​​It's weekend, and time for more Rainbow Snippets. The Rainbow Snippets group on Facebook asks its members to share six sentence snippets from their work each weekend. Check out the group's Facebook page to read all the snippets and add lots of great books to your TBR. You'll find all sorts of books with the common thread that the main character identifies as LGBTQ+.

This week's snippet is from The Dragon's Devotion, which has been out two years as of this week! The Dragon's Devotion is the story of Corentin, a scholar with a secret (he can turn into a dragon...) and Bastien, an earl whose duty weighs heavily on his shoulders. As they fall for each other, Bastien is drawn into an old mystery and a surprising amount of danger, and Corentin is forced to decide if he can reveal his secret to save the man he loves. I thought it only appropriate that we celebrate Bastien and Corentin's anniversary with a snippet from their book.

If you'd like to know more about The Dragon's Devotion, you can find it here. Thanks for reading today!

The Dragon's Devotion has been out in the world two years today! In The Dragon's Devotion, we have a scholar with a secret (he can change into a dragon!) falling in love with an earl who feels the weight of his responsibility heavily and puts himself i n danger when he becomes involved with an old mystery. Before this book, I'd been teasing about dragons in the earlier Tournai books—nothing too big and nothing you'd have to know to read this book, but I had so much fun hinting while these characters grew in my head.  Corentin even made a brief appearance in The Scholar's Heart. Dragons were hardly mentioned in The Merchant's Love and the upcoming The Spymaster's Secret, but I've returned to them in the Tournai book I'm currently writing, which features Bastien's brother Griffen. I've always loved dragons and dragon shifters, so it's a lot of fun to write my own (and I have plans for more about them too!).

Today, to celebrate Bastien and Corentin's anniversary, I think we need a giveaway. For the chance to win a copy of The Dragon's Devotion, tell me why you love dragons and dragon shifters. I'll choose a random winner in a week.

Corentin is a scholar with a secret—his magical Talent allows him to turn into a dragon, and he isn’t alone in that ability. Long ago, dragons were hunted fiercely, until they went into hiding, becoming things of legend. Corentin has traveled the world with one aim—to protect his people and keep their secret safe. Drawn to the principality of Tournai by news of someone close to discovering that secret, he hopes to avert suspicion. His attraction to the too-serious Bastien isn’t convenient for his purpose, but it isn’t something he can ignore either.

Lord Bastien, Earl of Ardesia, inherited his title unexpectedly when his parents were killed in a sailing accident along with the parents of his cousin, Prince Philip. Since then, Bastien has devoted his life to the obligations of his family and estate—so much so, that it has caused tension between him and his siblings. His world is further shaken when he receives an anonymous letter informing him that the tragic boating accident may, in fact, have been murder. Bastien throws himself into investigating whether the allegations are true and finding out who killed his parents.

As Corentin and Bastien become closer, the mystery of Bastien’s parents’ death draws him further into danger. Corentin feels compelled to protect Bastien, but the threat is closer than they know. Now, Corentin must decide whether preserving his secret—and potentially his people’s safety—is more important than saving the man he loves.


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Bastien didn't know what he expected—if he expected anything in particular—when Corentin began to use his Talent to change himself into a dragon. Change himself into a dragon—a phrase Bastien never dreamed he’d have cause to think. What a turn his life had taken.

Silver-purple light obscured Corentin’s form, twirling and twining around him and then growing, larger and larger. Expanding up and out, with Corentin hidden entirely in the center of the shimmering radiance. Bastien took a step back, unsure of what would happen, not wanting to interfere. But the light spread no further, only shifted to a steady glow, and, after a moment, began to fade away until it was gone entirely. Bastien blinked against the sudden darkness, with only the soft light of the lantern to alleviate it after the brilliant light of magic. When his vision adjusted, he gasped.

Where Corentin had stood only a moment ago was a large dragon.

Bastien stared, his gaze traveling over the astonishing creature sitting in front of him. The dragon—Corentin, the dragon was Corentin, and he had to remember that or he might be as terrified as he was awed--Corentin was a magnificent sight. He was enormous and sinuous, with a powerful body and a long neck and wings folded over his back. His body, except for his wings, seemed to be entirely covered in scales that glistened in the light from the lantern. In the near dark, Bastien couldn’t tell what color the scales were, and he very much wanted to know. Because Corentin was beautiful, and Bastien wanted to see all of him, to remember this sight forever. This first time he saw Corentin as a dragon.

He looked up, meeting Corentin’s eyes, and opened his mouth to ask about the color of his scales, which was probably a ridiculous question both for its subject and for the fact that Bastien didn’t know if Corentin could talk as a dragon. Could dragons talk? In the stories, they mostly roared and breathed fire, but the stories obviously weren’t correct. Except that dragons did exist.
And he was rambling even in his thoughts.

He nearly laughed at himself, but then he realized how wary Corentin looked. He wouldn’t have thought a dragon, so large and fierce, could look wary, but somehow

Corentin did. Corentin must be worried about his reaction. Could he not see how in awe Bastien was, how beautiful Bastien thought he was? How honored he felt to be trusted with this secret?

Bastien ached to reassure Corentin, to show him he wasn’t afraid. He was as drawn to Corentin the dragon as to Corentin the man. His fingers itched to reach out and touch the dragon’s scales. Bastien took a step forward and raised a hand. He froze and met Corentin’s eyes again. They were focused on him, the light of the lantern reflected in their surface, but Bastien couldn’t tell if they were the same brilliant violet as Corentin’s were as a man. He hoped they were; he suddenly realized how much he loved the color.

“May I?” he asked hesitantly.

Corentin nodded his large head. “Yes, if you like.”

Bastien’s mouth fell open just a bit when Corentin spoke. His voice was even deeper, a rumble that was almost a purr. Slowly, Bastien smiled and laid his hand against Corentin’s side. The scales were hard and silky smooth, and warm. Somehow he hadn’t expected them to be so warm. But there was nothing about Corentin that was ever cold. Bastien found himself stroking Corentin’s side, enjoying the feel of the scales under his hand. Corentin made a sound of pure pleasure and seemed to relax into the soft caresses.

“You are amazing like this.” Bastien let the words out on a breath of air and felt his cheeks flame. 

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It's time for another reading post, though I'm not sure how...where did August go? As much as I love fall—and I love it a lot—I don't think I'm ready to let go of summer. August, as quickly as it went, was filled with some great reading. 

Familiar Magic by Virginia Kelly: I love the Forbidden Desires series that Virginia Kelly writes with Piper Scott, so I snatched up this short immediately. It's about a cat shifter who has to steal something from a powerful mage and ends up caught by him. I really enjoyed the characters and the world, and I really wanted more of them. I was very excited to find out this is going to be the start of a series.

The Townsend series by Lily Maxton: I finished reading this historical romance series this month (I'd read the novellas in it a while back and the first novel last month...once again reading all out of order...sigh). I enjoyed the stories of the three other siblings very much. Each stands alone, but it was nice to have all the background by reading the novels in order. The series is mostly m/f with one m/m novel and an f/f novella.

Playing House by Ruby Lang: This was a delightful novella about two urban planners, both Asian American, who knew each through their work falling for each other while pretending to be in a relationship and touring fantastic real estate in New York City (the fantastic real estate was fun too). I devoured this, and now I'm looking forward to more in the series.

A Little Light Mischief by Cat Sebastian: Another novella, this one an f/f historical in which a lady's maid with and a lady's companion fall for each other while getting revenge on a man who'd wronged one of them. It was lovely and fun, and I very much enjoyed it. It's connected to Cat Sebastian's Turner series, but you don't have to have read the series to enjoy this novella.

The Brilliant Death by Amy Rose Capetta: I've been meaning to read this Young Adult fantasy for a while and finally borrowed it from the library this summer. The world is inspired by pre-unification Italy and the magic system is quite intriguing. The main characters are gender fluid and queer, and their romance is lovely. This isn't a super light read (there was a character death that made me very unhappy), but it is a really good one. From the ending, it seems that there may be a sequel at some point, and I'll look forward to it.

Offbeat Crimes series by Angel Martinez: I've had these on my Kindle for a while and somehow hadn't read them yet (this seems to be the story of my life trying to get through my TBR). I opened the first one on a whim and was completely sucked in to this paranormal series of a police precinct filled with cops with paranormal abilities that are a bit strange and the quirky cases they solve (and the romances, of course!). I've been reading them one after another. They're not long, making them quick and charming reads.

In audio, I started a reread of Jordan L Hawk's Whyborne and Griffin series, which is a favorite of mine. The last book will be out soon, and though I'm not ready for it to end, a reread seemed appropriate.

What have you read and loved lately?