I couldn't put this one down once I started it. The twist and turns that happen between Annika and Wlad and how they both grew throughout the story. The world building was there but in some ways slowed the story down. If you are looking for a good fantasy adventure book with some spice give this one a try.

I received a copy of Between the Dragon and His Wrath by Barbara Russell from NetGalley. This book immediately piqued my interest because it is a retelling of Dracula. Princess Annika travels to the neighboring kingdom of Walhack for the spring festival with her father. Unexpectedly, she meets the former prince Wlad, now a slave in his home. The book is a historical paranormal romance.
Annika is a bright and optimistic person. She is also curious and a wonderful dancer. For her, visiting a new kingdom feels like an adventure, but their hosts are known for brutality. The kingdom of Walhack has been conquered violently, and the former princes are now imprisoned as slaves in their own home. Annika is unaware of the reality to an extent so when she meets Wlad, the former younger prince, she is shocked by his state. She wants to genuinely help him and asks her father to talk about Wlad to the new king. This plea leads to horrible consequences for Annika and her father, and they leave.
Wlad has been through hell since his parents were killed, and the kingdom was taken. He and his brother are tortured and mistreated all the time. The only thing keeping him alive is his revenge. Annika is the first person to show him any kindness in years; she makes him feel hopeful. The murder of Wlad’s brother is the last straw for him. He seeks the Sister Witches, who ask him to make a sacrifice in exchange for supernatural gifts. Driven by his need for revenge, Wlad makes the pact with them and is reborn. He goes on a rampage, punishing everyone who wronged him and his family.
The romance between Annika and Wlad evolves from their first meeting. The first time they meet, there is a connection, but it is more like an infatuation. When they meet again and spend time with each other, the magnitude of what they feel starts setting in. Annika is not scared of Wlad, he is different than the boy she remembers, but he is still mostly himself with her. They accept each other the way they are now and not how they used to be, which is so beautiful.
The world created in the story helps form a connection with the story and the characters. Overall, Between the Dragon and His Wrath by Barbara Russell is an interesting and engaging Dracula retelling. I enjoyed reading it.

A different kind of romance book from the usual type.
I loved the character building and how Annika isn't the usual type of heroine.
A interesting and well-written tale.
Despite the fact that Wlad is portrayed as a villain, I adored him. He is compassionate, patient, and just. He seeks retribution for his family and justice for his people. Annika is both naïve and kind. Her love is dancing, and she suffers greatly as a result of it.

I thoroughly liked the book. I was completely engrossed until the very finish.

Thank you to Barbara for letting me read an ARC of the book back in 2022.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author for the free book in exchange for a review.

Between the Dragon King and His Wrath was an atmospheric Adult fantasy that was an amazing read. I loved the characters and the writing style was really wonderful, I did read it a little slower because the pacing was harder for me to get through but this was a really great read.

18 and up for the content level.

TW ahead the beginning of the book is very dark (rape, abuse , torture) and gruesome. This pnr re-telling of Dracula continues with more bright scenes and spice, the sisters are a very interesting touch on the origin story of vampires. If you like horror, fantasy and if you’re okay with TW this book is a great read!

The beginning of this novel is quite a dark read. The reader can feel the ominous tension that the characters live with daily. Vlad and his brother are kept slaves and abused. Anika and her father don't get away unscathed from their visit either. There is hope for the future and a glimmer of joy in the short-lived friendship that Anika and Vlad developed during her brief stay.
I worried that Vlad's personality would change after his deal with the Sisters but when it came to Annika he was still kind and protective of her. I really liked his relationship with Annika. They were both kind and considerate of each other. Their romance was heartwarming against such a violent backdrop.
If you like a slow-burn romance with plenty of steamy scenes then Annika and Vlad's story won't disappoint.

This was an average read for me. It started off super dark (content warnings include, rape, abuse, and more) and then slowly progressed to be something less grim. It seemed like there was a forced happily ever after aspect where the author had to have everything wrapped up nicely. It felt a bit weird to have everything start off so dark and awful, then to make everything have to be sunshine and happiness at the end. I think I wanted a balance. It was an interesting take on the Dracula tale.

