Audiobook Review – How to Date Your Dragon (Mystic Bayou, Book 1) by Molly Harper (3/5 stars)

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Length: 6 hours and 24 minutes (224 pages)
Publisher: Audible Studios
Release Date: January 23, 2018
ASIN: B07887W2SL
Stand Alone or Series: 1st book in the Mystic Bayou series
Source: Audiobook from Audible.com
Rating: 3/5 stars

“Anthropologist Jillian Ramsay’s career has taken a turn south.

Concerned that technology is about to chase mythological creatures out into the open (how long can Sasquatch stay hidden from Google maps?), the League for Interspecies Cooperation is sending Jillian to Louisiana on a fact-finding mission. While the League hopes to hold on to secrecy for a little bit longer, they’re preparing for the worst in terms of human reactions. They need a plan, so they look to Mystic Bayou, a tiny town hidden in the swamp where humans and supernatural residents have been living in harmony for generations. Mermaids and gator shifters swim in the bayou. Spirit bottles light the front porches after twilight. Dragons light the fires under crayfish pots.

Jillian’s first assignment for the League could be her last. Mystic Bayou is wary of outsiders, and she has difficulty getting locals to talk to her. And she can’t get the gruff town sheriff, Bael Boone, off of her back or out of her mind. Bael is the finest male specimen she’s seen in a long time, even though he might not be human. Soon their flirtation is hotter than a dragon’s breath, which Bael just might turn out to be…”

This is the first book in the Mystic Bayou series, right now there are two books and one novella in this series. I read this after reading the novella “Even Wood Nymphs Get the Blues”, which I got free through my Audible membership. I did not like this book as much as I enjoyed that novella, the mystery was too predictable and the characters too stupid.

In this story Jillian is an anthropologist who is sent to Mystic Bayou to study how humans and mythological creatures co-exist in that town. She wasn’t expecting to have to work with an irritating and incredibly intriguing dragon shifter. When residents start turning up dead and Jillian is forced to work with Bael (the town’s dragon shifter sheriff) sparks really start to fly.

While I enjoyed the setting of Mystic Bayou and the nifty paranormal/mythological creatures that dwell there, I had some pretty big issues with the book. The characters and their personalities were fun, but the chemistry between the two lead characters was not great. I thought the whole romance between then felt awkward and sudden.

My second huge issue was the plot itself…how did the sheriff and mayor not see the link between the murders? Are they really that stupid? How did they not know who the murderer was right away?! As soon as our murderer was introduced into the book, I thought “Huh, that person’s going to be a killer in this story.” All the characters were just too dense in this story.

Overall this was mediocre. Mystic Bayou is a fun place and the characters are cute and funny. The plot here was horrible and the romance fell completely flat for me. I won’t be reading anymore in this series.