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Atone
Tal finally had it all...until the man he loved abandoned him.
Once, Tal Oryan was an elite warrior, fighting for the kingdom at the side of the powerful general who loved him. Then Tal loses everything in a haze of pain and betrayal after his hand is severed in battle. Now labeled a "cripple" and cast out from the warrior life he's known for so long, he has no choice but to return to his past, a place of horror and guilt. He can no longer stay in the capital after High General Ramidine Swal, the man who once claimed him, never shows up after Tal is wounded. Worst of all, the priceless sword Ramidine once gifted to Tal is gone. Now Tal struggles to find a new purpose as the traumatic events in his past demand the most brutal of sacrifices...
Ramidine Swal is known as The Golden General, feared, revered, and the right-hand man to the prince. But when he returns from a desperate victory to Tal, the wounded warrior he was forced to leave behind, he discovers that Tal has fled the capital. Ramidine soon learns of a twisted cover-up and a betrayal so dark it threatens not only the future peace but the very man he loves. Ramidine is not a man to be stolen from, and certainly not someone so precious as Tal. He is determined to find Tal and set things right, no matter the distance and no matter the cost. Tal will be his again.
Reader note: this gay fantasy romance contains intense emotional elements and male male love
Once, Tal Oryan was an elite warrior, fighting for the kingdom at the side of the powerful general who loved him. Then Tal loses everything in a haze of pain and betrayal after his hand is severed in battle. Now labeled a "cripple" and cast out from the warrior life he's known for so long, he has no choice but to return to his past, a place of horror and guilt. He can no longer stay in the capital after High General Ramidine Swal, the man who once claimed him, never shows up after Tal is wounded. Worst of all, the priceless sword Ramidine once gifted to Tal is gone. Now Tal struggles to find a new purpose as the traumatic events in his past demand the most brutal of sacrifices...
Ramidine Swal is known as The Golden General, feared, revered, and the right-hand man to the prince. But when he returns from a desperate victory to Tal, the wounded warrior he was forced to leave behind, he discovers that Tal has fled the capital. Ramidine soon learns of a twisted cover-up and a betrayal so dark it threatens not only the future peace but the very man he loves. Ramidine is not a man to be stolen from, and certainly not someone so precious as Tal. He is determined to find Tal and set things right, no matter the distance and no matter the cost. Tal will be his again.
Reader note: this gay fantasy romance contains intense emotional elements and male male love
276 pages, ebook
Published June 10, 2022
46 people are currently reading
148 people want to read
About the author
J.C. Owens
31 books613 followersAlso known as J.C. McGuire.
J.C Owens lives in small town, rural Alberta and is a self confessed writing-a-holic. In the absence of help for this affliction…
I do indeed love to write and have now completed thirty published stories, along with over twenty books sitting idle in my computer, waiting… I love the genre of male/male stories and conflict in what a person thinks they want, versus what they truly need to become themselves. I think any writing that shows the beauty of men loving men is worthwhile.
I love to hear from my readers and always appreciate suggestions and comments for future books. Sharing a love of reading and good, hot sensuality between men is always a cause for celebration!
J.C Owens lives in small town, rural Alberta and is a self confessed writing-a-holic. In the absence of help for this affliction…
I do indeed love to write and have now completed thirty published stories, along with over twenty books sitting idle in my computer, waiting… I love the genre of male/male stories and conflict in what a person thinks they want, versus what they truly need to become themselves. I think any writing that shows the beauty of men loving men is worthwhile.
I love to hear from my readers and always appreciate suggestions and comments for future books. Sharing a love of reading and good, hot sensuality between men is always a cause for celebration!
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
July 5, 2022
Great focus on love and honor. Wonderful MCs. Wanted more development at beginning of their relationship.
October 2, 2025
Tal is a sweetheart with low self estime that leads to some unfortunate decisions. His Golden General was written as a walking perfection. They don't spend much screen time together though, most of the story is them trying to find each other again, or rather General trying to find his missing lover. Despite a lot of suffering on MC's part it's rather wholesome story. Fortunately the ending wasn't some random set of events as it tends to happen with some of the authors books.
July 28, 2022
3,5? 3,7?
Well, I honestly didn't expect any of this. When I started reading this, I only wanted three things out of this: a short, gay, sweet entertainment. I finished Jay Kristoffs Empire of the Vampire and was in the mood for some smexy time. I mean, come on, look at this cover, it doesn't scream good quality. And it honestly isn't. And I only got two out of my three wishes because sweetness was the whole opposite direction this book went.
It's dark, gritty and brutal. there are a lot of trigger warnings for this. Maybe it was my mistake for not looking more at the blurb but standalone gay fantasy books are rare enough so I took this chance and it was a wild ride.
The first 50 pages were hard for me because the plot structure is a mess and I wanted to give it 2 stars. As a reader we don't have any time at all to fall in love with the relationship between our two knights because it's happening really, really quickly and even more quickly it ends in a disaster. But the more I read the more darker it got and I started to enjoy the ride. Even though I was in the mood for some lighter stuff. I just wish this would've been a series, maybe two or three books, then the cramped plot could've been stretched more and better structured. The characters I really liked even though they were in its way stereotypical. I expecially liked our main chara Tal.
So it was weird and entertaining and because of it I'll check out more of J.C. Owens books.
Well, I honestly didn't expect any of this. When I started reading this, I only wanted three things out of this: a short, gay, sweet entertainment. I finished Jay Kristoffs Empire of the Vampire and was in the mood for some smexy time. I mean, come on, look at this cover, it doesn't scream good quality. And it honestly isn't. And I only got two out of my three wishes because sweetness was the whole opposite direction this book went.
It's dark, gritty and brutal. there are a lot of trigger warnings for this. Maybe it was my mistake for not looking more at the blurb but standalone gay fantasy books are rare enough so I took this chance and it was a wild ride.
The first 50 pages were hard for me because the plot structure is a mess and I wanted to give it 2 stars. As a reader we don't have any time at all to fall in love with the relationship between our two knights because it's happening really, really quickly and even more quickly it ends in a disaster. But the more I read the more darker it got and I started to enjoy the ride. Even though I was in the mood for some lighter stuff. I just wish this would've been a series, maybe two or three books, then the cramped plot could've been stretched more and better structured. The characters I really liked even though they were in its way stereotypical. I expecially liked our main chara Tal.
So it was weird and entertaining and because of it I'll check out more of J.C. Owens books.
January 20, 2023
Disappointment through and through... First of all, it's a romance book but the lovers barely spend any time together. Instead most of the book is Tal being tossed around by betrayers and the general trying to find him.
It missed so many marks for me that I'm surprised I didn't even DNF'ed. Not that it wasn't a close call but still. So many things wrong with the story as well. How Tal's mom has lucid moments on exactly the right moments, how both she and Tall's sister were bad people to him when he grew up but he still helped them later and send money, how his sister knew where the baron had sold Tal but chose not to help and not even tell the general until threatened, the baron wanting Tal out of the way (why not just kill him and why want him gone in the first place?), the baron being an asshole and a terror to the village but why and how for so long... And then I'm not even talking about the love between Tal and the general which didn't really feel all that great. They had an on-again off-again relationship, nothing really telling why they were attracted to each other, barely any sweet moments between them.
Also, Tal was given drugs during his stay when he was sold, it's mentioned nowhere if that means he has an addiction now.
Boring book, boring story which didn't make much sense and mainly just betrayal and hurt.
It missed so many marks for me that I'm surprised I didn't even DNF'ed. Not that it wasn't a close call but still. So many things wrong with the story as well. How Tal's mom has lucid moments on exactly the right moments, how both she and Tall's sister were bad people to him when he grew up but he still helped them later and send money, how his sister knew where the baron had sold Tal but chose not to help and not even tell the general until threatened, the baron wanting Tal out of the way (why not just kill him and why want him gone in the first place?), the baron being an asshole and a terror to the village but why and how for so long... And then I'm not even talking about the love between Tal and the general which didn't really feel all that great. They had an on-again off-again relationship, nothing really telling why they were attracted to each other, barely any sweet moments between them.
