Oyza yearns for revolution—an impossible dream with her lifetime prison sentence. Fueled by the destruction of her home and years of servitude, she reads the smuggled texts of the Ungoverned and dreams of a future that can never be. But the arrival of a new prisoner, Yars, reignites Oyza’s courage. She finds herself capable of more than she ever imagined. To fight their way to their own freedom, they must fight for something bigger: freedom for their homeland. Between an invasion by godless gunwielders, a heartless commander who’s determined to kill Oyza, and webs of secrets and lies woven through their world, it will take all their strength and wits to survive. When blood is spilled, how much will be their own?

A dragon will kill any who dare to take its gold. After her dangerous adventures earlier in the year, everything is finally going well for Dr. Eva Paz. Her breakthroughs in dolphin communication are changing the world. Her discoveries could save the reef she loves. And now her mother has found love again. But then a madman returns to claim what’s his. Eva’s old nemesis, Julian Gulliver, kidnaps Eva’s mother, and he demands an exorbitant ransom. It’s money Eva doesn’t have. What she does have are friends who are willing to do anything to help, including ex-Navy SEAL—and ex-boyfriend—Dr. Thomas Sternberg. But Eva’s greatest asset may be her dolphins: Taffy, Finn, Cleo, and Chico. Together, they need to mount a rescue effort. Yet things are even more desperate than they imagine, for Julian isn’t the only menace terrorizing Roatan. Join Eva as she works with Thomas and her dolphins to rescue her mother and save the reef from a man who would destroy them all. For fans of Michael Crichton, Dragon Gold is book two in Kristie Clark’s Order of the Dolphin Series. Dragon Gold made me question what I knew about marine biology, genetics, submarines, and dolphins. The facts of the world that Clark builds are rich and persuasive. I would believe Lusca are real. Clark writes them in a more convincing way than any of the dinosaurs in the Jurassic series. The way Clark writes about dolphin communication and communication between dolphins and humans using imaging technology and playback is very exciting and kind of makes me want to work with dolphins. They are one of the smartest animals in the world after all! The opening scene depicts the practical usage of this partnership in a fresh and sensational way before being swept up in the main plot of the story. The story was thrilling, full of action, and contained high stakes. Eva is more than capable of handling herself, but it will take a team to take down the bad guy. There is more than one moral to this story. Friends to the rescue! Though there were quite a few characters to keep track of, I felt like there was a balance to the amount of narrative time spent with the main characters, and really enjoyed the POV switching. The chapters told from the perspective of the dolphins added some fun and lightness to the heavy perils Eva and her family (and the reef at large) were facing. Julian is the epitome of a villain and played his character perfectly. His right-hand henchman was even more vile than Julian and without much backstory, the reader can feel disgusted without any hint of pity for him. Julian, is more complex, and I really enjoyed the chapters from his POV. If at first, he had clear and virtuous reasons for creating what are ultimately sea monsters, but he quickly devolves into a madman and the perfect supervillain to hate. The book was well-paced and a very fun read. It will appeal to readers who enjoy eco-fiction and/or thrillers. There is even some romance to round out the layers of this book. My favorite part about this story, though, was the dolphins. They are the coolest part of the book, especially Cleo and the role she plays. She is able to follow multi-step directions and during her POV chapters, she shows her ability to think through problems. For readers who love reading horse books, they may get a kick out of the Order of the Dolphin books.

An outstanding exploration of self, in the most gentle of ways. Delightful expression reveals beauty born of wisdom. At 31 years of age, Claire Ishi Ayetoro has lived enough lives to fill an ensemble cast. In this, her first memoir, no topic is off-limits as she paints portrait after portrait of her triumphs and her battles with bipolar disorder, religiosity, and that ever elusive cure-all: love. A vividly compassionate depiction of psychosis, Ayetoro weaves words of wisdom, encouragement, and inspiration into every layer of her storytelling. Journey with her through the mountains and valleys of manic depression, guided by that singular spirit of flight: the black raven. You never know, it may even be calling to you. I Hear the Black Raven is a work of grace. Its charm lies in its appealing structure as much as in its content. Varying moods include the haunting foreshadowing in the poems, the narration of the memoir sections, and the allegory of the black raven segments with their dreamlike, fairytale quality: these passages are particularly arresting. The author’s distinct identities are introduced as the cast of a play. Themes of her life are then explored, each one covering key events that have “directly or indirectly” determined her course. Claire states, “we are all starring in our own personal … feature film”: which genre fits your life, overall and/or right now? This book details with lucidity the different stages along the wide spectrum of Bipolar I. Ayetoro is tender in her depiction of how her illness affected her, as well as the people around her who supported her in many ways. Despite the sometimes-horrific experiences, the telling is not without humour: “I’ve noticed that there are at least two perks to having a mental illness: I get to use mind-altering drugs legally, and I get to take frequent breaks from reality.” For those who know depression, paranoia and manic behaviour from lived experience (within Bipolar I or other conditions), Claire’s writing acts as a mirror, validating those situations in its reflection. “Bipolar disorder is a beast, and without treatment, it can tear a life to shreds”, she writes from the calmer space of hindsight. Cultural associations involving ravens are explored: Ayetoro’s black raven is neither protector nor harbinger of doom; rather, it is the metaphor of her growing self-awareness and self-acceptance – intertwined with the symbolism of her name. Ayetoro urges the reader to “listen to the raven”: it is the conduit to greater personal enrichment. She encourages the reader to delve deeper into their own psyche, questioning, “What if the insight we needed was actually there, but because of our closed-mindedness, it was completely missed? … How much more would we personally evolve?” This delightful “petite memoir” is an expression of compassion, by someone who understands that “every experience in life is just that: an experience” which is neither good nor bad. Each moment can be “a growth opportunity or a chance to pivot”. Such openness reveals the beauty of wisdom born of reckoning, without becoming sentimental. I Hear the Black Raven is a compelling read for anyone who has ever experienced life outside their comfort zone, then tried to find their way back home.