As it Should Be

Windbrothers

by Sean Michael

If you liked Sean Michael's fantasy Where Flows the Water you won't want to miss this collection! Set in the same world where magic users and their sworn mates find each other through a process of trial and error, these stories will tug at your heart. Among other things.

From a shapeshifter with a secret to a pair of twins who think they'll never find their lover, Sean Michael gives us a lot to love, just as it should be.

Genres: M M Romance, Fantasy, Anthologies, Gay, Romance, Magic, Erotica

110 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 12, 2006

About the author

Often referred to as "Space Cowboy" and "Gangsta of Love" while still striving for the moniker of "Maurice," Sean Michael spends his days surfing, smutting, organizing his immense gourd collection and fantasizing about one day retiring on a small secluded island peopled entirely by horseshoe crabs. While collecting vast amounts of vintage gay pulp novels and mood rings, Sean whiles away the hours between dropping the f-bomb and persuing the kama sutra by channeling the long lost spirit of John Wayne and singing along with the soundtrack to "Chicago."

A long-time writer of complicated haiku, currently Sean is attempting to learn the advanced arts of plate spinning and soap carving sex toys.

Barring any of that? He'll stick with writing his stories, thanks, and rubbing pretty bodies together to see if they spark.

Reviews

[Jenna ✨DNF Queen✨Here, Sometimes... · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reread March 2023: A delight, as always. Ignore the terrible cover 😂.

A handful of sweet, short stories from the Windbrothers Universe; my notes/highlights are tagged with each story for clarity.

Strongly recommend reading this only after experiencing the Windbrothers world through Where Flows the Water or Windbrothers Desert

[Serena Yates · Rating 5 out of 5]

The world of ‘Windbrothers Desert’ fascinated me as much as the first time when I recently reread the first novel in the series, so I was excited to get to read these stories again as well. A lot of the world building is explained and deepened in the five stories in this collection, and since they take place before the beginning of ‘Windbrothers Desert’, they make excellent background reading. More than that though, they are wonderful tales in their own right. The winds are a force to be listened to in this world, and magic can be found in many different ways. Each of these five stories gives a unique perspective, and I enjoyed all of the glimpses I got.

Coming Home
Bren is an orphan without a home, so once he is a young man he joins a band of thieves – none of whom have a home either. When Bren gets left behind and caught by Iral, the farmer they were stealing from, he expects to be killed. But Iral has a six-year-old daughter and she puts in a good word for Bren. Not because she likes him, but she is too young to be cruel. What follows is entirely unexpected for Bren who can’t remember having a real home. The reason for that becomes apparent in a crisis, and Bren expects the worst – only to be surprised yet again.

If you like sweet stories about characters who have known nothing but rejection before finding a place to call “home”, then you will probably like this short story as much as I do. It’s sweet, just a little mysterious, and an emotional testament to the true meaning of family.

Turtle
When Satta, a lonely warrior and hunter, runs into two playful strangers while guarding his tribe’s borders, he is immediately drawn to them. All three of them know they belong together, and even though Satta knows the elders will not understand him being involved with two men who are also otter shifters, he finds that his quickly growing feelings are more important to him than tradition or rules. But when he wants to return to the tribe to share his good fortune, the elders are relentless and decide to punish him – and the cruelty of what they do made me cry.

If you like the idea of fated mates, if you believe that three men can belong together, and if you’re looking for a read full of the joys of explicit activities as well as the reward for courage in the face of defeat, then you will probably like this story as much as I do.

The Wind’s Will
Semon is a ba’chi, a man with paranormal abilities, who was rejected by his tribe. The man he was meant to be with, a one-armed warrior named Benik, does not want to accept him at first – and when he does, there is a lot of courting and catching up to do to convince Semon he is wanted after all. Benik has not had an easy life among strong men with two functional arms, and Semon has been turned away too many times to have any self-confidence left. The way they accept and heal each other is beautiful and had me rooting for them every step of the way.

If you like stories about two wounded men finding strength in each other, and if you believe love is more important than almost anything else, then you will probably like this short story as much as I do.

Blown Together by the Wind
Two men from very different cultures are brought together in this story, and since they are too different – initially – to be able to communicate, they have to learn as they go. It was a fascinating process to see Delen learn about the Other and his preferences while he figured out how to deal with the coming winter without any of his furs or his pack – all taken a long time ago by a big cat. Unar is mystified by who seems to be following him, but the trading of food builds trust and brings them closer. Unar does not like people, but this stranger fascinates him.

If you think that two men from different worlds can figure out how to live together, and if you’re looking for a read full of discoveries, sweet moments, a few doubts, and lots of learning, then you will probably like this story as much as I do.

