When the vampire Lucardo fell in love with Edmund Fiedler, a 61-year-old mortal scrivener, their passion became legendary before Lucardo’s practical father intervened. The royal Court of Night has gone back to its peaceful reign, Ed has exiled himself, and Lucardo . . . well, Lucardo is hopelessly enraged. Determined to seize control of his life again, Lucardo mounts a search for his missing lover, sparking a new flame that -- this time -- threatens to consume them both.
An erotic graphic novel that redefines a genre, Fortunate Beasts continues the immortal romance begun with Letters for Lucardo in a paranormal tale of fighting back against fear for love.
Otava Heikkilä is a comic artist born in 1990 in Finland. His works include the webcomic "Judecca", the short erotic comic "A Winged Man Flew into the Shed" in the "My Monster Boyfriend" anthology, and the erotic graphic novel series "Letters for Lucardo".
He's interested in stories about romance, creating soft spaces in rough lives, communication being an essential part of relationships and society, and the thought that nobody is ever too old or too unskilled to start learning something new.
Killing me! With the sweetness, the sexiness, and then THAT ENDING.
I'm gonna need the third book like - this week, OK?
For those who want to try a very well drawn graphic novel between a vampire/shifter/nobility-lord man who's so in love with his 61 year old human scribe, you have got to try these two books out! And then let's all bug the author for the third book LOL
My local library only had volumes 1 and 3 for some reason, but they kindly added this one to their collection when I submitted a request on their convenient online form. Librarians rule!
This ribald romance continues to shuffle through obstacles for our loving couple, but somehow they always end up naked together. Though that cliffhanger ending does not bode well for next time . . .
Now I just need to wait out the library hold queue for book 3 and then hope that book 4 will be published soon.
While Volume 1 was more surface level and fleeting action, Volume 2 takes us deeper into the histories and motivations of our two protagonists. Yet again, this author sure knows how to leave a reader in suspense!
Review: *I received an ecopy of this book via Edelweiss. This has not influenced my review.*
I was excited to jump into this one ASAP after finishing the first volume, and it was just as great!
There was even more emotion in this one for me than the first. Sadness. Happiness. Moments of awwwww. I'm trying to remain spoiler-free, so I'm keeping it vague, but I felt for these characters.
The relationship/romance was super cute again. Ed and Lucardo really are so cute together, and I feel like we got to see more of their relationship outside of the sex this time. (There was still some sex though, and it was still lovely.) They have such a caring and healthy relationship, aside from that one blip of Ed not talking to Lucardo about things.
Also, again, I want to mention how nice the diversity/inclusivity is in this series and how it breaks that common trope of immortals dating teenagers by instead being about an immortal dating a 61-year-old.
And of course this one had the same black-and-white but pretty and clear artwork.
I'll admit I'm still a little unclear about a couple things. I'm fairly certain this is set in a fantasy world, but we haven't been given much info about it beyond there being a Night Court, a Day Court, and a Dark Lord. Also, the characters never use the word vampire, but the blurb does, so I assume that's what the immortals are, even though they're maybe not the most typical portrayal. So I wouldn't mind some clarification on these things, but it's not a big deal since the focus of these graphic novels is on the romance and characters.
Also, these books do end in cliffhangers! I want the next one already!
Overall, this was another lovely, inclusive, sexy, sweet, unique fantasy graphic novel about a relationship between an aging human and his forever-young immortal lover, and I'm very much looking forward to continuing the series!
Recommended For: Fans of Volume 1 in Otava Heikkila's Letters for Lucardo series. Anyone who likes erotic graphic novels, inclusivity/diversity, and books with romance between humans and paranormals that go against the usual tropes.
A fitting sequel to 'Letters for Lucardo', Fortunate Beasts is graphic, sappy and, as much as I was...curious what would happen to these characters, in a way, unneeded. Lucardo (the sexy, buff vampire or maybe shapeshifter?) has been scorned by this father for loving an elderly mortal scribe, Edmund. Edmund has, in fact, been convinced by Lucardo's immortal family he is NOT worthy and has left and gone into hiding. Lucardo finds him and things are ON again. Lots of sex, lots of hesitation to live this lavish vampire lifestyle on Edmund's part, lots of consternation from the other wild party vampires...It's very similar to the first book in conflict AND compromise. Ultimately this book's story is not very deep. Once again the actual world these characters are from and the rules that govern it are not clear. WHY, for example, do Lucardo and his vampire dad (this book's stand in for Dr.Cullen of the Twilight books) turn into black fox like characters and fight each other in his study? Why, also is the father hinting he is going to pass away soon (by saying 'Death' has been coming to talk to him) even though he is immortal? Why, beyond attachment to someone who will die, is it such a bad thing for these two to be in a relationship? So many questions for what is, I think in truth, not that deep and can exist merely on the plane of a flirty sex fest between two unlikely souls.
I read the two volumes that are already out in this series back to back because I got so into the story and now I'm a mess because the others aren't out and I need more !! ;-;
Oh but really though, what kind of terrible cliffhanger was that, how painful.
The comics are graphic and definitely erotica, but the romance is so cute and amazing! The concept is great too because vampires should be in relationships with people of all ages damn it !! (even though it causes them, and us by proxy, great pain) But the concept of love and immortality is something I'm fascinated by, and I loved seeing a new turn on the classic vampire/mortal relationship.
I laughed when Ed asked Luc if he thought they were having too much sex. There IS a lot of sex in this. I wouldn’t exactly say it was too much. It’s certainly no more than was in the first book, and the publisher is known as Smut Peddlers, so yeah, there will be a lot. I think I just wanted a tad bit more plottiness? Like with the first book, I think things moved a bit too quickly and I wanted to slow down and savor their relationship as it grows.
I really like the artwork too. I can FEEL the emotions of Luc and Ed that are conveyed on their faces. Seeing them cry (and I like that these two grown men do cry… they cry a lot!), makes me want to tear up! Some of the expressions of laughter and similar emotions is a little odd and I’m not quite sure how to read them, but I love the rest of the artwork.
That said, I still really enjoyed this one and will be diving into the next one as soon as I can get my hands on it.
Fortunate Beasts is a more than worthy follow up to its predecessor. It added even more emotional depth to the characters, revealed more about the world of the Night Court, and left me really excited for the third book in the series. One of my favorite this about this series is how the sex is a natural part of the story. It really goes against the grain of puritanical notions about sex that are embedded in our society. Heikkila is also particularly adept at including some delightfully awkward and funny moments that make the sex scenes feel really lived in.
* I backed the third book on the publisher’s crowdfunding site, and since I hadn’t read the first two, I ordered them as well. *
As with any relationship, this book is where things start getting more real. There’s less sex, there’s the development of real problems and the vulnerability of seeing your partner at their lowest, and there’s the complexities on what the future might hold… oh and there’s shape-shifting werewolf-y vampires to contend with.
There’s also the confusing time jump this book starts with. Because I don’t know how this world completely works I don’t know how the opening scene fits in with everything else. Does this take place before or after the main timeline of the story? I don’t know why Ed looks both younger and yet is bald, but is writing letter to Lucardo… which seems to sort of answer the first question. Even if Ed was shown to have just lost some of his hair that’d at least clarify it more than the completely shaven look. And I think if this is meant to be a foreshadowing of where Ed winds up, it seems strange to introduce that in the second book as opposed to starting the entire series showing us the “present.” Maybe I’m reading it wrong though.
Overall, I like how this entry into the series has actually developed into a story. There’s more impact to everything that came before, and the ending really leaves me wanting to see where the story goes next. And though it is more cartoony than any other part of the book, I enjoyed seeing Ed interact with other humans.
🍆Spoiler Free Book Review🍑 • Fortunate Beasts is the second installment in the four-part series, Letter for Lucardo. Ed and Luc are back and they’re just as sweet and smutty as ever👨🏼🤝👨🏿 • In Letters for Lucardo, I thought Ed was the humble star of the show. This time, we get to see Luc take center stage and fight for his chance at love. I really liked seeing the depth of Luc’s character and how his relationship with Ed blossoms. There are still plenty of sex scenes, but there’s more time spent outside of the physical and every interaction between these two is very well done. • We find out a little information about both Ed and Luc’s pasts and get a deeper look into Luc’s relationship with his family, but we’re still left with more questions than answers about their family history and immortality. • I have to mention again that the representation in this series is incredible. The first two installments read well together and have a good flow. This part focused more on Ed and Luc, bringing more substance to their relationship and more emotions for the reader. The only downfall is that this one, again, ends in a cliffhanger. • Otava Heikkilä is making it a habit to leave me wanting...I want more Ed, more Luc, and more details about the mysterious night court. I NEED the final two installments of this series!!
3.5 stars This unfortunately had second-book-syndrome. I don’t think that this felt nearly as cohesive in its storyline as the first book did and didn’t play with time very well. There are (I assume) time jumps of varying length but readers are left to guess how long some of them are, which makes me unsure of where we are in the timeline because the beginning of the book starts in 974 and then we have a flashback to 970 where the rest of the book assumedly takes place, but with the time jumps I’m not sure just how quickly time is passing and how close we are to 974. There are also some things about the worldbuilding that confuse me, like how apparently the vampires are capable of shape shifting, but is it only into wolves and (if so) why wolves? And also, they can apparently die if the Silent Lord calls them? I’m just not a fan of how Heikkila drops these things into the storyline without explaining them. I am also slightly disappointed that this isn’t nearly as smutty as the first book. Anyway, it’s a good thing I already have the third book on hand, as that ending was definitely a cliffhanger.
I had big expectations for this book and it has surpassed them. I thought this would be the last volume so I was kind of waiting for something straight forward but instead I got more slow unravelling of plot through character dialogues and world-building and I love it. Its been sweet, exciting, surprising and full of feelings. Yes, this comic might be porn with plot but man, the author manages to draw and narrate this so well that it just becomes so much more. The raw emotion on the facial expressions, the composition of the pages, the language... Its all awesome. Plus this take on vampire fiction feels unique and frankly much more interesting than many others.
I will patiently wait for volume 3. If its at the same level of quality as vol 1 and 2 the author should take as much time as he needs. Also I would love to buy other comics from him, but I don't think he has any more than the ones in anthologies (by the way, their bio here doesn't seem to be up to date, different pronouns on his twitter account, hope they fix it.).
OH. MY. GOD! As with Volume 1, the first few pages are actually a future-flashforward, SEVEN YEARS!
I really thought the whole immortal blood-sucker thing was vampires, but it's NOT! These guys are some kind of shifter, though it's not fully explored (though I have seen a glimpse of Vol 3 online that hints at exploring that aspect in the next volume)
I almost don't know what to say...I'm speechless and desperate for the next two volumes. The ending was SO sudden and dramatic! It ends on a cliffhanger, but that just makes me desperate to read the next two NOW!
"Bats roost under our roof" - Ugh, this was SO painful and beautiful and bittersweet and devastating! Why did no one warn me about this series? Why didn't anyone tell me NOT to touch it until it was finished?
The relationship of our lovely leads continues - we move from more sexy book 1 into more romance. I really enjoyed it - the opening leaves me with some questions but I’m not sure I want to wait for years to finish the series (as the last volume isn’t out).
However - I can see where the plot is going and the volume is just a shade too short for me to be emotionally moved. I think it’s the length vs something like the Ooku which made me cry. No sniffles here - let’s see
Lucardo goes on a search for Ed and they reunite- it's so darn cute!!! And also filthy 🥵 The love they have for each other is just so precious but also very intense. They do have the issue of wealth disparity and Lucardo's family looking down on Ed but Lucardo stands up for his man. The ending is gut wrenching as Ed becomes sick- it had ya girl bawling her eyes out 😭. The cliffy has me anxiously waiting to see how it ends!!
Otava has done it again! I love this series and literally can not wait for the next volume. I don't know how he manages it, but Otava has crafted a story that I keep thinking about long after I finish reading. The illustrations are gorgeous and the story is both heart-wrenching and magically romantic. 14/10 would buy all of Otava's book FOREVER!
This book is so beautifully illustrated. And I adore the unconventional story. It is so refreshing to see an older than the norm character, especially in a graphic novel. Ed is the most precious thing on this planet.
Be warned, this book does end on a cliff hanger. I am hoping that the third installment to this series will come out very soon.
Story: *** It's overly dramatic and heartbreaking with a lot of hardcore penis play mixed in. Too much for my taste- I was totally grossed out but that doesn't mean you will be. But the worst part is that you want to know what happens next but never will.
Art: *** Average but very fitting. Sometimes too vague. The emotions of the face are his->her best talent.
What a bittersweet and touching story. I'm sure others have discussed the plot in overmuch depth so I won't summarize here.
The art is exquisitely expressive, emotions playing across faces from panel to panel, body language, physical intimacy very tangible. I'm blown away by this little story!
So incredibly good. I love this take on vampire lore and the characters are just wonderful. Its nice to see a variety of BIPOC and gender fluid representation too. If this turns into a tragedy with book 3 I might be heartbroken. I'm already attached to the MCs. 🥺🥺🥺😭😭