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In the Darkness
Gareth is his parents’ dirty secret: Cursed with a demonic appearance, he has always been in hiding just to stay alive. He must never be seen or his family will die. But when a violent attack endangers a local youth -- whom Gareth adores from the shadows -- there is no one else to help, and Gareth is driven to risk everything to save him.
Now the young man, Evin, wants to know more about this terrifying and beautiful stranger. Where did he come from? Is he a demon, or something more? They begin to meet in the darkness, becoming friends and then lovers. Evin’s sexual exploration and adoration of every part of Gareth’s strange body erase fear and self-loathing; and Gareth’s enthusiasm and prowess make every tryst more powerful, more deliriously sensual than the last.
But there is a purpose to Gareth’s existence, and when it is revealed, Evin and Gareth will be enslaved by rivals, separated to end up on opposite sides of a war. Evin will be forced to play a dangerous role: One which may make him Gareth’s destroyer.
Genre: LGBT Medieval Fantasy
Now the young man, Evin, wants to know more about this terrifying and beautiful stranger. Where did he come from? Is he a demon, or something more? They begin to meet in the darkness, becoming friends and then lovers. Evin’s sexual exploration and adoration of every part of Gareth’s strange body erase fear and self-loathing; and Gareth’s enthusiasm and prowess make every tryst more powerful, more deliriously sensual than the last.
But there is a purpose to Gareth’s existence, and when it is revealed, Evin and Gareth will be enslaved by rivals, separated to end up on opposite sides of a war. Evin will be forced to play a dangerous role: One which may make him Gareth’s destroyer.
Genre: LGBT Medieval Fantasy
218 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 9, 2011
1 person is currently reading
261 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
August 20, 2011
Hey, can I write a review yet? Can I? Can I?
The first I heard of this m/m medieval fantasy was when I ran a craft chat on Goodreads some months ago organised by Ralph Gallagher. Charles joined in at the end with a section of his WIP that he wanted critiquing as there were a few elements he was having problems with.
The other members of the chat all helped and I'm sure gave him the confidence to push on with the story. Later Charles asked for some more feedback from me, so it's been great and informative to watch 'In the Darkness' grow.
Charles really nails it when he writes about guys in their late teens, transitioning between being boys and men. I wouldn't call them "coming of age" stories as such, but his characters sure capture their vulnerability.
If I was a gay teenager, I'd be devouring his books and as a mature het female I still love being able to transport myself into their world. I wish him all the best with the release and am so glad LooseID picked it up. We need more variety in our m/m romance and this sure provides it!
The first I heard of this m/m medieval fantasy was when I ran a craft chat on Goodreads some months ago organised by Ralph Gallagher. Charles joined in at the end with a section of his WIP that he wanted critiquing as there were a few elements he was having problems with.
The other members of the chat all helped and I'm sure gave him the confidence to push on with the story. Later Charles asked for some more feedback from me, so it's been great and informative to watch 'In the Darkness' grow.
Charles really nails it when he writes about guys in their late teens, transitioning between being boys and men. I wouldn't call them "coming of age" stories as such, but his characters sure capture their vulnerability.
If I was a gay teenager, I'd be devouring his books and as a mature het female I still love being able to transport myself into their world. I wish him all the best with the release and am so glad LooseID picked it up. We need more variety in our m/m romance and this sure provides it!
September 10, 2011
This review was originally written for The Romance Reviews and can also be found there.
Even though I don't like green, the cover for this book is extremely catching as well as beautiful. It almost calls you to read the story hidden inside and for the most part it lives up to the expectations.
Gareth is a young man with a demon appearance, hidden by his parents from the rest of the world. He is very naïve and inexperienced but despite his capabilities, he's a sweetheart. For years he's been spying on the villagers without his parents knowing and found one of them, Evin, especially appealing.
Saving him from a vicious attack, Gareth puts both of them at risk but also makes a first step toward friendship and eventually love. Like with all books, the story doesn't stop there. True trials and troubles begin and it is up to our heroes to find their way to happiness.
I was and still am struggling with the rating for this book. The reason is the way it was written. First half of it is pure romance, something I was thinking about rating with five stars, but the second half is building of a fantasy world with a lot of elements I disliked and would have rated much lower.
With expanding them and writing two books instead of just one, this easily could have been a remarkable series and something I probably couldn't have been able to shut up about. As it is, I felt very connected to the characters in the beginning, even when I didn't particularly like Evin, but lost the connection to both of them by the end.
Evin was very young and while more experienced than Gareth, in my opinion he was still extremely naïve. I didn't like his accepted role of a victim and a martyr, which basically excused all his actions in order for him to stay a lovable character. In fact, the more of the story I read, the less I liked him. Lack of a romance in the second part of the book didn't really help his case.
Gareth was the opposite in my mind. He was good and beautiful both on the outside as well as on the inside. From the first few pages he had a very clear goal in front of him – to protect Evin – and that didn't change during the story. It made him brave, very lovable and extraordinary in my eyes.
The flip from a romance to an action filled fantasy was too abrupt and the latter was too layered and complicated. The epic proportion it should have had and could have, considering the brilliance of the world this author had created, was just impossible in too few pages and that is where this book lost its sparkle.
Even after listing all the things that bothered me, this is still a book I would recommend. The first part is extremely beautiful and well written with a certain romantic flare to it and almost wounding innocence. The second part could win you over with the amazing world and fantasy elements, which show the wonderful imagination of this author. What bothered me could end up being a big plus for another reader. Give it a try.
As a warning I would like to point out that this story does contain cheating, no matter how justified it might be and includes m/f relations.
Even though I don't like green, the cover for this book is extremely catching as well as beautiful. It almost calls you to read the story hidden inside and for the most part it lives up to the expectations.
Gareth is a young man with a demon appearance, hidden by his parents from the rest of the world. He is very naïve and inexperienced but despite his capabilities, he's a sweetheart. For years he's been spying on the villagers without his parents knowing and found one of them, Evin, especially appealing.
Saving him from a vicious attack, Gareth puts both of them at risk but also makes a first step toward friendship and eventually love. Like with all books, the story doesn't stop there. True trials and troubles begin and it is up to our heroes to find their way to happiness.
I was and still am struggling with the rating for this book. The reason is the way it was written. First half of it is pure romance, something I was thinking about rating with five stars, but the second half is building of a fantasy world with a lot of elements I disliked and would have rated much lower.
With expanding them and writing two books instead of just one, this easily could have been a remarkable series and something I probably couldn't have been able to shut up about. As it is, I felt very connected to the characters in the beginning, even when I didn't particularly like Evin, but lost the connection to both of them by the end.
Evin was very young and while more experienced than Gareth, in my opinion he was still extremely naïve. I didn't like his accepted role of a victim and a martyr, which basically excused all his actions in order for him to stay a lovable character. In fact, the more of the story I read, the less I liked him. Lack of a romance in the second part of the book didn't really help his case.
Gareth was the opposite in my mind. He was good and beautiful both on the outside as well as on the inside. From the first few pages he had a very clear goal in front of him – to protect Evin – and that didn't change during the story. It made him brave, very lovable and extraordinary in my eyes.
The flip from a romance to an action filled fantasy was too abrupt and the latter was too layered and complicated. The epic proportion it should have had and could have, considering the brilliance of the world this author had created, was just impossible in too few pages and that is where this book lost its sparkle.
Even after listing all the things that bothered me, this is still a book I would recommend. The first part is extremely beautiful and well written with a certain romantic flare to it and almost wounding innocence. The second part could win you over with the amazing world and fantasy elements, which show the wonderful imagination of this author. What bothered me could end up being a big plus for another reader. Give it a try.
As a warning I would like to point out that this story does contain cheating, no matter how justified it might be and includes m/f relations.
December 7, 2011
WHat a delightful fairytale this turned out to be!
At core this is a simple, sexy romance that flips successfully from piercing sweetness to gleeful raunch because of the Beauty/Beast dynamic set up from page one. More than once I looked at the page number and wished that Charles Edward had pushed the story deeper and given himself another 80 pages to take certain journeys rather than just telling us about them. But because In the Darkness gets the central relationship so right, the small wobbles that crop up later in the book don't harm the story our enjoyment of it.
Gareth is a marvelous character, both for his wounded innocence and for his sexy monstrosity. It ain't easy being green! But lord did I want to be green for long stretches of this short novel. Over and over he blooms before our eyes and reveals little slices of truth like poignant petals. (Ick. that sounds so tacky, but it's true, nonetheless). Over and over Edward takes the hard road out of a situation, which I appreciated. Gareth's transformation was both hot and heartbreaking, as it should be!
Evin is actually the more subtle of the two characterizations and deserves more praise (where it's successful) than the crowd-pleasing green stud, and more censure where he falls short. Making a slow, awkward journey from victimized village slut to scheming courtier, Evin covers a lot of interesting terrain. THIS is one the the things with which Edward has the greatest trouble because the court isn't very defined and Evin (often) seems to be marching ttowards an inevitable end battling straw villains. Several times I wished for more Machiavellian skullduggery, but in such a short span, there simply wasn't room.
I agree with folks that there's a hard split in the narrative between country and city...defined enough that I probably would have MARKED the division as a second part. There's clearly a point at which nifty ideas swallowed up the emotional storytelling that dominated the book's first half, and a little structural clarity would have helped sustain the sweet romance AND made the cool fantasy bits cohere believably. That said, I love the filthy tenderness of this book and the lush worldbuilding.
And so, of the two halves I think the second is less successful, not because we "lose" the two heroes but because the other characters are not as specified and therefore less interesting. There's a muffled quality to that second part that makes the villainy feel hollow, but for all that I thoroughly enjoyed the storytelling and the nimble reversals.
Definitely a recommended read.
At core this is a simple, sexy romance that flips successfully from piercing sweetness to gleeful raunch because of the Beauty/Beast dynamic set up from page one. More than once I looked at the page number and wished that Charles Edward had pushed the story deeper and given himself another 80 pages to take certain journeys rather than just telling us about them. But because In the Darkness gets the central relationship so right, the small wobbles that crop up later in the book don't harm the story our enjoyment of it.
Gareth is a marvelous character, both for his wounded innocence and for his sexy monstrosity. It ain't easy being green! But lord did I want to be green for long stretches of this short novel. Over and over he blooms before our eyes and reveals little slices of truth like poignant petals. (Ick. that sounds so tacky, but it's true, nonetheless). Over and over Edward takes the hard road out of a situation, which I appreciated. Gareth's transformation was both hot and heartbreaking, as it should be!
Evin is actually the more subtle of the two characterizations and deserves more praise (where it's successful) than the crowd-pleasing green stud, and more censure where he falls short. Making a slow, awkward journey from victimized village slut to scheming courtier, Evin covers a lot of interesting terrain. THIS is one the the things with which Edward has the greatest trouble because the court isn't very defined and Evin (often) seems to be marching ttowards an inevitable end battling straw villains. Several times I wished for more Machiavellian skullduggery, but in such a short span, there simply wasn't room.
I agree with folks that there's a hard split in the narrative between country and city...defined enough that I probably would have MARKED the division as a second part. There's clearly a point at which nifty ideas swallowed up the emotional storytelling that dominated the book's first half, and a little structural clarity would have helped sustain the sweet romance AND made the cool fantasy bits cohere believably. That said, I love the filthy tenderness of this book and the lush worldbuilding.
And so, of the two halves I think the second is less successful, not because we "lose" the two heroes but because the other characters are not as specified and therefore less interesting. There's a muffled quality to that second part that makes the villainy feel hollow, but for all that I thoroughly enjoyed the storytelling and the nimble reversals.
Definitely a recommended read.
May 17, 2015
This is a fairy tale type story. I enjoyed it.
November 6, 2011
This has the feel of a fairy tale, kind of a mix between Beauty and the Beast and the Ugly Duckling, plus a bit of a very naughty Harry Potter.
The setting is medieval but in an alternate universe where magic is used liberally, at least in the city, though it is almost unheard of in the country. The start of the story develops satisfactorily, we get to know our MC's and understand their interactions with others surrounding them. Evin and Gareth are perfectly suited as results of their respective, but very different, environments. These guys really make the perfect couple and I had several "Awww" moments during this part of the story.
For dedicated readers of m/m romance, a warning: this book contains a bit of m/f, including one of the MC's. Yes, I know, blasphemy! But, it's an integral part of the plot and necessary for the unravelling of the main conflict.
The second part of the book, which contains the confrontation, was a bit confusing in time lines and several details puzzled me as I read them, but made sense later. The solution to the main problem in this part was truly surprising, I did NOT see it coming.
The previously mentioned issues were more than made up for by the stellar sex scenes. It's amazing to discover, at my age, a possible fetish I'd been unaware of. Woowee!
Mr. Edward, at the end of this story, you leave our heros still in pretty hot water. This ending is an HFN at best and a cliff-hanger at worst. If you start the next book where you left this one off, it'll be a rollicking good start to a very exciting read. I'll be waiting, perhaps not exactly patiently, for the next installment.
The setting is medieval but in an alternate universe where magic is used liberally, at least in the city, though it is almost unheard of in the country. The start of the story develops satisfactorily, we get to know our MC's and understand their interactions with others surrounding them. Evin and Gareth are perfectly suited as results of their respective, but very different, environments. These guys really make the perfect couple and I had several "Awww" moments during this part of the story.
For dedicated readers of m/m romance, a warning: this book contains a bit of m/f, including one of the MC's. Yes, I know, blasphemy! But, it's an integral part of the plot and necessary for the unravelling of the main conflict.
The second part of the book, which contains the confrontation, was a bit confusing in time lines and several details puzzled me as I read them, but made sense later. The solution to the main problem in this part was truly surprising, I did NOT see it coming.
The previously mentioned issues were more than made up for by the stellar sex scenes. It's amazing to discover, at my age, a possible fetish I'd been unaware of. Woowee!
Mr. Edward, at the end of this story, you leave our heros still in pretty hot water. This ending is an HFN at best and a cliff-hanger at worst. If you start the next book where you left this one off, it'll be a rollicking good start to a very exciting read. I'll be waiting, perhaps not exactly patiently, for the next installment.
November 27, 2012
I knew it was an erotic book but the amount of sex was waaaaaaaaay to much. And let's not forget to complain about the amount of semen eat by both characters!!!!! All the time!!! Always!!! Probably their main diet was semen, no need to eat anything more. Gross I know, but that's true! No drop of semen end in other place than the main characters stomach! Ahhhhhh.
