Tag: m/m fantasy romance

A Chaos Moondrawn Review: A Dance of Water and Air (Elemental Magicae #1) by Antonia Aquilante

 Rating: 3.75 stars out of 5

Due to rising tensions with their neighbor, Tycen, the King of Thalassa is pushing an alliance with Aither on their western border. The king’s son Prince Edmund is to marry Aither’s Queen Hollis and conceive within two years. The author nicely sets up some political intrigue at court in an understated way that will germinate in later books. The prince and his secretary, Peregrine, travel to Aither for the wedding to take place in three months time. Since the Queen’s father died and she is still in mourning, the wedding can’t take place any faster. This allows the author to also set up political intrigue for this court.

The queen’s brother, Prince Arden, is told to spend time with Edmund–time the queen should be spending to get to know her betrothed, but is avoiding. We meet Arden’s best friends, Larkin and twin brother Ciaran, who are the eyes and ears for court politics. The alternating POV between Arden and Edmund allows the reader to know he is unhappy about being attracted to Edmund and that Edmund don’t really allow himself to admit or understand he might feel it too. As they get to know each other better, the ways of Aither being open to people of all elements, challenges everything Edmund has learned from his father and the way he rules Thalassa. This also plants seeds for future books. We get to know a little bit about Edmund’s affinity with water and Arden’s affinity with air and how that magic can be used. Their common enemy Tycen is know for their affity with fire. We know little about the earth affinity, so I guess that will be in future books.

This author is known for high fantasy and political intrigue so I expected the world-building to be good and it was, but I have hopes there will be a lot more detail later. I was enjoying the story, the court, the politics, the slow burn as they were getting to know each other, yet nothing is in great detail. When someone with an affinity with water tries to kill the Queen, Edmund is arrested and after spending so much time with him, Arden is in a precarious position. We are told Hollis and Arden were close once, but we never see it. There could have been more done with that plot-wise. We only get a glimmer of Arden’s feelings of muted hurt. If fact, we know little of the queen or any of the characters beside Arden, Ciaran, Peregrine, and Edmund.

Once they flee the castle, it was like the author no longer knew what to do with them. Edmund and Arden are suddenly stumbling around when they already know how they feel about each other. It was all handled in an awkward, drawn out way. I liked the depictions of Edmund as a demisexual, and Arden, who reads as non-binary (the publisher’s tag is trans). Their love scenes were sweet, yet circumspect and while explicit, were not really erotic. At this point even Ciaran, who has grow up in political intrigue and has a spy network, starts to act childish. He shouldn’t be failing apart about something he knew would happen. Then, all of the sudden they start writing in code as he communicates with his sister. As if this had never occurred to him before whilst they are fleeing for their lives? Ciaran and Peregrine are also in a relationship now which seems to consist of a lot of handholding. For me, this read as high fantasy that turned into YA.

As Tycen prepares for war, Arden and Edmund meet with Queen Hollis along the border, whereupon she acts like an unreasonable child. This is the most we get to see of the queen and I was not impressed. Unless we get to see her POV in future books and a lot more backstory, I am not sure how this character can be redeemed for me at this point. Maybe she won’t be, but everything is so sweet and slots into place so easily, I expect the sister and brother will eventually make up, somehow.

The end of the book really points to learning more about the various magics and how they can be utilized together. Right now, they are like kids studying and playing with magic. We’ll see if that changes if war actually happens. I would have liked a lot more of the elements and their creatures that magic wielders can communicate with. I wanted this to have more detail and depth about everything. While I liked the MCs, I didn’t feel emotionally attached to them. This is a nice, sometime sweet, easy read for a couple of evenings and I recommend it be enjoyed as such.

The cover art by Natasha Snow is fitting for the story, showing a blend of the two main elements covered in this story and a castle. The color palette fits with the dark intrigues. Although most of the story takes place in Aither, this seems to be the palace in Thalassa, where the story starts and finishes.

