to find a gentleman out here in the wilderness?” He made no move to turn away, daring her with his eyes.
Lana tested the water with a toe, shocked to find it as warm as a bath, wondering why she hadn’t noticed the steam rising from it earlier. The young healer decided she’d come too far to leave without her prize, and there were far worse things than a naked swim with a handsome stranger. Lana stripped off her loose tunic, revealing a toned body and a pair of firm breasts. She held his gaze, wading into the water to meet him, nipples constricting as she got a closer look.
If he wanted a race, he’d get one. She dove past him with a smirk and swam toward the falls, source of the turbulent water the plants required to thrive. It took a few dives to gather the dragon bane, and Lana grew more playful each time. The clear water gave her a shameless look at her rival, and she was more than a little distracted. Lana was tempted to throw herself at him without so much as exchanging names, a thought that was brazen even for her.
He laid the plants out to dry and rejoined her in the water, saying, “That’s four to you and six to me, I believe.” Four plants wouldn’t treat half the sick, but she had other needs to attend at the moment.
Lana took a handful of his cock, asking, “Is there anything I can do to thank the mysterious stranger for sharing?”
“That’s not very ladylike,” he said.
She responded with a kiss, feeling his cock begin to stiffen in her hand. It was big, maybe too big, but she wasn’t one to turn from a challenge. With a smile, she said, “A lady would have stayed on shore in the first place.”
A broad grin split his face as he beckoned her towards the falls, swimming away. The water was near scalding, steam bellowing out where cool mist should be spraying. Every nerve in her flesh was alive, screaming for his touch. Lana followed him through the curtain of water, secluded from the world around them, where he lifted her to sit on a rock ledge at the water line. Tired of waiting, she locked her ankles behind his back; squeezing him in a passionate embrace. For a long moment they tasted each other, his hands exploring her responsive flesh.
He teased an earlobe with his teeth, caressing her swollen mound with his fingers. “Is this what you had in mind?” he asked.
“Almost.” Lana grinned, leaning back on her hands. He sank into the water, kissing a meandering path down her body, rewarded with sighs and whimpers along the way. She felt lips on her thigh, a finger teasing her clit, and his eager tongue parting her labia. Lana moaned, bucking her hips, grinding herself into him, as the beat of her pounding heart grew louder than the water crashing around them. He slipped a finger inside her, then another, twisting them while his tongue abused her clit. His mouth played rough, and she loved it.
Lana’s breathing became ragged and her moans grew louder. She wove a hand through his hair, squealing when a third finger disappeared between her slippery lips. The stretching sensation pushed her over the edge, and her own cries of climax drowned out the falls. She collapsed against the rock as waves of pleasure washed over her; half-senseless, half-desperate for more. He stood between her legs, toying with her nipples while the last convulsions subsided.
He took Lana’s hands, pulling her into another embrace. She stroked the hard cock pressing into her belly, marveling at its girth, still wondering what it would do to her pussy but eager to find out. She rested back on the cliff, guiding his shaft toward the tight hole his fingers had stretched, but he resisted.
Lana shot him a confused glance, but the light in his eyes said he was teasing. She asked, “What do I have to do, beg for it?” His response was a slow, deliberate nod. She was willing to play his game. Lana batted her eyes, pleading for his cock. She clenched her teeth, bracing herself to take the pain she knew was coming. Lana grunted, and thrashed, feeling as if she was being split in two while he forced his way inside her. Short, gentle strokes soon had her squealing.
He picked her up, still impaled on his cock, carrying her into the falls. Hot water cascaded over them like liquid fire, splashing her pussy with each thrust, sending her mind reeling into the ether. Lana felt herself stretched to the limit in a tempest of pain and pleasure. She buried her head in his chest, reveling in the strong hands under her ass as she bounced on his cock, wishing the moment would never end. Time and again she came, each orgasm squeezing him tighter, until the pain was just a memory.
“Please fill me,” she begged.
“Come for me one more time,” he said. “I’ll join you.” Lana felt another climax building, as if on his command. Their eyes met as he exploded inside her, the fire in his gaze launching her into another powerful orgasm. Lana threw her arms around him, holding tight, waiting for the aftershocks to fade. She stirred when he carried her out of the falls, realizing she’d passed out for a moment. He set her back on the ledge, pulling out as her body shook one last time.
Lana was giggling, with a glassy-eyed grin, while he covered her face and chest in kisses. He said, “For the record, I consider myself thoroughly thanked.”
EXCERPT #2:
Lana stepped behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head on his back. The alchemy was fascinating, but lewd little voices were shouting in her head. The effects of the drug were beyond anything she could have dreamed. For precious flashes she felt connected to the nature around her, as if she were one more tree rooted in the ancient forest. She held on to Alaron as if he were an anchor, keeping her tethered in a storm of wild thoughts. Closing her eyes, she imagined what gifted creatures the dragons must be if this was their view of the world.
Alaron turned to face her, drinking in the scent of her hair and the sound of her pulse quickening at his touch. He wanted to tear off her clothes and have her right there, but the moon was climbing and there was much he wanted to show her before the elixir wore off. In particular, a more entertaining place to tear off her clothes.
They walked to a grove of knotted, twisted trees draped with thick vines. The tendrils were glowing orange with life, as opposed to the blues and greens of most foliage. Lana reached out to touch one, almost jumping out of her skin when it recoiled from her fingers. Alaron began kissing the nape of her neck, whispering, “Meet the walking ivy, a creature which feeds on a parasite that attacks these trees.” He unbuckled the belt holding her pouches, letting it fall to the forest floor. Nibbling her ear, he said, “Being a creature of the forest, it tends to do my bidding. Do you trust me?”
“Yes,” Lana whispered, admitting to herself it was true. She had been in his thrall since the moment they’d met, and was far past turning away. Now, with dragon bane coursing through her veins and wiping away every inhibition, she couldn’t imagine resisting him.
Alaron spun her, pushing her against the trunk of the giant tree, pinning her arms. The ivy coiled around her wrists, warm to the touch, as Alaron moved in to taste her lips. She strained against the vines, nipples tightening against the fabric of her tunic.
Alaron sank to one knee, removing her boots, kissing down her legs while he stripped her. He stood, pausing to give her clit a single lash of his tongue. The elixir intensified every sensation, every brush of his fingertips. Alaron’s aura turned crimson, as if to advertise his lust. The tendrils gripped her ankles, then her waist; releasing their hold on her wrists long enough for Alaron to pull off her tunic.
Lana was naked, helpless, at the mercy of this man and his forest…yet she had only lust in her eyes. She did trust him, and was eager to surrender. The elixir seemed to confirm what she’d sensed all along: This was no ordinary man, and every moment she spent with him deepened her desire to know more.
Alaron covered her face in kisses, hands floating across her flesh as a sigh of contentment whispered through the grove. Lana flashed greedy eyes as he undressed, shadows cast by the midnight sun playing across his muscles. The scent of her own arousal filled her nostrils as the ivy brought her to her knees, eye level with the cock that had been haunting her dreams. Alaron stepped close and she devoured it, full lips straining at his girth as her head bobbed in the blinding moonlight.
She flashed him a smoldering gaze while her tongue teased his shaft, rewarded with a soft smile and fingers running through her hair. The ivy writhed as it held her, like a thousand hands caressing her body, pulsating with the beat of some hidden heart. The vines hauled her back to her feet and she let out a plaintive whine, wishing to finish what she’d started.
Alaron stepped close and kissed her, tightening his grip on her hair and tilting her head back, squeezing a firm nipple. The ivy drew Lana’s knees up to her shoulders, holding her spread-eagle against the trunk of the tree. She shivered as a cool breeze blew through the grove, tickling her moistened clit. Lana struggled against the vines, wanting to wrap her legs around him.
Lana sucked on a finger slipped into her mouth, remembering the taste of his cock, squealing when that finger explored her ass. Alaron whispered, “Do you like having things stuck in here?” She moaned, betraying herself as he played with her tightest hole. His thumb worked her clit, and she was losing herself in ecstasy. The vines grew hot to the touch, seeming to pulsate in time with her heartbeat.
“Let yourself go,” whispered Alaron. “Let the ivy connect you to the forest.” Lana’s pussy was dripping as she raced toward climax, covering his hand with her juices. Whimpers became squeals and her whole body tensed, fighting the steely grip of the vines. Alaron spanked her sopping mound in short, quick strokes; the pain launching her over the edge. A piercing cry split the night, and Lana’s whole world went grey as her body convulsed in orgasm.
She became the walking ivy, and the trees, and the birds. She felt wind rushing through her feathers, and rough bark beneath her tendrils. Lana was one with the forest around her for a few precious heartbeats. Her mind’s eye floated into the air, looking down on the landscape as if the whole of it had become her body…but Alaron wasn’t done with her flesh.
Lana snapped back to consciousness, her pussy screaming for attention, feeling ever more restrained in the grip of the ivy. “What happened?” she asked, struggling to no avail. Being helpless made the passion all the more intense, and she yearned for the thick cock resting against her belly. Lana bucked her hips, grinding her slit on his shaft.
Licking his fingers, with a wicked grin, he said, “The wonders of sex and dragon bane.”
“More,” she pleaded, remembering he had a weakness for begging. “Please fuck me, please.”
Alaron rubbed his head on her clit, covering it in her wetness before pushing just the tip inside her. Lana thrashed against the ivy, desperate for more. “Is that enough?” he asked.
 “More,” she whined, “please.” He kissed her, tugging on her nipples with his fingers, pushing in another inch. Lana strained against his girth, but there was less pain this time. Every nerve in her body was on fire, each twitch of his shaft a small explosion. She had never felt so helpless…so taken…so content.
Lana struggled forward, biting the nape of his neck in an act of animal lust. A muffled cry escaped her as he slammed his cock home, with what sounded like a growl. She bit harder, wanting to see him lose control. Lana got her wish.
Alaron fucked her with reckless abandon, bouncing her small body against the tree, each stroke sending a tremor through her entire being. The vines were heating up again, in time with the climax building inside her. She tried to open her mind, to connect again with the walking ivy and through it the forest. Pressure continued mounting, until Lana was insane with lust and desperate for release. “Hurt me,” she begged between squeals.
He reached behind her back, yanking her down on his cock by the hair. The vines tightened, their grip approaching scalding as her body began shaking. Alaron slammed his cock home, twisting her nipple, whispering, “Come for me.” His words were like a trigger.
Lana let loose a wanton moan that echoed through the trees, squeezing his cock with all her might. Each yank on her hair; each slow, measured stroke set off a fresh climax until he exploded inside her.
As a trickle of lust made its way down her leg, again Lana’s world went grey. She could sense all of Ashen Forest, from her childhood home to the slopes of the Aranis Mountains. Every leaf, every branch, every creature scurrying through the night was naught but a whisper away. Lana sensed them all looking back at her with recognition, and this time there was no jarring return to the flesh.
The walking ivy released her unconscious body, at Alaron’s bidding. Lana wouldn’t wake for hours, and he smiled at the thought of his forest learning her name while she wandered. He laid her on the ground then sat beside her, content to watch her sleep for a while, brushing a sweaty tangle of hair from her face. It took a very particular sort of human to connect with the land, and Lana was no less than exceptional.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
J.V. Altharas is a veteran entertainer with a filthy, filthy mind.  He is an accomplished stage and studio vocalist exploring the realm of erotic audio books after returning his attention to a life-long love affair with fantasy fiction. 
Current projects include a free erotica website (with text and audio) at TwistedErotica.com and several upcoming erotic audio pieces for Ravenous Romance. J.V. is also a sex-positive activist and host of the five-star-rated, gleefully explicit, brutally blunt sex-education podcast Ending the Sexual Dark Age.

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