Fourth Point of Contact

Legends of Lobe den Herren #1

by A.J. Sherwood

Sometimes, in the middle of an ordinary life, love presents us with a fairytale.

Not once in the past five years has Castle Warden Sho Renjimantoro regretted following his best friend to Aart. How can he regret it when he finds open acceptance regarding his sexuality from everyone around him (even if they don’t understand it), and he gets to be with the man most important to him?

No, finding someone in this country is a fantasy best forgotten.

General Arman Brahms, finally home from deployment, has waited over two years to show Ren he's wrong, that fantasies can come true. Unfortunately, his plans get put on hold to help Ren solve the crisis unfolding in the castle.

Someone is doing their level best to make sure the engagement of Prince Charles and Princess Alexandria of Scovia falls through—by fair means or foul. In addition, they’re trying to make Ren deemed incompetent and dismissed from his position. While hunting for the perpetrator, Ren and Arman do everything in their power to protect those they’re sworn to before the irredeemable occurs.

And along the way, prove that even an ordinary life can become extraordinary.

Genres: Fantasy, M M Romance, Romance, Historical, Friends To Lovers, Military Fiction, Audiobook

335 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 18, 2018

About the author

AJ Sherwood believes in happily ever afters, magic, dragons, good men, and dark chocolate. She often dreams at night of delectable men doing sexy things with each other. In between writing multiple books (often at the same time) she pets her cats, plays with her dogs, and attempts insane things like aerial yoga.

She currently resides in Tennessee with aforementioned cats, dogs, and her editor/best friend/sister/partner in crime.

Reviews

[Lyn❤Loves❤Listening to Real Voices Only!!!!❤️🎧📚 Addict ON HIATUS · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audio 5 Stars. Lloyd Thomas is a new to me narrator, and I'm impressed. He did an amazing job!

Dear Author, Keep him! 🙏🏽

Story 3.5 Cute but Corny Stars

I really enjoyed the first half of the book, but then it started to feel long and repetitive. The MC were adorable together! Their relationship was both humorous and swoon-worthy. Too bad the author was kind of stingy with the sex scenes.

Anyway the action adventure part of the story lacked suspense and grit for me. After awhile the story developed a cartoonish vibe, and I was ready for it to end. I'm not sure if I'll be continuing the series. But I totally get how many readers would find this book/story enjoyable.

[Micah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very long & wild ride that I enjoyed for the most part. Starting off, there’s great character development, not only with the main characters but also with supporting as well. The MC’s are Ren & Brahms are a lot of fun to follow. We Stan interracial couples. I think they’re written well & compliment each other. I’d rate this book 3.7 out of 5. Honestly, it would’ve been a solid 4 stars if it were like a hundred pages shorter. Soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much of this book is just characters standing around & talking about feelings. And this conversation doesn’t contribute to moving the plot line forward. For example, the royal family LOVES Ren & can’t live without him. We’re told this at least like every other chapter. Another example, Ren is from a homophobic country. This comes up over. And over. And over. And over again. I may be wrong but I honestly feel like every major character in this book has said to Ren something along the lines of “wow, i forgot you’re from a Place that won’t accept your gayness. Stay here with me. We have cookies” There’s just so much repeated information in this book that’s just worded differently each time it’s told. When the plot does move forward there are a lot of twists & turns that lead to a big reveal at the end but the reveal was kind of meh & was wrapped up way too quickly. Kind of felt like much to do about nothing. Regardless, by the end of the book I think you know the characters well enough that you want to follow the journey. This was a bit of a long read so I feel a bit invested. Haven’t decided if I’ll come back for the sequel.

[Claudia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nov 2021
Loved it the first time and I had to listen to the audio book as well. this was my first book by Lloyd Thomas and I had some troubles getting into it at the beginning. but it grew on me
so 5 stars for the story and 4 stars for the narration


may 2019
Wow. this one was a great book - I loved it. all of it. I don't think there was anything in it, I did not like or thought ok, could have been better

Ren and Brahms are great characters and I adored them together. the story was really good and well written and after the" Jon's" books and then this one, A.J. Sherwood catapulted straight into the "Auto-buy" category for me.

loved it and can't wait for the next one

[Long Nguyen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I saw this book recommended a lot, but it left me quite disappointed. Billed as a fantasy romance, it felt more like a historical soap opera, if there's such a thing, though the setting is all imaginary. The action plot is thin, revolving around a treason act, but very low on suspense, as the act was easily stamped out. The focus was on romance. I would have no objection to that, if the romance part was good. It wasn't.

I don't like romance books where everybody is too nice, too accommodating, and everything goes too smoothly, perfectly. It looks fake and two-dimensional. This book is like that. On top of it, it's lengthy & repetitive, with a lot of unnecessary fillers, small-talk conversations that felt like a waste of time. For example, news of the wedding of the 2 MCs was told repeatedly to different groups of people, each time it took a whole chapter, so we have 3-4 chapters just to announce the wedding. And of course, everybody was so nice, they readily accepted the marriage between 2 men, despite all the fear and dread from the 2 MCs

In conclusion, I don't think I'm going to read this author again, if that's her writing style. Life's too short to waste on books like this.

[Ahiku · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF approximately 50%

I love the Jon's Mysteries series, but apparently that's all I really like when it comes to A.J. Sherwood's books. I really couldn't force myself to finish the Assassin book either. I really tried with this one, though. However, it takes so long until Brahms is back. It's dragging so hard, and then their relationship suddenly goes from naught to sixty in 3 seconds straight. I also don't really like that fictional world, because their are too many real influences - mostly Japan and Germany, like names and such, but the way it's done, I feel a lot of second-hand embarrassment... (as a German who has studied Japanology for a couple of years...) The names, who are probably kinda exotic for everyone else are just weird to me in this case. The story has a weird pacing. I like Ren and Brahms together, but they are a lot like Donovan and Jon. (And you don't always have to make the big and burly one bottom when they have their first time... especially when the concept of gay sex is totally new to that person.) When they reached Brahm's fortress, I just skipped a lot and completely lost my interest in the story. Sadly...

I think Sherwood is not a bad author. Maybe this story is too long. Maybe the pacing is weird. It's not for me. I'm glad there's a new story in the Jon universe, though.

[Riayl · Rating 5 out of 5]

DJD, I adore you and you have my eternal thanks for putting this book on my radar. I badly needed something this wonderful to read and add to my comfort-read list. I shall build an altar of m/m romance novels and begin my campaign to deify you.

For those of you NOT DJD, this book is quite awesome and you should read it. Then you should send virtual puppy eyes to the author so they will write more. *nods firmly*

Not a lot of relationship drama here, which is always fabulous in my book. There is quite a bit of time where the MCs are separated, but it was fantastically done and really allowed us to get to know Ren. This is very much a fantasy AND a romance, not just a fantasy romance. Honestly I really suck at reviewing books I love, as I find it hard to articulate just what it is I love about them. Usually it all just comes out half-baked and confused when I try. *sigh*

I felt that I got to know Ren really well. I got to know a bit of his past, and was firmly invested in his present and future. Through Ren and others at first, and then when Brahms himself comes on page, I felt I got to know him well, also. There was adventure, intrigue, swords, family, and love. It was really quite awesome and I desperately want to read more. For now I will just settle for wearing out my ereader rereading this book.

[空 · Rating 1 out of 5]

I gave this a try because I found the first book of ‘Siren Cove’ fairly enjoyable. Unfortunately for me, this book was much worse. Despite taking place in a fantasy world, this story is kinda weeby. It also comes across as being written by an ambitious and articulate highschooler, but a highschooler nonetheless.

1. The name of the super special main character alone — “Renjimantaro Sho”. And then for contrast, his brother is called the simpler “Takahiro”. What?

2. “Ren” is the only gay man — nay, gay person — in the whole kingdom of Aart. Dude. What? A whole fucking kingdom. No queers. What. There are onlies, and there is Ren.