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

Between the Dragon King and his Wrath is a fantasy mixed with romance and a touch of horror elements, too. We follow Annika, who has a carefree air about her and loves to dance. But all that changes when she travels to Walhack with her father (a king) for a spring festival. Annika sees a servant (Wlad) being mistreated and asks the king for better treatment towards his servants. This sets the king into a rage, and he and his men attack Annika and her father. Thankfully, her father survives the beating, but Annika is left with not only physical scars but emotional and mental scars too from how the king assaulted her, and this changes her. No longer is she carefree and happy. When the servant (Wlad) she tried to help overthrows his king and takes back the kingdom that was rightfully his, sees Annika again, he is shocked to find her so different and realises he is not the only person who's had to change. He pursues her, unaware of what she's been through. But she has another person vying for her affections, even though she's turned him down more than once. But will Wlad and Annika get it together? You'll have to read to find out. This was a great book and I loved the similarities to Dracula and Vlad the Impaler in relation to Wlads character which was a fun surprise.

I've read my fair share of paranormal romance books and this book fits right in but it's also unique. The writing is good and from the get go it engages you. I liked the overall premise of the book, it was a rather unique pnr book.

All in all had a good time reading it.

I loved this romantasy with vampire origins, royal wars, and lots of emotion! It's a story of overcoming trauma and finding the right fit to help accept and move forward.

It's hard to write an extensive review without giving away all the twists and turns, but grab it if you love heartwrenching romance, well-built fantasy worlds and character, gray character leads, and well-deserved HEAs!

I enjoyed this book so much, I hated for it to end. The characters are so well developed and the story written so well you just get lost in the story! This was my first book by Barbara Russell, but it will not be the last! Thanks to #Netgalley for the ARC!

A very well written take on Dracula, but it just didn't hit right with me. Which is odd because it contains so many elements that I normally enjoy in a romance: strong female lead, devoted male lead, monstrous, character growth, sincere connection and chemistry between the characters. Overall, I liked it but it just wasn't quite right for me.

What do you get if you see Dracula and Van Helsing on the same page? Well, quite unexpectedly you get a horrific love story steeped in blood, gore, sensuality, revenge, retribution and everything in between.
Between the Dragon King and His Wrath is fantasy-horror re-telling of Dracula's backstory. It's a very interesting angle to the old tale.
Annika and Wlad might become your favourite couple or they might not. But if you love supernatural romance/horror, this one is for you.

Between the Dragon King and His Wrath is a welcome fantasy feast of the supernatural, political intrigue, magic and adventure.

Well written, evenly paced the story of leads Annika and Wlad is an exciting romantic narrative that unfolds on the page with compulsively readable prose and a litany of memorable characters who hold sway in an imaginatively crafted world.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

When we first meet Annika she is bright, fun loving and happy. She dances all the time and is good at it. When she and her father, travel to Walhack for the Spring festival she isn't expecting anything bad to happen but when she spots Wlad, a servant who is being treated badly, she implores the King there to treat Wlad and his brother better. But Wlad and Roman are the former King's sons and when this horrible king took over this kingdom and killed their parents, he let them live so he could torture them. So he's really angry that Annika and her father lecture him about how he's treating them. Since Annika's father is a King of his own kingdom I think that might be the only thing that saved him from being killed when the King of Walhack and his men attacked Annika and her father.

While her father came away with broken bones and many cuts and bruises, Annika was assaulted by the King in a way that left such deep emotional scars that she was never the same again. Wlad doesn't know how bad things got for Annika and her father before they left, he only knows that she was kind to him, gave him food and an expensive broach to sell so he could have the money needed so he and his brother could escape. He never forgets her kindness, even after years have passed and he's overthrown the former King to take back his Kingdom with the help of some witches. But he's had to change who he is and has a reputation of being a monster to those who wronged him and doesn't want to bring that to her door, so he never reaches out to her until another Spring festival comes around and this time Annika and her father are hosting it in their kingdom.

Once he comes face to face with Annika again, he realizes that he's not the only one who has changed. So has she and not for the better. She is no longer the bright light that she used to be. She looks dull, lifeless and wears grey, drab dresses unlike the bright, fun dresses she used to wear and she doesn't dance any longer. Wlad doesn't know what happened to create such a drastic change in her personality but when they come face to face he sees the spark in her eyes that he used to see. He wants nothing more than to spend some time with her and after a little while, she enjoys spending time with him as well. Annika's father is so happy to see her enjoying herself even a little after everything she's gone through and would love nothing more than for Wlad to marry his daughter.

But Annika has another suitor even though she's turned him down more than once, he wants to marry her so he will be King at some point. This guy ends up causing trouble more than once for her and I was happy to see him get what was coming to him. But Wlad has a lot of secrets and when they are revealed we see what he had to give up to the witches in order for him to become powerful enough to get his kingdom back and be is afraid once Annika finds out the truth about him, she'll be disgusted by him.

I really enjoyed this book, Wlad has a lot of similarities with Vlad The Impaler and Dracula so this really ended up surprising me because I wasn't expecting that. Turned out to be a great book.

