Mortal Remains

Haven Chronicles #1

by Atlas Jones

Vale has hunted demons, monsters, and rogue mages for centuries as a Templar. So when rifts to the underworld tear through the city and the undead spill into the streets, he expects another power-hungry necromancer at the center of it all.

Instead, he finds August, a soft-hearted necromancer who uses his illegal magic to guide restless spirits to peace, even as it kills him from the inside. August is running on borrowed time, and he's spent weeks tracking the real necromancer who is raising armies of the dead.

Vale's touch shouldn't heal him. Templars and necromancers are natural enemies. But when Vale's hands meet August's skin, the black veins of corruption fade and the pain stops. For the first time in years, August can breathe.

Now they're partners in a hunt that neither of them can survive alone. But the closer they get to the truth, the more August needs his magic…and the more he needs Vale's touch to survive.

Mortal Remains is a m/m enemies-to-lovers urban fantasy romance between a Templar and a necromancer. It features a touch starved necromancer, a morally grey Templar, forced proximity, hurt/comfort, and a happy ending.

Mortal Remains is book one of the Haven Chronicles series and does not need to be read in order.

Genres: M M Romance, Fantasy, Paranormal, Magic, M M Fantasy, Urban Fantasy

325 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 17, 2026

Reviews

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars  

Basics
Author: Australia? She/her?
Genre: paranormal MM romance
Setting: Haven paranormal city
Themes: goodness, selflessness
Vibes: bone-tired, weary

Characters
🗡 Vale - 300+yo Templar who hunts down illegal magic users
🔮✨️ August - 26yo cinnamon roll of a  necromancer who soothes souls before passing them on

Pros
+ romance tropes: age gap, hurt/comfort, touch him so he doesn't die, "enemies" to lovers,
+ rep: gay,
+ necromancer magic leaves threads behind, which Vale can purify and follow to source (cool!)
+ love that the Old City locals know who August is but won't tell a Templar at all because August is doing good despite the dumb laws
+ Vale's touch recedes August's corruption (love love love this plot where touching is a must or he'll die)
+ "You're going to break me." 🥺

Cons
- a bit heavy-handed on the rift situation explanation (we could have done with less extensive setup then just figured it out as it happens)
- in general, explanations are overwritten
- too many vague phrases like "isn't ready to examine" or "doesn't want to think about"
- a huge plot hole here 🕳 Just move the items out of the vault??? 👀

Content Warnings
death, flesh burning

[isthisakink · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5. This book was so fucking good. The story, the characters, the world … I absolutely have a new obsession. I would fucking die for August, and Vale, and Knox. But it needs work—heavy editing, proofing, and the love it deserves. The Voss/Nance confusion is dire. It breaks my damn heart that this book isn’t getting The Moment that it rightfully should. Everyone is so focused on how heinous the lack of editing is, and aren’t absorbing the story, the prose, the love, or the care. There is magic in here that’s being lost and forgotten, and I’m annoyed as the fuck.

[Based · Rating 1 out of 5]

August was well written character but Vale was just a cardboard cutout who wasn't really developed at all. The romance wasn't built up at all, Vale and August's chemistry aside from the need to maintain physical contact, was nonexistent, the main conflict/challenge wasn't a challenge really at all, and every major hardship was neatly overcome with a solution falling nicely into Vale/August's lap with little to no effort required. Overall neither the romance nor main conflict were interesting or engaging and I'm struggling to think of anything redeeming that'd warrant continuing to read this series.

[Valeria Orlando · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it enough
but
what about the rougue templar name? and the cabal/corbal?
we know a little about August early life but not much, like does he have a job?
we know nothing about Vale.
why couldn't they move the artifacts?
why they only check places in the evening/night?
is Vale wearing the same clothes the whole time?
the world building is a little meh
they have photos but not phones? computers? cars?
where was Cael during the battle in the cathedral?
good ending, IDK if I'll read the next books but the way it ends gives a kind of closure

[MyDoRyS · Rating 3 out of 5]

My reviews are my own. If you enjoyed this book, I’m glad you did. If not, I respect your opinion, so please respect mine. This is simply my view, so let's keep it courteous. My review is honest and voluntary.

I had mixed feelings about this one. I enjoyed the plot and the relationship between the main characters, which avoided the immaturity often found in this genre. However, the pacing dragged due to intense repetition, and a good edit would have tightened the story. The steamy scenes felt unnecessary to the plot, though they seem to be the main focus of the series—which is a shame, because the core idea had so much potential.

*I also noticed that the book cover does not match the actual character at all! Maybe publishers should read their authors stories before choosing a generic model for their covers.

On to my next adventure, Happy Readings!!!

[Alex MacDonald · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining but needs editing,

The story itself was quite good, but there were things that I don’t know how they got through to a final draft. The name of the main antagonist was changed back and forth throughout the entire book.. sometimes even in the same paragraph. Other words were swapped too and it took away from my ability to enjoy the book as much as I would have otherwise. Still a good read though and I’ll read the next one in the series, hoping its been edited more thoroughly

[Becky Best · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the story and characters but I agree with other reviews it needs some serious editing there was bits missed and the villains name changing constantly was throwing me off I think it took me a hell of a lot longer to get through this that most bigger books as I had to keep going back to check what I read made sense.

I genuinely think with some editing this would be a 5 star book the premise was something I was really excited to read and I love August and Vale, the structure and writing was just a bit of let down

[Tame · Rating 5 out of 5]

DO NOT SLEEP ON THIS BOOK!!

There are NO WORDS to describe the wonderful richness and beautiful depth of this book!! Holy Fire and Dark Magic, both born from compassion and a sense of healing, come together to save those who need guidance and love. It was well-written, August and Vale were so tangible, I could visualize them, and I loved how the story ended. I look forward to the next book in this series.

[Casey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good but

So loads of good potential here. My biggest issue was the lack of content editing. The bad guys name changed back and forth constantly, from paragraph to paragraph even. It was annoying. There were a few other inconsistencies throughout the book but more towards the end. So loads of potential. 3 outta 5 stars as it was intriguing and I did finish it but I would Def recommend a good content editing round.

[I. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is now a favorite of mine. I was definitely rolling my eyes and contemplating if I should read a book with Templars, and why this name for the order if any made-up fantasy name would work the same - but the story immediately gripped me.
In short, it's about kindness, especially in circumstances where you wouldn't expect it. The scorching hot sex scenes are a nice bonus.

[Ruthney · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dnf'd at 9%.
I don't have the patience or willpower to push through a book. If the writing is shit or i see something I don't like...its on to the next. I just couldn't get pass the lack of editing, and the fact that every other sentence contains a simile. Let's not even talk about the repetition bruh.

[Sara Hollingsworth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really solid, though in desperate need of an editor. The author clearly hadn't settled on the name for their villain and failed to consistently use one name. And there were other small issues as well. Though overall the writing was really good and I enjoyed the story and characters. Just could have used a couple rounds with some beta readers.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this. It's not perfect, and somethings did annoy me, but overall, it was great.

Vale and August are cute together. I like all the comfort and also August admitting that he's wrong.

There was a bit too much overexplaining with what was going on. I also think that the mad necromancer could have just walked out with what he wanted while he was a "good guy."

I liked that the head of the Templars ended up not being what I thought he was going to do/be. I was worried a minute, but it was good.

So, not a full 5 starts because of a few things, but I really liked Vale and August (as well as the side characters! I hope we get their books), so definitely a re-read for me. Can't wait for book 2 :)

[Jordan Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely needs editing- the name of the villain changed throughout the story, and multiple details got confused or switched around from paragraph to paragraph. I still really liked it though, particularly the relationship between the two MCs and the ending.

[Dreamcatcher · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF @ 56%

[ᓚᘏᗢ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75*

[Lee E Sills · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would’ve given this book 5 stars But I removed one because the editing is terrible

[Adam Brown]

DNF at 12%. Personally, I was getting AI vibes… everyone else says poor editing/proofreading. Either way, I’ve lost interest.