Sales Links:  NineStar Press | Amazon

Book Details:

ebook
Published October 1st 2018 by NineStar Press
ISBN139781949340853
Edition LanguageEnglish

A VVivacious Review: The King’s Sun (The Brass Machine #1) by Isaac Grisham

Rating: 4 out of 5 exhilarated stars

Kitsune is the self-contained prince of Kitsunetsuki defined by his loyalty to his King, his Father, Oni. But when Oni banishes him from the kingdom, Kitsune is thrown off-kilter. Kitsune has no knowledge of what lies ahead of him and he has no idea of what his travels will unravel.

As he travels through Odom, skirts around the Wastelands to the Tribal lands, in search of the Harbinger to shed light on his path, he learns the truth about himself and his father. But more surprisingly he comes across the most undefinable emotion of all, love.

As love encompasses his mind and changes his perspective, what will happen to the mission that his brought him so far and what of the misguided loyalty that still belabours in his heart for his King.

This book will immediately inspire you to compare itself to much more prolific series that deal with the rise and fall of kingdoms but it lacks the complexity of plot that can only arise when you have multiple characters all with their own agenda pulling the plot in many different directions where it is always a challenge knowing who will succeed and how that will alter the chess board.

This book lacks all that complexity and overall has only two over-arching plotlines. Now the problem with having only two plotlines is that you know that they will eventually have to feed each other and the plot and so I had kind of guessed the most suspenseful event of this book from its blurb which was further validated when I started reading the book and then it actually came to be. So that would be its one downfall that the book lacks the complexity to hide the suspense of its storyline.

But, truthfully I liked the lack of complexity of over-arching agendas and plotlines where I am struggling to understand how they all come together. While those books are their own sort of fun, I really liked the way this book went about its storyline and that is saying something since I had already guessed its climax.

I really liked how magic was introduced in this book as something that Kitsune was sure of didn’t exist because it added a connection between him and me. Also, I like how magic was explored in this book.

I really liked Kitsune’s story I was so into it that the first detour that we took from his story to follow Saxma’s made me stop reading. I sometimes question authors changing perspectives when the storyline of one character is in jeopardy because it’s hard to read placid storylines when your heart is racing with adrenaline, it just had me really frustrated but later I really liked what Saxma brought to the story. I also liked how Saxma’s story is used to build up Oni and I can’t wait to see where that leads.

This story is essentially setting up the chessboard. By the end of the story we have all our main players in place and we know their backstories and where they are coming from and their motivations that will define their actions in the sequel which I would really like to get my hands on, hopefully soon.

This book is not a romance though love happens to be one of the great plot progressions in this book and I really liked the story of Darren’s lover. That idea of combining a story within a story was ingenious, in fact, some of the writing for that story related so well with life in general that it blew me away.

I have really come to like Kitsune and even though I can’t really understand his character, I am loving his story and I would love to know where it goes especially because of thecliffhanger that the so-called climax of this book was hiding which even I hadn’t guessed.

Cover Art by Dissect Designs.  I really loved the cover. It is so amazing with the title engulfed in fire on the background of a series of cogwheels. Also, talking about the cover reminds me of the analogy in this book, that of the brass machine and I loved the metaphor.

Buy Links 

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Barnes and Noble  – Paperback

 

Book Details:ebook, 298 pages
Published May 1st 2018 by Cooper Blue Books, LLC
ISBN 173214060X (ISBN13: 9781732140608)
Edition LanguageEnglish
SeriesThe Brass Machine #1

A MelanieM Review: Magic Ties Together by Nina Begonia

Rating: 2 stars out of 5

Ira has one eye, a back-alley accuracy charm, and a policy of taking what he can get.

Lajos has a sword, a stoic façade that crumbles quickly under pressure, and a mysterious past.

When a routine monster attack leads to the men being magically bound together, unable to part without being violently ill, Ira is horrified. Worse, the link means they can sense each other’s every emotion. And as time goes on, Ira starts to wonder which emotions are truly his, and which are just a result of the magic…

I just love fantasy and always search out new stories and new authors. So I had high hopes for Magic Ties Together by Nina Begonia.  It had a neat, interesting premise that linked the couple right from the start…a type of magic handcuffs.

