Dagger of Drani

by Melonie Purcell

A pivotal player in an intergalactic war
A young woman who shouldn’t exist
An impossible choice
Aligning with one faction means gaining her hard-won freedom but condemns her home planet of Drani to slavery.
Helping their enemy propels her into her worst nightmare on a world she despises where one false step could cost her life.

Genres: Science Fiction

337 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 2, 2018

About the author

Melonie is a Las Vegas native—a rare species to be sure. She grew up riding horses in the desert, camping and fishing her way through the state of Utah and exploring ruins in Arizona.

As an adult, she still traipses around the desert and mountains, but now she does it in cooler shoes and usually carrying a camera.

Reviews

[Chris Keaton · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would much rather fall in love with a writers style than one specific series, so the parade of constant cliffhangers is getting tiresome. This book was a fine sci-fi. I loved the creativity with the special alien relationships and technology, but the plot of warring factions wasn't particularly cutting edge. The thought of a planet with multiple intelligent lifeforms and how they didn't wipe each other out is fascinating now introduce an outside and technologically advanced alien species you have the makings for an interesting story, but this just didn't grip me. I appreciated the main character and her struggle, but there was a lot of the story really dragged for me. If you're a fan of the first book you'll like this one and likely stick with it to the end.

[Jeanette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Melonie Purcell's Dagger of Drani follows on from Shield of Drani. Willingly kidnapped by spy Kellin, Taymar joins Jalkean on the Alien Space Station (the Seed). Taymar must decide whose side she is on, other than her own. All is not as it seems in the Shreet paradise, and everyone's plans seem to involve Taymar returning to Drani & inevitable confinement to sakuritu (reteaching/brain washing facility) - the one place she doesn't want to go. Meanwhile the Alliance and Nevvis must find the other Shreet spies in their midst before their plans are compromised.

In this second book, we learn more about the Shreet, their internal politics and the massive Seed (space station) hovering near the Flux, and staging ground for the Shreet’s invasion force. I enjoyed the twists and turns and seeing Taymar grow as a character as she learns more self-control and she begins to care for more than herself and her own needs. The Yarnit are a nice touch. The pace in the last half of the book lagged a bit - with the extensive blow by blow planning for escaping the retraining facility and going over old ground with the trio from Drani, while two plot threads seeming to disappear (uncovering the second Shreet spy, especially after the elaborate mental bobby trap that didn't seem to go anywhere; and the Yarnits' information packet which could potentially make Taymar’s return to Drani obsolete). And I was a little disappointed that Nevvis' qualms about the brutal control enforced on non-compliant Arelels (including Taymar) seemed exonerated (it's necessary, it’s for your good) without considering alternatives to breaking an Arelele’s spirit through power and mastery). I'm interested to see which way this goes in the next book.

A gripping read with more intrigue, some character development, and another cliff-hanger ending. I look forward to the next instalment.