Breen makes a leap into the unknown with a summer trip to Ireland - her father's homeland. Little does she know how much of a leap until a walk in the woods leads her through a portal into another world - Talamh - where Breen will find magic, family and a destiny she could never have dreamed of . . . The making and the breaking of a boy, his mother, his sister, and his dreamy Latin tutor father, who will memorialize him forever.” A small band of pilots fight against a seemingly unstoppable alien empire in this thrilling space opera. Nora Roberts, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the epic Chronicles of The One trilogy, presents a new series of adventure, romance, and magic where parallel worlds clash over the struggle between good and evil in The Dragon Heart Legacy. In the realm of Talamh, a teenage warrior named Keegan emerges from a lake holding a sword—representing both power and the terrifying responsibility to protect the Fey. In another realm known as Philadelphia, a young woman has just discovered she possesses a treasure of her own…

The Awakening: The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book 1 - Google Play The Awakening: The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book 1 - Google Play

Roberts sets the bar high with the launch of her Dragon Heart Legacy trilogy, a captivating tale that not only vividly showcases her superior storytelling and characterization skills but also brightly illuminates her affinity for all things Irish." — Booklist Breen Kelly had always been a rule follower. So, when her father left when she was twelve years old, promising to return, she waited. Now, more than a decade later, she's working at a job she hates and is tired of the life that playing by the rules has dealt her. It's time to make a change. Her life in the fantasy world is much better written and shown. The descriptions of learning spells, healing, fighting, and so on made me feel I was there with her as she learned and drew out those aspects of her being. I must admit I thought Nora Robert only wrote romance novels. But this is fantasy romance.I love the concept and I love Nora’s writing. In the realm of Talamh, a teenage warrior named Keegan emerges from a lake holding a sword--representing both power and the terrifying responsibility to protect the Fey. In another realm known as Philadelphia, a young woman has just discovered she possesses a treasure of her own...

While I love the world of Talamh and its story, I was less enthused about the contemporary part of the book. I kept getting thrown out of the story there: how did Breen get all that money, how did she just sell her books so easily, why did she suddenly stand up to her mother because money? and other stuff like that. I felt like there was too much telling in those sections and insufficient showing.

The Awakening : The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book 1 - Google Books

I usually enjoy Nora Robert's romantic fantasies, and this one is no exception. They're usually set in Ireland, and I love the descriptions of the country and the way she uses Irish myths in the stories. I think they've been all portal fantasies, and there's a combination of modern and a more folkloric world in the books. This one is a bit of a slow burn, the first book setting up Breen and her friends as she discovers her heritage and delves into the world of Talamh. Mists, shimmering silver fingers, rose over the pale green water of the lake. They twined and twisted toward a sky quietly grey, while in the east, over the hills, a pink blush waited, like a held breath, to waken. Talamh is on the brink of disaster. An evil being who had been vanquished has returned, and he is intent on harming Breen. Keegan, the leader of this alternate world, begins to instruct her on self-defense as others show her the ways of magic. We see Breen grow and blossom into the person she already might have been had her father not left. Breen makes a leap into the unknown with a summer trip to Ireland - her father's homeland. Little does she know how much of a leap until a walk in the woods leads her through a portal into another world - Talamh - where Breen will find magic, family and a destiny she could never have dreamed of Now, more than a decade later, she's working at a job she hates and is tired of the life that playing by the rules has dealt her. It's time to make a change.

Hobbies

Fell in love with the characters immediately. Needed to know what was coming next. Now I have to wait for the next book. With THE AWAKENING, the first book in her Dragon Heart Legacy trilogy, Nora Roberts has created an intricately detailed world that has all the charm and natural beauty of Ireland but is populated by witches, fairies, elves and dragons. Breen Kelly had always been a rule follower. So, when her father left when she was twelve years old, promising to return, she waited. Breen Kelly’s life in Philadelphia has been very ordinary. She teaches middle-school language arts to students who don’t inspire her. Or do they not inspire her because she doesn’t love teaching? The truth is that Breen became a teacher because her mother told her that was all she was capable of doing, and she is miserable. Her biggest support system is her best friend and roommate Marco, who is flamboyantly gay, fiercely loyal and wonderfully perceptive. She loves spending time with him in their apartment and in the bar where he works.