Weaver
Sebak is a man looking for his mother’s tribe, but what he finds is Azen, his dead brother’s mate. Azen was left behind and cursed by a tribe who does not think a ba’chi should survive his partner’s death. As the truth of Azen’s situation, his desperate loneliness and unique talent emerge, Sebak feels more and more drawn to this man who would be so easy to love. Azen’s loneliness is so obvious, and the cruelty with which he has been treated made me want to yell at the people in his former tribe. I was glad Sebak decided to claim him!

If you like stories about men with unique talents, if you believe rejection for no good reason is wrong, and if you’re looking for a read full of pain, the gradual development of hope, and a very happy ending, then you will probably like this short story as much as I do. It’s an unusual and very touching love story.


NOTE: This book was provided by DSP Publications for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.

[Steve · Rating 2 out of 5]

An older set of short stories. The rating based mainly on my reaction to the stories but these short stories are not representative of the author's best work. They are good but they just don't pull me in as much of his other material does.

[Sarina · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5* Review written for Love Bytes Reviews.

ANTHOLOGY REVIEW:

I loved the first book in this series to death (Windbrothers: Desert) and was really excited, and more than willing, to dive back into the world I’d grown so fond of. As it Should Be is a collection of five short stories all set within the Windbrothers universe and while it is technically a prequel to the first novel, I’d recommend reading this second as you won’t understand or enjoy it as much otherwise. The settings of the stories presented are all different but with an underlying theme: magic user meets warrior type and they come together as a bonded pair. A couple of the stories really stood out to me but, while I did like the book in general, I didn’t love it like I expected to. There wasn’t a great deal of story to be had in many of the offerings and I was a little disappointed by that fact. Still, I did enjoy the book and it was nice getting another look at the unique world presented in the Windbrothers universe. If you were a fan of the first book this would make a nice companion piece to it but without some knowledge of the world and relationships in it, you may be confused and won’t enjoy it as much.

Coming Home 4.5*

By far the best story in the book, and my complete favorite, this is also the only story you could read without knowledge of the Windbrothers universe and still completely understand and enjoy. Coming Home is the story of Bren, and unwanted and abandoned shifter who finds an unexpected home and family with Iral and his daughter Rian. This was a complete story with a sweet, happy ending that I just adored and that made for an excellent start to the collection. I really felt for Bren and his circumstances but it was an absolute joy watching as he’d worked to make a home for himself with the people he’d come to love.

Turtle 3*

This one was just okay for me, honestly. Satta is a warrior who unexpectedly finds and bonds with a pair of brothers while out patrolling his clan’s territory. There really wasn’t much story to be had here; you get to see different scenes between all three main characters mainly consisting of sex and it was disappointing that I didn’t get to see the triad getting to know each other with their clothes still on. The reaction and retribution taken by Satta’s clan made for a nice little bit of depth to an otherwise one dimensional story but I needed something more to really enjoy this one. Please note that there is some incest in this one but nothing overly graphic in my opinion.

The Wind’s Will 3.5*

This one was interesting and showed a different side to the meeting and bonding of a ba’chi and hi’icha. Both main characters were different than the ‘norm’ so far in these stories; Benik survived a bear attack and lost a limb as a result yet still managed to fight his way back into a position of respect while Semon is clumsy and shy and thinks of himself as a burden. It was nice seeing them come together and they seemed to match well but after the first part of the story, things moved back into the bedroom well before I was ready. I found the characters interesting and would’ve been happier if the story had been more about Benik courting Semon as planned rather than things moving so fast.

Blown Together by the Wind 3.5*

Pretty good story with a similar feel to it to Turtle but I enjoyed the characters a lot more; both men were interesting but I still found the character development somewhat lacking. Unar was a fairly easy character to understand but with Delen, you’re given little tidbits and comments in the beginning that stirred up a great deal of curiosity about him that’s then never expanded upon or explained. His lack of speech/understanding also made me a little uncomfortable at times as you’re never given a definite age for the character, just that Unar thought he was around 18-19 years old. Nice story about two solitary individuals coming together but there was no real depth to it.

Weaver 3.5*

This was a good story to end the book on but it was also one of the most frustrating. I really enjoyed this one, I did, but this was a case of so much potential completely wasted. Azen is the one ‘traditional’ magic user in the book with an ability I’d not seen before in these stories and I would’ve loved to explore that more. There were just so many directions this story could’ve taken, with plot even, but it was, unfortunately, one of the shortest stories in the entire book. If there had been more…well, more of anything, really, this could’ve easily been my favorite story of the book but as it stands it was a good story that left me feeling vaguely unsatisfied.

