Tag: demi=sexual character

Review: An Embrace To Hearten Me ( The Magi Accounts #3.5) by Michele Notaro

Rating: 4.75🌈

An Embrace To Hearten Me is the novella that’s the romance/relationship story for River/Jude/Kulani the author has been working towards in the last books.

A M/M/X , the X stands for non-binary, romance that’s been slowly building between the characters of Cheetah shifter Kulani, magi Jude (half of the dyad pair with Mads), and snow leopard shifter River. To say slow is to say that molasses runs slowly in the winter. Here it’s a absolute must that we get a three person perspective but a triad that forms at a glacial rate.

The reasons why is the tormented histories the author has created for each individual here. Ones that have damaged them to the point that trust, insecurities, and trauma are the main factors in determining their relationships to date.

Jude ,a demisexual, has a unique history. Traumatized in the compound with Mads, his other dyad half (with us now finding out the exact extent of the sacrifice he’s was forced to make), Jude’s had Mad’s feelings as his own all his life. River and Kulani had no one until Cosmo found them. That doesn’t make for easy understanding when it comes to relationships between the friends. Even with the shifter extraordinary senses, actions can become misunderstood with no real foundation for understanding the actions of others.

Notaro gives us three perspectives of friends wobbling about in the fog of uncertainty and confusion. Their new feelings , fears, and ignorance keeping them from communicating while nightmares from their past’s shut them down into their own prisons.

It’s a haunting narrative and a thoroughly disturbing story at times. But one Notaro threads with hope. With the introduction of a young child, someone from the past, and a newly formed family of three that finally finds its way together.

While An Embrace To Hearten Me has a HFN element for our triad, this is a horrific and dangerous society they all live in. One in which every single one is still tagged and registered, and regarded as disposable.

We have 2 more books to go until the end. I expect it to be bloody, heartbreaking, heartfelt, and to leave me sobbing. It’s that kind of series.

So I leave Kulani, River, and Jude momentarily happy.

I’m highly recommending this series. Read them in the order they are written for character development and events. Put some tissue near by. FYI.

The Magi Accounts:

🔹The Scars That Bind Us #1

🔹The Shackles That Hold Us #2

🔹A Date To Impress Him #2.5

🔹A Purpose That Restores Us #3

🔹A Holiday to Sustain Us: A Magi Accounts Holiday

🔹An Embrace To Hearten Me: The Magic Accounts 3.5

🔹A Ruse To Unchain Us: The Magi Accounts # 4 – TBD 2023

Buy Link:

An Embrace To Hearten Me: The Magic Accounts 3.5 (The Magi Accounts Companion Stories)

Description:

I can’t seem to choose between the two shifters who mean the world to me… but what if I can have them both?

Trying to navigate my feelings has never been easy. Growing up, I had to keep my emotions locked down and hidden from the world or suffer the consequences. But now, well, now I’ve had a taste of freedom, and with it, my heart has been running wild.

Between trying to find witches—members of the Red Cloth—at work and sifting through my overwhelming emotions, I’m a mess. And two certain shifters seem happy to help sort me out, which is great, but it’s making all these feelings hit me at once.

How in the world can I tell River and Kulani that I… that I like them? Both of them. At the same time. This is going to end in disaster with one, two, or three hearts broken. But what if it doesn’t? What if there’s a way for all three of us to get what we want?

An Embrace To Hearten Me is a MMX (male/male/nonbinary) urban fantasy romance companion novel meant to be read AFTER A Purpose That Restores Us (The Magi Accounts 3). This is Jude, Kulani, and River’s story and takes place between books 3 and 4 of the main series. It’s meant to be read as part of the series, not by itself, although the love story is resolved in this book.

Review: Thick As Thieves (Aster Valley #4) by Lucy Lennox

Rating: 4.5🌈

Thick As Thieves is the Aster Valley finale and it’s a wonderful story to bid the series goodbye with.

Best friends to lovers is a great trope and Lennox gives us two endearing characters who have known each all all their lives, being each other’s one to go to in all times.

Never is that more true or needed when Parker Ellis’ wedding day is shattered. His bride dumps him as he’s getting ready to say I do.

Julian Thick is there to pick up the pieces and Parker, after it’s called off. Julian takes Parker to Aster Valley to his new cabin to recover but both men get far more then they anticipate when hidden feelings are revealed.

This is a great story with many aspects to it. Parker has to examine his past history with his former fiancé, determine exactly why he let himself be lead into a engagement, and then rediscover the feelings he buried about his best friend.

Julian has loved only Parker. But Julian has watched him for years with someone else who was female, thinking Parker was straight. That pain is buried deep within Julian now.

There’s issues of trust, examinations of sexuality, friendship, and , of course, finally, declarations of love.

Other couples from the previous books make appearances here too.

It’s funny, genuine, romantic, and lovely.

Plus Lennox brings in characters from her next series Knockwood Aviation for us to get a glimpse of. There’s two men I really want a romance for.

If you’ve been a fan of this series like me, grab up this story and give it a happy send off.

If not, it can still be read as a standalone, it’s just richer with a context.

I’m highly recommending it.

Aster Valley series 4 of 4 books:

✓ Right as Raine #1

✓ Sweet as Honey #2

✓ Hot as Heller #3

✓ Thick as Thieves #4

https://www.goodreads.com › showThick as Thieves (Aster Valley, #4) by Lucy Lennox – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Julian:


I’ve been in love with my best friend since forever. Okay, fine. Like, kindergarten. It started out platonic, obviously, but then became… nope. Still platonic. The problem is that Parker Ellis has been straight since forever. And that makes it difficult to convince him the two of us are meant to be together.

And now there’s no point. All is lost. He’s gone and gotten engaged to his high-school sweetheart which means I have to grin and bear it while pretending to be the happy, supportive best man while he prepares to commit his life to a woman I can’t even fault. She’s great. We’ve all been friends forever. I know he’ll be happy with Erin, just not… just not as happy as he could be with me.

Parker:

I’ll admit. Sometimes I press the easy button. Like when Julian Thick had offered me half his sandwich back in grade school after noticing I didn’t have any food. Or when I’d needed a date to homecoming in tenth grade and Erin told me she was it. Or when I’d used the one thing that came easy to me, skiing, to get my college tuition paid for. Or when Erin had showed back up in my life six months ago and told it was time to marry and start a family…

But for the first time in my life I’m facing something that’s not at all easy. It’s my wedding weekend and I’ve just been left at the altar. Not only that, but when my best friend whisks me away to drown my sorrows in a snowy cabin in Aster Valley, I accidentally discover Julian’s been keeping secrets. Big secrets.

The kind of secrets that lead to hot experimental kisses in front of a blazing fire, tenative physical exploration in a way I’d never imagined before, and the kind of intimate, true confessions I’d never even dreamed of between me and the one person who’s always been my true home.

But after twenty-plus years of thinking of Jules as my friend without benefits, is it truly possible to change who we are to each other? There’s no easy button this time, but I’m willing to do the work. I only wonder if Julian is ready to trust I really mean it.

Thick as Thieves can be read on its own or enjoyed as part of the Aster Valley series.

A BJ Review: Winter Knight by L. Valko

Rating:  4.75 stars out of 5

Winter KnightAfter three years living as a rich man’s toy, Micah Zaine is on his own again and struggling to salvage both his career and a shattered sense of self-worth. Accepting a position as a substitute kindergarten teacher seems like an excellent start, until he develops a crush on a student’s father.

Two years after the death of his beloved wife, Jacob Lournigran’s life revolves around work and raising his young son—a social life is nowhere in the picture. Until his meddling sister extends a holiday dinner invitation to his son’s handsome kindergarten teacher.

Spending time with Micah makes Jacob wonder if a friend could be just what he needs to start rebuilding his broken heart. And when financial difficulties and an angry ex put Micah in distress, Jacob has all the makings of a knight in shining armor.

Except Jacob is straight, and Micah is no damsel.

An absolutely adorable contemporary that spans both the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday seasons. While there is sweetness, this one also has the angst, since both of the main characters are struggling to deal with loss. Jacob has a support system in his sister and son, while Micah is having to deal all on his own.

Jacob is an absolute sweetheart all the way through this story, definitely a catch or, as the blurb says, a knight in shining armor. I want a Jacob in my life! Wealthy and secure, but so down to earth that it never went to his head. In fact, he seemed to give much of the credit for this financial status to his late wife. But Jacob wasn’t perfect, and I adored that, too. His bouts of social awkwardness were endearing, as was the way he got flustered sometimes.

Micah was a nice match for Jacob; he was the one who kept making me laugh and smile with his attitude and inner dialogue, plus his wit and flirting. Initially, I had some issues with him based on choices he’d made in the past, but I quickly came to root and cheer for him. Which did not mean that I still didn’t want to reach over and smack him upside the head a few times.

Lucky for me, the author provided someone capable of giving said smacks in a much more appropriate way. That would be Jacob’s kick-ass sister, Justine. I loved Justine; loved how she stepped in as the voice of wisdom at just the right times, and loved that she was an artist, cuz well, I always love to see fellow artists in stories. And Jacob’s kindergarten age son, Cole, was a wonderful addition to the story… not just a prop as kids can be in some books, but a character with a voice that moved the story forward and felt real and vital.

There are emotional teary moments along with some hot and sexy bits, including a sensual first time m/m experience. I’ve only read a couple other books with a demi-sexual character, and this one will join that particular shelf as one of them that handled it well. Being pansexual myself, I struggle with m/m books that portray bi/pan characters negatively… and sadly I’ve run into quite a few of them that do. In this book, we do get a touch of that in Micah’s cheating ex, Alan, but Jacob more than makes up for him. I adored his reactions when he noticed his attractions to Micah, the way they progressed, and a scene later in the story where he talks to a friend/co-worker was so cute (and a bit funny).

A first book by Valko, and one I’m glad I decided to read. Pick this one up soon  as it’s on Kindle Unlimited right now. I especially recommend it to those who enjoy GFY, slightly broken boys, bi and demi characters, and stories about family/kids.

Sales Link:  Amazon Kindle  | Buy It Here


Book Details:  143 pages

Published December 31, 2015