First Tilt

Broken Lances #0.5

by Lucien Burr

HEATED RIVALRY meets A KNIGHT'S TALE

A NAMELESS KNIGHT. A CHAMPION'S FALL. A SQUIRE CAUGHT BETWEEN.

When the mysterious Alaric challenges Ser Halden, an undefeated tournament champion who clawed his way up from nothing, their confrontation sparks more than rivalry. Halden's humiliating defeat leaves him keenly aware of the distance between noble and commoner and drives him toward a dangerous fixation on the man who unseated him.

Caught in their orbit is Perrin, Halden’s loyal squire, who has spent years anticipating his knight’s every need. As tensions between the two men escalate, Perrin is torn between his loyalty and desires he can no longer ignore.

First Tilt is a medieval fantasy romance where pride, power, and desire collide on and off the tournament field, and three men discover that some rivalries burn hottest when the armour comes off.

Perfect for readers who love intense rivals-to-lovers romance and medieval-inspired spectacle.

Genres: Romance, Fantasy, Queer, LGBT, Historical, Novella, M M Romance

148 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 28, 2026

Reviews

[Emmy Rosam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I need a full book NOWWWWWW

[Laura Greenhalgh · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5🌟 I LOVED THIS!! I picked this up for the absolutely gorgeous cover, and stayed for the story! I could not put this down, the author promoted this as Heated Rivalry meets A Knight’s Tale and honestly I think that sums this up almost perfectly! This is a super short and bingeable prequel novella for the coming series Broken Lances and when I tell you I am so sat and ready for that first book now?! What a fantastic introduction to the characters. This is a poly MMM between two extremely competitive rival knights competing in a jousting tournament (Hal and Alaric) plus Hal’s devoted and fiercely loyal squire Perrin. The tension and yearning in this made me want to scream. I’m so intrigued by the dynamic of these characters and that last line has sent me into a spiral, I am likely going to be insufferable until Second Pass releases!!!

[Linn · Rating 4 out of 5]

sign me the fuck up. I'd read lucien burrs grocery list at this point. (I still stand by this)

----

post read: *raises my pitchfork* JUSTICE FOR PERRIN!!!!1

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5⭐️ Promoting this as Heated Rivalry meets the Knights Tale is..ambitious. And for me it didn’t deliver. I was so bored! In 148pages! Not a good sign 😬. As a prequel this failed for me, absolutely nothing about this made me want to read the rest of the series.

The writing felt tedious, a lot of over explaining that grated my brain. It’s making me frustrated thinking about it even writing this review! It’s like when someone talks really slowly and goes over everything a million times, yep I got it! Move on!

Also, this cover promises some sexy MMM times. That did not occur.

[Jordan Fischer | julietfoxreads · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMGGGGGG DO NOT SLEEP ON THIS NOVELLA.

First Tilt is described as Heated Rivalry meets A Knights Tale and that's pretty spot on and I am OBSESSED. It's hidden identity, class difference, rivals to lovers, and omg I think it ends up being MMM eventually? Two of the guys are knights, one is a squire, there is JOUSTING and SWORD FIGHTING (literally and... you know) and secret tourney tent hookups and I ATE IT UP. From what I understand this is a prequel to a full length novel and you'd better believe I'll be reading that the MOMENT it's available.

This is my first Lucien Burr book, and apparently his alternate pen name is Seth Haddon, who has been recommended to me MANY TIMES. I get it now friends!! Lemme go look through the backlist for both because THE WAY I NEED MORE OF THIS!

[Ben Howard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excited for book 1!

[Sue Bush · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 - 3.75 for a novella in a world i'm excited to continue!!!

[LiftsandLiterature · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a good prequel!
Alaric, Hal and Perrin each brought something different to the story. This had such sweet moments I was not expecting, and perfectly set up the next book.

[Ify · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t like this. I struggled to finish even though it’s short.

The dynamic felt off. This is MMM, but one of them doesn’t even feel like he belongs there, not even a little. He’s like some weird package deal. A buy one get one free where you don’t want the freebie but you take it because it’s free. Oh, and Mr Freebie didn’t seem to have self respect. And this is 100% NOT Heated Rivalry coded.

[Haley Culin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I get so grumpy when the cover art does not accurately depict what is in the book. The scene from the cover does not happen. 🤷🏻‍♀️

[Alisia alis_reads_ · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars
Heated Rivalry Meets a Knights Tale.
MMM
This is a prequel
Enemies to Fuckers (lol)
Loooooooved the writing style!! Ahh it was delicious! Perfect for the time period.

[Jordyn Sacks · Rating 4 out of 5]

I need the actual first book right the fuck now

[Luke Lucas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much like Perrin, I am yearning for more. 🔥

Holy shit this was just what the doctor ordered.
An incredible novella that gives us our first taste of what’s to come from Lucien Burr, September can’t come soon enough.

