The Dragon and the Lotus by Joseph Robert Lewis

Author: Joseph Robert Lewis

Description: As a child in Kathmandu, Asha was bitten by a dragon and gained the ability to hear the souls of all living things. Years later in India, she uses her strange gift and her training as an herbalist to save people possessed by ghosts, poisoned by legendary beasts, and tortured by the cruel doctors of Ming. And to fight the occasional bear or tiger, of course.

With the help of a beautiful blind nun and a sleepy little mongoose, Asha confronts both victims and predators, including the man who stole her childhood and killed her lover. But when she journeys into the west, Asha discovers that there are fates worse than death and there are human monsters that can only be defeated by a woman with the strength of a dragon. (From the author's web site.)

What I think:

This book takes us to interesting places, interesting time, and interesting alternative reality. For people sitting at home (I mean the country we leave in) almost all the time, Asia itself is an exotic location. I like to learn about foreign cultures and people. This version of the alternative Asia even more exciting.

The book consists of separate stories about Asha and Priya wandering through the land to heal people. First I was not comfortable with reading the separate stories, they seemed not connected, except that they were adventures of the two women, of course. But later there came the connections, references to experiences in the previous chapters, memories of past events, returning characters. And finally the book became a complete story.

Dragons are always compelling. They are big, dangerous (at least most of the time), dreadful, it seems impossible to defeat them. It is also the case with the one in this story, and the way it is defeated is very interesting.

This whole soul-hearing thing is amazing. The way Asha hears the "sound" of living souls is well worked out. During their journey, the two women met with people with very strange illnesses, and Asha had to find cures unheard of.

There is one thing I should mention what I didn't like: I found the dangerous acts short. The reader usually eager to get to the point, and to know what happens, yes. But before the climax, the reader loves to be delayed, and bite the nails in suspense what happens next. So I would like to fidget a little more before the victory comes.

Rating: four stars.

Jewels by Lakisha Spletzer

Author: Latisha Spletzer

Description: "Special Lieutenant Jewels Enbran, a human telepath unable to shield her mind from thoughts, uses telepathic anchors who protect her vulnerable mind. Her current anchor, Colonel Jeremy Lingley, is nearing burnout. An alien race is seeking an alliance with Earth and the pair are assigned the mission of discovering the aliens' secrets.

Crown Prince Dex LoudRoar is a Gatoan warrior and a royal with a terrible secret. His people wage a constant war against their enemy, the Lupinious empire. But the tide of battle is turning and his people seek help from a new source: the humans of Earth.

With an interstellar war looming, Jewels and Dex seek salvation for their planets and find their destinies changed forever." (Amazon)

What I think

I discovered the Adopt an Indie website, and I thought I gave it a shot. I love science fiction, so I picked up this book. Attention: spoilers.

First, I must say I expected a science-fiction story. Telepaths, aliens, warriors, space war - what else it could be? Actually it is more. It is a paranormal romance science-fiction book. Yes, there are telepathy involved, but in a higher level than just "talking with your mind". Yes, there are aliens in the book, though it is funny that cat-like aliens fight with dog-like ones. And yes, there are space ships and war, though that part could last longer for my taste.

Being a man, I'm not expert in romance (didn't I say this earlier?), but as far as I can tell, the romance worked just fine. At the end, I believed that the human woman fell in love with the cat prince, and their love and desire became fulfilled.

I liked that the telepathy was taken to a higher level. Those characters possessing this ability, not only communicated with each other, but could apply bigger mental forces. I found the mental shielding mate role interesting.

I missed some more sci-fi, though. But I know it's just me, being science-fiction fan.

There is one thing I should mention: there were too much telling instead of showing. I would have appreciated more showing during action, it would make the book more dynamic and enjoyable.

My rating: I give three stars. This is just because I'm fan of pure sci-fi. If you like romance and paranormal stories more, you may give it better rating.