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The Warrior's Guild #1
His Secret Illuminations
A Sheltered Monk
By day, Lucían brews potions and illuminates manuscripts in service to the monastery that took him in as a child, wielding magic based in his faith and his purity. By night, he dreams of the world outside the cloister--a world he knows only in books and scrolls...
A Mysterious Warrior
A mercenary known as the She-Wolf hunts for a shipment of stolen manuscripts. When she needs a mage to track them down, she chooses Lucían for both his adorable blushes and his magic. She purchases his contract, hurling him headfirst into an adventure that will test both his skills and his self-control...
A Sacred Vow
Inexorably drawn to the She-Wolf's strength, surprising kindness, and heated touches, Lucían fights temptation at every turn. His holy magic is both vital to their mission and dependent upon his purity. How can he serve both her and the Lord if he gives in to his desire? As intrigue and danger forces them closer, how can he possibly resist?
By day, Lucían brews potions and illuminates manuscripts in service to the monastery that took him in as a child, wielding magic based in his faith and his purity. By night, he dreams of the world outside the cloister--a world he knows only in books and scrolls...
A Mysterious Warrior
A mercenary known as the She-Wolf hunts for a shipment of stolen manuscripts. When she needs a mage to track them down, she chooses Lucían for both his adorable blushes and his magic. She purchases his contract, hurling him headfirst into an adventure that will test both his skills and his self-control...
A Sacred Vow
Inexorably drawn to the She-Wolf's strength, surprising kindness, and heated touches, Lucían fights temptation at every turn. His holy magic is both vital to their mission and dependent upon his purity. How can he serve both her and the Lord if he gives in to his desire? As intrigue and danger forces them closer, how can he possibly resist?
442 pages, Paperback
First published October 30, 2020
231 people are currently reading
5289 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 397 reviews
June 11, 2022
Queer F/M fantasy romance that pairs a shy, slight archivist monk named Lucían with a tall, strapping warrior woman called the She-Wolf in an alternate historical fantasy Europe with different names for countries and cultures, and also with magic and unicorns. It's all from Lucían's POV and his character voice is so fantastic that I had to put it down for a few days because I was jealous. (Not lying.) I didn't realize when I picked it up that the She-Wolf, whose real name is Glory, is what I would describe as pan from how she talks about herself. Very pleasant surprise.
There's a lot in here about conservative Christianity's sexuality shaming, because of Lucían's upbringing in an abusive conservative monastery. I felt like all of that was handled with the gravity it merited.
I'm looking forward to the sequel to this duology. The first book ends in an HFN, though, so no cliffhanger worries. I'm hoping it gets more into Glory's head and fleshes out her character, because as other reviewers have noted she's a bit too perfect in this book - but I attribute much of that to Lucían's intense and inexperienced adoration. Lucían is clearly kinky but has no frame of reference for it and that's what the couple will undoubtedly be discovering / working through in the next book, aside from the adventure they'll be on.
There's a lot in here about conservative Christianity's sexuality shaming, because of Lucían's upbringing in an abusive conservative monastery. I felt like all of that was handled with the gravity it merited.
I'm looking forward to the sequel to this duology. The first book ends in an HFN, though, so no cliffhanger worries. I'm hoping it gets more into Glory's head and fleshes out her character, because as other reviewers have noted she's a bit too perfect in this book - but I attribute much of that to Lucían's intense and inexperienced adoration. Lucían is clearly kinky but has no frame of reference for it and that's what the couple will undoubtedly be discovering / working through in the next book, aside from the adventure they'll be on.
September 13, 2021
HEAR YE! HEAR YE! I AM HERE TO GUSH
This book has too few ratings on the GR page. So I am here to aggressively try and get my GR friends to read it. Now let me tell you why!
✅ Tall, muscular warrior woman
Have you been looking for big, strong women? Well, here she is. Look no further.
Have you been looking for romance with a woman taller than the man? Here it is!
Have you been looking for a woman who knows how to handle a sword? Here. She. Is.
When did you last see a heroine carrying her man? When?!
✅ Cinnamon roll, softest monk
Lucían is the cinnamon roll to rule all cinnamon rolls. This soft uwu boi blushes at almost everything the She-wolf does due to his sheltered monk life.
Look at this man! He embodies scared and aroused.
✅Gentle femdom
While it doesn't fully blossom in this book, it is present let me tell you.
Lucían wants a woman who can make him feel like prey, and I, for one, support him.
✅Struggles with sex and sexuality after a life of religious chastity
In fact, the way Lucían's faith is integrated into the story and his character was sooo good.
✅ Mental health and 100% supporting each other
Lucían's childhood has basically made him an anxious mess, and the way the She-Wolf just supports him. My hheeeeaaaaart!
And Lucían supports her just as much.
Are you tired of every romance book having the characters be mildly antagonistic towards each other at the start? Well, here's something to water your crops and clear your skin.
✅ Bi/pan/queer woman
This book in general just looked at all the cis-het-white fantasy nonsense we've had to live with and said, nah. Here, have some diverse fantasy.
✅Slowburn
Get ready to fall in love and root for these two as their soft, kind love enfolds you.
PLEASE READ IT
This is the kind of fantasy romance I long for, so please, give it a read. It breaks with so many tropes and norms in romance. It feels so incredibly fresh.
It's a duology and I already bought the next one. I need more Lucían and She-Wolf in my life. And so do you. You just don't know it yet.
This book has too few ratings on the GR page. So I am here to aggressively try and get my GR friends to read it. Now let me tell you why!
✅ Tall, muscular warrior woman
His head barely comes up to the level of her armpit and he swears his waist is about the same size as either of her muscular thighs
Have you been looking for big, strong women? Well, here she is. Look no further.
Have you been looking for romance with a woman taller than the man? Here it is!
Have you been looking for a woman who knows how to handle a sword? Here. She. Is.
Then the She-Wolf just leans down, grabs him under the armpits and hefts him up onto the saddle like he weighs absolutely nothing
When did you last see a heroine carrying her man? When?!
✅ Cinnamon roll, softest monk
Share! Hers! She meant the horse! Lucían blushes furiously, hoping it's not too visible between his darker skin tone and already being red from the cold.
Lucían is the cinnamon roll to rule all cinnamon rolls. This soft uwu boi blushes at almost everything the She-wolf does due to his sheltered monk life.
She leans in close to his face, her eyes boring into his. "I am, after all, still the She-Wolf." Her bared teeth snap next to his ear, and she rumbles a growl that he feels through his entire body. It jolts straight to his groin and he freezes, heart skittering in his chest."
Look at this man! He embodies scared and aroused.
✅Gentle femdom
Lucían is honored and awestruck and intimidated all at once and he wants to always feel this way, never wants to stop. He desperately wants to serve the She-Wolf in ways he doesn't even understand yet but he feels it in every part of his soul.
While it doesn't fully blossom in this book, it is present let me tell you.
Lucían wants a woman who can make him feel like prey, and I, for one, support him.
"Good boy," she says, and he shivers at the praise.
✅Struggles with sex and sexuality after a life of religious chastity
(...) frantically reciting his vows in his head in a desperate attempt to get control over his own arousal. It would be very weird and inappropriate for a monk who has taken a vow of chastity to find it increadiby appealing to be physically overpowered and held down by his only friend, so that's definitely not what's happening.
In fact, the way Lucían's faith is integrated into the story and his character was sooo good.
✅ Mental health and 100% supporting each other
"Never again," she vows, the hot steel of her promise dripping from her voice. "He will never have a chance to hurt you again. I will never do what he did to you, Lucían, I promise. Not even if you slip up and hurt me while we're training. I will never cast you aside.
Lucían's childhood has basically made him an anxious mess, and the way the She-Wolf just supports him. My hheeeeaaaaart!
And Lucían supports her just as much.
Are you tired of every romance book having the characters be mildly antagonistic towards each other at the start? Well, here's something to water your crops and clear your skin.
✅ Bi/pan/queer woman
"Mmm. Not prefer, as such, I'm not a dedicated seeker of flowers. I'm attracted to women and I'm attracted to men and sometimes I'm attracted to people who aren't either. I don't care as much about what a person is, I care about who they are. Does that make sense?
This book in general just looked at all the cis-het-white fantasy nonsense we've had to live with and said, nah. Here, have some diverse fantasy.
✅Slowburn
Get ready to fall in love and root for these two as their soft, kind love enfolds you.