Heated Rivalry but make it jousting and make it a three way? God damn.
The yearning from Perrin was off the charts, I think every gay boy has had that relationship with a man you’re in love with that isn’t quite reciprocated and it hit home 😂
The tension between Alaric and Hal was unreal, two absolutely glorious men who are as good in the sheets as they are on horseback.
I love a medieval setting and I’m eager to explore more of this world and its politics considering THAT revelation was the ending? 🤯

[ren ౨ৎ (in a tiny slump) · Rating 4 out of 5]

ᝰ.ᐟ 4 stars

i have some serious mixed feelings about this book. the writing was absolutely amazing and gripping, so there are no complaints there. but, i wasn’t invested in alaric and hal whatsoever. it felt like the potential between hal and perrin was completely overshadowed in favour of a sex fuelled baseless relationship. alaric is a morally ambiguous character, but his motivations were somewhat nonsensical?

i’m absolutely obsessed with the dynamic between hal and perrin and hope that is explored more in the full book over alaric and hal.

[rayhanah · Rating 4 out of 5]

heated rivalry but make it ✨️medieval✨️ with a touch of bbc merlin

[Trish Skywalker · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the start of an enemies to lovers jousting series, and I am here for it.
Hal has been the upstart and champion on his jousting circuit for a year and a half. Undefeated, and by far yhe best in the circuit, he came from common roots and trained, fought, and clawed his way to the top. He is enraged when he meets his match: Alaric, the Nameless Knight, who must have royalty in his blood but has no interest in using it. When Hal is finally defeated by Alaric, he is livid that a noble born came in and stole the glory he worked to hard for. But Alaric is intrigued, and makes Hal an offer he desperately wants. It ends horribly, both their tryst and their final bout.
Alaric comes across cruel and arrogant, but there’s definitely more to him. He’s so determined to prove his own worth without his title, and gets a little too caught up in that.
My favorite character was Hal’s squire, Perrin. He’s incredibly dedicated to Hal, and I hope he gets his due in the series.

[Mimi · Rating 2 out of 5]

um yeah but what was the reason for this cover lol. This doesn't match with literally anything that happens in the story much less the setting

[Lia♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

very short but good! excited for this to become a full length story.

[lils · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun! Looking forward for the release of the novel!

[Macy · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25⭐️ Yet another book rec from my bestie and she was right this was beautiful and the yearning and tension was perfect

[Austin (Book Club For One) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never been more obsessed with a series. This is the type of game of thrones queer fantasy smut I've been craving! Book 2 can't come out fast enough! Add this one, thank me later!

[Joseandbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

I went into this completely blind, based solidly on the cover 🤭. I was so pleasantly surprised, this was so good. Can’t wait for book 1

[༶ Laura ༶ · Rating 4 out of 5]

You got any more of thems Heated Chivalry drugs ??? 🤺

[Ayla Shoulders · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, when I saw that this was advertised as “Heated Rivalry meets A Knight’s Tale”, sign me the fuck up! I literally could not not read it, right? I mean, Heated Rivalry and A Knight’s Tale are two of my favorite things, like, ever. (and of course the 3 sexy af dudes gettin it on on the cover didn’t hurt my decision making at all😂) So, babe, when I tell you this book was bangin, I mean it was BANGIN!! 138 pages wasn’t near enough!! And this is just the PREQUEL NOVELLA for an upcoming series *mind blown*!!

That was INTENSE. Every page was intense. My jaw is sore from gritting my teeth for 138 pages.
And so damn sexy. And they didn’t even fuck! Don’t worry, there’s still lots of good spice and the fucking IS definitely coming!
This book was just a teaser for what’s to come.

That last paragraph gave me goddamn chills! I am SO looking forward to seeing where their story goes in the next book!!

The ONLY thing I can possibly think of that would have made this better is if the crowd had started singing We Will Rock You before the first jousting match. Y’all know what I’m talkin about.


Rivals to Lovers
Medieval Inspired
(soon to be) Poly MMM
Jousting
Triple POV
Brutal
Fighting as Foreplay

[Vini · Rating 4 out of 5]

i’m invested

[Lindsey (30Something_Reads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very sexy. Very yearny. Yep, sign me up for the next one, please! 🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️



I fear HR is the new RW&RB comp this year- in that it means boys are kissing. But yes, I guess two of them ARE rival jousters! (?)

[Camille Cooley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Baby’s first MMM poly novella. Very short + wish it was longer but guess this is only the beginning of a longer story. Who doesn’t love secret identifies

[Brandon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this, it was a good introduction to the main characters of the series. The main characters had strong personalities despite the short length. I thought there might have been small typos like a repeating sentence on page 3? It wasn't a big issue for me but if those things bother you it may. Overall I am excited to see where the series goes.

[Joanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Medieval jousting Heated Rivalry - Finished then immediately pre-ordered book one, this shit is gonna fucking slap once it's all out!

[Jen Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is probably a 4.75 if I'm being brutally honest, but why would I even bother complaining about a plot hole or two when it was such a standout fantastic read anyway?

I picked up a signed copy of this at Book Fair Australia, in Melbourne. I then held onto it until Pride Month, because, well - The gays.

This steamy, medievil and queer niche of a genre is perfection. Fans of CS Pacat's Captive Prince trilogy will be obsessed with this novella like I am, I'd bet on it.

I'm dying for more - Are we getting a full length book or another cheeky short one?
Is it a bigger series? Are there 10 books planned?

I'm going to be very polite when I say I don't understand how any reader would give this book less than a 4 star rating unless spicy books make them uncomfortable, because otherwise I'd just assume they're a joyless homophobe. I joke, of course. Mostly.

MORE, PLEASE!