Disclosure: I was given a copy of this book via NetGalley but all thoughts and opinions are my own.

3.5 ⭐️This is fantasy/paranormal historical romance and I quite enjoyed most of it. The book handles trauma and healing very delicately which I so appreciated. Both characters loved and respected each other and gave each other time to heal. Also happy the epilogue wasn’t some “miracle” but that it showed Happily Ever After in spite of suffering.

I found the Dracula/Van Helsing inspiration to be uninspiring. I know Dracul is from Order of Dragon … but it also meant Devil… Dragon king sans dragons? I was disappointed that the title was misleading.

This book was simultaneously heart wrenching and a delight. I plowed through this in a day because I had to know how Annika and Wlad’s story would end. It’s not often that a book, especially a romance, keeps me ok my toes but this one did!

Barbara Russell’s main characters have depth and are easy to feel sorry for. As they suffer and then work to overcome their respective traumas, you can’t help but root for them.

This book’s story had hints to the vampire tales people love. Wlad with his impaled enemies gives off big Vlad the Impaler vibes. And Drago screams Dracula to me. This fantasy novel highlights the sacrifices that people will make for those they love and those they hate. After all, nothing comes without a cost.

Overall, the romance was decent. It was probably the most predictable aspect of the story. There were some open door scenes so if that’s not your style, you may want to pass on this one. The most important thing though is to check the warnings for this book. SA is a very heavy theme throughout the story and so is death/assault in general.

All thoughts and opinions expressed in the above review are my own. Thank you to Barbara Russel and Books Go Social for the opportunity to read and review this book before it's release date,

At the start of the book, Princess Annika and her father are required to travel to a festival at a neighboring kingdom. The kingdom has recently been overthrown by a malevolent ruler. Annika is naive, starry-eyed, and uninterested in the political maneuverings but inserts herself into the business of the kingdom on behalf of former Prince Wlad. With no understanding of the current ruler and his cruelty, this intervention backfires and results horrendous violence against herself and her father (See Warnings Below).

Prince Wlad was too young to intervene when his kingdom was overthrown. Now he is a slave of the current rulers and desperate to survive and win back his kingdom. Annika is a bright light of hope and inspiration which guide him to seek his revenge. The revenge has a cost that is great to Wlad and causes him to forfeit a piece of his humanity.

After 7 years, Annika is now a healer and goes by the title the Grey Nun while King Wlad the Dracul is a monster in his own right and has made fields red with the blood of his enemies. As they reconnect at the same festival that set their futures in motion, they have to decide if the past will have the power to hold them back from the future they can have together.

The first 20% of the book was hard to get through. The dark, traumatic events both on and off page had me worried in the emotional payoff of the remaining book; however, the recovery from these events was handled with care and in a realistic manner. However, I would definitely warn that the material is harsh and heavy (but not grotesque) and may be harmful to some readers.

I found Wlad to be a great hero. He pines after Annika and yet is able to relearn who she is when she has changed from how she was before. Both Wlad and Annika can be a little self-deprecating and feel they are unworthy of the other. I loved getting to see them together and learning how to be together in the face of their trauma.

Trigger and Content Warnings: Slavery, Starvation, Physical Assault (Off Page), Assault resulting in permanent injury (Off Page), Sexual Assault of heroine (not by hero, Off page), Forced Sex Work/SA (side character, off page), Forced sterility (discussion on page, event off page), Murder, gore, & violence (both good guys and bad guys), PTSD, Sexual Trama

THIS MAY NOT BE A COMPREHENSIVE LIST. Please verify and do additional research as you see fit to keep yourself well. Many of the above warnings are not "on page" but they still greatly affect the mood of the story.

Between the Dragon King and His Wrath is a standalone fantasy romance.
The story-line was captivating and well written with historical and paranormal romance elements.

The intriguing plot, strong lead characters along with the well-balanced romance, action and drama kept me engaged.

I enjoyed this book and would recommend it.



Thank-you to Barbara Russell, BooksGoSocial and NetGalley for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

#BetweentheDragonKingandHisWrath #NetGalley

At times, this was a difficult read. But overall it handled the trauma the MCs carried well. Even though this was a fantasy romance in a historical setting, the experiences and character evolutions felt realistic. While the assault by the villain was off-page, it was the focus of the FMC and her relationship with the MMC for the entirety of the book. The chemistry, interaction, and romance between the MCs was lovely. I was also quite intrigued with the inspiration of Dracula, Van Helsing, and Vlad the Impaler. I very much appreciated the ending and epilogue!

Steam: 🔥

Thank you to the publisher for the advance reader copy via NetGalley. All thoughts are my own.