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Daemon Master
Pokémon Meets Queer Fantasy in This Thrilling Epic Adventure!
Centuries ago, daemons drove humanity to the brink of extinction. Serenity Corp's discovery of bondstones—mystical gems that enslaved these formidable creatures to fight on behalf of their human masters—turned the tide. Since then, Serenity Corp's monopoly on daemon bonding has ensured their unrivaled dominance...until now.
Adrian used to dream of following in his parents’ footsteps and defending civilization from the wild daemons that continue to threaten it. Unfortunately, his weak aether seemed to leave him unfit for anything but catching strays. Resigned to mediocrity, he carries out his duty while trying to ignore the townsfolk’s pity and his ex-friend Seymour’s sneering contempt.
Everything changes when a routine assignment thrusts him into the midst of a conspiracy seeking to cover up a new way of bonding daemons—one that doesn't strip them of their free will. Suddenly society's most wanted fugitive, he finds himself on the run armed with nothing but his newfound knowledge, his daemons, and an uneasy alliance with Seymour.
Venturing into the wilds, Adrian is determined to master this new bond and strengthen his aether. Confronted by terrifying monsters, a relentless assassin, and enigmatic magic, he must rely on his daemons and Seymour if he hopes to survive.
But can Adrian truly alter the course of the ceaseless conflict between humans and daemons...or will he prove to be the failure he's always feared?
Dive into the first book of the Daemon Master trilogy, a queer fantasy series featuring Pokémon-style battles, a slow-burn enemies-to-lovers M/M romance, and a gripping tale of rebellion against a dystopian society's tyranny.
Centuries ago, daemons drove humanity to the brink of extinction. Serenity Corp's discovery of bondstones—mystical gems that enslaved these formidable creatures to fight on behalf of their human masters—turned the tide. Since then, Serenity Corp's monopoly on daemon bonding has ensured their unrivaled dominance...until now.
Adrian used to dream of following in his parents’ footsteps and defending civilization from the wild daemons that continue to threaten it. Unfortunately, his weak aether seemed to leave him unfit for anything but catching strays. Resigned to mediocrity, he carries out his duty while trying to ignore the townsfolk’s pity and his ex-friend Seymour’s sneering contempt.
Everything changes when a routine assignment thrusts him into the midst of a conspiracy seeking to cover up a new way of bonding daemons—one that doesn't strip them of their free will. Suddenly society's most wanted fugitive, he finds himself on the run armed with nothing but his newfound knowledge, his daemons, and an uneasy alliance with Seymour.
Venturing into the wilds, Adrian is determined to master this new bond and strengthen his aether. Confronted by terrifying monsters, a relentless assassin, and enigmatic magic, he must rely on his daemons and Seymour if he hopes to survive.
But can Adrian truly alter the course of the ceaseless conflict between humans and daemons...or will he prove to be the failure he's always feared?
Dive into the first book of the Daemon Master trilogy, a queer fantasy series featuring Pokémon-style battles, a slow-burn enemies-to-lovers M/M romance, and a gripping tale of rebellion against a dystopian society's tyranny.
375 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 13, 2024
2 people are currently reading
27 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
May 13, 2024
This is quite the story. It took me some time to get past Seymour’s actions but otherwise this story was fascinating. I thought the world created here was interesting with their demon bonds and powers. I do love a good tale about trying to defeat a corrupt system. It’s a good book but I don’t really know I felt about some aspects of it. Like the ending for one. I know there are more books planned, so I will just have to wait and see what happens. I’m not quite as forgiving as Adrian but I did enjoy most of the story. I would give 3.5 stars. I think Heartrender is one of my favorite characters.
May 18, 2024
4.5/5 This was a fascinating new world—with lots of injustice for Adrian to fight. I enjoyed learning about aether and demons through his eyes and watching him decide to fight for the truth and what is right even when he’s scared and feels weak. The daemons were fascinating, and I loved Heartrender and the others as we got to see their true personalities.
This is definitely a slow burn, but that worked for me given the years of animosity between Seymour and Adrian. I was pretty annoyed with Seymour’s reasons for behaving the way he did, but I can sort of see poorly expressed teen feelings of (inaccurate) rejection and then a society built on valuing strong aether turning him into a jerk. I appreciated the time taken to unpick all those poor decisions and rebuild their relationship. Adrian has not had an easy time of it, and I feel like they’re all still learning to see value not related to aether and being a daemon master. But it was interesting to watch duty, right, basic decency, and temper causing those two to clash, spark, and form a stronger bond.
There are some dark moments here, Kali was nasty, Jasper was super creepy, and there’s clearly an uphill battle to expose the truth about Serenity Corp. I look forward to the next books!
I received an ARC from the author. This is my honest review.
This is definitely a slow burn, but that worked for me given the years of animosity between Seymour and Adrian. I was pretty annoyed with Seymour’s reasons for behaving the way he did, but I can sort of see poorly expressed teen feelings of (inaccurate) rejection and then a society built on valuing strong aether turning him into a jerk. I appreciated the time taken to unpick all those poor decisions and rebuild their relationship. Adrian has not had an easy time of it, and I feel like they’re all still learning to see value not related to aether and being a daemon master. But it was interesting to watch duty, right, basic decency, and temper causing those two to clash, spark, and form a stronger bond.
There are some dark moments here, Kali was nasty, Jasper was super creepy, and there’s clearly an uphill battle to expose the truth about Serenity Corp. I look forward to the next books!
I received an ARC from the author. This is my honest review.
May 26, 2024
Ticked a lot of boxes for me; animal companions, estranged friends turned enemies forced into close contact with each other, MC who is considered weak but is a sweetheart who grows throughout the journey, and a big bad corporation who pretend to be the good guys but hide dark secrets. The villains are developed with believable motivations, and even have likeable aspects despite being colossal jerks to the MC's and daemons: I'm honestly rooting for a Jasper redemption arc in book 2, as I love a redeemed villain.
Light on the romance, with the slowest of burns, but given how antagonistic the MC's were to each other at the start, and how they had to work back to a friendship, that's understandable, and as it's a trilogy there's plenty of time to develop their relationship more.
Can't wait for the next part!
ARC copy received from the author. Review honest and voluntary.
Light on the romance, with the slowest of burns, but given how antagonistic the MC's were to each other at the start, and how they had to work back to a friendship, that's understandable, and as it's a trilogy there's plenty of time to develop their relationship more.
Can't wait for the next part!
ARC copy received from the author. Review honest and voluntary.
May 22, 2024
Another fascinating world from Elric. Excellent word building which allowed us to understand this world of aether and demons through Adrian point of view. I actually loved the demons and also the interaction between Adrian and Seymour, evolving from years of animosity to finally rebuilding their relationship though plenty of clashes along the way! The plot was a slow burn with some dark moments but kept me intrigued throughout.
I received an arc copy and this is my honest review.
I received an arc copy and this is my honest review.
March 30, 2025
This book was interesting, the first couple of pages had me before, but the book picked up in the middle and then fell flat before the good part. It wasn’t horrible, but I don’t ever want to read it again.
May 17, 2024
A pulling start with a boring story plot.
May 18, 2024
Wow, what a story, when it's to much it's too much. I'm rather disappointed with this story.
May 17, 2024
This story was entertaining but the writing was average. It could use an editor for better flow and dialogue, but the grammar and verbiage was fine.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews