The Choice by Nora Roberts

Book 3 in the Dragon Heart Legacy. I had mixed feelings while reading this last book of the trilogy. I actually chuckled out loud a few times, since there was more humor in this installment. The relationships are obviously more developed, and I think that made a difference. I was also more invested in those relationships, which is also good. What I didn't care for as much were the "goopy" moments, especially between Marco & Brian. I get that they are in love, but it was over-the-top for me. (I guess this is why I don't read very many books from the Romance genre!) There were other parts that were incredibly "mushy" as well. I'm all about positivity, but it was simply too much, in my opinion.

Another comment that I keep forgetting to make: I think it's odd that Eian's good friend, and member of his musical group, was also named Brian! That confused me in the first book. Also, it's odd that Breen and Brian both have the same last name (Kelly) and now there is a baby named Kelly! I know that Kelly is a common Irish name, but when you are writing a book with a ton of different characters, it would be nice to use different ones! (Except for the baby of course, because that was sweet.) I kept thinking there would be a link between them, but nope.

Another issue I had was the waiting. We know that Breen is going to fight the ultimate battle against Odran. We know it's a Good vs. Evil battle, and that Good (Breen) must win for the world to survive. It was a long time coming. I liked the battle plan. It was a huge undertaking, but it was a good plan. Breen & Marco got to visit Philadelphia and New York, which brought closure to those American relationships. This is a good example of true family not having to be blood related. Breen & Marco's mothers are certainly not worth the effort, which is sad. Fortunately, Sally & Derrick will continue to be an important part of Breen & Marco's lives. There is loss of life, which there always is in these types of stories. (And a couple of those losses are very sad.) But there is a lot of "filling" in-between important events. I like character and relationship development, but I don't need detail after detail of what it takes to set up a festival, for example.

I loved Breen's strength and the development of her skills. I also thought it was awesome that Keegan started pushing himself as well, because of Breen. I wasn't sure what would happen at the end, because Breen chose to give her life, if necessary, for the good of Talamh and it seemed like she had resigned herself to the outcome. A couple of things happened that I wasn't expecting, so that always makes things more interesting.

I enjoyed the series, despite the "extra filling". ;)

Wendy's Rating: ****