PLEASE READ IT
This is the kind of fantasy romance I long for, so please, give it a read. It breaks with so many tropes and norms in romance. It feels so incredibly fresh.
It's a duology and I already bought the next one. I need more Lucían and She-Wolf in my life. And so do you. You just don't know it yet.
October 3, 2021
I'm very torn about this book, so I'm giving it an average of 3 stars. (I wanted to go down to 2 but I still want to read the other half of this story, so it gets an extra star for that alone.) The central concept of the story is very good and the last 15% was the tone and pace that I wanted from the first 85% of the book. However, that first 85% is basically a museum exhibit of everything I cannot stand about fanfiction readers/writers who try their hand at original fiction, and there are huge doses of woke twee cringe and inconsistent world-building alongside the more compelling role reversal, romance, and adventure aspects of the story. I also really dislike the move of writing one long story, splitting it into two parts at an arbitrary stopping point, and calling it a duology because the author could not or would not edit her bloated narrative down into something leaner and tighter. It's just bad form.
In a word, this book is precious. I mean that in its pejorative context. It's clear that the author loves her characters and wants to feature them as much as possible, because this book is crammed full of scenes of the leads interacting that continually re-establish their well-established relationship, or scenes of Lucian with other characters where they talk about Glory and the Lucian/Glory relationship. I'd say a good 25-30% of the book, if not more, is completely unnecessary. We know Lucian is completely smitten with Glory from page one, and it's pretty obvious that Glory also likes Lucian from the jump as well. A lot of these scenes are just indulgent. It works if you're someone who loves these characters and you want to spend as much time with them as possible (which is a common theme in fanfiction, the people want longfic and they want it looooooong) but this doesn't work when there's a plot to move along. I forgot about the whole stolen book plot somewhere around the tenth time Lucian blushed and stammered and felt conflicted about his religious vows.
I think a lot of Lucian's confusion about Glory (and the repetition of the first 70% of the book) gets hand-waved away as him being an oblivious and extremely sheltered subby boy, but something has to change in him or in their relationship for each of these scenes to work; for the most part it's a lot of blushing and internal monologue, which gets boring really quickly. On top of that, we spend far too much time with side characters like The Knife (which is a laughable name if you're a fan of the Doughboys podcast) and Shannon, which I assume serves to establish the queer found family trope since Knife is a lesbian and Shannon is non-binary. The side characters' time spent with Lucian does very little to further the plot and could have been edited out almost entirely. Again, precious.
The whole premise sounds like the author took a Tumblr text post and expanded it, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but this is an over-long duology that is in desperate need of editing. It's written like fanfiction for a pair of beloved original characters, which I found to be an unsuccessful tactic: third-person present tense narration and frequent narrative asides don't work for original fiction because they require a familiarity with the characters outside of the text. Consequently, the narrative felt overly familiar at the top of the book and the tone only really worked at the very end after I'd gotten to know Lucian and Glory in painstaking, excruciating detail.
In terms of woke twee cringe, I'll explain where I almost stopped reading out of pure frustration: once when Glory pulled out knitted hats for herself and Lucian, his with a giant pompom and hers with cat ears, for fuck's sake, and again when Lucian spends like two whole chapters trying to comprehend the concept of enbies in a very clunky way. I don't have an issue with the inclusion of queer and nb/trans characters; I really love M/F romance with queer leads and I am writing one myself that also includes some light role reversal. The problem here is the execution of how these characters and concepts are introduced and discussed. It's all done in a very cutesy way (one might even say... precious), which I understand if you're going for a feel-good novel, but it undercuts the dramatic tension when the story gets into fights and heists and whatnot.
Generally, the writing here tells rather than shows, and there are several phrases that are repeated to move the narrative along (take a shot whenever you read some form of "it turns out" and you'll die of alcohol poisoning) when a lot of these scenes and observations should have been cut during the editing process. The overuse of italics for emphasis is a fanfiction convention that should have been edited out as well; it finally tapers off around the end of the book, which is one of the reasons why I think I enjoyed that part most. Lastly, I found the world-building to be lazy and inconsistent: there's magic, but it's also some kind of alternate medieval Europe (including clumsy analogues to French, Spanish, German, and Norse cultures), but also everyone talks like they have a Tumblr blog in 2018. They drink champagne even though there's no France in this world. There's a lot of modern slang. There are unicorns, but they're tiny little dainty deer things! I just can't. It's too much. The Tumblr/AO3 heritage of the writing is very clear in this book. Don't get me wrong, I love Tumblr and AO3 and have accounts on both, but original fiction writing has different requirements and conventions than fanfiction writing and I'm not sure that the author understands that. This book stumbles pretty badly in that arena, which is why I initially wanted to rate it 2 stars.
At the same time I think it is a testament to the strength of the core concept of the story that, despite all of these flaws, I kept pushing myself to read and I still want to know what happens in the sequel. The writing started to improve about 3/4ths of the way through the book, so I'm hoping the second part will move faster than the first.
I think one of the reasons I'm so hard on this book is that I see a lot of its flaws reflected in the novel I'm currently writing; I also love my characters to death and I want to write down every single thing they do, which has resulted in my first draft being a 200K-word monster. However, the solution to that problem is not splitting the book into two parts and calling it a day. The solution is editing the shit out of your book, condensing scenes, making use of more economical language, and considering structural changes to make it shorter. This entire story could have revolved around rescuing one or two of the missing books and then the sequel could have involved a second mission that Glory and Lucian undertake. I'm not sure why things are the way they are other than that the author wanted her characters to go on this twee-horny femdom romp through Medieval Tumblr. That seems like the justification for most of the decisions here, which I think works for fanfiction as a medium founded on doing whatever you want with someone else's characters, but it's a wholly insufficient justification for original fiction.
In a word, this book is precious. I mean that in its pejorative context. It's clear that the author loves her characters and wants to feature them as much as possible, because this book is crammed full of scenes of the leads interacting that continually re-establish their well-established relationship, or scenes of Lucian with other characters where they talk about Glory and the Lucian/Glory relationship. I'd say a good 25-30% of the book, if not more, is completely unnecessary. We know Lucian is completely smitten with Glory from page one, and it's pretty obvious that Glory also likes Lucian from the jump as well. A lot of these scenes are just indulgent. It works if you're someone who loves these characters and you want to spend as much time with them as possible (which is a common theme in fanfiction, the people want longfic and they want it looooooong) but this doesn't work when there's a plot to move along. I forgot about the whole stolen book plot somewhere around the tenth time Lucian blushed and stammered and felt conflicted about his religious vows.
I think a lot of Lucian's confusion about Glory (and the repetition of the first 70% of the book) gets hand-waved away as him being an oblivious and extremely sheltered subby boy, but something has to change in him or in their relationship for each of these scenes to work; for the most part it's a lot of blushing and internal monologue, which gets boring really quickly. On top of that, we spend far too much time with side characters like The Knife (which is a laughable name if you're a fan of the Doughboys podcast) and Shannon, which I assume serves to establish the queer found family trope since Knife is a lesbian and Shannon is non-binary. The side characters' time spent with Lucian does very little to further the plot and could have been edited out almost entirely. Again, precious.
The whole premise sounds like the author took a Tumblr text post and expanded it, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but this is an over-long duology that is in desperate need of editing. It's written like fanfiction for a pair of beloved original characters, which I found to be an unsuccessful tactic: third-person present tense narration and frequent narrative asides don't work for original fiction because they require a familiarity with the characters outside of the text. Consequently, the narrative felt overly familiar at the top of the book and the tone only really worked at the very end after I'd gotten to know Lucian and Glory in painstaking, excruciating detail.
In terms of woke twee cringe, I'll explain where I almost stopped reading out of pure frustration: once when Glory pulled out knitted hats for herself and Lucian, his with a giant pompom and hers with cat ears, for fuck's sake, and again when Lucian spends like two whole chapters trying to comprehend the concept of enbies in a very clunky way. I don't have an issue with the inclusion of queer and nb/trans characters; I really love M/F romance with queer leads and I am writing one myself that also includes some light role reversal. The problem here is the execution of how these characters and concepts are introduced and discussed. It's all done in a very cutesy way (one might even say... precious), which I understand if you're going for a feel-good novel, but it undercuts the dramatic tension when the story gets into fights and heists and whatnot.
Generally, the writing here tells rather than shows, and there are several phrases that are repeated to move the narrative along (take a shot whenever you read some form of "it turns out" and you'll die of alcohol poisoning) when a lot of these scenes and observations should have been cut during the editing process. The overuse of italics for emphasis is a fanfiction convention that should have been edited out as well; it finally tapers off around the end of the book, which is one of the reasons why I think I enjoyed that part most. Lastly, I found the world-building to be lazy and inconsistent: there's magic, but it's also some kind of alternate medieval Europe (including clumsy analogues to French, Spanish, German, and Norse cultures), but also everyone talks like they have a Tumblr blog in 2018. They drink champagne even though there's no France in this world. There's a lot of modern slang. There are unicorns, but they're tiny little dainty deer things! I just can't. It's too much. The Tumblr/AO3 heritage of the writing is very clear in this book. Don't get me wrong, I love Tumblr and AO3 and have accounts on both, but original fiction writing has different requirements and conventions than fanfiction writing and I'm not sure that the author understands that. This book stumbles pretty badly in that arena, which is why I initially wanted to rate it 2 stars.
At the same time I think it is a testament to the strength of the core concept of the story that, despite all of these flaws, I kept pushing myself to read and I still want to know what happens in the sequel. The writing started to improve about 3/4ths of the way through the book, so I'm hoping the second part will move faster than the first.
I think one of the reasons I'm so hard on this book is that I see a lot of its flaws reflected in the novel I'm currently writing; I also love my characters to death and I want to write down every single thing they do, which has resulted in my first draft being a 200K-word monster. However, the solution to that problem is not splitting the book into two parts and calling it a day. The solution is editing the shit out of your book, condensing scenes, making use of more economical language, and considering structural changes to make it shorter. This entire story could have revolved around rescuing one or two of the missing books and then the sequel could have involved a second mission that Glory and Lucian undertake. I'm not sure why things are the way they are other than that the author wanted her characters to go on this twee-horny femdom romp through Medieval Tumblr. That seems like the justification for most of the decisions here, which I think works for fanfiction as a medium founded on doing whatever you want with someone else's characters, but it's a wholly insufficient justification for original fiction.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 23, 2023
I decided to leave my comfort zone and try a fantasy-romance novel and ended up instead committing to a 500 page mistake, which I masochistically decided I'd see to the end.
I hate to make assumptions but this very much read like a person who had previously only written fan fiction, because there isn't much interest in spending too much time developing the fantasy world that these characters reside in. With fan fiction, that world is already built for you, and you can sort of just play in that sandbox, but creating original work takes more effort than that. Sadly, the few glimmers of unique lore in this book are anticlimactically squashed to avoid any sense of conflict - I had thought the idea of a monk whose powers rely on his adherence to monastic vows was a genuinely interesting conundrum! But this issue is resolved by revealing that actually this one monastery he came from sucked and no one else who follows this religion believes in that. Which is a pretty weird way to make a character reconcile with his religious trauma, just hand-waving it as the fault of one specific abbot rather than a systematic issue, when we know in real life there's so much complexity to the nature of religious trauma and it isn't just resolved by pinpointing every issue to one single guy. But maybe it's my own fault, for expecting social issues to be handled with kid gloves in a book like this. They are, instead, handled with the finesse of boxing gloves.
The other issue with this phenomenon - this issue where you have the tropic structure of a fan fiction applied to an original work - is that you're employing this slow-burn trope to a story without any actual, non-romantic plot. Not every story needs a formal "plot", and this clearly isn't meant to be that kind of story, but it's incredibly tedious to just read about characters doing nothing while pining for each other. I began tentatively interested and about a third of the way through was irritated by the dull repetition. Gale has no interest in conflict, and most of the book is just a series of the characters Doing Things. They eat, they train, they take baths. They agonize over the number of beds in a room. High stakes issues are rare, and when they come, it's usually done to illustrate the cleverness and altruism of our main characters.
The main characters are in some ways almost offensively flawless, unfailingly kind and patient, exuding simultaneously a childlike innocence and a sage-like emotional maturity. Everyone communicates effectively and uses all the right words. Everyone is empathetic and considerate. Everyone is incredibly boring and nigh inhuman.
There's this scene where the main character meets a non-binary person, who is entirely void of personality and it feels their purpose for existing is to introduce the main character to non-binary people, and there's an extensive conversation where the main character is so understanding and polite and says all the right things. And it was just offensive to me, that we have these characters existing for what feels like the singular purpose of illustrating how open-minded and socially aware this monk (and by extension, the author) is. A great deal of the book is like that, where everyone explains very socially conscious things to this monk, like the myth of virginity, and he's just so willingly receptive to it, without any of the biases or reservations that are also making him self-flagellate every time he touches a woman.
It felt to me like the author could not bear for the possibility that someone may dislike their characters, which is unfortunate, because I did. I resented the wholesome perfection of everyone in this book, and that's what truly disappointed me.
I wanted to give a genre I usually ignore a chance, and I sought this book out because I was looking for something that didn't feel like it was concerned with the stifling adherence to strict societal rules, but I'm afraid to say that I've watched Disney films that allow for more nuance from their characters.
Also they don't have sex until chapter 25.
I hate to make assumptions but this very much read like a person who had previously only written fan fiction, because there isn't much interest in spending too much time developing the fantasy world that these characters reside in. With fan fiction, that world is already built for you, and you can sort of just play in that sandbox, but creating original work takes more effort than that. Sadly, the few glimmers of unique lore in this book are anticlimactically squashed to avoid any sense of conflict - I had thought the idea of a monk whose powers rely on his adherence to monastic vows was a genuinely interesting conundrum! But this issue is resolved by revealing that actually this one monastery he came from sucked and no one else who follows this religion believes in that. Which is a pretty weird way to make a character reconcile with his religious trauma, just hand-waving it as the fault of one specific abbot rather than a systematic issue, when we know in real life there's so much complexity to the nature of religious trauma and it isn't just resolved by pinpointing every issue to one single guy. But maybe it's my own fault, for expecting social issues to be handled with kid gloves in a book like this. They are, instead, handled with the finesse of boxing gloves.
The other issue with this phenomenon - this issue where you have the tropic structure of a fan fiction applied to an original work - is that you're employing this slow-burn trope to a story without any actual, non-romantic plot. Not every story needs a formal "plot", and this clearly isn't meant to be that kind of story, but it's incredibly tedious to just read about characters doing nothing while pining for each other. I began tentatively interested and about a third of the way through was irritated by the dull repetition. Gale has no interest in conflict, and most of the book is just a series of the characters Doing Things. They eat, they train, they take baths. They agonize over the number of beds in a room. High stakes issues are rare, and when they come, it's usually done to illustrate the cleverness and altruism of our main characters.
The main characters are in some ways almost offensively flawless, unfailingly kind and patient, exuding simultaneously a childlike innocence and a sage-like emotional maturity. Everyone communicates effectively and uses all the right words. Everyone is empathetic and considerate. Everyone is incredibly boring and nigh inhuman.
There's this scene where the main character meets a non-binary person, who is entirely void of personality and it feels their purpose for existing is to introduce the main character to non-binary people, and there's an extensive conversation where the main character is so understanding and polite and says all the right things. And it was just offensive to me, that we have these characters existing for what feels like the singular purpose of illustrating how open-minded and socially aware this monk (and by extension, the author) is. A great deal of the book is like that, where everyone explains very socially conscious things to this monk, like the myth of virginity, and he's just so willingly receptive to it, without any of the biases or reservations that are also making him self-flagellate every time he touches a woman.
It felt to me like the author could not bear for the possibility that someone may dislike their characters, which is unfortunate, because I did. I resented the wholesome perfection of everyone in this book, and that's what truly disappointed me.
I wanted to give a genre I usually ignore a chance, and I sought this book out because I was looking for something that didn't feel like it was concerned with the stifling adherence to strict societal rules, but I'm afraid to say that I've watched Disney films that allow for more nuance from their characters.
Also they don't have sex until chapter 25.
December 2, 2022
DNF halfway through. The characters seemed intriguing at first, but soon it was obvious they were written with absolutely no flaws to make them interesting in a lasting way. The original intrigue of the role reversal wore out quickly.
Every single character was a sickly sweet trope of a "fantasy character" except for the "stereotypical bad religious guy" and the "stereotypical bad drunk guy".
