Heartstone

All's Fair in Love and Dragonfire

By: Elle Katharine White

Narrated by: Billie Fulford-Brown

Length: 10 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's summary

A debut historical fantasy that recasts Jane Austen’s beloved Pride & Prejudice in an imaginative world of wyverns, dragons, and the warriors who fight alongside them against the monsters that threaten the kingdom: gryphons, direwolves, lamias, banshees, and lindworms.

They say a Rider in possession of a good blade must be in want of a monster to slay - and Merybourne Manor has plenty of monsters. Passionate, headstrong Aliza Bentaine knows this all too well; she’s already lost one sister to the invading gryphons. So when Lord Merybourne hires a band of Riders to hunt down the horde, Aliza is relieved her home will soon be safe again.

Her relief is short-lived. With the arrival of the haughty and handsome dragonrider Alastair Daired, Aliza expects a battle; what she doesn’t expect is a romantic clash of wills, pitting words and wit against the pride of an ancient house. Nor does she anticipate the mystery that follows them from Merybourne Manor, its roots running deep as the foundations of the kingdom itself, where something old and dreadful slumbers...something far more sinister than gryphons.

It’s a war Aliza is ill prepared to wage, on a battlefield she’s never known before: one spanning kingdoms, class lines, and the curious nature of her own heart.

Elle Katharine White infuses elements of Austen’s beloved novel with her own brand of magic, crafting a modern epic fantasy that conjures a familiar yet wondrously unique new world.

©2017 Laura Katherine White (P)2017 Novel Audio Inc.

Critic reviews

“Calling all fans of dragons and Jane Austen! While White stays faithful to most of the classic story’s plot elements, she add hers own twists and turns as Aliza Bentaine’s world grows ever more dangerous. Definitely an author to watch!” (RT Book Reviews)

loved it

loved it. the story line, the narration. all excellently done. looking forward to reading rest of series!

Pride & Prejudice fantasy style

This had just enough twists to keep it fresh. If you're a Jane Austen fan you'll really enjoy this version

A Pride & Prejudice Retelling but with Dragons

The story structure is directly derived from Pride and Prejudice so don't expect anything too new. Still, the world building was surprisingly convincing and the characters were charming in a way I found kinder than in the original tale. Billie Fulford-Brown does a good job making characters sound distinct from another while making the narration engaging. A fun light read.

Perfect audiobook for the perfect jane Austen retelling.

Highly recommended for those who love high fantasy lore, Jane Austen, and beautiful Writing! It’s a masterpiece and I can only imagine it gets better from here!

Pride & Prejudice retelling

This was a P&P retelling that I think did the story justice. It was just close enough to the actual Jane Austin story to be good yet far enough away to keep it interesting. I would recommend this to others.

Pride and Prejudice with Dragons

I enjoyed the world created and even the predictability of the story. This is an enjoyable mild romance.

First book by this author may be last.

Good storyline, but at times very slow. Too much time spent on worthless conversations and unnecessary character self analysis. Could have expanded on key story events more. Author has talent but this seems like a "new" author trial. Writing style needs improvement.

Story is good, voice acting is terrible

I'll be honest, I couldn't even finish listening to this. I had to borrow the book from a friend instead. The narrator is soooo bad at the different voices and it annoyed me so much I had to stop. It took me ages just to get as far as I did because I could only take so much at once. If you like pride and prejudice and fantasy you'll like the story, but I can't think of a single person who wouldn't ask me to turn off the Audible version because of how bad the narrator is.

Terrific story!

Jane Austen's witt intermingled with dragon lore made for a magical fantasy I could not stop listening too.
Surprising plot twist and glorious detailed descriptions brought this story to life!
I'm anxious to continue the trilogy.

An mildly entertaining romance with dragons added

The reader saved the tale. I found it easy listening and a relaxing change of pace from the daily grind. But it is not great literature or even especially well written. The characters' reactions to the death of loved ones seemed a bit cold and heartless. But on the other hand, this somewhat mitigated the fear factor of being killed by a gryphon. The lead character is a feisty young woman, who is quite intriguing and that really added to my enjoyment of the story.