Little Spark of Flame

Creature Cafe #14

by Clio Evans

MNBi Monster Romance

Creatures of all kinds go to the Barista to find love, including the dapper mothman, Fitz.

Fitz has been searching for his little flame for ages. He wants someone who will enjoy the same cottagecore lifestyle he does. Gardening, taking walks through the forest, kneeling for their pleasure Dom…

When Sage receives a voicemail to come to Creature Cafe to meet their fate, they meet Fitz. He’s everything they’ve ever dreamed of. Charming, swoony, the perfect gentleman moth.

But sometimes, even when everything is perfect, insecurities arise. Can Sage overcome the pain of the past and seize their own monster-loving happy ending?

This novella includes the following:

Posh Mothman Dom
Enby MC
Live Lamp Love
D/s dynamics
Fated Mates
And more ;)

Genres: Paranormal, Novella, Romance, Monsters, Fantasy, Monster Romance, Paranormal Romance

109 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 8, 2024

Reviews

[Poppy || Monster Lover · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet Sage had so much insecurity because of their unsupportive parents who gave them conditional love, and everyone knows a sweetie pie Mothman is the cure to that. Fitz and Sage were kinky, leaning towards wax play, choking, and collars. They had their lil instalove story in this cozy installment.

Spice: 5/5

Triggers: parental estrangement due to transphobia, loneliness, feelings of not being worthy of love

[Esther (esther.reads) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anything Clio Evans writes is going to be good. It's a guarantee at this point. And Fitz, the posh mothman, was an absolute delight! I loved Sage and Fitz's story. Clio manages to pack a punch in their novellas, and the third act break up in this one was devastating. I just wanted to hold Sage and tell them they were worthy of love. Fitz was such a good mate to them. Just warm, cozy love all around!

Thanks to Clio for the ARC of Little Spark of Flame :)

[Samara · Rating 2 out of 5]

eh..

I’ve been lowkey(nah highkey lol) following this series since the beginning of this year. Loved every single book. Sadly this one just didn’t do it for me:/

[☾⋆⁺ Nurse After Dark · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was something truly romantic about being swept off my feet by a mothman, carried upstairs, and then told to kneel.

The parameters for this story were too good to pass up. Mothman/cottagecore is a vibe. I continue to enjoy the peeks into the old Creature Cafe world, as well as the sublte, underlying plot with the Barista's family. This second gen series is surprisingly engaging!

That being said, it doesn't look like we have any book 15 teased so far. The author seems to be focusing more on their contemporary works. I'm legit okay with that - after reading and really enjoying The Perfect Gift: A Christmas Cuckold Novella I definitely will pick up some of their works outside the monster genre!

[amirahlynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

“You deserve every single good thing that will happen to you and has happened to you. You deserve to be loved and to be happy.”
I didn’t really care for this story. It was too instalovey and the break up was ridiculous. I did find it nice that Sage has EDS because I also do and I was shocked to read it in a romance book

[Kristen ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

┈ Read this if you like ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈
✦ Monster Romance
✦ Mothman + Human
✦ Nonbinary Representation
✦ Novellas/Short Stories
✦ BDSM Scenes
✦ Fated Mates

┈ MY THOUGHTS ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈
- PANTY MUNCHER!! 😂😂😂 I can't stop laughing at all of the moth-related shit, like his obsession with clothes and how he wants to eat her underwear, is afraid of bodies of water, and doesn't like the daylight. I'm wondering what would happen if he came in contact with mothballs ... 🤔
- As always, Clio Evans delivered another short, sweet monster romance! She finds a way to incorporate new unique characters, monsters, and storylines for each new novella. I always enjoy reading these fun and spicy short stories!
- I can't wait to read Luca and Layla's stories in the future!

┈ OVERVIEW ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈
Pacing: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Characters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️/5
Overall:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Cover Art: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Format: eBook
POV: Dual 👥
Would I Recommend? 👍
Read Again? 👎
Setting / Location: N/A
Heroine/FMC: Sage
〰️Characteristics: Nonbinary
〰️Occupation: Game Designer
〰️Age: 32
〰️Nickname(s): Little Flame, darling, good toy, mate
Hero/MMC: Sir Fitzroy "Fitz" Edward III
〰️Characteristics: Dark red eyes, long antenna ended in gray fluffy plumes above his head, his entire body is covered in a fine mottled gray and black fur, seven-feet-tall,
〰️Occupation: Monster Detective
〰️Age: 100+
〰️Nickname(s): Sir, mate
H/h virgin? No
First kiss💋: 16%
First time they have sex: 30%
First time they say "I Love You": H: 63%, h: 88%
Noteworthy Chapters🔥: 2/3/4/5, 7/8/9
Kinks: Praise, dirty talk, toys, edging, no condom, bondage/restraints, spanking/impact play, 🩸/🔪 Play, biting/marking, sub/Dom, somnophilia
OW/OM Drama? No
H/h cheat? No
Time apart? No
Did I cry? No
Ending: HEA 🥰
Standalone/Series? Yes to both
Epilogue? No

⛔️ My reviews can sometimes contain spoilers.

[Anya Z. · Rating 5 out of 5]

...lamps & love

🕯ARC Review🕯

Little Spark of Flame by Clio Evans is the next amazing swoon-worthy book in the fabulous Creature Cafe Series. (Queue in happy cheering by me! 🥰) We have a very posh, cottagecore mothman - Sir Fitzroy Edward the Third - "Fitz" and a Enby human, Sage (love the representation) couple matched by Layla. As always, review the TWs that Clio lists in their books. (For me it reads as a ƙïnƙs all-star list 😏). SO much emotion in this story, I definitely fell in love with Fitz & Sage. They are both lonely souls looking for connections - romantically & for companionship. 💗 The §ëx is off-the-charts §pïcƴ 🥵🔥💋 ...which really - is the gold standard that Clio achieves in all of their books every time...

🎉 We also get Penny & Rum updates, Layla & Luca teasers AND a teaser for the next Creature Cafe Book: Little Shake of Salt with a mermaid in 2025!! 🎉

L🩷VE to read Fitz's inner thoughts about Sage...

"...It frightened me to be so honest, but I couldn’t deny the way my soul recognized theirs. Sage was mine. Sage was everything I'd dreamed of and more. I’d found someone who made me feel loved. Who made me feel like I would change my entire life just to be with them. There were so many things I wanted to experience with them, to see through their eyes. It was hard to imagine going back home without them..."

...aaaaannnnddd the museum date, shower scenes & outdoor lamps night event will live rent free in my mind forever... 🥵🔥💋

[Willie Mercedes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Little Spark of Flame, the latest spellbinding chapter in the beloved Creature Cafe Series, is here to set your imagination ablaze!

Enter Fitz, who's decided that loneliness is so last season and takes a trip to the creature café in hopes of meeting his soulmate.

Meet Sweet Sage, who's wrestling with the heavyweight champ of insecurities, no thanks to their parents who handed out love with more strings attached than a puppet show. But fear not, for the charming Mothman is rumored to be the emotional Band-Aid Sage needs! Fitz, with his dapper lamp bow tie and a demeanor smoother than butter, is as delightful as a chocolate fountain, and Sage seems like the perfect partner-in-crime.

And let's not forget the delightful antics of Luca and Layla. Layla's on a mission to prove her mettle to her dad, though the road is paved with a few bumps and banana peels.

Things to know

bondage, Dom/sub dynamics, edging, sensation play, wax play, praise, sex in a public space, mentions of losing family because of their homophobic beliefs, loneliness, feelings of not being worthy of love, choking, panty eating, collaring, a Third Act Breakup, sexual overstimulation, sex toys, breeding kink (no pregnancy), deep throating, cock pockets, fated mates, mothman x human, pleasure dom, nonbinary mc, Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome rep, age gap

[Trinity · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 🌶🌶🌶/5

TW - estranged by family due to their homophobic beliefs (recounted), loneliness, feeling underserving of love, alcohol consumption, NBMC with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome

CW - breeding, D/s, wax play, light knife play (no cutting), edging, sensory play, public play, choking, breath play, collaring, toys, bondage, light somnophilia, very light boot worship, overstimulation

Tropes - paranormal, age gap, fated mates, insta lust

Representation - non binary MC

😬😬😬

This one was a bit lack lustre for me...

Sage (NBMC) and Fitz (MMC) are set up together and they hit it off straight away. They had many sweet moments together and I found them to be quite cute.

... the third act breakup killed it for me. On the basis that it didn't really make sense? The MCs live far away from each other and the tension was at the hands of a "what now?" scenario. Light spoilers: This didn't make sense as the seed was already planted of Sage making a comment about being able to move with Fitz and then they kind of acted like that never happened??? The mistake was realised in the following chapter and the resolved in the next one and it kind of just left me feeling... empty . At 32 years old, the way Sage acted felt a bit infantile; the situation felt like it was written just for the sake of it 🤷🏽‍♀️

Scale:
⭐️ - would've DNF'ed / continued out of spite
⭐️⭐️ - shit, but whatever
⭐️⭐️⭐️ - meh, could've been better
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - lit 👅
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - loved it, inject this shit into my veins 🤪

🫑 - no smut
🌶 - no point
🌶🌶 - mediocre at best
🌶🌶🌶 - standard smut, hot
🌶🌶🌶🌶 - 🥵 okay, some CW
🌶🌶🌶🌶🌶 - fuck me 🥵🥵 CWs / filthy with a side of filth - see Poison / Room Twenty-Two: Hide and Seek/ The Naughty List

[Meagan Grauel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another banger from Clio Evans. This Creature Café story features a mothman and a nonbinary as the couple being paired up. We love a book that shines a light on representation, and while all of these Creature Café novellas are LGBTQ+ friendly, this was a first couple wise. It still features all the great things about monster smut you love to see - cock pockets, specialty equipment, extra long tongues, and all sorts of kinks explored. There is a third act breakup in this one, and while that isn’t my favorite - it’s short lived and there is definitely a HEA. Absolutely love this series and each installment is pretty short and easy to read. Definitely recommend to any monster smut lover and you should start at the very beginning of the series!

[Lexi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fitz and Sage are just so cute!! Fitz is the most absolute gentleman and wants to treat his mate like a princess while obviously enjoying some spicy things as well. While Sage is scared to love and be loved, believing they do not deserve love or Fitz. But they just fit perfectly!

I also enjoy getting to see Luca and Layla’s progress through the books. Poor Layla is trying her hardest to prove to her dad that she can do it, and there are still little bumps in the road. Where as Luca we haven’t fully gotten an understanding of what he is. But that just means more books to come im the series and I can’t wait!

[Lizs.book.nook ||Elizabeth|| · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will absolutely never tire of being in the Creature Cafe world. Every time I am, I feel like I am home.
Fitz and Sage are wonderful! Their instant connection and trust is so beautiful. Their likes and desires align so well and it was clear as day they were made for one another. I loved seeing all of their special moments both physical and emotional. Seeing them truly build a long lasting love. And most important truly loving and accepting the other completely for who they are. My review can’t even begin to do this story justice. But I love love loved it!

[Petra Hart · Rating 2 out of 5]

From five stars to two, what happened?

I adored the dapper Fitz and his cheerfully lusty plans for his mate. But that’s it. He deserved someone who could really appreciate him and not just the sex.

The plotting was sloppy and after their meet-cute it’s a huge bore.

And tho it promises kink, there’s no playfulness, nor sensuousness, nor a sense of delicious danger. Take the wax play. He gets the candles out, drips patterns, she says she liked it, then they move to something else. I think it’s the most passionless kink I’ve ever read.

[Alexandria Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

While not my favorite Creature Cafe story, Little Spark of Flame is still wonderful. Fitz is absolutely adorable with his lamp bow tie and posh demeanor and Sage just seems to be a perfect complement to him. The spicy scenes are *chef’s kiss* and I want more with them.

The only things that didn’t seem to mesh with me were the 3rd act “breakup” (super brief, but it still wasn’t my fave part) and the almost lack of outside conflict that I’m used to with the CC series.

I’m excited for Little Shake of Salt next year (Yay mermaids!!!) and whatever else Clio decides to grace us with.

[Lindsey Middlemiss · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and sweet

A cute short monster romance. Short and sweet, maybe a bit short for me!

The main characters were adorable but I would have loved a bit more back story. Same with a tad more on the siblings rivalry vibes from Layla and Luca.

In this, you'll find:
🔹️MX Monster Romance
🔹️Non-binary human
🔹️Mothman pleasure Dom
🔹️BDSM inc bondage
🔹️Magical matchmaking
🔹️Moving abroad

[Addison · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Little Spark of Flame is cottagecore monster romance at its finest. Fitz the posh mothman is sweet, sexy, and unapologetically dapper, while Sage’s enby journey toward self-love is so touching. Their scenes are dreamy, sensual, and full of devotion. The dynamic between them is perfectly balanced between gentle care and spicy D/s energy, making this novella feel like a cozy fantasy with a powerful emotional core.

[Lizzy Love ❤ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Queen Clio does it again! Beautifully written and loved the characters. 🥰 i now want more mothmen. Yes it had a few grammar mistakes but i will be adding all 14 books to my shelf as trophies because i have read them all. I would definitely read them again. I love everything this author has written but the claws & warts inc. As well as the monster cafe series will always have my heart 🧡

[kim_is_bookish · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC REVIEW

I pretty much love anything Clio writes, and this one is no exception. It was really cute and spicy! I did miss a bit of the intensity of the overarching plot if the previous books in Creature Café and Warts and Claws series, but I see how that is slowly being set up through the books that are out so far in this new set of books. I'm looking forward to more!

[Tabbie Fayth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm swooning

This one hit so many points i didn't know needed hit. Love that one character was NB. Also loving that theor insecurities were not instantly fixed and they struggled with them a bit. It felt a little more real (as real as can be expected for a monster romance smut book).

[Jessica Gorgen · Rating 3 out of 5]

good

This was a pretty good book. I liked most of it. Fitz and his bow ties and his love of lamps sounds adorable. I struggled a bit with Sage’s character, I think because they seemed hot and cold, but at least Fitz kind of understood it, at least at first. And poor Fitz, I cried for him. But yay for happy ever after!

[Carlislethesucker uwu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honestly, I'm reading this series out of obligation atp, and I also like the universe building. Albeit I feel like this author could SLOW DOWN. Just a little bit because the "fight" was only like.... 5 or less pages total and felt very ham fisted to create drama

Overall, it's not a standout story in this series, but I will check out the next one when it inevitably does release.

[Crystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fitz & Sage.
Mothman & Human.
Fitz, lives alone and is getting lonely…going to the creature cafe while in town to see Rum is the perfect excuse for him to find his mate.
Sage doesn’t believe they are meant to be loved. They have been left by everyone whom was meant to love them.
Layla & Barista did it again…..even tho Layla still has a lot to learn!

[Tracey · Rating 2 out of 5]

It took me a month to finish this novella. I think that says everything about how much I liked it. I did find it refreshing that the third act conflict was internal and not an evil force tearing the couple apart. Insecurities are evil enough. The ending was abrupt, and I find Layla to be very annoying. She needs some character work pronto.

[Lucy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never knew I needed Mothman smut… until now. The Barista is still a matchmaker, and now his daughter is too. Sage and Fitz are the perfect match.. like moth and flames. Sage is headstrong and she has to overcome certain things, but thankfully, Fitz is patient and understands. The spice level is so good!!

[SL Thomson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another couple

That the batista has perfectly matched. The story seemed a little shorter than usual but was filled to the brim with spice, action and adventure. Letting the kids take the reins was interesting even if not perfect. Love this series and concept.

[Aly Valentine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awww Mothman is such a romantic! I really enjoyed the unique POV love story and diverse characters. Would’ve liked to see more of the story and character development, but it definitely brought the spice!

[Bre · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was pretty good. Normally I love this stuff. Not sure if I was in a slump or not though but it was just “okay”. Entertaining cute. But Sage frustrated me to know end because of their hang ups. And I get that was the point. But golly. Did the third act break up irritate me

[R.E. Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

So cute 😍

Spoiler (though it is mentioned in the CWs)

I'll admit to being nervous about the third act breakup, but it suited the story well and resolved quickly. I really enjoyed the spice and ENBI REP!!! YAY!! Thanks, Clio!

[Marie Costa · Rating 4 out of 5]

CLIO cant never miss ! Yet again the story continu and Clio does their magic !

Short, cute and oh so HOT

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I mean what can I say, it’s exactly what I wanted. Hot & spicy with a dash of true love - a perfect recipe! Also, adored mothman’s love for lamps 😂