Tag: LGBTQ romance

Erotica, Romance

My Review: American King (New Camelot Trilogy #3): by Sierra Simone

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Publish Date: November 13th, 2017
Number of Pages: 485 Pages
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
Genre(s): Contemporary Romance, Erotica

***Warning!! This post may contain spoilers for the previous titles in this trilogy yet! Continue reading at your own risk, you’ve officially been warned!***

To read my review for Book #1 – American Queen – Click HERE

To read my review for Book #2 – American Prince – Click HERE

Total Star Rating: 4.25 Stars

So, this is it…the final chapter of this surprisingly addictive trilogy that I discovered this year and finally got to reading, and so far it has been one of my favorites to mark down by far! It is for sure one of the most well written stories that I’ve had the pleasure of reading, and that even goes for any sort of fiction, not just romance/erotica. Sierra Simone has definitely gained a fan in me with how she’s made such a tantalizing story affect me so.

I’m glad I didn’t have to wait too long to get into this third title because the ending of the last one was rough…I mean, I was almost in shock. I was pacing my room, it was about 3 am, and my heartbeat couldn’t slow down for the life of me. It seriously hit me right in the feels, and I didn’t know what to do with myself. Any story that can get to you like that has to be amazing, it just affects you so strongly. All the twists and turns, the shocking revelations, the heartache, the sacrifices, the love, and the characters that will stick with me for quite some time.

I loved this trilogy for multiple reasons: the weaving of the story going back into the past and staying in current times, the chemistry between the characters, it’s look on the darker side of attraction, the scandals, the secrets, the moral integrity of the characters, how we slowly unravel more and more behind the characters as the story develops, the beautifully written words, the smoldering sex scenes, and how its a modern retelling of the classic Arthurian tale in Camelot. Of course, some things got switched around and there are a few things added and taken out, but more or less the same. I also wanted to mention how the author wasn’t afraid to go there, as in she went to a forbidden place that people would look at as a perversion of the story; a kinkier, weirder side towards it with absolutely no shame, but honestly I appreciated that she was willing to go to a place not too many authors can go within the genre. It makes it stand out more and makes it feel like I’d found a buried treasure that hardly anyone else knew about.

The first two books within the trilogy absolutely knocked me on my ass (the second one with all that we learned about Embry most of all), and this one didn’t disappoint either, but I had some cautions simply because the character I liked the least out of the trio, Ash Colchester, was going to be the main focus. It’s not that I hated Ash or anything like that, I just wasn’t all into the fact that I found him to be so manipulative towards Greer and Embry, and I’m not too informed into the dom/sub lifestyle, but anyone who enjoys the physical actions of whipping and striking that much for sexual pleasure just doesn’t sit right with me. Sure, he’s a big war hero, and he’s done amazingly brave things, is extremely honorable, and was then president because of it all, but somehow the idea about how he hides his true self until behind closed doors kind of rubbed me the wrong way.

What It’s About:

Continuing off the events of the previous title, Ash and Embry are now turned from President and Vice into running competitors, as Embry has separated himself in order to be able to make sure the people he loves most are safe, even if that means going to war. Ash thinks differently, and wants to do everything that he can in order to avoid war at all costs. Still, that doesn’t stop the two from meeting up at each other’s hotel rooms once the debates and/or interviews are done for the day…

While running against the man he loves and further pushing himself away from him and his wife, Embry is still being blackmailed by Abilene, who roped him into marriage and having his unborn child. Greer and Ash tackle the issues of trying to move forward without Embry at their side, all the while urging him to return. There’s more pain and more suffering that occurs which leads the three of them to continue to turn towards each other for comfort and pleasure, even as everything slowly continues to unravel.

Ash finally gets his moment in the spotlight, and between events in the past and present, new light is shed on him and his character as we discover how he came to be, and what exactly his thoughts and opinions were during other key moments from the other two books in this tantalizing story!

What I Liked:

  1. It Made Me Like Ash More As A Character! While he’s still not my favorite person in these books, having some more information about him and his inner struggles throughout the story made me be able to relate to him a little bit more. From a confused young man fresh out of college just on the cusp of knowing who he was (along with his sexual identity), to becoming the most powerful man in the country; he had some depths that made me see where he was coming from a little better. One thing I could truly admire about him was the lengths he’d go to show his love for Greer and Embry, no matter how much it hurt him. If he had to, he’d always choose pain if nothing else.
  2. The Romance is Still Alive! So despite Greer and Ash having to deal with the fact that Embry is no longer with them in the public’s eye, that doesn’t stop the three of them from staying together behind the scenes. It felt like not much had changed in that sense, which was a relief, because at the end of it I just want them to be happy.
  3. The Relationships! The book felt like it explored more on each of the three’s personal relationship between each other, what was needed to be done in order for each of them to grow, and how the separate relationships intertwined into their whole relationship as the trio. It explored Embry’s relationship with Ash, along with his relationship with Greer, and of course, Ash’s relationship with Greer. Each have their private, one on one moments with each other in order for their bond to become stronger and fight against all that threaten to tear them apart. The author perfectly balanced all sides of the MMF relationship, not just emphasizing one or the other.
  4. The Author’s Personal take on the Arthurian Tale! So I was able to enjoy the story without much outside knowledge of King Arthur, but the story is a close resemblance to the classic tale, just a more modern take on it with plenty of things switched around to freshen it up. The author made her own corrections towards the story this one is based on answered some questions that popped up: Why should Arthur be betrayed by the two he loves most? Why should all of them end up broken and alone? She also explains all this in an afterword at the end of the story to talk to us about all of it!
  5. An Actual Plot Along with Sex Scenes! Like an romance/erotica story, theres sex scenes…a lot of sex scenes. What’s good about the ones in here are they aren’t just randomly placed throughout and they do add to the story. It helps that there is a well written story to go off of as base to give these scenes more meaning too! Some stories hardly have a plot with sex scenes throughout to hide the fact, but luckily these titles had both.

What I Didn’t Like:

  1. The “Magical Twist”…By the name of the trilogy, along with having a wise mentor-like character named Merlin…It wasn’t so surprising to see the story take on a little reveal like in this story. That doesn’t mean I liked it though, it just makes for a cheesier plot twist that the story didn’t exactly need, but maybe it has to do with the fact that this entire trilogy was an ode to the classic tale with King Arthur, Sir Lancelot, and Guinevere.
  2. At First, the Ending…When I first read the ending, I was a little disappointed because it felt like the author resorted to playing it safe and trying to make everyone happy and to have a happy ending. BUT, upon reading the afterword Sierra wrote to the readers, my initial opinion changed, and felt like she fairly justified her decision on it.

Conclusion:

Another great addition to quite possibly my favorite book(s) read in 2019! It had everything a good story needs, and while I’m sad the story is over, it doesn’t take away from the amazing journey it took me on! A perfect recommendation for anyone who loves to read well written erotic fiction with compelling and complex characters, angsty situations with lots of scorching tension, and plenty of surprises to keep you guessing!

Thanks for Reading!

— Nick Goodsell

Fantasy, LGBT, New Adult Romance, Romance

My Review: Captive Prince (Captive Prince #1): by C.S. Pacat

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Publish Date: April 7th, 2015
Number of Pages: 270
Publisher: Berkely
Genre(s): LGBT, Fantasy, Romance (M/M), New Adult

Total Star Rating: 3.75 Stars

Back around the time when I’d first found this book, I’d made it a point to search for more queer romance stories, specifically of the M/M variety, because why not celebrate my own queerness and read books with my people as the leads, am I right? Doing some research into finding titles, this trilogy showed up quite a lot, like, actually A LOT. Tumblr, Goodreads, lists all over the internet, and Bookstagram all had high praise for this trilogy, and with it being described as a M/M Fantasy romance, added with seeing some amazing fan art (like the one below), I was sold and knew I had to get my hands on them.

Fan artwork of Laurent & Damen, image courtesy of @gabriella.bujdoso on Instagram

Upon reading it, I found out that it’s actually very little fantasy; there’s no wizards, dragons, elves, white walkers or anything magical. It’s considered Fantasy based on the fact that the story takes place in a fictional land, so I almost considered it to just be a period piece, or even just historical fiction to a small degree. It’s set in medieval times, with opposing countries on the brink of war with corrupt and powerful courts filled with deadly secrets and intrigue.

It’s funny to look at other reviews of this title and see that it’s either “OMG I LOVE THIS, IT’S AMAZEBALLS AND ITS SO EFFING GREAT,” or “WHY DO PEOPLE LIKE THIS CRAP? SLAVERY AND TORTURE ISN’T SEXY, THIS IS DISGUSTING & I HATE IT!” …Honestly I was more towards the middle. Yeah, there is some problematic subject matter within the story that may trigger certain readers: there’s torture, slavery, kidnapping, sexual assault & rape, voyeurism, and even some pedophilia (yeah, even I can admit that’s a lot). I personally was not so taken aback by it all, but I understand that other readers would for sure be turned off to any of those triggers to keep them from going near this book, it all makes it incredibly controversial, which is what also made me more interested.

What It’s About:

Damen, a warrior prince and next in line to ascend the throne of Akielos, is taken prisoner when his half-brother seizes the throne with brutal power after their father passes away, and strips him of his identity and has him shipped off to enemy territory in order to hide him away and greedily keep his newfound place of power.

Map of the world of the Captive Prince Trilogy, image courtesy of fuckyeahfictionalmaps Tumblr profile

Damen, now turned slave, is brought to the northern realm of Vere, and becomes a pleasure slave for its Crown Prince, Laurent. Laurent is everything thats vile about the Veretian Court; he’s manipulative, vindictive, pampered, spoiled, sadistic, cruel, but Damen also couldn’t deny that he was absolutely gorgeous.

Trying to survive and find any way to escape back home, Damen soon gets wrapped up in the dark, twisted web of the Veretian Court, and soon discovers that more is going on behind closed doors than he’d ever anticipated. It will require him to find allies in unexpected places, and work together with Laurent in a dangerous chase towards the throne, but keep his true identity a secret when he discovers that Laurent has a reason to despise him more than anyone else…

What I Liked:

  1. It was Character-Driven! There isn’t a whole lot of world-building, but this story mainly focuses on the two main characters, Laurent and Damen, and their developing relationship along with others including guards, royals, slaves and courtiers. It’s funny though: Laurent is absolutely despicable in this book, like, he’s actually portrayed as an elitist human douchestick. Even thought it’s obvious that him and Damen will end up together, you really question it at times like: “What does he see in him? How will they ever actually get together?” He’s an interesting character though; he does some heinous things, but then it turns out later that he was actually helping someone or doing it for the good of the cause, and you slowly turn around on your initial opinion of him. The author does an amazingly job of his development; it’s so fragile and delicate, but again, so well done.
  2. Haters-to-Lovers Trope! Based on how the two interact, you can easily decipher that any sort of romance between them is going to be a slow burn. Damen and Laurent absolutely despise each other right off the bat, but must become reluctant allies when secrets are revealed and they learn they need to work together. There’s sexual chemistry that develops, but it moves at a slower, but realistic pace both sexually and otherwise.
  3. Queer-centric! The vast majority of the cast of characters are male, and everyone is some sort of version of being queer, or at least not straight. It’s funny, but it’s like being straight is the taboo, sinful, forbidden way for people to be, unless it’s simply to create an heir. I found it completely refreshing how it’s never questioned by anyone, it’s a normal way of life which made me sigh at how much I wish we could live in a world like that, where people don’t get so bent out of shape for who they’re attracted to.
  4. Complexity of the Characters! The character work done in this story is incredible. There’s plenty of subplots throughout, and you really start to wonder about the characters and how they operate; why are they like this, what are their true intentions, and what isn’t the author telling us? There’s definitely a feeling that things are not what they appear to be in both the characters and the plot, and that will keep you longing to find out more.
  5. Its Subject Matter is Controversial! This book is trigger warnings galore, and it’s something that quite a lot of people are not going to be able to read. It makes you uncomfortable, it’s unsettling and even kind of perverted in some scenes. Our society likes to shy away from these topics (rape, sex slaves, abuse of all kinds, torture, kidnapping, pedophilia), even censor it entirely like it doesn’t even exist. I say, just because a book has these topics in it doesn’t make it a bad book. Yes, the author has them all within her story, but she does present it in a delicate way and touches on them much care. She doesn’t glorify it or make it seem like its alright; it’s oppressive and heavy, and unfortunately for some that experience it, it’s all they know and it’s been normalized for them. They don’t know any better, and this terrible treatment is expected of them, at least in their minds. It’s sad, it’s depressing, but you know what? It’s not too far off from the world we live in today; things like this are happening, and censoring it and ignoring it won’t make it fully disappear. Exposing ourselves to it allows us to open our minds and make us more aware of the world; maybe not in a good way, but gives us a deeper understanding of it in some way, and that its not a safe place, and if we don’t like it, we should do something to help create change.

