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Emperor Ai: MM Spicy Historical Romance Emperor Ai of Han
Among the stacks of books in the palace library sat the most beautiful man Dong had ever seen. He almost felt like he was intruding but couldn't bring himself to walk away, the magnetic pull between them was too much.
Stumbling upon the Emperor of China during his first trip to the capitol as a government official had not been part of the plan; nor was becoming said Emperor's lover between meetings.
How many days could Dong Xian realistically go without falling head over heels for the one man in the country that he could not have?
More than one, certainly.
Probably.
Shit.
Stumbling upon the Emperor of China during his first trip to the capitol as a government official had not been part of the plan; nor was becoming said Emperor's lover between meetings.
How many days could Dong Xian realistically go without falling head over heels for the one man in the country that he could not have?
More than one, certainly.
Probably.
Shit.
- GenresM M RomanceLGBTRomance
239 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 1, 2023
8 people are currently reading
51 people want to read
About the author
Harlowe Savage
6 books18 followersHarlowe Savage is a queer author dedicated to creating stories that depict queer romances with the same amount of spice and passion that readers get from their straight counterparts. She firmly believes that the gap between the amount of LGBTQIA+ erotica and heterosexual erotica in the mainstream is far too large and intends to rectify this through normalizing queer romance novels and increasing accessibility of the genre.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
November 11, 2024
Emperor Ai and Dong Xian are not a historical couple I was familiar with so I was delighted to read something I couldn’t reference my own historical knowledge for accuracies.
I am delighted to report Harlowe’s writing is much improved from her debut novel, Alexander. I didn’t find myself frustrated with the unsophisticated writing as I had with Alexander. I was much more engaged the story overall. It did also seem that Harlowe took a bit more care into the details regarding time period.
It did seem, however, that old habits die hard. Harlowe often repeated the same lines or phrases, this made the story a bit predictable. And chapters would wrap up neatly with hardly any tension giving me no motivation to keep reading. Why bother? I already know it’s going to be a happily ever after. The characters spoke with each other in a far too informal manner than they would for the time period. I genuinely don’t mind modern dialogue or slang, but time and place matter. Were this set in modern day or as a modern retelling, I wouldn’t have been as distracted.
I’m not a fan of Insta-love in my MM, but I can always overlook a trope or two. As always, Harlowe really excels during the spicy scenes. I enjoyed reading those a lot. And I think she improved from her debut novel in this department as well.
This book gives me YA vibes, however the content is too mature to categorize it as such. Again, I wonder if an adult audience this is intended for would enjoy this much.
I enjoyed this addition to what I now suppose is a series of Emperors and their lovers. I’m seeing lots of improvements and I’m looking forward to Harlowe’s next installment.
I am delighted to report Harlowe’s writing is much improved from her debut novel, Alexander. I didn’t find myself frustrated with the unsophisticated writing as I had with Alexander. I was much more engaged the story overall. It did also seem that Harlowe took a bit more care into the details regarding time period.
It did seem, however, that old habits die hard. Harlowe often repeated the same lines or phrases, this made the story a bit predictable. And chapters would wrap up neatly with hardly any tension giving me no motivation to keep reading. Why bother? I already know it’s going to be a happily ever after. The characters spoke with each other in a far too informal manner than they would for the time period. I genuinely don’t mind modern dialogue or slang, but time and place matter. Were this set in modern day or as a modern retelling, I wouldn’t have been as distracted.
I’m not a fan of Insta-love in my MM, but I can always overlook a trope or two. As always, Harlowe really excels during the spicy scenes. I enjoyed reading those a lot. And I think she improved from her debut novel in this department as well.
This book gives me YA vibes, however the content is too mature to categorize it as such. Again, I wonder if an adult audience this is intended for would enjoy this much.
I enjoyed this addition to what I now suppose is a series of Emperors and their lovers. I’m seeing lots of improvements and I’m looking forward to Harlowe’s next installment.
October 27, 2024
This is my first review on goodreads and I want to preface this first by saying that I read this as a request from the author for an honest review. And so, I’ll be as honest as I can - I am not being paid to read & review this, I’m just one of many people who enjoy reviewing things we’re given!
To start, I was very excited to read this book. I'm a sucker for historical romances, especially ones set in ancient China - I’ve read my fair share of Chinese danmei novels translated to English and I love them to bits! So, this sort of thing piqued my interest very quickly.
I think this novel is best enjoyed by keeping your expectations for historical realism low. It took me out of immersion a lot because the author used very present-day speech and terms during conversation between characters and some formal addresses that would typically be between an emperor and his lesser (in terms of status) were entirely forgone or missing here. I had hoped for more of that rigid class structure I’m use to seeing in works like this, but I think it worked out fine that it wasn’t in this work since the author made it no secret that this was less about the historical realism and more about playing on the relationship between Emperor Ai and Dong Xian.
Dong Xian and Emperor Ai are also technically married men, but more in the lavender marriage type way. Dong Xian is very up front with his wife though and she’s not offended by his tryst with the emperor and is actually very supportive of his happiness, so keep that in mind if you’re the type who doesn't like that sort of thing. Emperor Ai’s wife also knows he has other lovers and isn’t bothered by it. Feiyan and Lihua also become friends toward the end.
This was a very easy read, and if you have an hour or two in your day to spare it makes for a great book to occupy your time. I found that their relationship progressed faster than I anticipated - page 32 or so, and the rest of the book is pretty much a lot of smut. So if you’re expecting something slow burn this isn’t the book for you. I did however enjoy Emperor Ai and Dong Xian’s interactions, they were fun and to the reader it’s very obvious both of them are pretty obsessed with each other right from the start and any of the big issues with their relationship status wise were quickly resolved during the book to make way for their sexual interactions. There also really isn't any court intrigue, and I couldn't imagine it added in here given the length of the book is just over 200 pages in total.
All in all I think this was a fun book to read and good for anyone who enjoys more saucy books, and I’d definitely give it a try if that interests you!
To start, I was very excited to read this book. I'm a sucker for historical romances, especially ones set in ancient China - I’ve read my fair share of Chinese danmei novels translated to English and I love them to bits! So, this sort of thing piqued my interest very quickly.
I think this novel is best enjoyed by keeping your expectations for historical realism low. It took me out of immersion a lot because the author used very present-day speech and terms during conversation between characters and some formal addresses that would typically be between an emperor and his lesser (in terms of status) were entirely forgone or missing here. I had hoped for more of that rigid class structure I’m use to seeing in works like this, but I think it worked out fine that it wasn’t in this work since the author made it no secret that this was less about the historical realism and more about playing on the relationship between Emperor Ai and Dong Xian.
Dong Xian and Emperor Ai are also technically married men, but more in the lavender marriage type way. Dong Xian is very up front with his wife though and she’s not offended by his tryst with the emperor and is actually very supportive of his happiness, so keep that in mind if you’re the type who doesn't like that sort of thing. Emperor Ai’s wife also knows he has other lovers and isn’t bothered by it. Feiyan and Lihua also become friends toward the end.
This was a very easy read, and if you have an hour or two in your day to spare it makes for a great book to occupy your time. I found that their relationship progressed faster than I anticipated - page 32 or so, and the rest of the book is pretty much a lot of smut. So if you’re expecting something slow burn this isn’t the book for you. I did however enjoy Emperor Ai and Dong Xian’s interactions, they were fun and to the reader it’s very obvious both of them are pretty obsessed with each other right from the start and any of the big issues with their relationship status wise were quickly resolved during the book to make way for their sexual interactions. There also really isn't any court intrigue, and I couldn't imagine it added in here given the length of the book is just over 200 pages in total.
All in all I think this was a fun book to read and good for anyone who enjoys more saucy books, and I’d definitely give it a try if that interests you!
October 14, 2024
So sweet, spicy, and totally beautiful!
I loved everything about this story. The romance was so real and so sweet, the spice SOOOI totally spicy, and all the emotions captured were conveyed with such depth! I was really impressed by the MCs' character development and absolutely loved the roles of the supporting characters. I can't wait to read more by this author in future!
I loved everything about this story. The romance was so real and so sweet, the spice SOOOI totally spicy, and all the emotions captured were conveyed with such depth! I was really impressed by the MCs' character development and absolutely loved the roles of the supporting characters. I can't wait to read more by this author in future!
November 19, 2024
This was such a fun spicy read.
Again Harlow writes very enjoyable spicy MM historical romances. This one is a quick and easy read, following our two MCs you are sure to enjoy it.
Also definitely check out Harlows other two books if this one sparks your interest!
Again Harlow writes very enjoyable spicy MM historical romances. This one is a quick and easy read, following our two MCs you are sure to enjoy it.
Also definitely check out Harlows other two books if this one sparks your interest!
September 29, 2025
This was quick, romantic, and full of spice.
I really enjoyed the relationship between Ai and Dong, especially with how tender and kind the emperor is. I think this book is full of great characters and I can't wait for the next one
I really enjoyed the relationship between Ai and Dong, especially with how tender and kind the emperor is. I think this book is full of great characters and I can't wait for the next one
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews