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Prosperity #2
Shackles
Dear Mr. Dickens,
Since you was so kind as to publish my story in your magazine, lots of folks have been sending me lots of letters asking me about stuff what happened what I don’t know about. Seems like they want to know how a priest what got himself chucked out the church, and the Arch Rogue of Gaslight, being only the prissiest motherswinker whatever held a knife to your throat, wound up in what I reckon ye might call love, or as near as passes for it.
Things is, I never did get the whirligigs to ask Ruben himself, but I done some asking round, and I think I got the shape of it.
’Cos it’s Ruben’s story, I tried to write it all proper and inkhornish like he’d like it, and Byron Kae has checked all the spellings for me, so you don’t have to ask that nice Mr. Collins this time.
I ain’t so sure about the commas.
Piccadilly
Word 16,300; page 72
This title is included in the Liberty & Other Stories collection.
Since you was so kind as to publish my story in your magazine, lots of folks have been sending me lots of letters asking me about stuff what happened what I don’t know about. Seems like they want to know how a priest what got himself chucked out the church, and the Arch Rogue of Gaslight, being only the prissiest motherswinker whatever held a knife to your throat, wound up in what I reckon ye might call love, or as near as passes for it.
Things is, I never did get the whirligigs to ask Ruben himself, but I done some asking round, and I think I got the shape of it.
’Cos it’s Ruben’s story, I tried to write it all proper and inkhornish like he’d like it, and Byron Kae has checked all the spellings for me, so you don’t have to ask that nice Mr. Collins this time.
I ain’t so sure about the commas.
Piccadilly
Word 16,300; page 72
This title is included in the Liberty & Other Stories collection.
62 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 3, 2015
3 people are currently reading
389 people want to read
About the author
Alexis Hall
59 books15k followersOne of those intricate British queers.
Please note: I don’t read / reply to DMs. If you would like to get in touch, the best way is via email which you can find in the contact section on my website <3
Please note: I don’t read / reply to DMs. If you would like to get in touch, the best way is via email which you can find in the contact section on my website <3
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
May 20, 2015
If Alexis Hall ever decides to write a series about Ruben and Milord, I'll sing his praises non-stop.
Ruben is an aristocratic would-be priest. He believes that everyone has some good in them, no matter what sins they might have committed. Milord is the crime boss of the underworld, and has very few regrets. The two are thrown together when Milord is arrested, and Ruben is sent to convince Milord to repent before his execution. The situation becomes complicated when it becomes clear that they're attracted to each other.
While I enjoyed Prosperity, I didn't love it. However, Ruben and Milord definitely caught my attention, so I couldn't wait to get my hands on this short prequel. It really delivers the goods. Readers will get to see why exactly Ruben and Milord's relationship is so complicated, and what got them to the point that they were at in 'Prosperity'.
Both characters are complex, divided between what they want in their hearts, and how they believe they should feel about each other, given their specific circumstances. There isn't much common ground for a godly aristocrat and an amoral criminal to build something together, but the two can't stop themselves from wanting more.
This is a thoroughly enjoyable read, which fans of 'Prosperity' will love. Though 'Shackles' could be read as a stand-alone, I think it's one of those prequels that are better appreciated when read after reading the book that was published first.
*ARC provided through NetGalley
Ruben is an aristocratic would-be priest. He believes that everyone has some good in them, no matter what sins they might have committed. Milord is the crime boss of the underworld, and has very few regrets. The two are thrown together when Milord is arrested, and Ruben is sent to convince Milord to repent before his execution. The situation becomes complicated when it becomes clear that they're attracted to each other.
While I enjoyed Prosperity, I didn't love it. However, Ruben and Milord definitely caught my attention, so I couldn't wait to get my hands on this short prequel. It really delivers the goods. Readers will get to see why exactly Ruben and Milord's relationship is so complicated, and what got them to the point that they were at in 'Prosperity'.
Both characters are complex, divided between what they want in their hearts, and how they believe they should feel about each other, given their specific circumstances. There isn't much common ground for a godly aristocrat and an amoral criminal to build something together, but the two can't stop themselves from wanting more.
This is a thoroughly enjoyable read, which fans of 'Prosperity' will love. Though 'Shackles' could be read as a stand-alone, I think it's one of those prequels that are better appreciated when read after reading the book that was published first.
*ARC provided through NetGalley
January 11, 2015
Shackles is the story of Ruben and Milord.
“There is more to a person than what they do.”
This is the story that made me want to re-read Prosperity the most because I have underestimated Ruben greatly. In Prosperity I saw him as this white knight trying to save everyone. But there’s so much more to Ruben.
In Shackles he is not the one physically chained, yet I felt he is trapped and his encounters with Milord set him free when he least expected.