But while this story did contain some nice elements and places where my interest was definitely piqued, for the most part, it was jammed full of just a weird mixture of not enough world building (had no idea of the sort of world these characters really existed in) and one in which we got far too many extraneous details.  Really should have been the other way around.

The characters started having sex almost immediately, because the bracelets “made them do it”.  Trust me, not sexy at all.  Then there were hodgepodgy creatures whose physical descriptions made even less sense than some of the world building (what there was).

The characters had potential but didn’t seem to reach it imo.  This story is 100 pages yet it felt as though the author was trying to jam 500 pages worth of things the author had in mind for the story that just kept flowing on, regardless of whether it fit or not into the current scenes or storyline.

The ending was probably the best thing about this story.  It was the most pulled together.  The characters felt as though they might actually care about each other but everything leading up to it is such a narrative quagmire.

Not a story I would recommend.

Cover art: Aisha Akeju.  Gorgeous cover, definitely eye catching.

Sales Link:  Less Than Three Press | Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 103 pages
Published April 4th 2018 by Less Than Three Press (first published April 2nd 2018)
Original TitleMagic Ties Together
ISBN139781684312382
Edition LanguageEnglish

A MelanieM Review: Consorting with Dragons by Sera Trevor

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

At last, the novel-length expansion of the award-winning novella!

Lord Jasen of Grumhul, an impoverished young nobleman, has come to the Draelands to find a rich husband to help pay his father’s debts. To the shock of everyone, he ends up attracting the attention of King Rilvor himself, and the dragons who control the magic in the land. Becoming royalty wasn’t something Jasen either expected or wanted, but he can’t control his growing feelings for kind and handsome king. Scheming factions at Court conspire to keep him from Rilvor’s side, and now Jasen has to decide if the chance at true love with Rilvor is worth the burden of being the husband of a king.

This sweet and funny Cinderfella romance is complete at ~85000 words and ends in a solid HEA. After all, true love always wins in fairy tales!

Well, as someone who loves all things dragons, Consorting with Dragons by Sera Trevor was a novel I couldn’t wait to start into.  It has all the elements guaranteed to pull me in.  A King looking for a new consort, dragons who play a major element, and a young man throwing his fate to the winds because of the misdeeds of his father.  Yes, yes, and yes!

Sera Trevor let me know right at the start I was in splendid “narrative” hands when, for starters, it came to the father/son dynamics.  Jasen’s reprobate of a father is a drunk, a gambler, and a total loss when it comes to handling money.  He’s run through the considerable estate Jasen’s mother had left him and his father, their castle or mansion, or whatever is left is in a sad state of disrepair, and the what money is left is sliding fast through his father’s fingers.  So Jasen hates him, right?  No.  Bitter perhaps, but he loves his father, while understanding exactly who he is, extreme faults and all.  Trevor doesn’t make a villain out of him where others would have. Instead we get the realistic complicated relationship of a father and son trying to love each other giving the current state of affairs (albeit directly due to the father’s actions).

The author, though, also lets us in, immediately, into a secret.  Jasen is special.  When he spies the dragons soaring in the air above near the castle, his heart heats up.  Something new and different.  And magical.  Oh the anticipation that starts to build for the reader!

From there on out, we walk next to Jasen as he (the bumpkin at the court), finds two friends, makes a magical connection, and a connection quite unexpected.  I just enjoyed the fun and joy that seems to rise out of this character! I often found myself smiling along with whoever was in his company because as written, he’s downright charming and endearing.

So too are the other characters.  They make their mark on you.  Whether it is King Rilvor,  Jasen’s new friends, or even his court enemies, they are so well written, that they leave quite the impression.  This includes the King’s many children too.  I wouldn’t have minded a game of mudball with them myself.

This is a world I would happily return to and a couple I would love to see more of down the road.

If you love fantasy, dragons, and romance, Consorting with Dragons by Sera Trevor is a  novel not to be missed.  I loved it and highly recommend it.  And will probably end up reading it again.

Cover art is lovely and works for the characters.

Sales Links:   Amazon

Book Details:

indle Edition, 2 edition, 295 pages
Published April 7th 2018 (first published July 28th 2014)
Original TitleConsorting with Dragons
ASINB07BHHTFXZ
Edition LanguageEnglish

 

Alex Whitehall on Family, and the new fantasy release Magic Runs Deep (author guest blog and giveaway)

Magic Runs Deep by Alex Whitehall

Riptide Publishing

Cover Art:
Sales Links:

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to host Alex Whitehall today on tour for Magic Runs Deep, one of our happily recommended stories. Welcome, Alex.

✒︎

 

Hello, everybody! I’m Alex Whitehall, and I’m here today touring for my fantasy novel Magic Runs Deep, which is about one man’s search to find himself—and true freedom—after a long imprisonment, and the path to trust that he follows along the way.

Family is an important part of every life—no matter what form it takes—and a lot can be gleaned from looking at family structure. In Magic Runs Deep, we see the family interactions of two very different characters, from the brother to the king to a man who comes from a large family that is strongly tied together. The Elrid, king’s brother, only has one immediately family member left, and the bond between the brothers is strong, but it also has molded Elrid into a man who is self-reliant, and who, although he loves his brother, struggles to truly understand the extent that Veier, who comes from a close-knit community with an extended family, relies on and misses his family over the course of the book.

Over the course of the book, we see Elrid and his brother interact, and the playful banter makes it obvious they care for each other—even if they get frustrated with each other as all siblings do—but both men seem to stand alone, isolated from one another. Some of this is, of course, due to the role they play on the page and what Veier can see happening, but most of it is the culture and world they were raised in.

Meanwhile, Veier comes from a large family, who he thinks of often. He mentions being raised by his uncles and mother, recalls his siblings fondly, and while his father was often absent because of duty, there was always plenty of love to go around, leaving Veier fulfilled. Elrid speaks rarely of his family, since it’s not central to his life, while Veier thinks about his family constantly, and not just because it reminds him of home.

To learn more about Veier’s family and to see if he gets to return home, you’ll have to check out Magic Runs Deep. Meanwhile, what does family mean to you?

 

About Magic Runs Deep

 

For the last five years, Veier has been chained to a king’s throne in his bear form. When a neighboring kingdom overthrows the crown, Veier’s imprisonment ends, but true freedom is not so easily earned. With blood on his hands, he needs someone with patience, strength, and trust to help him become the person he was before and prove to the invaders that he isn’t the monstrous king’s loyal pet.

 

Elrid, the invading king’s brother and a powerful mage, is everything Veier despises. He’s also the only thing between Veier and execution, because he thinks he can help Veier change from an aggressive bear shifter into a reasonable man. While the pair have a rough start, with long talks and mutual leaps of faith, they begin to care for each other.

 

However, the closer Veier gets to his freedom, the closer he is to losing Elrid. He must find balance in his heart and his life if he wishes to truly claim the freedom he’s been given—and the man he loves.

 

About Alex Whitehall

 

If there are two types of people in the world, Alex Whitehall probably isn’t one of them, despite being a person. Their favorite pastimes include reading, horseback riding, sleeping, watching geek-tastic television, knitting, eating, and running. And wasting time on the internet. And spending glorious evenings laughing with friends.

 

While Alex prefers sleeping over doing anything else (except maybe eating), sometimes they emerge from the cave to be social and to hunt for food at the local market. They can be found blogging, reading, and tending after their aloe plants.

 

Connect with Alex:

Giveaway

To celebrate the release of Magic Runs Deep, Alex is giving away an ecopy of Second Skin! Leave a comment with your contact info to enter the contest. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on April 14, 2018. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries. Thanks for following along, and don’t forget to leave your contact info!

A MelanieM PreRelease Review: Magic Runs Deep by Alex Whitehall

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

 

For the last five years, Veier has been chained to a king’s throne in his bear form. When a neighboring kingdom overthrows the crown, Veier’s imprisonment ends, but true freedom is not so easily earned. With blood on his hands, he needs someone with patience, strength, and trust to help him become the person he was before and prove to the invaders that he isn’t the monstrous king’s loyal pet.