What I Didn’t Like:

  1. Politics…I’ve said it before, but I’m not a big fan of politics in works of fiction (It’s just a personal preference of mine), and this book has quite a bit of it. Sure, political intrigue helps further the plot of the story, but when things got to technical in terms of the way the courts are set up, along with rules and societal norms & regulations, I admit I was tempted to skip over it to get the story moving faster during those parts.
  2. Very Little World-Building…The world that the author places this story in is fictional, and there are some references to how it all came to be, but I wish the author went a little more in depth with it and how the world she created developed over history. It seems like there’s a ton of it, but it’s only ever hinted at and never fully explained. It’s funny though, Vere resembles renaissance Italy, where people are dressed in frivolous, campy costumes with intricate detail and shows little skin, but are much more open about their sexuality amongst themselves. Akielos is the complete opposite; they resemble Ancient Greece or Rome where everyone wears barely-there togas and even the architectural style is more open like the Pantheon, but they’re more conservative with their sexuality; it’s kind of ironic if you think about it.

Conclusion:

Overall, this was an incredibly eye-opening book that’s certainly controversial and something that a lot of sensitive readers will not enjoy, which is understandable. I can recognize my own privilege and know that none of the subject matter really upset me all that much (maybe just slightly made me uncomfortable at most), but understand that someone who may have suffered a similar kind of abuse will not appreciate it in this book.

The author has created an interesting world, even if not as much as you’d like is revealed, but the characters and the vague but obvious sense that more is to come really drives you forward. The characters have some unknown depths that you want to uncover more of, and in the climax, it becomes apparent that there’s some sort of plan in motion that thrillingly gives in an air of mystery.

I found myself still hoping for more in a lot of aspects of the story, including the developing relationship between the two characters, but I was definitely entertained enough to want to keep reading, and ***mild spoiler alert*** I can say that there’s so many good things to come in the next two books that will satisfy whoever is willing to stick with the story long enough!

Thanks for Reading!

— Nick Goodsell

Horror, LGBT, YA Fantasy

My Review: Sawkill Girls: by Claire Legrand

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Release Date: October 2nd 2018
Number of Pages: 450
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Genre(s): Young Adult (YA), LGBTQ, Fantasy, Mystery, Horror

Total Star Rating: 3 Stars

One of the worst things of being an avid reader is that it ruins a lot of other books for you. You’ve read so many amazing stories with rich, complex worlds and memorable characters that you followed with along their journey, and seeing anything that either feels like a copy of that or isn’t possibly up to the same standard as that last book that made you fall in love with reading just falls flat in your mind…

This title was recommended to me by a friend, and we’ve read a lot of the same titles and enjoyed them for the most part, so of course I snagged a copy of this when it arrived into the bookstore one day. I had high hopes that I’d found something spooky that would keep me up late into the night and make me jump at every shadow that I thought even slightly moved, but this one just didn’t do quite that.

It’s by no means a bad book at all; any book that has any sort of fanbase with those that are able to explain what they liked about it can be considered a great book to read. Certain writers, of course, are better than others, but thats another topic to get into some other time. The point I’m trying to make from earlier is that I didn’t connect with the book as much as I’d hoped.

Everything about it led me to believe that it would have everything necessary for me to absolutely love it: the beautiful cover design, the exciting blurb, and the personal recommendation from my friend. Unfortunately, for myself at least, it just wasn’t fully able to live up the hype.

What It’s About:

Marion Althouse moves to Sawkill Rock with her mother and older sister, Charlotte, as a way for them to hopefully move on in life after the unexpected death of her father. Sawkill Rock is an island town off the East coast (I believe), and the very day she steps foot on the island, Marion discovers that beneath the seemingly perfect, pristine town hides a deep, dark, terrible secret that goes centuries back into the past, a malevolent presence thats infiltrated the land from its wide trees to the stones and decay. Any sort of hope that Marion had for her and her family is swiftly taken away through the night when Charlotte goes missing, just like the others…

Zoey Harlow, the police chief’s daughter, is continuously haunted by the sudden disappearance of her best friend, Thora, that happened a year ago. Determined to find out what happened exactly happened, she makes the startling discovery that there have been disappearances of girls from the island for many years, and somehow it’s overlooked and covered to the point that hardly any of the townsfolk seem to notice. Somethings not right, and Zoey starts to suspect the elite Mortimer family who may know something, or even be involved…

Val Mortimer has been brought up in wealth and privilege with the generations of women in her family, but beneath the luminescent pearl necklace, the flawless hair, sharp smiles and the spotless, silky exterior hides a secret that they’ve kept hidden that could not only threaten their welfare, but the fate of everyone should it escape…

Beware of the woods and the dark, dank deep. He’ll follow you home, and he won’t let you sleep.”

– Claire Legrand, “Sawkill Girls”

The mysterious, hungry presence has preyed upon the young women of the island for so long, devouring them in its long, scythe-like claws, and it’s been slowly gaining strength to untether itself from its willing host and be able to freely walk on this world in which it doesn’t belong in. It’s a campfire story, a child’s folktale, a myth of an insidious monster that lurks in the shadows of the trees and is always watching, and is always hungry…

What I Liked:

  1. The LGBTQ+ Representation! The three main characters are on the queer spectrum of sexual identity! Zoey is ace (asexual for those not with the lingo) along with being black, so she’s representing multiple groups within the story, and it’s revealed that both Marion and Val become openly queer as well and develop feelings for each other. Their mutual attraction felt somewhat out of the blue, but was still satisfying nonetheless.
  2. The Mortimer Reveal Right Away! So there’s an actual big reveal of Val and her dark family secret rather early on in the story, and part of me was questioning as to why the author would have something like that not wait until later to make a shocking reveal, but as you read the story, it makes more sense for how it develops and Val’s character evolution, which is actually pretty amazing because I felt like her character had the most development within the story, even with her interesting initial position.
  3. The Connection of the Three Girls! They didn’t know it at first, and neither did we to a degree, but the girl’s fates were all connected in a strong way that grew along with the story as more and more happened. All three of them have an initial connection– having lost something close to them from the monster (Marion – her sister, Zoey – her best friend, and Val – her freedom), but also learn that they’re connected in other supernatural forces that play a huge part in how things play out. A theme that sticks out is female friendship amongst these diverse characters, and the author illuminated that in a beautiful, if unorthodox way.

What I Didn’t Like:

  1. The Book Unraveled Along with my Interest…The book started off with a bang; it brought up the main conflict almost within the first couple of chapters of the story, but really became a slow burn towards the middle, and I found myself struggling to keep going on for a lot of it. It’s not exactly a long story, but it took me so much longer than expected to actually finish it. I think honestly that it was because that most of the twists were revealed so early on in the story, and some were kind of predictable too. Everything after that, up until the climax, felt more like repetitive filler. I hate to say it, but part of me was considering to add it to my DNF (Did Not Finish) pile on several occasions. I just lost so much interest in it; it was like how I felt whenever I was assigned a book back in school. Somehow the required reading assignment always made me subconsciously want to read the book less.

Conclusion:

Overall, It wasn’t my favorite book, but it does hold quite a bit of potential, and my lack of excitement about it doesn’t mean it’s a bad book, or not worth checking out! The author’s style of writing is gorgeous and so well done in some areas, but this story just felt like it was missing something, like Claire Legrand needed to go another step further with it. I wish I could say what that was exactly, but unfortunately I can’t. All I can say is that I just didn’t connect with it as much as I’d hoped, which makes sense since it doesn’t exactly fall under what I normally read.

I recommend this book to anyone who’s looking for a thriller with strong diverse female lead characters, anyone wanting to add to their LGBTQ stacks of books, or those looking for a great feminine read.

Thanks For Reading!

— Nick Goodsell