The plot seemed to be a good one but at 50% of the way there was still absolutely no movement. The were supposed to be tracking down some stolen books but at the halfway point in the book, the MCs were still frolicking around in flowery meadows chaising literal unicorns. I mean, I get it, it's a romance book so it's going to focus more on the characters than the plot, that's fine! But give us something more than repetitive scenes about eating, riding, praying, training, and the MMC being struck dumb by eye contact from the FMC.
Not to mention, the dialog seems like it could've been copied and pasted from a tumblr post from 2014. Their long conversations about virginity, gender, and sexism is so ridiculously out of place its jarring.
The worst part is it wasn't even on KU, so I had to spend 8 bucks on this thing😤
PS: I can die happy if I never have to read the word "scritches" again.
Every single character was a sickly sweet trope of a "fantasy character" except for the "stereotypical bad religious guy" and the "stereotypical bad drunk guy".
The plot seemed to be a good one but at 50% of the way there was still absolutely no movement. The were supposed to be tracking down some stolen books but at the halfway point in the book, the MCs were still frolicking around in flowery meadows chaising literal unicorns. I mean, I get it, it's a romance book so it's going to focus more on the characters than the plot, that's fine! But give us something more than repetitive scenes about eating, riding, praying, training, and the MMC being struck dumb by eye contact from the FMC.
Not to mention, the dialog seems like it could've been copied and pasted from a tumblr post from 2014. Their long conversations about virginity, gender, and sexism is so ridiculously out of place its jarring.
The worst part is it wasn't even on KU, so I had to spend 8 bucks on this thing😤
PS: I can die happy if I never have to read the word "scritches" again.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 12, 2023
MY GOD this book is so so special. I was prepared to be delighted by Lucian because of all of the adorable Cinnamonk hype and he is everything promised and more. What I was not prepared for was how completely fucking entranced I would be by everything that is Glory. She's the perfect compliment to Lucian's too sweet for this world energy. She's the badass, patient, consent queen, She-Wolf that isn't afraid to be in touch with her feminine side. I could take 10,000 more heroines just like her right now please and thanks.
My only quibble (and this undoubtedly deserves all five stars anyway) was that the plot was a bit meandering that doesn't really go anywhere interesting. I would have loved a bigger splash of a finale, but instead the climax is simply a culmination of the excruciatingly slow burn relationship (but oh my was the burn worth it) rather than anything plot driven. Maybe I'm just too anti-religious but I just wanted some shitty religious leaders to *literally* burn for their sins to my poor sweet boy. This probably gets resolved in the second book, but I think everything would have been neater if it were resolved all in one story, and I've gotten the impression from some reading friends that reading part 2 may not be worth it.
Side note, the audio is amazing for this. There's cute little sound effects cues for each chapter and most scene transitions and the narrative voice is just pitch perfect for Lucian
My only quibble (and this undoubtedly deserves all five stars anyway) was that the plot was a bit meandering that doesn't really go anywhere interesting. I would have loved a bigger splash of a finale, but instead the climax is simply a culmination of the excruciatingly slow burn relationship (but oh my was the burn worth it) rather than anything plot driven. Maybe I'm just too anti-religious but I just wanted some shitty religious leaders to *literally* burn for their sins to my poor sweet boy. This probably gets resolved in the second book, but I think everything would have been neater if it were resolved all in one story, and I've gotten the impression from some reading friends that reading part 2 may not be worth it.
Side note, the audio is amazing for this. There's cute little sound effects cues for each chapter and most scene transitions and the narrative voice is just pitch perfect for Lucian
September 11, 2022
His Secret Illuminations is the first half of a fantasy romance duology (His Sacred Incantations is the second) that began with a simple tweet from author Scarlett Gale back in February of 2019:
Been readin' romance novels and now I want to write a fantasy romance about a big burly female warrior who buys the contract of a smol sweet male indentured cleric healer and then takes him on an adventure... With sexy results.
While I saw (and liked) that tweet, I had kind of forgotten about it until Miss Pearl made a proper introduction to the story in a series of tweets last month, writing:
It's like if Mercedes Lackey wrote a light hearted femdom D&D game and it's wonderfully warming.
It's adorable, and fantasy + romance. No fetish content except an extreme size difference and a few details handled with extreme consent despite circumstances (she buys his contract of indenture, etc...).
I would describe it as a love letter to positive submissive masculinity.
That was all it took for me to immediately hop on over to Amazon and order a paperback, and it was with no little trepidation that I opened the book a week later with high expectations and a fear of disappointment.
There are no words for how much I loved this. Out of 5 stars, I would give it an enthusiastic 10. It's a book that slipped deep into my romantic heart and connected intimately with my submissive soul. I loved Glory more than any character in recent memory, but I absolutely adored Lucian with every ounce of my being. I didn't just 'see' myself in this, I 'felt' myself in every scene, on every page. This is a book to which I happily, thoroughly, and irredeemably lost myself - and will gleefully do so again and again!
Last year I talked about how A Brother’s Price by Wen Spencer left me with a book hangover so profound that I couldn’t even look at another book for days, much less talk rationally about it, and nothing makes me happier than to have found myself facing that same sense of being just utterly consumed by His Secret Illuminations. This is a book that will forever have a place on my shelves, one that I know I will return to when I need a comfort reread - and that shelf is a small one.
So, what is it about? Well, it's a simple story about a mercenary who conscripts a young cleric to assist her in locating and retrieving some stolen books. That's it. There are no heroes or villains, no schemes or conspiracies, no hidden motives or surprise plot twists. It sounds simple, and it is - I mean, there are a few cunning capers, moments of violence, and encounters with magic - but the beauty of the story comes from the characters who populate it.
Glory (the She-Wolf) and Lucian are lovely characters in their own right, and breathtakingly beautiful as the very epitome of a slow-burn romantic couple. Theirs is a tale of infatuation and friendship, a deliciously awkward, tentative courtship that's full of smiles and blushes and the heat of tender moments. They don't even kiss until the last few chapters, but theirs is a love story that is so sweet, you can't help but be won over by it. It's a wonderfully feminist tale, one that's beautifully supportive of submissive masculinity, and one that has some lovely things to say about sexuality.
There's also some positive gender exploration tied up in one of the side-characters, Shannon, who I hope we'll see more of (along with Helena) in the next book. They are simply and delightfully accepted as non-binary, with no need to elaborate on questions of biology or identity. In fact, there's an amusing scene where Lucian politely asks about proper etiquette and is horrified to hear that others feel compelled to question Shannon's genitals.
Nothing I say could possibly do His Secret Illuminations justice, so all I can do is beg you to give it a chance - and if you've read it and you loved it, let me know, because I suspect we could be fantastic friends.
https://www.sallybend.com/2021/07/fan...
Been readin' romance novels and now I want to write a fantasy romance about a big burly female warrior who buys the contract of a smol sweet male indentured cleric healer and then takes him on an adventure... With sexy results.
While I saw (and liked) that tweet, I had kind of forgotten about it until Miss Pearl made a proper introduction to the story in a series of tweets last month, writing:
It's like if Mercedes Lackey wrote a light hearted femdom D&D game and it's wonderfully warming.
It's adorable, and fantasy + romance. No fetish content except an extreme size difference and a few details handled with extreme consent despite circumstances (she buys his contract of indenture, etc...).
I would describe it as a love letter to positive submissive masculinity.
That was all it took for me to immediately hop on over to Amazon and order a paperback, and it was with no little trepidation that I opened the book a week later with high expectations and a fear of disappointment.
There are no words for how much I loved this. Out of 5 stars, I would give it an enthusiastic 10. It's a book that slipped deep into my romantic heart and connected intimately with my submissive soul. I loved Glory more than any character in recent memory, but I absolutely adored Lucian with every ounce of my being. I didn't just 'see' myself in this, I 'felt' myself in every scene, on every page. This is a book to which I happily, thoroughly, and irredeemably lost myself - and will gleefully do so again and again!
Last year I talked about how A Brother’s Price by Wen Spencer left me with a book hangover so profound that I couldn’t even look at another book for days, much less talk rationally about it, and nothing makes me happier than to have found myself facing that same sense of being just utterly consumed by His Secret Illuminations. This is a book that will forever have a place on my shelves, one that I know I will return to when I need a comfort reread - and that shelf is a small one.