Also, Tal was given drugs during his stay when he was sold, it's mentioned nowhere if that means he has an addiction now.
Boring book, boring story which didn't make much sense and mainly just betrayal and hurt.
June 4, 2024
I found this story to be very enjoyable. The characters were interesting and it was easy to love the good guys and hate the bad ones. This is a romance, but the romance plays more of a drop back to the adventure than taking center stage. I actually liked that because we get a story to follow instead of a series of gratuitous bedroom scenes. We also get to see what type of men Tal, Ramidine and the others are as their true nature shines through.
The writing was mostly well done though I’m not sure I understood the chapter breaks. There were section breaks within each chapter where the scene changed and in other instances it was a chapter break. Even the changing POV between Tal and Ramidine didn’t always occur at chapter breaks. Also, for most of the story, I felt engaged in the story and part of the adventure. But once the story got past the major drama, the feel of the writing changed from showing/engaging to just telling so things could be wrapped up.
The writing was mostly well done though I’m not sure I understood the chapter breaks. There were section breaks within each chapter where the scene changed and in other instances it was a chapter break. Even the changing POV between Tal and Ramidine didn’t always occur at chapter breaks. Also, for most of the story, I felt engaged in the story and part of the adventure. But once the story got past the major drama, the feel of the writing changed from showing/engaging to just telling so things could be wrapped up.
July 26, 2022
$6 is not expensive but most of the Kindle books I buy are cheaper, and although this book was pretty enjoyable, it was a very quick read. I downloaded the sample and then when I bought the full book it said I had 2 hours and 7 minutes left. After about 10 minutes it adjusted to 57 minutes left. I read really fast so maybe it's true that the average is 5 hours, and again it's not expensive, just more so than other, longer books. Anyway the story was good, just not very well fleshed out so Tal ends up coming across as a Mary Sue and my emotions weren't engaged at all like I thought they would be, because I didn't really have enough time to get to know the characters. I usually only get KU books and then buy them if I love them or if I want to reread them so I think I'll stick with that method.
July 10, 2022
T
A difficult review. The writing is wonderful and the author has a way of establishing a connection to the characters. I liked the characters, both main and side. Curious that the author chose not to tell the story of Ram and Tal coming together. It detracted somewhat, I think. Most of the book the main two were separated. An iterating process that brought the reader close to both characters but didn't speak to the relationship been the two. I still would have been fine with this, but the ending surpassed the true ending and drug out too long. I was skimming a lot, ready for the end to come.
A difficult review. The writing is wonderful and the author has a way of establishing a connection to the characters. I liked the characters, both main and side. Curious that the author chose not to tell the story of Ram and Tal coming together. It detracted somewhat, I think. Most of the book the main two were separated. An iterating process that brought the reader close to both characters but didn't speak to the relationship been the two. I still would have been fine with this, but the ending surpassed the true ending and drug out too long. I was skimming a lot, ready for the end to come.
April 30, 2023
I really liked the beginning of this book. The characters were flawed and very real; people you could identify with. They had relationships, tragedies, and daily struggles to overcome. Told in dual points of view, the first half of this book looks at a relationship in terms of an imbalance of power, and what happens in a relationship when we don’t adequately communicate or express affection.
The ending, however, was a sunny, overly optimistic, ridiculously saccharine, disappointment wherein everybody got a happily-eve-after, there was no more war, and the much celebrated death of the king lead to peace and prosperity throughout the land.
The ending, however, was a sunny, overly optimistic, ridiculously saccharine, disappointment wherein everybody got a happily-eve-after, there was no more war, and the much celebrated death of the king lead to peace and prosperity throughout the land.
July 16, 2022
So Good!
I love JC Owens books! They have just the right amount of angst and romance and even though there are steamy scenes, they don't go overboard just to fill the pages. Everyone wants someone to love them for who they are, not what they can give someone else in the form of riches or status. This is a great romance about a General who falls for one of his soldiers, and who goes to great lengths to find his love when treachery tries to tears them apart. It is set as a single novel, but I am hoping for a book 2.
I love JC Owens books! They have just the right amount of angst and romance and even though there are steamy scenes, they don't go overboard just to fill the pages. Everyone wants someone to love them for who they are, not what they can give someone else in the form of riches or status. This is a great romance about a General who falls for one of his soldiers, and who goes to great lengths to find his love when treachery tries to tears them apart. It is set as a single novel, but I am hoping for a book 2.
November 1, 2022
3.75 stars rounded up
Even with nearly none of the start and development of Tal and Ramidine's relationship, this was a rather satisfying story. There's enough detail that I felt these were real places where the characters needed to navigate both their own lives and the shifting political landscape of the country. Some flashbacks build a picture of Tal's childhood before he joined the military. I wouldn't mind reading more stories set in this world.
Even with nearly none of the start and development of Tal and Ramidine's relationship, this was a rather satisfying story. There's enough detail that I felt these were real places where the characters needed to navigate both their own lives and the shifting political landscape of the country. Some flashbacks build a picture of Tal's childhood before he joined the military. I wouldn't mind reading more stories set in this world.
January 5, 2023
Great premise, really bad execution, author does not seem to have his way with words. A pity. Poorly chosen terms that don’t fit the world portrayed (Sonnets, really? What is this, a Shakespearean novel?) and a readers are rather told what happened with awkward ill-fitting descriptions, instead of being able to picture the story in their mind (a sign of a great story-teller). I fished the book despite the writing not because of it and was it a struggle…
June 28, 2022
Solid 3.5 stars but i rounding it up.
The parts for the story that were good were realllly good. Brought tears to my eyes.
Wish the page time with MCs together was more than 25-30%. And need more of the falling in love part. The middle of the book was a complete slump too repetitive and long drawn. Hence it dropped a star. But overall i found the story very endearing.
One of my fav authors
The parts for the story that were good were realllly good. Brought tears to my eyes.
Wish the page time with MCs together was more than 25-30%. And need more of the falling in love part. The middle of the book was a complete slump too repetitive and long drawn. Hence it dropped a star. But overall i found the story very endearing.
One of my fav authors
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 17, 2022
Hurt comfort at its best
The world that this book is set in is similar to many of this authors books as it is a warrior society under royalty. Loved watching these two come back together.
The world that this book is set in is similar to many of this authors books as it is a warrior society under royalty. Loved watching these two come back together.
June 18, 2022
Loved this, as usual. Tal is such a sweet that totally deserved his happy ending with Ram. Glad they got the ending they did, would love to see more of this world.
June 30, 2022
Not a bad read actually. A bit OTT and cruel, but hell, that's why I liked it.
Tal is a great hero.
Tal is a great hero.
December 28, 2022
My Best MM Book of 2022.
The wonderful romance of chivalry.
Tal is a marvelous protagonist. I just adore him. He is a modest person and honorable fighter.
I love love love this book. Amazing!!
The wonderful romance of chivalry.
Tal is a marvelous protagonist. I just adore him. He is a modest person and honorable fighter.
I love love love this book. Amazing!!
July 21, 2022
Beautifully written with great character, plot and description. Loads of intrigue and eventually good over evil!
August 10, 2022
3.5 stars! Interesting story and characters.the first 2/3rds was riveting. The mega happy ending got a bit tepid but overall was worth the read.
June 6, 2025
Neither Ms Owens’ best nor worst work. The story and the lead characters were okay and the bad guys were horrible, but in spite of this the book was rather flat.
September 26, 2022
3-3.5 stars.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews