Broken Wings

by Alex Jones

Fear. It was the twitch in his subconscious, like a word stuck in his throat he could never quite say.

Adrian’s life is simple: go to work, come home, look no one in the eye. If you don’t take risks, you won’t die. That’s what life has taught him, and in the urban sprawl of the industrial Oregon coast, it’s kept him alive. He hasn’t had a panic attack in months.

Then one night, a winged man named Cassius makes a crash landing on his doorstep. Out of fear of the government Adrian hides him. But Cassius is more than he seems and when the winged shifter’s haunted past comes knocking, Adrian learns the true meaning of fear. He must find the courage to face the darkness or risk losing the man he has grown to love.

Genres: Fantasy

72 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 12, 2013

Reviews

[T.M. Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Broken Wings is a short about two strangers with completely different personalities that are thrown together due to circumstance, and end up falling in love.

Adrian doesn’t take risks. He lives his boringly mundane life on repeat, completely terrified to deviate at all. Fear, panic and anxiety rule is life; until Cassius comes crashing into it. Cassius is a bird shifter hiding from another shifter who wants to kill him. Adrian takes his first risk by hiding Cassius, his second risk is opening up and letting Cassius into his life.

The two begin their own routine and slowly wrap themselves into each other’s lives. Cassius grows more attached and attracted to Adrian with each passing day. When Adrian finally lets Cassius know that the attraction is mutual, Cassius will do everything he can to make him feel loved and safe. But soon Cassius’s past catches up with them and Adrian will have to take a risk to protect the man he’s grown to love.

If you’re looking for something short with a decent storyline and solid characters, give Broken Wings strong consideration. Some hot bird man/man sex that involves wings and levitation only sweeten the plot!

[Niki · Rating 4 out of 5]

The writing is good, the first page pulling me into the story when a man living in constant fear found the courage to rescue a winged man who could only exist in dreams. So began Adrian's and Cassius story as Adrian tagged themselves a winged mutant and a paranoid shut-in. I enjoy how the two got to know each other, overcoming the fear of the unknown or threat, their hesitation evolving into companionship, affection as the weeks passed, building into feelings much deeper than either could have envisaged. How Cassius accompanied Adrian to Adrian's work place was especially cute. There were some really suspenseful moments in the last part when Cassius' nightmare past caught up with them. So the last short chapter was especially sweet. For a novella this one does have a solid plot with likable characters. But I also wish it could have been longer to provide more background on the dynamics in Cassius' world to understand the enmity in Cassius' past or maybe it is just a species hatred thing like racial hatred in humankind. The writer could have also provided more background on the state of Adrian's world which was obviously an altered future. Good read as I was never bored.

[Shon French · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book sucked me in from page one. It was so beautifully written I almost cried. This Author is a down to hearth author and does not mess around when it comes to writing. She told a story of love so well, that I was amazed by the whole book.