He wanted to make him laugh. Subdue him with ecstasy. Cover him with good things until his own goodness—or lack of it—didn’t matter. Of course, it wasn’t biblical.
Milord is, well, Milord and nothing can put him off balance like Ruben. His refusal to give in to emotions of any kind is put through the test here and the end of the story is both surprising and typical Milord.
Also, Nell was brilliant.
I call this story Alexis Hall's magic because when he writes about the desires of the heart, I find myself hoping that even the villain will find love.
June 12, 2016
Lament! as an upstanding clergyman falls into the villainous clutches of a notorious criminal mastermind.
Oh my fucking God. I am so stunned. Stunned by Milord, and Milord and Ruben. Stunned. When I’m reading their story, I am glued to the pages. I feel so close to them. I can feel their want and despair. I can smell the dampness of the cell, the fragrance of the tea. I am lured in and helpless. I have no defenses. I am owned and made a prisoner of emotions.
There has never been a person that engrossed me more than Milord, never been a connection between two people that I adored more, and I can’t imagine there’ll ever be another.
Milord all on his own is so fascinating to me. He’s so cold and broken, yet so overwhelmed with want and emotion. I pity and admire him and he would hate me for it. He’s so proud and ruthless. A lost soul. A survivor.
I can’t but be appalled by his deeds, that he deems necessary, but like Ruben I can’t but love and want him despite everything. I want him to experience something good, something real and powerful for the first time in his life. I want him to live, to find love, and give love in return.
Milord and Ruben together on page are just mind-blowing to me. They are my own personal brand of heroine. Their scenes are so special. Tender and wary, full of desire and mistrust, of hope and betrayal. They are everything to me.
‘Shackles’ is the beginning of their story. It is a powerful start to a powerful future that is continued in Prosperity.
January 17, 2016
OMFG!
Preliminary compressed review: *Hmm, beautiful, chuckles, aww, wooo, hmmm, weeps, laughs, squees, shudders with horror, weeps some more, woo-ooo!, awwwwww, gasps, stunned silence*
Or, y'know, just: OMFG!
Preliminary compressed review: *Hmm, beautiful, chuckles, aww, wooo, hmmm, weeps, laughs, squees, shudders with horror, weeps some more, woo-ooo!, awwwwww, gasps, stunned silence*
Or, y'know, just: OMFG!
July 18, 2015
Milord!! That is all.
February 21, 2016
Just wow. The dynamics between Milord and Reuben. Amazing.
July 31, 2023
unfortunately I thought this was UNSPEAKABLY goofy. I'll continue on with the series in the hopes that the next installment is less.........hm................dilettantish? by which I mean that we've all of us wanted at some point in our lives to write this, right, but that most of us either grow out of that desire because we realize that do so well would prove a laborious feat such that our efforts are likely better spent elsewhere, or we're one of the blessed few who do in fact go on to, to be frank, do a better job of writing it than was done here. I have secondhand embarrassment. "in my skin there is the memory of knives" . . . okay, buddy.
March 29, 2016
This is the story of Ruben and Milord, and how they met. Milord is captive, a man of vile reputation and fallen-angel looks, whose one virtue seems to be that he never lies about who and what he is. Ruben is the handsome, earnest and compassionate clergyman tasked with convincing Milord that it is better to repent and hang than be burned alive. Unfortunately Milord is not capable of repentance, or even faking it. And Ruben is inexorably drawn to this strange, adamant, fragile, vicious, brilliant man...
This is almost the story I was hungering for after Prosperity. Or rather, it's a piece of that story, a beginning, a gorgeous, entrancing, damnably-short start... It deserves the five stars but this will only whet your appetite for more.
This is almost the story I was hungering for after Prosperity. Or rather, it's a piece of that story, a beginning, a gorgeous, entrancing, damnably-short start... It deserves the five stars but this will only whet your appetite for more.
February 23, 2016
I finished Prosperity and was thrilled to have more of the characters I loved. Especially Milord, and I thought I could not fall for him any more. I only wish this was longer. Alexis has a way of writing complex characters with the most unusual & unexpected relationships but makes perfect sense.
June 23, 2016
I love Ruben and Milord. They're the characters I cared most about from the first book and I couldn't wait to read their story. Unfortunately, being so short, this sequel had only made me long for more. These two deserve a full length novel, in my opinion.
June 19, 2016
Where some holes are filled and more created.
Read with Ingela
February 7, 2016
This is Ruben and Milord’s origin story. YES. It really is. Can you believe it?! We get this!
Ok, ahem, now then…
Once you’ve read the book that start all of this, Prosperity, the opening pages of Shackles will have yourf heart beating faster at the possibilities, the anticipation of what you may learn about Ruben and… well, those he knew in the beginning.
New favorite word alert: iniquitous.
I could squee and rave and shout and dance about the major fantasticalness of this story. It would be and is all true.
Here’s the thing, learning what we did about Ruben and Milord at the end of Prosperity lends this story emotional weight it may not have otherwise provided, ne, forced upon me. It’s a gift I treasure. For Ruben and Milord, I was desperate to gloriously suffer through… them.
*~* delicately faints onto the chesterfield *~*
I did. And I’m grinning. Oh and here’s a more straight forward example of the things that made me snort with glee:
Ruben had never been introduced to ordnance before. He was not particularly enjoying the experience.
Hee! (yes, I just “hee’d”)
Ruben is one of the big huge giant keys to this Prosperity universe. His passion and seemingly unquenchable thirst to get to the true heart of a person are two of the gears that make this realm turn and grind and fly.
And let us not give short shrift to Milord. Yes, he’s a dastardly bastard, but try as he might, he cannot hide from Ruben. His usual defenses are useless, abandoning him, leaving him open and wanting.
I want to read Prosperity again.
BJ and I did buddy reviews of all of the stories contained within Liberty and Other Stories over on PBA
ETA: Recommended Read on PBA for January 2015
Ok, ahem, now then…
Once you’ve read the book that start all of this, Prosperity, the opening pages of Shackles will have yourf heart beating faster at the possibilities, the anticipation of what you may learn about Ruben and… well, those he knew in the beginning.
New favorite word alert: iniquitous.
I could squee and rave and shout and dance about the major fantasticalness of this story. It would be and is all true.
Here’s the thing, learning what we did about Ruben and Milord at the end of Prosperity lends this story emotional weight it may not have otherwise provided, ne, forced upon me. It’s a gift I treasure. For Ruben and Milord, I was desperate to gloriously suffer through… them.
*~* delicately faints onto the chesterfield *~*
I did. And I’m grinning. Oh and here’s a more straight forward example of the things that made me snort with glee:
Ruben had never been introduced to ordnance before. He was not particularly enjoying the experience.
Hee! (yes, I just “hee’d”)
Ruben is one of the big huge giant keys to this Prosperity universe. His passion and seemingly unquenchable thirst to get to the true heart of a person are two of the gears that make this realm turn and grind and fly.
And let us not give short shrift to Milord. Yes, he’s a dastardly bastard, but try as he might, he cannot hide from Ruben. His usual defenses are useless, abandoning him, leaving him open and wanting.
I want to read Prosperity again.
BJ and I did buddy reviews of all of the stories contained within Liberty and Other Stories over on PBA
ETA: Recommended Read on PBA for January 2015
January 3, 2015
Milord, what a bastard!
October 19, 2022
I love this little story! Milord is such a terrible person, but he’s probably one of my favourite AJH characters. It was great to get the story of how he and Ruben came to be.
March 15, 2015
Fantastic storytelling. Alexis Hall has created such an enchanting universe and characters in Prosperity. Shackles tells the story of how Ruben and Milord met, and it is just perfect - suspenseful, raw, intense, all rendered in such beautiful writing.
January 5, 2015
Ah... Milord..!!!!
May 10, 2015
I just can't get enough of the two of them! And Milord... #SoMuchLOVE
April 5, 2021
I wasn't kidding about reading the rest immediately.
A tidy little Ruben & Milord prequel. I'm not sure it was entirely necessary -- everything this story told us was already made clear in Prosperty -- but it was a nice to have. It's good to see their first meeting, and get more insight into Ruben and what exactly about him drew him to Milord, and in a way I'm only more curious now about the gap between what happened at the end of this story and what we were told was the start of Ruben bringing him on board.
A tidy little Ruben & Milord prequel. I'm not sure it was entirely necessary -- everything this story told us was already made clear in Prosperty -- but it was a nice to have. It's good to see their first meeting, and get more insight into Ruben and what exactly about him drew him to Milord, and in a way I'm only more curious now about the gap between what happened at the end of this story and what we were told was the start of Ruben bringing him on board.
March 15, 2024
This is the origin story of Milord and Ruben from Prosperity. It's the ol' priest-tries-to-get-prisoner-to-repent-so-that-he-can-die-by-hanging-instead-of-by-fire trope. It's short and steamy, and gives us some insight into the mystery and complexity of Milord, but without really unmystifying his character at all.
September 23, 2019
I hope, with all my heart, that this is not the last of Ruben and Milord. I could read about them FOREVER. (Are you listening, Alexis?) Two of my favorite characters ever. So unique and complex and fascinating, both individually and together. My only complaint is that I want MORE! So much more.
February 13, 2022
I was hoping to see a little further along their timeline, so I was disappointed when it ended, I wasn't ready. Not that I can stand Milord. But it does help a little to explain Ruben's choice in Prosperity.
November 23, 2017
Could be longer, but nothing can be done and all in all, it's rather great.
July 6, 2018
Gods, that second-to-last scene and the echoes of the scene Dil stumbled across in book one 😍
October 1, 2018
Hot af.
September 10, 2019
Disclaimer: Actually, I didn't read this book. I read the story as part of Liberty and Other Stories and not the stand-alone version.
Sorry, Alexis Hall, I had to subtract one star for that unsatisfying ending. Otherwise, your 5-star-rating streak would have continued.
There's so much to love about your work. Your way with dialects is amazing. Your stories are highly entertaining. Your writing is rich and lovely.
But I still have questions. I thought the story would conclude immediately (or shortly) before Prosperity began. Obviously, there's more to Reuben and Milord's story. I want answers! Perhaps these questions are answered in the follow-on stories? If they're not, I suppose I'll be ok. Perhaps eventually I can come up with my own conclusions, although I doubt they'll anywhere near as good as yours.
Read for the TBR Series Knock0ut Challenge (2nd half 2019), of which I'm only doing one book per month vice one per week since I still have two other challenges to get through.
Sorry, Alexis Hall, I had to subtract one star for that unsatisfying ending. Otherwise, your 5-star-rating streak would have continued.
There's so much to love about your work. Your way with dialects is amazing. Your stories are highly entertaining. Your writing is rich and lovely.
The sunlight that slipped through the arched windows paled in the savagely glittering splendour. As did the bishop.You pulled me into the story and made me feel both Reuben's attraction and horror. Milord is a nasty piece of work, but somehow that doesn't deter Reuben. Reuben can't help himself escape his attraction. But then, neither can Milord. Thank you for showing us how these two fascinating characters met.
But I still have questions. I thought the story would conclude immediately (or shortly) before Prosperity began. Obviously, there's more to Reuben and Milord's story. I want answers! Perhaps these questions are answered in the follow-on stories? If they're not, I suppose I'll be ok. Perhaps eventually I can come up with my own conclusions, although I doubt they'll anywhere near as good as yours.
Read for the TBR Series Knock0ut Challenge (2nd half 2019), of which I'm only doing one book per month vice one per week since I still have two other challenges to get through.
to-read-yes-own
September 3, 2016This novella was supposed to be read as a buddyread with Sofia. She finished at once but I've barely started....
Book #2 - Ruben and Milord’s story
I listened to book #1-Prosperity (4.8 stars) and really enjoyed. This is a sequel novella in the 6 installments Prosperity series.
****
~
Book #2 - Ruben and Milord’s story
I listened to book #1-Prosperity (4.8 stars) and really enjoyed. This is a sequel novella in the 6 installments Prosperity series.
****
~
November 3, 2020
This is a quick little prequel to the Prosperity series showing us how Reuben and Milord met under quite impossible circumstances.
I enjoyed Reuben immensely in book one. Milord, as a gentlemanly murderous villain, I enjoyed him too.
Again…this is quick.
Also, a little dirty.
Reuben has the best of intentions to attempt to save Milord’s eternal soul. But Milord is….deplorable, and I’m pretty sure irredeemable.
As a companion piece, this is mighty enjoyable.
Of course, I wanted more. Of course I did. Because don’t I always?
I’m not wholly convinced I understand how these fellas tick. Now I just know how they met.
But, the writing, as ever with Alexis Hall, is on point and has moments of humor along with his graceful style.
Yep, mighty enjoyable indeed.
If you skipped the blurb go back and read it. It shows how this story came to be in the Prosperity world. Cute!
Also posted on BackPorchReader.com.
I enjoyed Reuben immensely in book one. Milord, as a gentlemanly murderous villain, I enjoyed him too.
Again…this is quick.
Also, a little dirty.
Reuben has the best of intentions to attempt to save Milord’s eternal soul. But Milord is….deplorable, and I’m pretty sure irredeemable.
As a companion piece, this is mighty enjoyable.
Of course, I wanted more. Of course I did. Because don’t I always?
I’m not wholly convinced I understand how these fellas tick. Now I just know how they met.
But, the writing, as ever with Alexis Hall, is on point and has moments of humor along with his graceful style.
Yep, mighty enjoyable indeed.
If you skipped the blurb go back and read it. It shows how this story came to be in the Prosperity world. Cute!
Also posted on BackPorchReader.com.
October 2, 2015
okay seriously.... give Alexis Hall all the stars! all of them!
February 17, 2016
I didn't even expect to really like this one much at all, given that I was not particularly drawn to these two in the first book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews