What do you think?
Rate this book
Taming the Minotaur
It's been years since Theseus embarked on a dating conquest. At the slightly annoyed encouragement from his longtime roommate and close friend, Ari, Theseus downloaded a dating app where he meets his most exciting challenge yet: a tall, dark stranger named Asterius. Though Asterius kept bull-headily brushing him off, there was something about his strange broodiness that drew Theseus in. Maybe it was his intense aura or the mysterious way he held in his secrets, but there was something about this man that Theseus could not get out of his head. Online dating is difficult, as is battling the obstacles that stand in the way of a fun night out with friends. And when the two enter into a local trivia competition, who will come out on top?
This is a modern story inspired by the legend of Theseus and Asterius.
This is a modern story inspired by the legend of Theseus and Asterius.
40 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 13, 2021
52 people are currently reading
144 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 27 of 28 reviews
July 15, 2023
Needed something short and fun, this fit the bill
Content warning: sex scenes, alcohol, some violence
Content warning: sex scenes, alcohol, some violence
August 28, 2023
You might be able to imagine my expression as I read this book. No stop, can we even call this a book? Because it sure as hell felt like I was in some weird fever dream where somehow beastiality managed to nudge its foot in. Also just googled the word beastiality to check if i was spelling it right and oh my god, why did my classmate take my safe search off?! Anyway my expression while I was reading this disaster might have been something along the lines of me eating rotted cheese. And you might ask, Roo why would you do this to yourself? And to that i say: “For shits and giggles”, because what am I if not a traumatized gay. So let’s start this riffed review, and for your interest it will in fact be a summary.
So Greek myths, huh? We all love them right? At least I do. But these 30 pages of madness really made me rethink my life decisions. Like how come this book is set in the real world, a world including trivia nights and dating apps, but we still get our fresh patch of weird Greek mythology creatures, including the infamous minotaur who now can talk for some reason?? The main guys' names is Theseus and his best friends Pirithous and Ariadne. So we’re just gonna ignore that these are all characters from actual Greek myths that are still canon in this universe? Okay, cool. You know that also means that Theseus is well aware of the history of his name and he still wants to fuck the minotaur. Right, I’m out.
So the book starts off with lonely lonely Theseus scrolling through a dating app called “Eros’s Arrow”, which is such an original name btw. Apparently it wasn’t such a good dating app because Theseus ends up scrolling past all of the profiles he sees, until he comes across one, a minotaur named Asterius. So let me just- “He looked at the handsome minotaur’s profile and decided then and there that he needed to talk to him. Theseus had seen his fair share of centaurs, satyrs, and hydras in his life, but he never saw such a good-looking person who also had a passion for trivia games, reading romances on rainy days, and cycling along boardwalks. Not only was he brainy, but he was also brawny, with a thick pelt of smooth, shiny chestnut fur covering his large, rippling muscles.”
Animals? Very attractive. What the fuck.
So let me ask you this, what would you say if you had to open with some kind of line to a person you found really attractive on a dating app? Use a pick up line? Just say hi? Well not Theseus, no he opened with this banger “Care for a game of wits? The loser owes the winner a good time.” no stop, i don’t want this. So what do they do? They start playing trivia with questions from Greek mythology! Including a question about Theseus' best friend's name! Like this is too on the nose. Anyway, they don’t play for long until Asterius decides to ghost Theseus.
Of course Theseus takes this as a hint and goes on with his life living happily ever after. What, you think that’s what actually happened? Hell no. Like any sane person Theseus decides to get his gym buds help to stalk Asterius and find out where he works. Are the red flags up yet?
So trivia night at Asterius workplace, that sounds fun right? Wrong, I had to suffer through this on the nose Greek mythology questions for three pages. Also I got like every single one of them right, so try harder next time. How did Theseus even convince Asterius to sleep with him? He uses egotistical flirting and asks him for a rematch. Cut to them going to a room called Elysium that’s catered to special parties at the bar. You might ask “Roo do they get to the sexy times now?” and to that i say, the answer is way too complicated to answer with a yes or no, because like they start a game of chase?? Like Theseus fully just goes “Ayo Bull-dude chase me around, because that’s sexy” and I’ve read a lot of stuff, but never have I ever read about this type of foreplay. So uh do they stop running when they’re tired and then fuck? Still no, Theseus fully just takes the shield of Athena and says he’s going to tame the minotaur in her honor. Like sorry, don’t bring the goddess into this. So uh they fully just start fighting, I guess?? Like when was it established that they were going to fight. Like this is only there because of the myth. So Asterius loses again, because of course. So que making out?? And then they decide on a safe word, which turns out to be “labyrinth” because this just couldn’t get any worse. Also the dirty talking is just so weird, like it’s just Theseus being a narcissist.
So are you guys ready for another iconic quote, well it’s not really a quote it’s more of a phrase that being “He rubbed his iron bulge against the minotaur’s tight abs” what 😀iron bulge? I’m sorry, are you made out of something other than flesh and bone? You got something to share Mr. Iron Man.
Anyway they were making out, right? Well if you could call Theseus violently biting Asterius’ mouth making out. Now to the actual thing, Theseus produces lube from his pocket to which Asterius says “Boy scout” which gotta agree with the bull-dude there, because who just walks around with that other than boy scouts. Well people assuming they’re going to get some, see what I mean with Theseus having an ego bigger than his iron bulge? Or well Theseus goes on to call it his spear, which is just what? And he speared the minotaur, if you get my meaning. Also can Theseus please stop with these names, because next he calls it his cruel c*ck. I’m done, seriously, what the fuck is this?
“He stopped seeing a rival. Neither was Asterius a conquest to be coveted and conquered. He saw only a lamb at the mercy of a possessive god.”
I- what, when were they rivals? Last thing I was aware of they first met on a dating app (Where they both swiped right btw) and then they were fucking. When did this rival business come into play? And you can’t tell me that lame battle was it, because no, just no.
Now would you be interested in another quote? No? Well too fucking bad. “He knew the minotaur was desperate to feel that warm rush from his spear flood the dark place of his body.” What are these metaphors? Because no, just no. Anyway the thing in the quote does happen which Yay it’s over. Then we just get some after sex chatter which let’s be honest nobody gives a fuck about, we’re just glad that it’s over.
Now can we talk about the trigger warnings for this book because I truly don’t think “Explicit sexual content, alcohol consumption and physical fighting that results in minimal bloodshed” covers this. Like where’s my “Will affect you for at least an hour after reading, resulting in immobility”?
So what did we learn from this story? DON’T FUCK FUCKING BULLS! Oh and that floor deserves a vacation and a good trip to the repair unit because Asterius literally broke it. Like it fully caved in. and now the only thing i can think about is some employee walking in there and seeing a bull shaped dent in the floor, and yes that truly is what keeps me going in life.
So Greek myths, huh? We all love them right? At least I do. But these 30 pages of madness really made me rethink my life decisions. Like how come this book is set in the real world, a world including trivia nights and dating apps, but we still get our fresh patch of weird Greek mythology creatures, including the infamous minotaur who now can talk for some reason?? The main guys' names is Theseus and his best friends Pirithous and Ariadne. So we’re just gonna ignore that these are all characters from actual Greek myths that are still canon in this universe? Okay, cool. You know that also means that Theseus is well aware of the history of his name and he still wants to fuck the minotaur. Right, I’m out.
So the book starts off with lonely lonely Theseus scrolling through a dating app called “Eros’s Arrow”, which is such an original name btw. Apparently it wasn’t such a good dating app because Theseus ends up scrolling past all of the profiles he sees, until he comes across one, a minotaur named Asterius. So let me just- “He looked at the handsome minotaur’s profile and decided then and there that he needed to talk to him. Theseus had seen his fair share of centaurs, satyrs, and hydras in his life, but he never saw such a good-looking person who also had a passion for trivia games, reading romances on rainy days, and cycling along boardwalks. Not only was he brainy, but he was also brawny, with a thick pelt of smooth, shiny chestnut fur covering his large, rippling muscles.”
Animals? Very attractive. What the fuck.
So let me ask you this, what would you say if you had to open with some kind of line to a person you found really attractive on a dating app? Use a pick up line? Just say hi? Well not Theseus, no he opened with this banger “Care for a game of wits? The loser owes the winner a good time.” no stop, i don’t want this. So what do they do? They start playing trivia with questions from Greek mythology! Including a question about Theseus' best friend's name! Like this is too on the nose. Anyway, they don’t play for long until Asterius decides to ghost Theseus.
Of course Theseus takes this as a hint and goes on with his life living happily ever after. What, you think that’s what actually happened? Hell no. Like any sane person Theseus decides to get his gym buds help to stalk Asterius and find out where he works. Are the red flags up yet?
So trivia night at Asterius workplace, that sounds fun right? Wrong, I had to suffer through this on the nose Greek mythology questions for three pages. Also I got like every single one of them right, so try harder next time. How did Theseus even convince Asterius to sleep with him? He uses egotistical flirting and asks him for a rematch. Cut to them going to a room called Elysium that’s catered to special parties at the bar. You might ask “Roo do they get to the sexy times now?” and to that i say, the answer is way too complicated to answer with a yes or no, because like they start a game of chase?? Like Theseus fully just goes “Ayo Bull-dude chase me around, because that’s sexy” and I’ve read a lot of stuff, but never have I ever read about this type of foreplay. So uh do they stop running when they’re tired and then fuck? Still no, Theseus fully just takes the shield of Athena and says he’s going to tame the minotaur in her honor. Like sorry, don’t bring the goddess into this. So uh they fully just start fighting, I guess?? Like when was it established that they were going to fight. Like this is only there because of the myth. So Asterius loses again, because of course. So que making out?? And then they decide on a safe word, which turns out to be “labyrinth” because this just couldn’t get any worse. Also the dirty talking is just so weird, like it’s just Theseus being a narcissist.
So are you guys ready for another iconic quote, well it’s not really a quote it’s more of a phrase that being “He rubbed his iron bulge against the minotaur’s tight abs” what 😀iron bulge? I’m sorry, are you made out of something other than flesh and bone? You got something to share Mr. Iron Man.
Anyway they were making out, right? Well if you could call Theseus violently biting Asterius’ mouth making out. Now to the actual thing, Theseus produces lube from his pocket to which Asterius says “Boy scout” which gotta agree with the bull-dude there, because who just walks around with that other than boy scouts. Well people assuming they’re going to get some, see what I mean with Theseus having an ego bigger than his iron bulge? Or well Theseus goes on to call it his spear, which is just what? And he speared the minotaur, if you get my meaning. Also can Theseus please stop with these names, because next he calls it his cruel c*ck. I’m done, seriously, what the fuck is this?
“He stopped seeing a rival. Neither was Asterius a conquest to be coveted and conquered. He saw only a lamb at the mercy of a possessive god.”
I- what, when were they rivals? Last thing I was aware of they first met on a dating app (Where they both swiped right btw) and then they were fucking. When did this rival business come into play? And you can’t tell me that lame battle was it, because no, just no.
Now would you be interested in another quote? No? Well too fucking bad. “He knew the minotaur was desperate to feel that warm rush from his spear flood the dark place of his body.” What are these metaphors? Because no, just no. Anyway the thing in the quote does happen which Yay it’s over. Then we just get some after sex chatter which let’s be honest nobody gives a fuck about, we’re just glad that it’s over.
Now can we talk about the trigger warnings for this book because I truly don’t think “Explicit sexual content, alcohol consumption and physical fighting that results in minimal bloodshed” covers this. Like where’s my “Will affect you for at least an hour after reading, resulting in immobility”?
So what did we learn from this story? DON’T FUCK FUCKING BULLS! Oh and that floor deserves a vacation and a good trip to the repair unit because Asterius literally broke it. Like it fully caved in. and now the only thing i can think about is some employee walking in there and seeing a bull shaped dent in the floor, and yes that truly is what keeps me going in life.
July 30, 2023
I feel bad for rating this so low, but it was just a pure mess both plot and execution wise, and the setting was really confusing.
Btw this was a buddy read with Roo so this message is for them and them only: bestie mistakes were made 💀
Btw this was a buddy read with Roo so this message is for them and them only: bestie mistakes were made 💀
June 30, 2023
Completely chaotic and nonsensical
I've read a few stories that took on classic Greek tales and re-imagined them, but not one of them was as chaotic and disjointed as this one! It literally made no sense at all! The author takes a sledgehammer and tries to mash ancient times with modern and it just comes out as mush! There's no rhyme or reason to pretty much anything! The main plot is that Theseus - an egotistical and arrogant a-hole - decides to try his hand at online dating, where he meets this hot Minotaur (who's name I'm never going to spell). They chat for a hot minute before Mr Minotaur suddenly ghosts the "I never lose at anything and my ego is so big it needs it's own zip code" himbo. After one of himbo's friends has another person do an online search of the ghosting bull - which I don't understand why none of them could - himbo discovers that the Minotaur works at some bar and he basically rounds up his posse to go stalk "tall, dark and horned". After a strange game of trivia - which makes no sense to the plot - Minotaur invites himbo back into some private area where things go from ridiculously weird to downright WTF! There's a lot of violent foreplay - if running around and then beating each other is your thing - and then a weird sex scene that tries to incorporate reincarnation and mythological lives into the current time frame and by this point I've given up even trying to make sense of it! The ending was completely ignored anything that had just happened and was more like the author just said, " Let's just slap this on and pretend we know what we're doing, when in reality, we have no clue how to end this train wreck of a story!" I feel like I should be able to ask for compensation for the time I wasted reading this! But like that proverbial train wreck, I couldn't look away and had to keep looking to see if it actually redeemed itself at any point. The answer is "No!" I'd give this zero stars but Amazon won't post below a two star - in my experience - and I kind of want my experience to be shared. Lucky I got this on KU or I'd really be upset! I'm going to need a Tylenol and a drink after this headache! Ugh!
I've read a few stories that took on classic Greek tales and re-imagined them, but not one of them was as chaotic and disjointed as this one! It literally made no sense at all! The author takes a sledgehammer and tries to mash ancient times with modern and it just comes out as mush! There's no rhyme or reason to pretty much anything! The main plot is that Theseus - an egotistical and arrogant a-hole - decides to try his hand at online dating, where he meets this hot Minotaur (who's name I'm never going to spell). They chat for a hot minute before Mr Minotaur suddenly ghosts the "I never lose at anything and my ego is so big it needs it's own zip code" himbo. After one of himbo's friends has another person do an online search of the ghosting bull - which I don't understand why none of them could - himbo discovers that the Minotaur works at some bar and he basically rounds up his posse to go stalk "tall, dark and horned". After a strange game of trivia - which makes no sense to the plot - Minotaur invites himbo back into some private area where things go from ridiculously weird to downright WTF! There's a lot of violent foreplay - if running around and then beating each other is your thing - and then a weird sex scene that tries to incorporate reincarnation and mythological lives into the current time frame and by this point I've given up even trying to make sense of it! The ending was completely ignored anything that had just happened and was more like the author just said, " Let's just slap this on and pretend we know what we're doing, when in reality, we have no clue how to end this train wreck of a story!" I feel like I should be able to ask for compensation for the time I wasted reading this! But like that proverbial train wreck, I couldn't look away and had to keep looking to see if it actually redeemed itself at any point. The answer is "No!" I'd give this zero stars but Amazon won't post below a two star - in my experience - and I kind of want my experience to be shared. Lucky I got this on KU or I'd really be upset! I'm going to need a Tylenol and a drink after this headache! Ugh!
July 3, 2023
Started off with the most delightfully ridiculous world-building and ended in a place far less enjoyable. It fell of the wagon in the most hypnotically millennial way.
Gets points for being horribly self indulgent on the authors part, while also being convincingly in character for modern (not the actual versions but basically) Greek mythology characters.
I just don’t think an entire colleseum would fit in a shady backroom of a pub? Erotic damning logic to the wind or not.
Gets points for being horribly self indulgent on the authors part, while also being convincingly in character for modern (not the actual versions but basically) Greek mythology characters.
I just don’t think an entire colleseum would fit in a shady backroom of a pub? Erotic damning logic to the wind or not.
April 1, 2024
All the other reviewers are cuckoo. This is a perfectly executed, Greek mythology homage to Chuck Tingle.
If you have no idea what that means, this book may not be for you. And if you read a book and don't get it at all, maybe don't leave reviews? Maybe just understand that you're not the target audience and walk away.
If you have no idea what that means, this book may not be for you. And if you read a book and don't get it at all, maybe don't leave reviews? Maybe just understand that you're not the target audience and walk away.
August 19, 2023
What in the heck did I just read?
This was a freebie I found on my kindle searching for random books to read
And wow umm no words! Lol confusing, messy no idea
This was a freebie I found on my kindle searching for random books to read
And wow umm no words! Lol confusing, messy no idea
Read
August 12, 2025DNF
June 30, 2023
What did I just read
July 2, 2023
cute short story
The author has the beginnings of good writing skill. The book needs world building and to be less rushed with its happenings. If time was taken to build up the world and flesh out the characters this would be an amazing story. I do hope the writing keeps building their skills and eventually puts out a well fleshed out novel.
The author has the beginnings of good writing skill. The book needs world building and to be less rushed with its happenings. If time was taken to build up the world and flesh out the characters this would be an amazing story. I do hope the writing keeps building their skills and eventually puts out a well fleshed out novel.
September 3, 2023
ngl this book was like a beginner wattpad writer just decided to write a story based on random greek mythology they knew. i am honestly pissed that this is the last book i read to complete my reading goal for the year
i am still wondering how this got approved for publishing because the plot nonexistent, chemistry nowhere to be found, spelling and grammar poor af
the concept is really intriguing but the execution was ass, and i'm sad that this was my introduction into minotaur erotica(don't judge me) really wouldn't recommend and also shortest book i have ever read in my life
i am still wondering how this got approved for publishing because the plot nonexistent, chemistry nowhere to be found, spelling and grammar poor af
the concept is really intriguing but the execution was ass, and i'm sad that this was my introduction into minotaur erotica(don't judge me) really wouldn't recommend and also shortest book i have ever read in my life
July 1, 2023
I hate being negative but what was that? I got this for free while there was no written review on Amazon. I took a chance and like the previous review said: this story made NO SENSE! Like, AT ALL!!
I don’t even know what to say because it was just so weird…
My face was just the 🤔 emoji the whole time…
I don’t even know what to say because it was just so weird…
My face was just the 🤔 emoji the whole time…
June 30, 2023
June 2023 - 2.5⭐️ → I don't know how to approach rating this or reviewing it, but it was exactly what I expected it to be and I did have fun reading it. I really have no real complaints, but as someone who is deeply obsessed with greek mythology the "retelling" aspect of it was bad.
September 9, 2023
I got this on stuff your kindle day and idk what I expected but this was like… really bad? It was 40 pages so like I can’t expect much but a coherent plot would be nice. This would have been better with no world development because what we got was half assed
dnf
May 7, 2025DNF @ 15%
I didn't really like Theseus' personality. He was really full of himself and was apparently obsessing over the minotaur that blocked/unmatched him on the dating app after exchanging like 2 words. Like leave him alone??
I didn't really like Theseus' personality. He was really full of himself and was apparently obsessing over the minotaur that blocked/unmatched him on the dating app after exchanging like 2 words. Like leave him alone??
July 1, 2023
Um. Okay. Sometimes I question why I read things. This is one of those times. I don't know how to feel, but if you enjoyed it, congratulations.
August 5, 2023
It was entertaining
August 8, 2023
Short
Less than a hour to finish this one. Short and simple. I did get this one on the last stuff your kindle day.
Less than a hour to finish this one. Short and simple. I did get this one on the last stuff your kindle day.
August 8, 2023
Good story
This book was a little hard to follow and was very short. However I would say it was good none the less.
This book was a little hard to follow and was very short. However I would say it was good none the less.
October 9, 2023
I'm not sure what the author was going for but this is just atrocious.
December 31, 2023
As far as erotic novellas go, it is what it is. It wasn't bad but it wasn't good either. There was a few errors though that brought me out of the story, otherwise it was just a quick easy read.
April 19, 2024
Huh…
Well yeah.
Idk what just happened. But this needed an editor.
Well yeah.
Idk what just happened. But this needed an editor.
August 9, 2024
Taming the Minotaur by Eliza Loveless – Reincarnating Greek myths make for very strange novellas! You might want to Google minotaur myths first! Happy Reading!
April 20, 2024
I think I was expecting something a little…more, from this? On the plus side it’s very short, and I did get it for free, which is great because I think I would have been annoyed if I’d paid for it. (Buit always huge respect to authors who do give away their work for free – it’s an incredible generosity!) The impression I got from this short story was it probably started life as a Hades fanfic – the characters feel very similar in parts to Theseus and Asterius in the game itself, though with less actual characterisation. It was hard to see much comparison between the characters here and the Greek myths, and the worldbuilding aspect was so, so messy – there was little here that made sense.
Greek myths are referenced, but no one picks up on the fact Theseus is called that, his friends are also from Greek myths (Pirithous and Ariadne) except for a weird conversation where they talk about oh, haha, look at our names! – and there just so happens to be a minotaur working in a bar. Theseus meets him via a dating app, challenges him to game of wits, and the questions all revolve around Greek mythology. It was tedious. Then Theseus stalks Asterius, they enter a bar trivia game, there’s more Greek myth questions then they go into a private room and…I lost track here. They chase each other? And kind of fight? Then they fuck, but it wasn’t…it was all just weird.
I always appreciate free books, but this one was just such a mess, it felt all over the place and all the references were very on the nose. I love stories that take ‘fantasy’ aspects and slip them into our world, but there still has to be some thought behind it. I wasn’t impressed by this, and if it wasn’t so short I really would have DNF’d. It’s too rushed, badly written, and just doesn’t hang together in the slightest. Definitely a strong not-a-recommendation from me.
Greek myths are referenced, but no one picks up on the fact Theseus is called that, his friends are also from Greek myths (Pirithous and Ariadne) except for a weird conversation where they talk about oh, haha, look at our names! – and there just so happens to be a minotaur working in a bar. Theseus meets him via a dating app, challenges him to game of wits, and the questions all revolve around Greek mythology. It was tedious. Then Theseus stalks Asterius, they enter a bar trivia game, there’s more Greek myth questions then they go into a private room and…I lost track here. They chase each other? And kind of fight? Then they fuck, but it wasn’t…it was all just weird.
I always appreciate free books, but this one was just such a mess, it felt all over the place and all the references were very on the nose. I love stories that take ‘fantasy’ aspects and slip them into our world, but there still has to be some thought behind it. I wasn’t impressed by this, and if it wasn’t so short I really would have DNF’d. It’s too rushed, badly written, and just doesn’t hang together in the slightest. Definitely a strong not-a-recommendation from me.
December 9, 2023
What you'll get:
Monsters
Dating app gone awry
Mythology
Setting: Washington
There's plot here if you squint but it's mostly showing up at your Tinder date's workplace and banging them in the back room. I'm not mad at it.
Monsters
Dating app gone awry
Mythology
Setting: Washington
There's plot here if you squint but it's mostly showing up at your Tinder date's workplace and banging them in the back room. I'm not mad at it.
September 18, 2024
Um, yeah. This took all of 30 minutes to read. So it's more a short story than even a novella. Plus, there really isn't any meat to it (no pun intended, but, you know, happy accident).
There is no real plot other than seducing the Minotaur and proving dominance. It's completely chaotic, disjointed, and reads more like some drug-induced fever dream.
If Theseus had dropped something and hallucinating the whole thing, that would have been more interesting.
My friend gave this five stars because it is exactly what you would expect. But that doesn't mean it is a well plotted and written story. While I don't really like awarding books stars (so inaccurate) this is definitely not worth five.
There is no real plot other than seducing the Minotaur and proving dominance. It's completely chaotic, disjointed, and reads more like some drug-induced fever dream.
If Theseus had dropped something and hallucinating the whole thing, that would have been more interesting.
My friend gave this five stars because it is exactly what you would expect. But that doesn't mean it is a well plotted and written story. While I don't really like awarding books stars (so inaccurate) this is definitely not worth five.
May 29, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 28 reviews