Elrid, the invading king’s brother and a powerful mage, is everything Veier despises. He’s also the only thing between Veier and execution, because he thinks he can help Veier change from an aggressive bear shifter into a reasonable man. While the pair have a rough start, with long talks and mutual leaps of faith, they begin to care for each other.

However, the closer Veier gets to his freedom, the closer he is to losing Elrid. He must find balance in his heart and his life if he wishes to truly claim the freedom he’s been given—and the man he loves.

I just loved everything about Magic Runs Deep by Alex Whitehall.  Here is a fantasy novel where the author managed to combine  some very dark and realistic elements like PTSD, the horror of torture , the  effects of long term prisoner captivity under the worse conditions, with that prisoner’s recovery and love.    That the prisoner is an Ursinae or bear shifter, the one to save and help him recover a mage and brother to a king, and that some of the methods used include magic?  In the hands of author Alex Whitehall, that seems normal.  Whitehall seamlessly blends modern methods for dealing with PTSD and the magical to come up with a unique combination of spells and universe for this story that entranced me.

The Ursinae had their own magic as do the Kingdoms themselves.  I could cheerfully dwell in this land for many books, hoping to learn more not just about Veier’s shifter history but all the neighboring Kingdoms across the lands.  If they are half as fascinating as the ones that Whitehall created for the ones we got to know here, I’m all in for as many stories as the author wants to tell.

These characters were amazing!  They were so well rounded and pulled so many emotions from me in their journey to  helping Veier recover from his heinous imprisonment and the scars he now carries inside and out.  As it should be, his recovery is painful, slow, full of anger and fear.  And the reader is on this agonizing path with Veier every step of the way. So is Elrid, the mage who sees the tragedy in Veier’s fate if he can’t be helped and the man fighting to regain who he was.  I was so absorbed in Veier’s tale I totally forgot what time it was and read into the early hours.

There are other equally important storylines flowing here.  Unrest in a kingdom slow to accept new rulers, people hesitant or afraid of the shifter among them, a man eager to go home again and afraid of what he would find…all these narrative threads are carried through, their importance to the overall plot arc handled beautifully, never impeding or overtaking the main plotlines but adding interest to them,  like spice does to a great meal.

But the heart and center here is Veier and Elrid and what a story that is.  It’s heartwarming, sometimes heartstopping, and always rewarding.   This is one for my “happy shelf”, when I need a book to pull out to put a smile on my face and a lightness in my heart.    How I loved this couple.  I think you will too.  I highly recommend Magic Runs Deep by Alex Whitehall.

Cover art:  Shayne Leighton.  I like the cover, has some very nice elements on it, including the character of Veier.

Sales Links: Riptide Publishing | Amazon

Book Details:

book, 183 pages
Expected publication: April 9th 2018 by Riptide Publishing
Original TitleMagic Runs Deep
ISBN 1626497478 (ISBN13: 9781626497474)
Edition LanguageEnglish

Ever After by Riley Hart & Christina Lee Release Day Blitz (excerpt)

 Ever After RDB Banner

EVER AFTER

A GAY FAIRYTALE

RILEY HART & CHRISTINA LEE  

M/M ROMANCE

RELEASE DATE: 02.28.18

Ever After Cover 

 

COVER DESIGN: JAY AHEER/ Simply Defined Art

 

Blurb:

As next in line for the Evergreen crown, Prince Merrick Davendall’s future involves ruling, marriage, and producing an heir of his own. But he’s long been tormented by desires that are far from princely. Especially when the beautiful Cassius is promoted to be his new valet, and Merrick is struck by a longing like never before—a longing to know him far beyond royal and servant.

After his father’s passing, Cassius Havendale’s sole duty is to provide for his family. A promotion to serve a pampered prince is something he endures only for their sake. Surely Prince Merrick has no understanding of true suffering of the common people, nor could he possibly understand what it’s like to desperately desire something he cannot have.

Except the prince is not at all what Cassius imagined. Kind, humorous, and caring to those in need, he also shares Cassius’ affinity for the arts. In fact, Merrick understands his deepest vulnerabilities in a most remarkable way.

As their affection deepens, the underlying tension between them becomes unbearable and they’re unable to ignore it any longer. But when the queen prepares a lavish ball with all the eligible ladies in the land in attendance, Merrick must fulfill his obligations to his country, and Cassius has the needs of his family to consider. They’ve long known their stolen moments would have to come to an end, but are they ready to give up one another and the idea of a happily-ever-after?

  

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2EesPFd

 

EVERAFTERteaser3

Gay Couple Love Home Concept

 

 EXCERPT

“Now you are all set,” Cassius remarked, slipping the national Evergreen sash over Merrick’s neck and adjusting it over his shoulder.

Merrick was entertaining the Duke of Cairn this morning for brunch. The king would be joining them this afternoon for ice fishing on the property. Apparently, the royal family of Cairn were avid fishermen, and when the king mentioned it a few weeks back on his visit, Merrick’s father told them about Evergreen’s abundance of freshwater trout. Merrick did not exactly enjoy the sport, but Cairn was Evergreen’s closest ally, and it was important to entertain them properly while they discussed pressing matters, including Merrick’s royal visit to their lovely countryside in the coming months.

“At breakfast I overheard the cooks going on about how handsome the duke is,” Cassius mentioned casually as he smoothed down Merrick’s coat and then picked at some lint on the lapel.

The change in topic threw Merrick, and when he did not respond, Cassius glanced up curiously at him. Merrick smirked as he wrapped his hands around Cassius’s waist and pulled him closer. “You are jealous.”

“Of course not!” he declared as his neck turned beet red. “I was only relaying the gossip in the castle.”

“Hmmm, that’s very peculiar since you’ve never seemed to be affected by gossip before,” Merrick remarked, backing him against the wardrobe, the innocent look in Cassius’s eyes completely charming.

“What are you doing?” Cassius asked, his gaze flashing toward the closed chamber door.

“I don’t give a flying fig whether the duke is handsome or not. I have never paid him any mind.” Merrick kissed his cheek. “What I do know is that a stunning man is standing before me, driving me completely mad. And I long to take his prick into my mouth.”

Cassius gasped and swayed toward him. Merrick wondered if Cassius felt just as feverish after spending such a sweet and intense moment in the woods the other day. He only dreamed to know more of him before it was too late.

“It is all I thought about last evening after you left me in the parlor room with the conservation committee,” Merrick added with a groan as he gripped the waistband of Cassius’s trousers. “I want you in my bed every night. In my arms. But I know it is an empty wish.”

“We…shouldn’t,” Cassius replied in a gruff voice even as he sank against Merrick, his prick already hard as the steel jousting stick on display in the Great Hall. “You make it quite difficult to properly concentrate on my duties.”

Merrick drew back immediately, searching Cassius’s eyes. “I am sorry. I do not want you to feel any sort of regret.”

“Never.” Cassius grasped Merrick’s hand and placed it against the bulge beneath his zipper. “But now I shall go around all day with the front of my pants uncomfortably tight while you socialize with the handsome duke.”

Merrick hissed and then promptly dropped to his knees before the valet.

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Riley Hart is the girl who wears her heart on her sleeve. She’s a hopeless romantic, a lover of sexy stories, passionate men, and writing about all the trouble they can get into together.

She loves reading, flawed characters, and hanging out with her husband and children, who she adores. She and her family live in Southern California, soaking up the sunshine while also missing seasons. Not a day goes by that she isn’t thankful she gets to wake up and do what she loves.

Life is good. Riley also writes young adult and new adult under the name Nyrae Dawn.

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Christina Lee Logo

Once upon a time, I lived in New York City and was a wardrobe stylist. I spent my days shopping for photo shoots, getting into cabs, eating amazing food, and drinking coffee at my favorite hangouts.

Now I live in the Midwest with my husband and son—my two favorite guys. I’ve been a clinical social worker and a special education teacher. But it wasn’t until I wrote a weekly column for the local newspaper that I realized I could turn the fairytales inside my head into the reality of writing fiction.

I write Adult, New Adult, and M/M Contemporary Romance. I’m addicted to lip gloss and salted caramel everything. I believes in true love and kissing, so writing romance novels has become a dream job.

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