So, what is it about? Well, it's a simple story about a mercenary who conscripts a young cleric to assist her in locating and retrieving some stolen books. That's it. There are no heroes or villains, no schemes or conspiracies, no hidden motives or surprise plot twists. It sounds simple, and it is - I mean, there are a few cunning capers, moments of violence, and encounters with magic - but the beauty of the story comes from the characters who populate it.
Glory (the She-Wolf) and Lucian are lovely characters in their own right, and breathtakingly beautiful as the very epitome of a slow-burn romantic couple. Theirs is a tale of infatuation and friendship, a deliciously awkward, tentative courtship that's full of smiles and blushes and the heat of tender moments. They don't even kiss until the last few chapters, but theirs is a love story that is so sweet, you can't help but be won over by it. It's a wonderfully feminist tale, one that's beautifully supportive of submissive masculinity, and one that has some lovely things to say about sexuality.
There's also some positive gender exploration tied up in one of the side-characters, Shannon, who I hope we'll see more of (along with Helena) in the next book. They are simply and delightfully accepted as non-binary, with no need to elaborate on questions of biology or identity. In fact, there's an amusing scene where Lucian politely asks about proper etiquette and is horrified to hear that others feel compelled to question Shannon's genitals.
Nothing I say could possibly do His Secret Illuminations justice, so all I can do is beg you to give it a chance - and if you've read it and you loved it, let me know, because I suspect we could be fantastic friends.
https://www.sallybend.com/2021/07/fan...
February 27, 2023
I read this slowly in bits and pieces because it was so good! It's one of those books where you look back and you've been on this long journey with the characters and it feels like years even though it's only been chapters. I loved the representation here - a person who uses "they" pronouns as well as relationships that are not heterosexual. It was just there and was natural and no one had a problem with it. I have a headache so this probably isn't making as much sense as it should, but I loved that the gay couples in this book were just living their lives and being happy. I also loved the sense of adventure in this book. Plus the forbidden aspect to their relationship. The scene at the Gala where they have to pretend to be intimate as a reason for why they were in a room they weren't supposed to be in was so HOT. He is hard and she pulls him against her and their reactions are genuine and authentic and it is just the best. I really enjoyed that the fmc Glory was the cinnamon roll. Tough on the outside but sweet on the inside. While Lucian was just sweet all the way through. I really wanted him to get his rough sex that he craved in this book, but I know I'll get it in book 2 😇😂
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 4, 2021
SPFBO7 Semi-finalist.
Placed in the Fantasy-Hive's batch of 30 books, you can read our reviews here:
Making it to semi-finalist:
https://fantasy-hive.co.uk/2021/08/sp...
Final Review:
https://fantasy-hive.co.uk/2021/10/hi...
Happy Reading!
(Star rating reflects my personal opinion)
Placed in the Fantasy-Hive's batch of 30 books, you can read our reviews here:
Making it to semi-finalist:
https://fantasy-hive.co.uk/2021/08/sp...
Final Review:
https://fantasy-hive.co.uk/2021/10/hi...
Happy Reading!
(Star rating reflects my personal opinion)
April 13, 2023
I love how she’s giant and badass but the sweetest, most caring person, she wasn’t written as gruff or mean. This was adorable.
November 28, 2023
could have been a fun little romp of a role reversal adventure but was hindered by terrible writing, one-dimensional characters (don't get me started on the nonbinary lesson scene that was put in there for no reason whatsoever other than to... i don't know, score some morality brownie points?), the ever-looming displeasure of having to read this in present tense, and a lack of immersion in the world because of sudden insertions of modern words/slang that are too jarring given the fantasy world. all in all could simply have been better if it was in the hands of a (particularly thorough) editor. it had potential too.
December 10, 2021
Glory is an okay character, though definitely a Mary Sue. But Lucian feels like he's 12. An angelic 12, to be sure, but 12. Which makes the romance aspect feel skeevy.
The author has a knack for funny dialogue and I bet they could pen an awesome contemporary romance. But the fantasy window-dressing in this one hurt rather than helped it.
The author has a knack for funny dialogue and I bet they could pen an awesome contemporary romance. But the fantasy window-dressing in this one hurt rather than helped it.
November 24, 2024
This is absolutely one of my faves of the year!! I'm so grateful to all the people who post recs on GR and Reddit because they find some stellar books! 🥰 Lucian and She-Wolf are amazing together and so freaking sweet. I am a huge fan of the writing and I loved the both of them so very much and they're super precious with each other. The entire story is told from Lucian's POV and right from the get-go, we witness how enchanted he is by She-Wolf, our badass and really caring FMC, and it never stops and only builds and builds and builds. 🤭
I absolutely loved the kinks present (ALL the praise, ALL the caring and everyday life touching and patting, and a wonderful rightful appreciation for She-Wolf's strength) in this and how Lucian reacts to everything. The slow burn was worth it for the great spice! Lucian undergoes a lot of personal challenges as he forays into the bigger world for the first time in his life, but I love how through it all, he NEVER ONCE wavers from his desire to be dominated by the She-Wolf. 🥰 These two had amazing chemistry and I also liked that there's a slight age gap (she's older than him by 5 years)!
His Secret Illuminations also has nice LGBT+ representation and I enjoyed all the side characters too and the magic and adventures are great! I can't wait to dive into the next book!
-------
🥇Gold🥇
-------
Book 1: His Secret Illuminations - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🥇(12/15/22)
Book 2: His Sacred Incantations -
I absolutely loved the kinks present (ALL the praise, ALL the caring and everyday life touching and patting, and a wonderful rightful appreciation for She-Wolf's strength) in this and how Lucian reacts to everything. The slow burn was worth it for the great spice! Lucian undergoes a lot of personal challenges as he forays into the bigger world for the first time in his life, but I love how through it all, he NEVER ONCE wavers from his desire to be dominated by the She-Wolf. 🥰 These two had amazing chemistry and I also liked that there's a slight age gap (she's older than him by 5 years)!
His Secret Illuminations also has nice LGBT+ representation and I enjoyed all the side characters too and the magic and adventures are great! I can't wait to dive into the next book!
-------
🥇Gold🥇
-------
Book 1: His Secret Illuminations - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🥇(12/15/22)
Book 2: His Sacred Incantations -
July 27, 2023
UGHHH i have so many mixed feelings about this 😤
firstly it's only written from mmc's pov and he's a monk. then there's our fmc, she's a warrior (kind of like vikings 🤨) and he sees her at monastery a couple of times and likes her but because he's a monk he's been taught not to speak with women🙄
anyways for some reasons they have to travel together and it's his first time leaving monastery. i have to admit plot didn't really interest me, they're tracking some books and i guess something evil is happening 🤨
i'm not sure if i liked their dynamic. SHE'S older and bigger and stronger...(his words) and her appearance or age is not my problem but the way he kept mentioning it 😭 it felt so weird😭 he doesn't know anything about the world(literally) and she's nice but he was so impressed by her that it was weird 🥲
later they got together but it was still weird but somehow cute and i thought this was a romance book(i found this on reddit🤨) but it was more of a fantasy AND there's a cliffhanger 😡
am i going to read second book because i wonder what happens to missing books🤔 OR because i want to know if their relationship gets more weird??🤠
firstly it's only written from mmc's pov and he's a monk. then there's our fmc, she's a warrior (kind of like vikings 🤨) and he sees her at monastery a couple of times and likes her but because he's a monk he's been taught not to speak with women🙄
anyways for some reasons they have to travel together and it's his first time leaving monastery. i have to admit plot didn't really interest me, they're tracking some books and i guess something evil is happening 🤨
i'm not sure if i liked their dynamic. SHE'S older and bigger and stronger...(his words) and her appearance or age is not my problem but the way he kept mentioning it 😭 it felt so weird😭 he doesn't know anything about the world(literally) and she's nice but he was so impressed by her that it was weird 🥲
later they got together but it was still weird but somehow cute and i thought this was a romance book(i found this on reddit🤨) but it was more of a fantasy AND there's a cliffhanger 😡
am i going to read second book because i wonder what happens to missing books🤔 OR because i want to know if their relationship gets more weird??🤠
April 1, 2021
Absolutely a biased review because the author is a pal and I got to see a lot of work-in-progress excerpts and I was just so excited to see Glory and Lucían actually make it onto paper and maybe eventually (after 350 pages or so of pining) get to smooch, but it really is a fantastic novel. I love Scarlett's commitment to following her own dang rules for writing Fantasy-Europe, which means including all kinds of people who don't normally get represented in those settings, and also potatoes.