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[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coming Home is an awesome 5 star story of love, acceptance, and belonging. Bren is a shifter who longs for a home and finds it with a man and his little daughter. It's a 60 page story on my computer and has an unrushed pace. There's not much sex in this one but there is a HEA. I love this story! It is one of my favourites by this author. I would highly recommend this story.

I love the Turtle story, too. It's a 4 star for me, though, mainly because it seemed very stupid for Satta to go back to his tribe when he knew they would not accept them and then knowing they were probably going to kill him, he did not leave, although he could have escaped their torture as he did send his lovers away. There is some reasoning given for his returning to his tribe but it doesn't seem adequate. I imagine this part of the story was written to give the story extra plot but it was a fun, awesome story without this part.

Plenty of love, belonging, fun, and hot sex in this story. The nicknames Satta gives his lovers are beautiful. The threesome really works well in this story; in fact it goes beyond working well and really shines with the love of the three for each other. I would love to see more of these three in the future; something that shows how future winters were dealt with as Du' found being in a cabin difficult, for example.

There are things in this story that might bother other readers: the scene of Satta being punished {I did not find it too graphic but others might}, occasional errors not corrected by editing {very few and unless this is something that really bothers someone, they are easily overlooked in the delight of such a romantic telling} and incest {the love between two brothers was made to seem natural by excellent writing}. Overall, a great story with a HEA that I would recommend.

Both these stories are beautiful romance stories that show relationships that are indeed As It Should Be. The book was worth buying for these two stories alone.

The Wind's Will is a 3 star story for me. I felt sad for Yusef at the start of the story. It's a romantic short story about acceptance and finding a home with only a little sex in it. It has a HEA.

Blown Together By The Wind is a lovely story of two men finding each other and their growing relationship. It has a HEA. There is a lot of sex in this story and not much dialogue {and much of that is in very short sentences} but it is a romantic story that I enjoyed reading and would give 4 stars.

Weaver is a short story that has a lot of sadness in it. There's not a lot of sex in it and the couple have just met at the end of it {the story takes place within 2 days} but they clearly plan on staying together and have a happy future ahead of them. It's a 3 star story for me.

The author uses words in these stories that are an original language, and occasionally it is hard to know what the word means. Perhaps these words are explained in a previous book, Where Flows the Water. Possibly the world these stories take place in is explained in Where Flows the Water, too. It would have aided these stories to have known more about the world they take place in.

I would love to read more about any of the couples in these stories.

[Morningstar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book & Author: As It Should Be by Sean Michael
Rating: 3.75 Stars

This bundle of 5 short stories all take place in the Windbrothers world. A fantasy world where its people see the wind as its guiding force and they listen when it speaks. Each one of these stories is a unique tale of one finding their destined mate, a mate brought to them by the wind. Where there is a ba’chi there must be a hi’icha to guard them, the two creating what they call ki’ita. One does not live without the other so when one passes into the summer lands the other will follow.

Whether it's the story in Coming Home where Bren finds that his future is better than his past and he deserves to have the love of Iral and his daughter Rian.

Or Turtle, the story of Satta who while out patrolling his lands stumbles on So’el and Du’el, twin brothers who have some special powers and no home to go back to. And to keep his ba’chi safe Satta will sacrifice a lot, maybe even his life.

Then we have The Wind’s Will, a story of Benik who has to fight for his ba’chi Semon against his beloved cousin. Semon, hides a secret and has always been told he was a burden to his old tribe has a found a friend in this one. But now he must try to see if his heart sings for Benik to finally find his home.

Blown Together by the Wind is the story of Delen who could control and speak to the winds finds a warrior, Unar, that intrigues him but he hasn’t been around or spoken to what he calls Others for a very long time. The warrior himself is one of a kind, but can Delen find a way past his fear to stay with Unar, his One?

Finally, there is the story in Weaver of Sebak who was travelling to find his mother, once thought to be dead, and her tribe that he had lost long ago when he stumbles upon Azen, a man left to live in the darkness and be cursed because his hi’icha passed to the summer lands without him. Sebak learns of the fate of his mother at the same time he must find away to bring this man out into the light, to save him because the winds have lead him here to do just that.

Each story is unique in it’s telling and characters. Each are sweet and romantic and filled with heat. The lands, the history, the people, and all it’s magic were given good depth and detail for such short stories. I do wish there was less sex and more story because I felt it diminished the love story portion of the storytelling. I haven’t read the book that this prequels, Windbrothers Desert, but it now will be one that I make sure to follow up since I loved this world so much.

*I received a copy of this book through http://diversereader.blogspot.com/*

[Robin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Coming Home 4stars. Turtle 2stars. The Winds Will 1 star. Blown Together By the Wind 3 stars. Weaver 1 star.

[Erotic Horizon]

As It Should Be by Sean Michael (2006)