Review: Once by Dana Michelle Burnett

Beautiful. Secretive. Magical. You envy their freedom, but you are distrustful of their ways. A strange carnival has come to Corydon, Indiana and the Irish Travellers have captured the small town's attention--but it's Harmony who's attracted theirs.

Harmony sees the Travellers everywhere and just like everyone else in town she's curious. But once she meets the mysterious and captivating Kieran, Harmony's life takes an exciting and chilling turn.

Up until now, Harmony never believed that fairy tales or myths were real, but Kieran and his family belong to an ancient tribe called the Tuatha de Danann and someone else has discovered their secret.

An ancient battle is about to begin again, and now no one is safe, especially Harmony. Can Kieran resist the urge to be with her or will his feelings put her in the crossfire?

 Harmony Jacobson is just a normal girl, living  a small town life in Corydon, Indiana. After the death of her grandmother, she is forced to put aside her dreams of the future in order to take over managing the family feed store. She does her best to make ends meet as she struggles through the monotony of her boring life. But that all changes when the Irish Travellers come to town with their Carnival of Wonders. The newcomers spark the interest of the entire town, including Harmony. But the one who's caught her attention the most is the handsome and secretive Kieran. They are both instantly drawn to each other, but it isn't long before Harmony discovers Kieran's big secret: He's a member of an ancient - and mythical - tribe known as the Tuatha de Danann. When the wrong people discover this secret too, will Kieran be able to save Harmony from getting caught in the middle of the ancient battle between his tribe and the humans who want to destroy them? Once is the first book in Dana Michelle Burnett's  new Gypsy Fairy Tale series.

I've been a fan of Dana Michelle Burnett since I first read Spiritus, the first book in her Spiritus series. So when I heard that she was coming out with a new book, I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. And, just like the series before it, Once definitely did not disappoint. I finished the book in only a few days and it immediately left me wanting to read the next book in this new series. Needless to say, I really enjoyed this book. One of the things that I really liked about it was the character of Kieran. While he is similar to the main male character in Burnett's Spiritus series, what I loved about him was that he wasn't an exact copy of that other character. He has his own personality and its one that completely draws the reader in. I automatically wanted to know more about him after he was first introduced.

Another thing I liked about the book had to do with Kieran, as well. More specifically, I liked that Kieran ended up belonging to the Tuatha de Danann. I've read a few books that focus on this particular tribe as parts of their main storyline. So, when I saw a name that I recognized, I was immediately intrigued and that was something that helped me to keep reading. I'm excited to see where Burnett will take it and I'm also interested to see how her depiction of the Tuatha de Danann will differ from other books that I've read.

Finally, I really enjoyed the relationship between Harmony and Kieran. It was very obvious from the first page that these two shared some kind of connection, some instant chemistry. By the end of the book, they became one of those couples that you instantly begin rooting for, even though you've only "known" them for a short time. I'm eager to see where this relationship goes and what will happen to them as the series progresses. The only thing that I didn't care for about Once was that it felt like all the action in the story happened in the last quarter of the book. While this wasn't something that made me put the book down without finishing it, I still hope it's something that will get better as the series unfolds.

I rate this book:

Once is the first in what promises to be an exciting new series from the mind of Dana Michelle Burnett. If you like fantasy novels that center around fairy tales and mythological creatures, then you should definitely check this book out. If you're anything like me, you won't be disappointed. And if you're looking for more of a paranormal story, be sure to check out the Spiritus series by this author. 

Dana Michelle Burnett spent most of her life writing short stories and sharing them with family and friends. Over the years, her work was published in numerous commercial and literary magazines including Just Labs, Mindprints: A Literary Journal, Foliate Oak, and many more. Her short story "John Lennon and the Chicken Holocaust" was include in The Best of Foliate Oak 2006.

Dana Michelle's Spiritus series introduced the idea of a ghostly romance and became a Kindle bestselling series. She's an avid reader of anything dark and romantic. Dana Michelle lives in Southern Indiana with her dancing diva daughter and an assortment of pets. Her site, DanaMichelleBurnett.com, has more information about upcoming projects and appearances, or you can also check her out on Facebook.