But to be fair let's say it was waaaaaay to much in just one part of the book. Probably I would not be bored if there was a better equilibrium. But no, all sex in the first part of the book... After it was a very boring story (to again be wonderful at the end, with a COOL fight!)
I loooooove the originality of this book!I would certainly recommend to readers searching an original story (and readers that don't think gallons of semen is a problem)
So the reason of my 2 stars is all to the originality of this book. I was searching a story with a beastly-like creature and a human and I had it, but unfortunately I didn't like a lot of other things.... So yeah... 2 stars
But to be fair let's say it was waaaaaay to much in just one part of the book. Probably I would not be bored if there was a better equilibrium. But no, all sex in the first part of the book... After it was a very boring story (to again be wonderful at the end, with a COOL fight!)
I loooooove the originality of this book!I would certainly recommend to readers searching an original story (and readers that don't think gallons of semen is a problem)
So the reason of my 2 stars is all to the originality of this book. I was searching a story with a beastly-like creature and a human and I had it, but unfortunately I didn't like a lot of other things.... So yeah... 2 stars
September 6, 2015
I thought this was a well written story. The first part of the book, yes it does give a bit of a two part feel, is the two MC's meeting. Gareth is so sweet and innocent. He is terribly lonely and lacked warmth from those that should have loved him. Evin is a very abused boy. He seems to try to make the most of what he goes through. Evin even seems more or less content in his situation. Gareth saves Evin from even more abuse and thus begins the relationship between the two.
The second part occurs when are two MC's are separated and must find a way to survive. Each is challenged in his own way and pull on their pasts experience to survive. The world building that occurs in this "second half" is quite well done. I'm really hoping that this story continues since there are several issues left up in the air at the conclusion of this book.
The second part occurs when are two MC's are separated and must find a way to survive. Each is challenged in his own way and pull on their pasts experience to survive. The world building that occurs in this "second half" is quite well done. I'm really hoping that this story continues since there are several issues left up in the air at the conclusion of this book.
July 28, 2013
It's rare for me to give a book 2 stars and honestly I might have given it 1 star if I didn't like Gareth.
Gareth is hidden by his foster parents from other and only goes out in the night to do his chores. It's on one such trip he notices the village boys and particular Evin and takes interest. When Evin is assaulted Gareth makes a choice to step out of the shadows, unfortunatly for him, the mayors son, who attacked Evin, sees him as a green demon and from that time one is set on capturing him.
Evin and Gareth become friends very fast and lovers even faster(not surprising considering Evin slept with nearly every young guy in his village). They are discovered together and after Gareth is forced to kill one of their attackers, they flee in the arms of the demon hunter, who separates them.
No the story didn't end there, but it felt like another story has begun, with one of the guys in the palace and sleeping with the queen, you can imagine who that might be, Evin of course, how he goes from hating the queen to sleeping with her is still somewhat unclear to me. Gareth is used by the demon hunter in the meantime to produce an army and attack the queen.
Where it not for a challenge, this book would have been on a dnf shelf.
What didn't work for me:
- Wayyyyyyyyyyy to much sex, I've read the Mate or Meal books by Siren publishing and they had less sex, which is saying something!
- They eat seemen a lot, like really a lot of time and Gareth do too his troll gens can produce more than a regular human anyway.
- I disliked Evin and their nearly instant-love relationship. Evin was forced to sleep with others by the mayor son but he didn't try to say no, he did go when he was called. If he liked the mayors son, why did he agree to sleep with all the others? At the beginning he did have a choice. Also if it was a sin quite a lot of people participated and I don't think any of them wanted to reveal how they knew that he slept with other guys.
- The second part of the story felt somewhat disconnected from the first.
- I didn't buy the love story on Evin's part. Gareth is sweet, naive and inexperienced, when he meets Evin and Evin is the first to see him as more than a monster and be kind to him. I understand why Gareth fixates on Evin. When Evin tought Gareth died he didn't grieve a lot and just goes to sleep with the queen.
- girly bits in my m/m story are not my cuppa.
The last part, well there is no other way to say it, but most of the second part was somewhat abstract and boring. The world building was lacking in detail. Suddenly there is either a view from the queens palace or the demon hunter's tower and I felt like I was missing information. Then there is the fight and the ending. Since I disliked Evin, I wasn't interested in his affaire with the queen and by that point I just tried to make sense of this story, find out if there where any decent people and why nobody tried to kill the queen earlier, since she was using young girls lifes to prolong her own life.
What worked:
Gareth was an interesting character. He was half-troll and grew up very isolated, still he was sweet, and didn't want to hurt anyone. I felt sorry for him, since he was emotionaly abused and then physicaly abused. There were not a lot of good moments in his life.
It was a well edited story.
The beginning was intriquing.
Gareth is hidden by his foster parents from other and only goes out in the night to do his chores. It's on one such trip he notices the village boys and particular Evin and takes interest. When Evin is assaulted Gareth makes a choice to step out of the shadows, unfortunatly for him, the mayors son, who attacked Evin, sees him as a green demon and from that time one is set on capturing him.
Evin and Gareth become friends very fast and lovers even faster(not surprising considering Evin slept with nearly every young guy in his village). They are discovered together and after Gareth is forced to kill one of their attackers, they flee in the arms of the demon hunter, who separates them.
No the story didn't end there, but it felt like another story has begun, with one of the guys in the palace and sleeping with the queen, you can imagine who that might be, Evin of course, how he goes from hating the queen to sleeping with her is still somewhat unclear to me. Gareth is used by the demon hunter in the meantime to produce an army and attack the queen.
Where it not for a challenge, this book would have been on a dnf shelf.
What didn't work for me:
- Wayyyyyyyyyyy to much sex, I've read the Mate or Meal books by Siren publishing and they had less sex, which is saying something!
- They eat seemen a lot, like really a lot of time and Gareth do too his troll gens can produce more than a regular human anyway.
- I disliked Evin and their nearly instant-love relationship. Evin was forced to sleep with others by the mayor son but he didn't try to say no, he did go when he was called. If he liked the mayors son, why did he agree to sleep with all the others? At the beginning he did have a choice. Also if it was a sin quite a lot of people participated and I don't think any of them wanted to reveal how they knew that he slept with other guys.
- The second part of the story felt somewhat disconnected from the first.
- I didn't buy the love story on Evin's part. Gareth is sweet, naive and inexperienced, when he meets Evin and Evin is the first to see him as more than a monster and be kind to him. I understand why Gareth fixates on Evin. When Evin tought Gareth died he didn't grieve a lot and just goes to sleep with the queen.
- girly bits in my m/m story are not my cuppa.
The last part, well there is no other way to say it, but most of the second part was somewhat abstract and boring. The world building was lacking in detail. Suddenly there is either a view from the queens palace or the demon hunter's tower and I felt like I was missing information. Then there is the fight and the ending. Since I disliked Evin, I wasn't interested in his affaire with the queen and by that point I just tried to make sense of this story, find out if there where any decent people and why nobody tried to kill the queen earlier, since she was using young girls lifes to prolong her own life.
What worked:
Gareth was an interesting character. He was half-troll and grew up very isolated, still he was sweet, and didn't want to hurt anyone. I felt sorry for him, since he was emotionaly abused and then physicaly abused. There were not a lot of good moments in his life.
It was a well edited story.
The beginning was intriquing.
August 23, 2011
4.5 stars.
I was very taken with the story. A very familiar set up of Evin in his hometown with the mayor's son, so sad that it feels so much like today's bullying. I was not so familiar with Gareth's home situation, but in the fantasy world it seemed believable. Lovely how they made each other believe in love. Heart breaking story that followed. Loved the various fantasy tricks and turns. I shouldnt have been surprised at the HFN ending, but some things I didn't see coming. However, absolute power corrupts absolutely. How are they ever going to get around this hard and fast rule? I leave it to your capable hands as you are a master of this genre. Hopefully there will be a sequel?
Oh, and pretty good sex too.
10 spurts each time Gareth comes? Sounds like literes of cum. That is a little far fetched, a gay man's dream in real life? Don't we all wish it could happen.
I was very taken with the story. A very familiar set up of Evin in his hometown with the mayor's son, so sad that it feels so much like today's bullying. I was not so familiar with Gareth's home situation, but in the fantasy world it seemed believable. Lovely how they made each other believe in love. Heart breaking story that followed. Loved the various fantasy tricks and turns. I shouldnt have been surprised at the HFN ending, but some things I didn't see coming. However, absolute power corrupts absolutely. How are they ever going to get around this hard and fast rule? I leave it to your capable hands as you are a master of this genre. Hopefully there will be a sequel?
Oh, and pretty good sex too.
10 spurts each time Gareth comes? Sounds like literes of cum. That is a little far fetched, a gay man's dream in real life? Don't we all wish it could happen.
October 9, 2011
DNF.
*** This is a spoiler***
I really tried to give this book a shot. I read about half. The writing was not the most polished, and the story had a lot of continuity jumps.
It was extreme titillation without any emotional connection. Porn, essentially. But not very well written porn.
The point I gave up was when the green dude sucked his own cock. Yeah, that was it for me.
*** This is a spoiler***
I really tried to give this book a shot. I read about half. The writing was not the most polished, and the story had a lot of continuity jumps.
It was extreme titillation without any emotional connection. Porn, essentially. But not very well written porn.
The point I gave up was when the green dude sucked his own cock. Yeah, that was it for me.
August 13, 2011
I didn't like this story, the plot was weird. I liked Gareth he was innocent and genuine, but non other.
August 19, 2011
This book gave me whiplash. The first part was a solid four stars and then KABOOM.
Read
December 30, 2011I wasn't really sure what to expect, but when I read the blurb on the LI site I figured, hey, romance and epic fantasy? I cannot lose!
Which turned out to be pretty much true. I read a lot of epic fantasy -- or rather, I try to read a lot of epic fantasy and end up not making it through the book because it's badly edited or written or whatever, lately. This one was very nicely written with only a few minor speedbumps (which consisted wholly of a handful of telegraphing moments that made me pause). It wasn't written in a typical romance novel style, but in a fantasy style. It was perfect for me.
The melding of genres -- done here in a particularly ambitious way, not the "flavoring" way you often see in genre + romance -- was successful from a writing point of view. From a plot point of view I think it was good, too, but the balance was slightly off. It was absolutely key to set up Gareth and Evin with the heavy romance, isolated in a small piece of the larger world, to allow them to discover what they had inside them. The stuff of heroes, as they say. The pressure of the relatively small threat of discovery was a key catalyst, not just because it becomes a plot point. A good erotic romance always reveals that kind of depth, oftentimes that a character doesn't know they have within them, and I thought Edward used it beautifully to that effect.
To cut that aspect too short would've dampened the effect of what Gareth and Evin go through (for each other) in the second half of the book, which branches out into the larger world.* This half contains elements well set up and hinted at by the first part in the small village, which I thought was nicely done. However, I do think the transition from G & E discovering each other and themselves together into a fantasy adventure type story was awkward, and part of that might be that the first part was a little too long for me.
And that's really my only complaint -- and a pretty small one in the grand scheme. I loved the characters: Gareth is so, so beautiful, and you can genuinely see where these aspects of his personality have come from, and Evin is a bit of a bratty-by-nurture needy-by-nature little s#!t -- he's tough and does what he has to but knows what really matters. The secondary characters were all pretty incidental, but well-painted, and I particularly liked the captain of the guard, Uliette. The world is extremely interesting, and though the transition from the isolated village to the big city with its practical magic was a little weird, it worked because we got to do it with Evin.
I read it in one night, straight through. I'm ready for a sequel, man. Bring it, because I need some fantasy, and I was really starting to lose heart, this year :D
As a random note, I thought the sex was often hilarious -- in a great way. There's something about Gareth's utter cluelessness that makes him say the funniest s#!t (as you do), and Evin with all his supposed experience (he's emotionally an idiot, but physically, okay, he knows how to screw) reacts perfectly to it. Laughing with him, joining in, loving him for it. They were good together in bed, and it made them good together (and apart) as heroes.
*This is an old school fantasy thing, and I think it'd be frustrating for a lot of people: Tolkien does it in The Lord of the Rings with the Hobbits, actually, and the whole Bombadil imbroglio. A detour before the action that lets the characters grow and become people who can actually handle what's up next. I liked it, though.
(Not starring this because it's from one of my publishers. Every author has their own policy, blah blah... <3)
Which turned out to be pretty much true. I read a lot of epic fantasy -- or rather, I try to read a lot of epic fantasy and end up not making it through the book because it's badly edited or written or whatever, lately. This one was very nicely written with only a few minor speedbumps (which consisted wholly of a handful of telegraphing moments that made me pause). It wasn't written in a typical romance novel style, but in a fantasy style. It was perfect for me.
The melding of genres -- done here in a particularly ambitious way, not the "flavoring" way you often see in genre + romance -- was successful from a writing point of view. From a plot point of view I think it was good, too, but the balance was slightly off. It was absolutely key to set up Gareth and Evin with the heavy romance, isolated in a small piece of the larger world, to allow them to discover what they had inside them. The stuff of heroes, as they say. The pressure of the relatively small threat of discovery was a key catalyst, not just because it becomes a plot point. A good erotic romance always reveals that kind of depth, oftentimes that a character doesn't know they have within them, and I thought Edward used it beautifully to that effect.
To cut that aspect too short would've dampened the effect of what Gareth and Evin go through (for each other) in the second half of the book, which branches out into the larger world.* This half contains elements well set up and hinted at by the first part in the small village, which I thought was nicely done. However, I do think the transition from G & E discovering each other and themselves together into a fantasy adventure type story was awkward, and part of that might be that the first part was a little too long for me.
And that's really my only complaint -- and a pretty small one in the grand scheme. I loved the characters: Gareth is so, so beautiful, and you can genuinely see where these aspects of his personality have come from, and Evin is a bit of a bratty-by-nurture needy-by-nature little s#!t -- he's tough and does what he has to but knows what really matters. The secondary characters were all pretty incidental, but well-painted, and I particularly liked the captain of the guard, Uliette. The world is extremely interesting, and though the transition from the isolated village to the big city with its practical magic was a little weird, it worked because we got to do it with Evin.
I read it in one night, straight through. I'm ready for a sequel, man. Bring it, because I need some fantasy, and I was really starting to lose heart, this year :D
As a random note, I thought the sex was often hilarious -- in a great way. There's something about Gareth's utter cluelessness that makes him say the funniest s#!t (as you do), and Evin with all his supposed experience (he's emotionally an idiot, but physically, okay, he knows how to screw) reacts perfectly to it. Laughing with him, joining in, loving him for it. They were good together in bed, and it made them good together (and apart) as heroes.
*This is an old school fantasy thing, and I think it'd be frustrating for a lot of people: Tolkien does it in The Lord of the Rings with the Hobbits, actually, and the whole Bombadil imbroglio. A detour before the action that lets the characters grow and become people who can actually handle what's up next. I liked it, though.
(Not starring this because it's from one of my publishers. Every author has their own policy, blah blah... <3)
January 10, 2012
This book is just further proof that I’ll finish a mediocre read if it targets one of my bulletproof kinks. In this case, it’s the Beast archetype.
Gareth is that Beast. Forced to spend his days in his parents’ cellar, he is only allowed out at night to do the chores. His parents have warned him his entire life that if he gets seen, he’ll be killed as a monster. The reason for that? He’s green and very large and strong. He also learns that he has unbelievable recuperative powers, which only seems to reinforce the monster accusation. His one escape is sneaking away to watch the people in the nearby village, specifically a beautiful young man named Evin. Evin is the sexual plaything for another young man, one with a great deal more power, and one night, when Gareth witnesses Evin getting hurt, he breaks the rules he’s been given to save Evin. He’s afraid to show himself to Evin, but Evin demands it. Though Evin is at first taken aback by his appearance, he soon gets over it, and the two eventually become lovers. But Evin’s so-called “master” isn’t happy about Evin’s shift in attention, and eventually, Gareth and his peace is interrupted.
In a lot of ways, this is two different books. The first half is straight-up romance. Evin and Gareth are all lovey and sexual and the only conflict is internal. Then, halfway through the book, it shifts to an action fantasy story. There’s no smooth transition, and the writing isn’t nearly sophisticated enough to meld the two. The problems I had in the beginning with an incredibly stilted voice morphed into a lack of clarity once the action set in. Much of that is due to being thrust into a fantasy world with such little preparation. There’s new characters, new politics, new dangers, and it took a long time to get it sorted. Too long. It needed more seamless world-building in the first half to make the latter easier to process. (I was also chagrined to see the perspective slip at the very end of the story. What had been a reasonably tight 3rd all of a sudden headhopped in a crucial scene.)
So why did I finish it if I had a problem with the voice? Because of Gareth. The Beast archetype is an exceedingly common one in romance, and is one of my bulletproof kinks. I kept on going because I cared about Gareth, in spite of not being fully invested emotionally in the story. His simple ways, coupled with his unexpected gentleness, go a long way in making up for other shortcomings.
Evin isn’t quite as fully fleshed out as Gareth, mostly because he serves as a foil for Gareth in the first half, and then spends too much time not himself in the second. I kept waiting for more, but when it finally came, it was too late for me, and I finished the story a tad disappointed.
It’s certainly not a bad story, but it’s not a great one, either. Readers who are sensitive to sexual violence should likely steer clear, as well as those who’d rather not see any het contact in their m/m.
Gareth is that Beast. Forced to spend his days in his parents’ cellar, he is only allowed out at night to do the chores. His parents have warned him his entire life that if he gets seen, he’ll be killed as a monster. The reason for that? He’s green and very large and strong. He also learns that he has unbelievable recuperative powers, which only seems to reinforce the monster accusation. His one escape is sneaking away to watch the people in the nearby village, specifically a beautiful young man named Evin. Evin is the sexual plaything for another young man, one with a great deal more power, and one night, when Gareth witnesses Evin getting hurt, he breaks the rules he’s been given to save Evin. He’s afraid to show himself to Evin, but Evin demands it. Though Evin is at first taken aback by his appearance, he soon gets over it, and the two eventually become lovers. But Evin’s so-called “master” isn’t happy about Evin’s shift in attention, and eventually, Gareth and his peace is interrupted.
In a lot of ways, this is two different books. The first half is straight-up romance. Evin and Gareth are all lovey and sexual and the only conflict is internal. Then, halfway through the book, it shifts to an action fantasy story. There’s no smooth transition, and the writing isn’t nearly sophisticated enough to meld the two. The problems I had in the beginning with an incredibly stilted voice morphed into a lack of clarity once the action set in. Much of that is due to being thrust into a fantasy world with such little preparation. There’s new characters, new politics, new dangers, and it took a long time to get it sorted. Too long. It needed more seamless world-building in the first half to make the latter easier to process. (I was also chagrined to see the perspective slip at the very end of the story. What had been a reasonably tight 3rd all of a sudden headhopped in a crucial scene.)
So why did I finish it if I had a problem with the voice? Because of Gareth. The Beast archetype is an exceedingly common one in romance, and is one of my bulletproof kinks. I kept on going because I cared about Gareth, in spite of not being fully invested emotionally in the story. His simple ways, coupled with his unexpected gentleness, go a long way in making up for other shortcomings.
Evin isn’t quite as fully fleshed out as Gareth, mostly because he serves as a foil for Gareth in the first half, and then spends too much time not himself in the second. I kept waiting for more, but when it finally came, it was too late for me, and I finished the story a tad disappointed.
It’s certainly not a bad story, but it’s not a great one, either. Readers who are sensitive to sexual violence should likely steer clear, as well as those who’d rather not see any het contact in their m/m.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 18, 2012
This book started out intriguing. In fact, I was expecting a more gentle fantasy romance between the hidden, half-human Gareth and the handsome, picked-upon village boy Evin, until things started getting really scary after about 10% of the way through.
From then on, I found it quite a difficult read. It wasn't that it was badly written - far from it, Charles Edward writes very well - but it was quite dark and almost felt hopeless at quite a few points. I had to force myself to continue, in the hope that all would work out - somehow. How the author got us to that somehow was with a long, convoluted, and for me, unexpected plot. I just felt very relieved when it ended with both main characters together (for now) and in one piece!
There is definitely room for a sequel; the whole book is set up as some kind of prologue for a longer cycle. I think I would read it, but I'd have to be in a resilient frame of mind to do so. In some ways, it reminded me of 'Bloodraven' by P.L. Nunn, which is a brilliant fantasy novel with a part-human hero. The book didn't have the readability and need to get to the next chapter NOW that Bloodraven has, which made that book more easy to bear, but it was a very good effort nevertheless.
As for rating it, it wasn't quite a clear 4-star read for me, more like 3.5+, but I have rounded it up as to do less would be unfair to an obviously competent writer from whom I'd definitely like to see more.
LooseID did a great job producing this, and the cover, by Valerie Tibbs, whom I've not encountered before, was very nice. I loved the green scheme, no doubt in honour of the green-skinned Gareth. Yum.
From then on, I found it quite a difficult read. It wasn't that it was badly written - far from it, Charles Edward writes very well - but it was quite dark and almost felt hopeless at quite a few points. I had to force myself to continue, in the hope that all would work out - somehow. How the author got us to that somehow was with a long, convoluted, and for me, unexpected plot. I just felt very relieved when it ended with both main characters together (for now) and in one piece!
There is definitely room for a sequel; the whole book is set up as some kind of prologue for a longer cycle. I think I would read it, but I'd have to be in a resilient frame of mind to do so. In some ways, it reminded me of 'Bloodraven' by P.L. Nunn, which is a brilliant fantasy novel with a part-human hero. The book didn't have the readability and need to get to the next chapter NOW that Bloodraven has, which made that book more easy to bear, but it was a very good effort nevertheless.
As for rating it, it wasn't quite a clear 4-star read for me, more like 3.5+, but I have rounded it up as to do less would be unfair to an obviously competent writer from whom I'd definitely like to see more.
LooseID did a great job producing this, and the cover, by Valerie Tibbs, whom I've not encountered before, was very nice. I loved the green scheme, no doubt in honour of the green-skinned Gareth. Yum.
September 20, 2011
This novel worked well for me, for several reasons. The writing is polished and never distracted from the action. The plot is very well structured and brings things together beautifully. Romance drives the story (as you’d expect) and is used to illustrate the personalities of the main characters. And the M/M sex is positive and joyful, not to mention highly descriptive. In fact, descriptions throughout the book are exceptional. Some elements of the plot might not be everyone's cup of tea, which is fine (I have my own list of things I don't want to read about), but I enjoyed this novel's high-action intrigue. I’m looking forward to reading more about these characters and their adventures.
August 23, 2011
This story just didn't keep my attention the way I expected it to. I was more engrossed toward the end, while trying to figure our how it would wrap up, but it didn't really. It feels like the first part of something, like Eragon did. Several loose ends. Perhaps that was intentional. Great concept that didn't quite hit the mark for me in execution.
March 9, 2012
not too bad, but I can't finish it. I got up to a point where the two protagonists are in very different places, they don't seem to care about each other (they don't mention missing the other person - though it might "go unsaid" that they do). I don't feel like reading the last 3rd of the book at all.
December 3, 2015
Good fairy tale story in the beginning and then chapter after chapter of sex. The second half of the book takes place in the capital city with a whole different world-building and characters, which is a little off-putting. The main character is forced to love and make love to the queen. Then there's a battle, a betrayal, another betrayal, and then a 20+ page sex scene. So, I liked parts of it.
Want to read
March 5, 2013It sounds like there's a Magical Sex trope. I find such things amusing. Ergo, I might possibly find this book amusing (although I doubt that's the author's original intention. ...Ah, well. Who care?).
August 14, 2011
2.5 I really liked the beginning, but the second half was weak and I pretty much lost interest
November 22, 2011
Review posted at Romancing the Word
October 6, 2011
Powerful, moving, hot…need any more? Read it!
November 20, 2011
3.5 stars.
Read for m/m team bingo challenge.
Read for m/m team bingo challenge.
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