3. And yet he’s special enough to be able to immediately remove a princess’ “discrimination” against gay people — which by the way is internalized in their society/kingdom — in one fight. W O W.

4. Also he is tough, smart, a ~master of a super recognizable fighting style, beloved by the royal family. Ayayayayay.

I made it to 28% of the book then called it a wash.

[Aղցela W. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was picked for me in a pick it for me challenge. This was also my first time reading this author. I like reading fantasy and M/M but the whole war thing I sometimes find it to be too much. This was a pretty good read. Ren and Arman are generals from different allied countries who became close friends in the last war at the end of the war and having no job opportunities he accepted Arman's invitation to come back to Aart. Five years later he is working for the royal family but in political and physical danger from unknown enemies. Arman returns from a long deployment ready to acknowledge to himself and Ren that his love is more than just friendship. They and their friends must uncover the conspiracy to save themselves and the prince and his fiancee. This book was well written with no errors in grammar or spelling. I am looking forward to reading more from this author.

[Al *the semi serial series skipper* · Rating 3 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book, well I loved it until they got married then it just became boring and repetitive.

I liked that Ren was so well loved and that people accepted him for who he was, I also liked Brahm but I think their relationship developed really fast. I know Brahms had wanted him subconsciously but I didn't like that we didn't get a glimpse into their relationship until he proposed.

[llv · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 3 stars

I really wanted to love this book. Unfortunately, it came up a bit short for me. There were parts that I really liked. I loved both of the main characters. I loved the people in the castle and the interactions between the characters. The problem was that I found much of the plot to be tedious. It took forever to find out what was going on and I found myself bored with most of it. All in all, it was an okay read. Nothing really spectacular.

[rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was by no means a perfect book. Lots of things that could’ve been done better in my opinion but I did really rather enjoy this book.

This story had two faces; either it was very much action packed/eventful or it was dull and a bit repetitive.

To top that off there were many, many homophobic assholes in this story. And yes, that was one of the main themes in this book. I certainly could have lived without this.

I didn’t mind all this too much though. I had a good time with the characters and the plot was genuinely good too. I liked it.

[Annika · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook review

Narration: 4,5 stars
Story: 3,75 stars

I’ve been eying this audio since it came out a few weeks ago. But the epically long blurb kind of deterred me and I never even finished reading it before passing on the book. Now though I found myself in search of new audiobooks and this book kept popping up, it called to me. I’ve read and loved other books by this author so I figured I needed to heed the call and listen to this one as well – blurb still (mostly) unread. And it paid off; I had a really good time listening to it.

Fourth Point of Contact was an adventure and a love story wrapped up in one. It started with war – or the ending of one, where Ren agreed to follow Brahm, his best friend to a new country and a new life as a Castle Warden to the monarchy. Now, some five years later Ren is beloved in his new country and by the monarchs, but someone is causing trouble and a lot of it. That someone is doing their best to prevent the union between Prince Charles and Princess Alexandria and it’s up to Ren to find out who. As Ren and Brahm investigates, the sabotages goes from mere nuisances and breaches of security to more dangerous and even deadly traps. All the more fun for the reader or listener, but I guess not so much for the characters in the book.

I enjoyed the events in this book, they might not be entirely, or even remotely credible, but they were entertaining all the same. So just sit back, relax and enjoy the show. However, I do wish there had been a better flow or melding of the plotlines, as it was it was either the political intrigue with spies and springing traps to capture traitors, or it was a sweet romance where Ren and Brahms finally came together. The two never really intertwined but was more of an either or situation. I loved both plotlines, I love a good action with a lot of stuff happening and with a lot of intrigue – just as much as I love a good friends to lovers romance, so I wish the two had been blended a bit more.

Lloyd Thomas is a fairly new narrator to me, but I hope to hear much more of him in the future. He performed this book with enthusiasm and passion that fit the moment and captures the attention of the listener. I also liked that he used so many accents, I can’t say that I could identify them, but that also fit the story of these make-believe countries – or supposed to be make believe. I think my favourite character might be Roslyn, she definitely lightened the mood and I loved how Thomas delivered her snark and banter.

This book might be on the long-ish side, but I still had a great afternoon listening to it. I’m not sure if there will be more books in this series in the future, but I do know that I’ll happily listen to them if there are.

A copy of this book was generously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review

[Ariel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a sweet romance! I loved Arman and Ren's relationship and how they go from such close friends to lovers. I also really enjoyed how their two cultures mixed. Having read Sherwood's Jon's Mysteries series, I knew I could expect a low-angst read, but this fantasy was so absorbing and I couldn't wait for the MCs to get together!

Arman and Ren worked so well together as a couple, and I loved seeing how they expressed themselves so differently. Ren is a chatterbox and uses his words to show his love. Whereas Arman is a man of action. I had to laugh at the way he made Ren his, and the running jokes from almost everyone they know of how Arman never speaks unless he absolutely has to.

Definitely a 5 Star read for me!

[Rielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very different book than I expected. I read a very cute and humorous series by this author immediately before starting this story. I was expecting much of the same, but there really wasn’t any humor or fun banter. It took me a few chapters to adjust to that and get into the story:

I thought the overall plot and characters to be good. So much happened before 50% that I was shocked to realize I was only halfway through at that point. It was absolutely lovely though and I was quite emotional at times because the author paints a picture of love and acceptance that is wonderful to read. It was well done, mostly. There were some over-the-top moments that didn’t quite fit, but I could excuse them because Arman and Ren deserved it.

My major gripe was that the story dragged. So much of it was entertaining and well-written that it was absolutely disappointing to find myself skimming and skipping pages near the end. The last quarter was so boring that I almost put the book down. It entirely cooled me on this author and I don’t know if I’ll pick up another book that isn’t comedic so that I at least have that to stay entertained.

[Ash🍉]

DNF @ 20%

So far this is literally just “a day in the life of Ren” and nothing is happening at all, I’m too bored to continue

[Jess · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really love this and had to go to the sequel immediately (which I have also finished! :D) This could be one of my top "friends to lovers" theme and adding in gfy and multicultural romance was definitely the cherries on top. Devouring this book was like eating a huge banana split that just makes you fall in love over and over again. Ren and Brahms were awesome and stole my heart right away.

[Milyd · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yeah I’m giving up! I’ve been trying to read this book for four weeks, and I just don’t care anymore. I feel like the story is going nowhere. One of the MCs came back suddenly wanting to be involved with the other, and although MC2 questions it internally, he hasn’t voiced it so far. Just going with the flow 🥴

I think I’m also not a big fan of the writing. To me, it feels like a lot of telling, but not showing? Which also reminds me that I dnf Jon’s downright ridiculous, one of her other books.

[Kaity · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved Ren and Brahm's relationship 💗 The narrator did a great job too!

[Natalie H · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read for a group challenge. I initially avoided this one, mainly because of the cover. Compared to Jon and the trio it just didn’t stand out as much. But I liked it.

I didn’t like Giles. When they got together, I was a bit ugh Ren what are you doing and where is Arman. I was glad he turned out to be scum. I liked how sweet but strong Ren is. He doesn’t let the hate get him down and naturally draws everyone to like him. I liked how he apologised to Harriet.

My favourite out of the two was Arman. I like how he can get so much across without saying much and gets away with it. The rules were fun and sweet, it’s like the two of them have their own language.

A lot of conspiracy, attempted murder and talk of war, but I was just in it for the corrupted princess and the marriage jokes. I’m looking forward to the next one and a little gutted I took so long to read this one.

[Evan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded down.

I really did want to love this novel, but certain points just failed to hit the mark for me.

The novel begins with an established friendship and trust between Ren and Brahms, which already made me a bit sad. I would have loved to see how two men from very different cultures learned to trust and fight together. (Prequel, maybe? Pretty please?)

One issue that bothered me was how Siirei is called Siirei instead of Japan. Everything described in the novel about Siirei instantly reminded me of Japan. Personally, I feel that if an author decided to create a whole new world with fantasy countries, they might as well put their own spin on these countries and their cultures. I have no issues with authors basing their fictional countries on real, actual countries, but I would have liked to seen something about Siirei that made it Siirei. There wasn't anything in the novel about Siirei that set it apart from Japan. Hopefully, in future novels, I can see what Siirei is truly like.

The bloodthirsty, action-seeking part of me craved for more action in the story. Both Ren and Brahms have fought in wars, and I expected more ass-kicking and ass-beating. Ren almost seemed reduced to being a showman, which was kind of disappointing. There was a lack of suspense throughout the story, due to the whole "We All Love Ren" vibe going on. This sort of trope would have really annoyed me, but I actually did like Ren's character and personality, haha.

Also, for all the mentions of how Ren and Brahms were pranksters, I didn't seem any pranks going on in the story.

I don't think I'd drop the series, but I wouldn't put it on top of my reading list, sadly. Still, it was a cute story, and Ren is really likable.

[Misty M · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m so mad at myself. I hesitated to start this book, because I didn’t think it would be for me. I prefer my fantasy more on the urban side, and and I’m not a fan of historical type worlds generally. Once I finally wised up and started...I COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN. Which is saying a lot, because I’ve been in a slump, starting and stopping so many books.

I’m so in love with Ren, he’s snarky and adorable, while still being utterly lethal. It’s a killer combination. He’s the perfect foil for Brahm’s taciturn nature, who actually has a decidedly wicked sense of humor. Their friendship is built on the battlefield, and is the kind we all wish for. That organically developed into a romantic relationship, that feels as solid as it does swoon worthy. Between hijinx, evil plots, deception, and prejudices they don’t have an easy road, but their deep connection helps them have the strength to persevere.

I’m so impressed with this book, it’s a new to me author, but one I will be following to read more. It’s not perfect, but it’s so fascinating and fun that it didn’t matter. I think there will be more from this couple and that makes me so excited. Eagerly looking forward to more.

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader’s copy.

[Elizabeth · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 30%

I just wrote a whole thing that I didn’t save and it disappeared, so instead of writing the whole thing again, here is the summary:

The author seems to be inexperienced. Everyone is too likable and it’s way too easy to predict.

The queen saw a stranger show cool and unique fighting moves and decided she just had to make him the Warden. Okay. Entrusting the safety of the castle to someone you just met and who has no experience except for fighting in the war. Guess it worked out. Seeing as she’s a queen, I would hope she makes decisions longer than two seconds of thinking about it but I’m not her.

Main character is too cutesy and lovable. When they are too sweet and don’t seem to have any fallacies, it makes me feel, I’m sure, the opposite of what the author is trying for.

However, I feel like I need to take the blame. I read the preview and wasn’t in love with how Ren was talking and bought the kindle book anyway.

[Kou Namiya · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF
I found the world incredibly hard to get into. It's absolutely awkward to me how there's real world influences from Japan and Germany for the two main characters, but it's a fantasy world. There's partially real names and words from those countries, and then made up stuff, or words that were slightly changed. It just feels odd and made it impossible for me to get immersed into the story.
I also found the writing to be too detailed, or giving too much information too soon. Way too many fantasy words/names to ever remember. I started skipping over pages because it was just boring, and then still didn't find anything that could captivate me enough to overlook the jarring mix of real world and fantasy world.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lighter than expected.

Although I had a few issues, if I looked at this more like a more adult Disney fairytale, I could let them slide. Ren is sort of perfect with few flaws; Arman also seemed perfect. I did like this couple and there were plenty of good supporting characters. Things just seemed too easy at times even through conflict. There were some funny moments and a few fight scenes. Overall tone was light even with the courtly betrayals.

[DoaJaneoDoe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book and world author made. This will definitely be one of my re-reads
yup, re-reading it a lot..I'm just not marking it every time ;) My go-to book when I need relaxing and to feel better

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[OneDayI'll · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet mushiness

Ren is done with war. He's also done with a country that hates him for who he loves. So when Arman asks him to come home with him he happily follows. But he doesn't end up where he planned and is now Warden for the Royal Family's castle. And his friend just got deployed for another mission. Loneliness wasn't something he'd planned on.

Spoilers ahead.
So I almost have up on this around the 30% point. It isn't a cheat... exactly. Arman hasn't stated his intentions towards Ren. Ren has spent years without anything more than friendship. So when another guy asks for Ren's company, he goes. And when Ren gets hurt (emotionally) and Arman finds out about it Arman gets grumpy. But he was the one who left Ren vulnerable and that made me angry. But, if you make it past that part it starts to, finally, come together. I love slow burns. I absolutely do. But this was miscommunication and a slow burn and miscommunication plots drive me batty. And it was deliberate miscommunications. Ugh. It took Ren being played before Arman finally did something. In this one I enjoyed the background characters almost more than the main ones. The princesses were hilarious. The prince was a card. The queen was an adorably homicidal momma bear who'd adopted Ren. The king was just dragged along by the rest of the family lol. The guard, G something, was a hoot. And everyone was rooting for Arman and Ren as a couple before the 2 idiots figured it out for themselves lol. The country and culture Ren is from knows and acknowledges LGBTQ loves but doesn't allow marriages. Arman's country doesn't exactly discriminate but it doesn't really acknowledge them, either. It's like they didn't realize that kind of love could even exist. Other countries they visit do discriminate, and get a little ugly about this. Trigger warnings for homophobia, prostitution (it's mentioned not seen) and slurs. But in the usual Sherwood fashion things get sorted out, love happens, and HEA is achieved with often hilarious occurrences.

[Shelby · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

I enjoyed the start to this series, though it is a bit light for a fantasy novel. Despite the potential devastation to be brought down on their kingdom, this lives in the land of everything's going to work out. It doesn't delve into the darker side. I still really loved these characters. Ren was absolutely the sweetest and I adored how much his adoptive country had taken him in and accepted him for who he was. He's completely in charge as the castle warden and the royal family relies heavily on his abilities. I thought the idea of a country that just didn't have any sort of awareness of same sex relationships was a bit strange, but it did make for the best relationship between Ren and Brahms. They were friends and that's all Ren was ever going to expect when he followed Brahms back to his country after the war. But time changes everything and these two were adorable as Brahms figured out what he wanted and put pursing Ren as his priority.

The plot to disrupt the royal wedding and the alliance of the two nations always felt like it was never going to succeed. Ren and Brahms were too competent not to figure it out. It added a nice backdrop to things, but really this was all about the characters. I loved seeing these guys interact and how thrown Ren was by the opportunity to have someone in his life. Something he thought he'd given up by choosing the new life in another country. These was an adorable romance and Brahms made my life with his non-speaking self. I loved how he put his plan into action and everyone else had to adapt to his plan. Too cute.

Can't wait to read the next book in this series.

[Jenn (not Lily) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gorgeous, utterly gorgeous. Although we're shoved into the middle of the story with the war ending and Ren following his friend to his homeland, we eventually find out the most important things about how the relationship developed through stories told to new friends and allies. This feels more like a historical than a fantasy, with realistic discussions about castle defenses and treaties with neighboring countries brought about by royal marriages. Of course I loved Ren, as all the best characters in this story also love him, but I also love how many of them take him into their hearts and homes, welcoming him for the wonderful person he is, not just what he can do to shield them from harm. And Arman...quiet, stoic, strong, and honorable Arman. Yeah, Ren deserves the love of that guy, every second of every day. I know it's been almost a year and a half since this came out, but I'd really love to read another story set in this world. Just saying, if the author needs any encouragement, I'm here for it, no doubts in my mind!