I loved Lucían's journey out of shame and into the big wide wonderful world, and I'm excited to read the second one and learn more about his magic, and more about Glory as the two of them figure out what happens after they get together!
I loved Lucían's journey out of shame and into the big wide wonderful world, and I'm excited to read the second one and learn more about his magic, and more about Glory as the two of them figure out what happens after they get together!
dnf
December 18, 2021DNF 78% - Not what I wanted. Liked how much it deals with shame when it comes to attraction but the main selling point for me, having an unconventional and not traditionally masculine male MC...what's the fucking point if he becomes somewhat more so by the end?
October 23, 2022
I don’t often review my client’s books (I was the audio engineer for the audiobook), but this one was special.
I don’t read this genre, but the humor in this is sharp, the romance is not rushed at all, and the characters are so, so easy to like and engage with.
Definitely would recommend.
I don’t read this genre, but the humor in this is sharp, the romance is not rushed at all, and the characters are so, so easy to like and engage with.
Definitely would recommend.
December 24, 2025
literally unparalleled
did-not-finish
November 23, 2025DNF at 1%.
🙄
🙄
July 3, 2021
A lovely, pretty read and a love letter to submissive men. An awesome heroine that covers the nuance of a talented warrior who isn't required to sacrifice gender.
Imagine Mercedes Lackey wrote a femdom erotica novel with lots of high fantasy and romance. Your inner nerd will glow as you follow the two hereos through various adventures that slowly draw a sheltered novice magician and a seasoned warrior woman closer together and, closer to surrender to her.
FEMALE GAZE FEMDOM
Imagine Mercedes Lackey wrote a femdom erotica novel with lots of high fantasy and romance. Your inner nerd will glow as you follow the two hereos through various adventures that slowly draw a sheltered novice magician and a seasoned warrior woman closer together and, closer to surrender to her.
FEMALE GAZE FEMDOM
April 15, 2023
This definitely was not perfect, but so wholesome and different, that I can‘t help but give four stars. Enjoyed it very much.
June 13, 2022
Light on the worldbuilding but not too light, fun steamy romance with a buff lady warrior and the (possibly now former) monk who wants her to top the hell out of him.
Also it's really well written.
Also it's really well written.
September 24, 2025
Wow, this book was a joy to read (listen to). I feel like I don't see books like this often: Soft, timid MMC and Strong, Buff FMC. Also, completely from the male POV! The dynamic between these to is just amazing. This is a super slooooow burn, with tons of pining, but when it hits, it HITS! So unbelievably hot, sexy and so intimate. Just a bit of a heads up though, because every time I see this book recommended its because of its Femdom status... just know that this doesn't come into play too much here. Its hinted at. This is a duet, and from what I have read, book two blows the cover off with all the steam, and I think that will include more in depth Femdom aspects.
Lucien is a timid monk, unexposed to the world, just living his life for the Lord. He doesn't question his place in life, or what he is missing until a mysterious giant of a female warrior takes his notice. Glory, or She-Wolf, is commissioned by the Church for various tasks and always seems to take notice of Lucien. Her newest quest requires her to team up with the little monk, and the two become fast friends on this adventure to find some missing books. To be honest, I feel like the plot is just such a minor thing here... the star of the show is the rich character building between these two. Its a slow paced book, but its just so beautiful and I never got bored with it.
I saw a review that said 'Wholesomely Horny' and that's such an accurate term. Poor Lucien has some shame and issues to deal with because the church has such a chokehold on his every thought. Thankfully Glory is so loving and patient with him. Ugh, such a gentle giant of a woman and character. Loved this story, loved the audiobook narration and moving right on to the second book.
MF Romantasy
Giant Warrior FMC
Virgin Monk MMC
So Much Pining!
Religious Shame
Good Boy Vibes
Size Difference (She’s bigger)
Slowest Slow Burn
Spice: 🔥🔥🔥
Lucien is a timid monk, unexposed to the world, just living his life for the Lord. He doesn't question his place in life, or what he is missing until a mysterious giant of a female warrior takes his notice. Glory, or She-Wolf, is commissioned by the Church for various tasks and always seems to take notice of Lucien. Her newest quest requires her to team up with the little monk, and the two become fast friends on this adventure to find some missing books. To be honest, I feel like the plot is just such a minor thing here... the star of the show is the rich character building between these two. Its a slow paced book, but its just so beautiful and I never got bored with it.
I saw a review that said 'Wholesomely Horny' and that's such an accurate term. Poor Lucien has some shame and issues to deal with because the church has such a chokehold on his every thought. Thankfully Glory is so loving and patient with him. Ugh, such a gentle giant of a woman and character. Loved this story, loved the audiobook narration and moving right on to the second book.
MF Romantasy
Giant Warrior FMC
Virgin Monk MMC
So Much Pining!
Religious Shame
Good Boy Vibes
Size Difference (She’s bigger)
Slowest Slow Burn
Spice: 🔥🔥🔥
December 31, 2025
I enjoyed
His Secret Illuminations
by Scarlett Gale, a cosy fantasy about a sheltered monk who's obsessed with the guild mercenary who occasionally visits his monastery to do various quest-related business for the abbot.
She's not quite a knight, but readers interested in the lady knight trend this year may still find a lot to enjoy here.
The characters are well-drawn and their slow-burn attraction is what powers this story, which has a few action scenes. If you read for plot, you may find it too slow or uneventful. There's some moments of whimsey that particularly charmed me and I found the way magic is addressed interesting.
Themes include innocence, lust, religious trauma and a lot of the hurt/comfort trope.
I liked it a lot, though I generally prefer higher plot stakes in my reading. I may continue the series, but I need to be in the right mood for it.
She's not quite a knight, but readers interested in the lady knight trend this year may still find a lot to enjoy here.
The characters are well-drawn and their slow-burn attraction is what powers this story, which has a few action scenes. If you read for plot, you may find it too slow or uneventful. There's some moments of whimsey that particularly charmed me and I found the way magic is addressed interesting.
Themes include innocence, lust, religious trauma and a lot of the hurt/comfort trope.
I liked it a lot, though I generally prefer higher plot stakes in my reading. I may continue the series, but I need to be in the right mood for it.
April 3, 2025
I'm posting a new review of this novel because I feel I need to set the record straight. My previous review misrepresented the book, though in my defense, that's because the first fifth or so does a pretty poor job at representing the rest of the book. That was the portion I'd read at a time and was therefore the only information I had to go off of.
So I stand by what I said in my first review, insofar as you understand I'm only applying these criticisms to the first 50 pages or so. Yes, it does kind of make it seem like the rest of the novel is going to be sissy wank material. Yes, Lucien is really cringe in the beginning. Yes, the She-Wolf is portrayed as a hulking, unlikable barbarian.
That said, the reason for all of those things is because you, the reader, are seeing things through Lucien's eyes and he is an extremely unreliable narrator. He's hopelessly naive about the real world because he's spent his entire life being lied to, indoctrinated with regressive religious ideas, sexually repressed, and treated like a slave. So its understandable that his POV is cringy. If you can go into the book knowing that though, you may be surprised by what you find.
Once you get past the early part, everything gets a lot better. The She-Wolf gets a lot more likable too, Lucien stops being so cringy, etc. Yes, she's physically stronger than him, but she doesn't lord that strength over him or abuse him in the way some of the early chapters might make you think. She has a surprisingly feminine side as well that adds a lot more depth to her character. I don't feel like she falls into toxic "girlboss" tropes at all. She's the patient and understanding companion who guides Lucien through his journey of self-discovery in a respectful way.
This is where the real crux of the novel is, Lucien slowly learning to overcome his religious programming and embracing a more 21st century view of sex and love. Some may criticize the novel's medieval world for being "unrealistically progressive", but that doesn't bother me. I'm not looking for realism. Its fiction, so an alternate historical timeline is believable.
I didn't realize it at first but the more I read, the more I started to find myself identifying with Lucien's character. In particular, his feelings of shame over his sexuality and the fear the slightest transgression or sexual overture against a woman will make her shun him. I really identified with that as a man in 2025, really identified with how utterly terrified Lucien was about offending Glory because that is the daily reality I lived with for many years. I really appreciate that someone finally acknowledged the horror of the cultural messaging men face in this day and age, telling them that their sexually is evil and wrong, and showing the dire effects that can have on a person. This easily could have been yet another metacommentary about "incels" but Gale took the high road and portrayed Lucien in a sympathetic light instead. And for that I am eternally grateful. Well done, Gale.
Another thing I'd like to address. This book often gets recommended to people as a "femboy novel" in certain circles, and I just want to say that that's not at all what this book is. Not that there's anything wrong with that (I was actually hoping it would be, but I still enjoyed it anyway). Lucien may sexually submissive and have *some* effeminate-coded mannerisms, but he isn't female-presenting and he doesn't cross-dress. Additionally, a lot of the feminine traits he does have are hard to distinguish between pure innocence due to his monastic upbringing and actual feminine gender expression.
Therefore, I wouldn't call this a femboy novel, though I would definitely agree that it features gentle femdom and role reversal prominently. Glory is dominant but in a very loving and understanding way that I found refreshing, and Lucien is submissive to her not out of fear or the belief he's "not a real man" but because he wants to and feels empowered by it. There's no judgement or humiliation kink here. Rather, the book presents this dynamic in wholesome light that feels like a natural evolution of the character's personalities rather than just a kink. In fact there's really not much kink here at all, just vanilla sex where the woman takes charge and acts sexually aggressive. I really appreciated that subversive take on gender, though be warned your YMMV if that's not your cup of tea. I definitely wouldn't recommend this to people that are looking for a heteronormative experience, and that's ok. We can like different things.
As far as the plot goes, there really isn't much of it and it only serves to heighten the emotional drama of the characters. That's normally something I would complain about but I actually think it works really well here because the emotional drama was compelling. It's also fairly well paced. I was ready for them to just have sex already by the time it actually happened. Any less buildup and it would have been less impactful when it finally happened, and any more buildup and it would have dragged on too long.
There isn't much worldbuilding but again, you're not reading this for deep fantasy. You're reading it for the emotional drama and romantic chemistry. (And oh boy, there is tons of that.) What little there was was interesting to me and it helped carry the plot forward far enough without leaving gaping holes.
All in all, I'm very eager to see where the next book takes these two characters. Their romance is compelling and believable. They have genuine chemistry and it's a joy to seem them interact on a page.
So I stand by what I said in my first review, insofar as you understand I'm only applying these criticisms to the first 50 pages or so. Yes, it does kind of make it seem like the rest of the novel is going to be sissy wank material. Yes, Lucien is really cringe in the beginning. Yes, the She-Wolf is portrayed as a hulking, unlikable barbarian.
That said, the reason for all of those things is because you, the reader, are seeing things through Lucien's eyes and he is an extremely unreliable narrator. He's hopelessly naive about the real world because he's spent his entire life being lied to, indoctrinated with regressive religious ideas, sexually repressed, and treated like a slave. So its understandable that his POV is cringy. If you can go into the book knowing that though, you may be surprised by what you find.
Once you get past the early part, everything gets a lot better. The She-Wolf gets a lot more likable too, Lucien stops being so cringy, etc. Yes, she's physically stronger than him, but she doesn't lord that strength over him or abuse him in the way some of the early chapters might make you think. She has a surprisingly feminine side as well that adds a lot more depth to her character. I don't feel like she falls into toxic "girlboss" tropes at all. She's the patient and understanding companion who guides Lucien through his journey of self-discovery in a respectful way.
This is where the real crux of the novel is, Lucien slowly learning to overcome his religious programming and embracing a more 21st century view of sex and love. Some may criticize the novel's medieval world for being "unrealistically progressive", but that doesn't bother me. I'm not looking for realism. Its fiction, so an alternate historical timeline is believable.
I didn't realize it at first but the more I read, the more I started to find myself identifying with Lucien's character. In particular, his feelings of shame over his sexuality and the fear the slightest transgression or sexual overture against a woman will make her shun him. I really identified with that as a man in 2025, really identified with how utterly terrified Lucien was about offending Glory because that is the daily reality I lived with for many years. I really appreciate that someone finally acknowledged the horror of the cultural messaging men face in this day and age, telling them that their sexually is evil and wrong, and showing the dire effects that can have on a person. This easily could have been yet another metacommentary about "incels" but Gale took the high road and portrayed Lucien in a sympathetic light instead. And for that I am eternally grateful. Well done, Gale.
Another thing I'd like to address. This book often gets recommended to people as a "femboy novel" in certain circles, and I just want to say that that's not at all what this book is. Not that there's anything wrong with that (I was actually hoping it would be, but I still enjoyed it anyway). Lucien may sexually submissive and have *some* effeminate-coded mannerisms, but he isn't female-presenting and he doesn't cross-dress. Additionally, a lot of the feminine traits he does have are hard to distinguish between pure innocence due to his monastic upbringing and actual feminine gender expression.
Therefore, I wouldn't call this a femboy novel, though I would definitely agree that it features gentle femdom and role reversal prominently. Glory is dominant but in a very loving and understanding way that I found refreshing, and Lucien is submissive to her not out of fear or the belief he's "not a real man" but because he wants to and feels empowered by it. There's no judgement or humiliation kink here. Rather, the book presents this dynamic in wholesome light that feels like a natural evolution of the character's personalities rather than just a kink. In fact there's really not much kink here at all, just vanilla sex where the woman takes charge and acts sexually aggressive. I really appreciated that subversive take on gender, though be warned your YMMV if that's not your cup of tea. I definitely wouldn't recommend this to people that are looking for a heteronormative experience, and that's ok. We can like different things.
As far as the plot goes, there really isn't much of it and it only serves to heighten the emotional drama of the characters. That's normally something I would complain about but I actually think it works really well here because the emotional drama was compelling. It's also fairly well paced. I was ready for them to just have sex already by the time it actually happened. Any less buildup and it would have been less impactful when it finally happened, and any more buildup and it would have dragged on too long.
There isn't much worldbuilding but again, you're not reading this for deep fantasy. You're reading it for the emotional drama and romantic chemistry. (And oh boy, there is tons of that.) What little there was was interesting to me and it helped carry the plot forward far enough without leaving gaping holes.
All in all, I'm very eager to see where the next book takes these two characters. Their romance is compelling and believable. They have genuine chemistry and it's a joy to seem them interact on a page.
October 10, 2024
HIS SECRET ILLUMINATIONS took a little bit for me to get into but I think it really picks up its stride after the 25% mark. Told completely from Lucían’s point of view, it follows our main characters on a journey to recover some stolen monastic books. With an epic sloooooow burn and a tortuous (in the best way) amount of pining, I was very invested in Lucían and Glory’s romance. Luckily, all that pining is completely worth it in the end when these two finally admit their feelings for each other! To make everything even better this fantasy romance was beautifully queer and feminist and absolutely the softest book I've ever read. Based on her description, Glory is pansexual and there are many other side characters that are also queer and this appears to be just accepted by everyone so that was a really pleasant surprise.
Where HIS SECRET ILLUMINATIONS really shines is with our main characters Lucían and Glory; both are so sweet, generous, and caring to those around them. Glory especially is the best kind of cinnamon roll, she looks tough on the outside but is really all squishy on the inside. I loved the way Glory cared for and protected Lucían while also encouraging him to train in fighting and explore his new environments. She’s almost too perfect but I'm not complaining about that because we need more characters like Glory -- devoted, kind, and protective without being possessive. I would have enjoyed getting a little more about Glory’s history and her POV would have also been great, but that’s just personal preference.
The good news is that Lucían, as our only POV character, was a really enjoyable narrator with just a touch of self-deprecating humor to keep me smiling and also wanting to give him a hug. Lucían has had a rough upbringing and the monastery life is all he’s ever known. Traveling with Glory forces Lucían to confront life outside the monastery and also accept that the way he’s been treated by the Abbott might not have been the best and was in fact fairly abusive. Lucían spends most of the book feeling guilty over lusting after Glory and it's a big part of his character development and journey of self discovery. But even though Lucían goes through a lot of inner turmoil over his morals and his religion, I loved the enthusiasm with which he embraced all the new people he met and the places he visited. Lucían is in his mid-twenties but he has a very innocent and young soul that is just ready to soak up new experiences. I also really appreciate that even with his religious background he never shames Glory or any of the other side characters simply because their morals and beliefs are different than his own. Lucían is just incredibly welcoming to everyone he meets and his only wish is to help others with his Blessing (magical abilities).
Now I do have to say that the pacing is definitely slow, especially in the beginning, and I do feel like it was a little long in some parts that could have been tightened up. For instance, almost the first half of the book is just them traveling to Knightsrest where the first stolen books are located. I also struggled with the third person present tense which is just not a writing style I enjoy reading too much of. Additionally, the dialogue is very modern and I found that odd in a fantasy book; so while it certainly made it easy to read I don't know if that was the best fit.
I debated with myself over the rating because of these things and ultimately decided that my enjoyment of the characters and desire to read the next book means this falls more in line with a 4 star read. As a note, HIS SECRET ILLUMINATIONS does end on a soft cliffhanger so not everything is resolved, mostly the storyline with the missing books. With the next book I can't wait to see Lucían open up more to Glory about what he wants in their relationship because Lucían is definitely kinky even though he doesn't necessarily understand what his desires mean right now.
Content Warning: Lucían has been raised in a monastery that uses abusive practices to punish the monks; Lucían struggles with guilt and shame over his desires toward Glory and he believes his desire to be dominated by Glory makes him a deviant (he’s working through this)
Where HIS SECRET ILLUMINATIONS really shines is with our main characters Lucían and Glory; both are so sweet, generous, and caring to those around them. Glory especially is the best kind of cinnamon roll, she looks tough on the outside but is really all squishy on the inside. I loved the way Glory cared for and protected Lucían while also encouraging him to train in fighting and explore his new environments. She’s almost too perfect but I'm not complaining about that because we need more characters like Glory -- devoted, kind, and protective without being possessive. I would have enjoyed getting a little more about Glory’s history and her POV would have also been great, but that’s just personal preference.
The good news is that Lucían, as our only POV character, was a really enjoyable narrator with just a touch of self-deprecating humor to keep me smiling and also wanting to give him a hug. Lucían has had a rough upbringing and the monastery life is all he’s ever known. Traveling with Glory forces Lucían to confront life outside the monastery and also accept that the way he’s been treated by the Abbott might not have been the best and was in fact fairly abusive. Lucían spends most of the book feeling guilty over lusting after Glory and it's a big part of his character development and journey of self discovery. But even though Lucían goes through a lot of inner turmoil over his morals and his religion, I loved the enthusiasm with which he embraced all the new people he met and the places he visited. Lucían is in his mid-twenties but he has a very innocent and young soul that is just ready to soak up new experiences. I also really appreciate that even with his religious background he never shames Glory or any of the other side characters simply because their morals and beliefs are different than his own. Lucían is just incredibly welcoming to everyone he meets and his only wish is to help others with his Blessing (magical abilities).
Now I do have to say that the pacing is definitely slow, especially in the beginning, and I do feel like it was a little long in some parts that could have been tightened up. For instance, almost the first half of the book is just them traveling to Knightsrest where the first stolen books are located. I also struggled with the third person present tense which is just not a writing style I enjoy reading too much of. Additionally, the dialogue is very modern and I found that odd in a fantasy book; so while it certainly made it easy to read I don't know if that was the best fit.
I debated with myself over the rating because of these things and ultimately decided that my enjoyment of the characters and desire to read the next book means this falls more in line with a 4 star read. As a note, HIS SECRET ILLUMINATIONS does end on a soft cliffhanger so not everything is resolved, mostly the storyline with the missing books. With the next book I can't wait to see Lucían open up more to Glory about what he wants in their relationship because Lucían is definitely kinky even though he doesn't necessarily understand what his desires mean right now.
Content Warning: Lucían has been raised in a monastery that uses abusive practices to punish the monks; Lucían struggles with guilt and shame over his desires toward Glory and he believes his desire to be dominated by Glory makes him a deviant (he’s working through this)
March 22, 2022
This is my new favorite book. This is the book I’ve always wanted to read but didn’t think existed. It made me remember why I love reading. It hit all of my buttons so hard I’m stunned and speechless and will try my best to be coherent about it.
I’d been on the hunt for books in print about a guy being swept off his feet by a woman, courted in ways a woman usually would be by a man, and turned up short—until I found this book. And holy fuck, does it deliver on all of that and more.
There’s a tall buff woman love interest with so much detailed emphasis on her muscles and strength and how hot that is and the protagonist is this smaller shy man who’s enamored by her strength and dominance, and she’s equally enamored with his sweetness and vulnerability. She’s experienced and affectionate, he’s sheltered and touch-starved. She’s older than him. She picks him up and holds him in her arms many many many times and he loves it.
The author goes a step ahead of “there was only one bed” and goes “there was only one HORSE” (don’t worry "there was only one bed" comes later on). There’s hurt/comfort, there’s sickfic, there’s angst, there’s pining, there's PTSD, there's tending to wounds, there’s slow burn, there’s adorable side adventures, THERE IS SO MUCH FEMDOM AND D/S ON NEARLY EVERY PAGE and it all culminates in one smoking hot conclusion.
It’s the kind of book I know I’m going to go back and read my favorite parts while tucked in bed under the dim glow of a lamplight when I’m not re-reading the whole thing, like I used to with books as a kid. It’s the “Anton Ego taking a bite of ratatouille” feeling but for books.
I’d been on the hunt for books in print about a guy being swept off his feet by a woman, courted in ways a woman usually would be by a man, and turned up short—until I found this book. And holy fuck, does it deliver on all of that and more.
There’s a tall buff woman love interest with so much detailed emphasis on her muscles and strength and how hot that is and the protagonist is this smaller shy man who’s enamored by her strength and dominance, and she’s equally enamored with his sweetness and vulnerability. She’s experienced and affectionate, he’s sheltered and touch-starved. She’s older than him. She picks him up and holds him in her arms many many many times and he loves it.
The author goes a step ahead of “there was only one bed” and goes “there was only one HORSE” (don’t worry "there was only one bed" comes later on). There’s hurt/comfort, there’s sickfic, there’s angst, there’s pining, there's PTSD, there's tending to wounds, there’s slow burn, there’s adorable side adventures, THERE IS SO MUCH FEMDOM AND D/S ON NEARLY EVERY PAGE and it all culminates in one smoking hot conclusion.
It’s the kind of book I know I’m going to go back and read my favorite parts while tucked in bed under the dim glow of a lamplight when I’m not re-reading the whole thing, like I used to with books as a kid. It’s the “Anton Ego taking a bite of ratatouille” feeling but for books.
September 12, 2022
Really wanted to like this one and very disappointed I couldn’t finish it. The characters are all just too wholesome and perfect, there isn’t enough tension or conflict anywhere to carry me through the slow (and rather shallow) plot and pacing. Which is a bummer because I like how this book is subverting some of our most taken for granted romance tropes, and the role reversal here is very appealing. Yet the story could not keep me engaged, and the the romance between the characters felt a bit bland I think mainly due to how perfect everyone is. You can tell the author loves their characters and can’t stand to make them anything less than saints (the main characters are both Mary Sue’s), and even the innkeepers and guild mates and friends we meet along the way are sweet as syrup and perfect in all ways. It makes for a lack of depth, and coupled with the lackluster and slow-paced plot I had to set it aside.
March 17, 2022
This single point-of-view story, told from the perspective of a cloistered monk taken out into the world by a warrior woman in a hunt for stolen books, satisfied me as if the author had included me in a poll of What Will Most Satisfy This Type of Romance Reader, and delivered. Marvelous! Not only are the characters entirely delightful, not only is faith and abuse and change handled deftly and kindly, but I laughed out loud many times while reading. I love that. I loved this. I am so glad there's another book to read, which I am of course starting as soon as I post this review.
Highest recommendation. Worth the higher price. If I'd known that when I first put this on my TBR list, I'd have bought it then.
Highest recommendation. Worth the higher price. If I'd known that when I first put this on my TBR list, I'd have bought it then.
July 10, 2021
This book was okay but not great. There's an awful lot of conscious "therapy talk" for a book set in a nebulously historical setting, and frankly a total lack of actual femdom sex scenes for a book billed as femdom romance. The romance might have been improved by a split perspective -- it's all in Lucian's POV, and it can get a little repetitive in places. I didn't realize going in that this was a duology with the narrative split across two books, so it was a little annoying to get to the end of a big chunky book and not have the plot OR the romantic tension fully resolved!
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