REVIEW: The Prince of Galerir by Anna Lee

The Prince of Galerir by Anna Lee
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

With an appealing blurb, I was sure this book would be a shoo-in for an enjoyable read. It was not. By the last third of the book, I skimmed in a rush to get it over with.

I didn’t mind the cheesiness because it caged the angst. I didn’t even mind — much — the ridiculous melodrama that rolled in halfway through the story and flooded it through the ending. What I did mind — strongly — was the preachiness, which became the straw that broke the camel’s back. While I couldn’t agree more about what the story preached, I didn’t appreciate it. The moral messages were anvilicious and unwanted.

I felt uneasy with the fact that the all the bad guys were only bad guys because they were homophobes and, on the opposite end, all the good guys were only good guys because they were not. The story was so troublingly black and white that I couldn’t swallow it. I wanted a fluffy fantasy, not something that was the equivalent of a bible fable. It was the equivalent of a bible fable. *gag*

In Conclusion

I rate The Prince of Galerir 1-star for I didn’t like it. What a shame. Excise the preachiness and there was a great chance I would have liked it.

Goodreads | Amazon

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REVIEW: The Stolen Luck by Shawna Reppert

The Stolen Luck by Shawna Reppert
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Do not mistake this for a BDSM romance. When the story said slavery, it meant actual slavery. Despite the dark premise, the story was actually not that dark. The couple, however, were fuckwits.

I spent the first 2/3 of the story vexed with Loren. Once Loren stopped vexing me, I thought it was over but then James picked up where Loren left off.The story was told in an irregularly alternating 3rd person POV between James and Loren. I thought I could get some relief by reading from the POV from a character who wasn’t vexing me at the moment. Unfortunately, while one was vexing the other was unimpressive and didn’t compensate with any exemplary character quality.

+ Loren, the love interest

Loren was a fuckwit because for someone who constantly protested his enslavement to James he sure didn’t try hard to get out of it. I understood his hesitance and fear of failure, but it was quickly if not immediately obvious that James made empty threats, that he was conflicted about being a slave owner and disrespecting his ancestors and principles for owning an elf slave, the race who granted his family their Luck. Loren had plenty of opportunities to leave, especially when he was at James’ family manor surrounded by good people who would have helped Loren if he simply asked, no exaggeration whatsoever.

At that point, it ceased to be protesting and rightful challenging of slavery. It became whining and unproductive. I detest whiny characters. FFS, Loren. The funny thing is that he could have simply asked James for a contract where once James willfully set Loren free then Loren would help James recover the Luck. A contract would have resolved the damn slavery issue once and for all! All James needed was a fucking promise set in paper! There would have been no issue of Loren reneging on the promise because he was an elf and elves, unlike humans, take their promises seriously.

Aside from the whining issue, I hated how Loren kept antagonizing James and being easily offended. There are these things called words and Loren should have used them. Loren should have directly communicated his reasons for his feelings instead of throwing bitchfits that baffled James. For example, I’m pretty sure if Loren said point blank that James’ friend was a sexual offender James would have believed him. Pretty sure as the grass is green.

Also, what kind of a slave antagonizes their new slave owner upon their first conversation? A stupid one that’s what. Of course, when James reacted non-violently and instead considered Loren’s physical and emotional injuries it should have instantly clued Loren in that James was a softie... and easily escapable. Not to mention that Loren had the ability to read mind, emotions specifically, which I suspected would have been useful in determining truthfulness.

In sum, Loren was whiny and bitchy and a shade of stupid. He did grow as a character towards the end, but not as much I would have liked.

+ James, the protagonist

I would have liked James to show more resolve and less guilt. He suffered too much internal conflict; I think the story overdid it trying to humanize James for his offense as a slave owner. Dude didn’t need to be humanized. Desperate times call for desperate measures so I totally got what he was going through. His loved ones were on the line. Anyway, I also blamed James for not thinking of making a contract with Loren and setting Loren free. It would have cut back one issue James had to deal with.

For the first 2/3 of the story, James was unimpressive in spite of his card sharp and sword skills. If the guy exercised his brain cells and came up with a strategy, then the bad guys wouldn’t have made such big trouble for Loren and him and almost got the two killed on so many occasions that it was getting idiotic on James’ side. And then there was the last 1/3 of the story.

Instead of growing a character in the last 1/3 of the story, he regressed, much to my annoyance. A couple chapters ago in the middle of the story, Loren revealed how he became a slave, and then James said that Thorne, Loren’s cousin, could have been responsible for it to which Loren refused to believe because elves are always good guys. (Yeah, I sniggered.) So what happened when James finally meet the suspicious Thorne? He allowed himself to be seduced and turned against Loren, the guy who previously, a few chapters ago, saved his life. *facepalm* Admittedly, James did wake up to the truth before things became irreparably wrecked, but he should haven’t been hoodwinked by Thorne in the first place.

So beside Loren, the stupid was also strong in James.

+ the plot

The good news was that there was no instant love and that sexual consent was a priority in the romance due to the slavery premise. There was also a HEA and smut as an ending. The bad news was that the story, as a romance, was not that very romantic. The couple were constantly challenging each other and challenging feelings for each other. Their bickering suppressed any sexual tension the story tried to manufacture.

In Conclusion

I rate The Stolen Luck 2-stars for it was okay. It was a nice romance, it was just not very romantic. The couple’s lack of smart stood in the way. The silver lining side was I did like how same sex relationship in the fantasy was a complete non-issue.

Goodreads | Amazon

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REVIEW: Like It or Not edited by S.L. Armstrong

Like It or Not edited by S.L. Armstrong
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Like It Or Not had 2 short stories I liked and 4 I did not.

#1: Out of Options by Angelia Sparrow & Naomi Brooks

The first half of the short story lured me into a false sense of peace such that I forgot I was reading an anthology of non-con smut. I liked the first half even though it was kind of sad because Connor was destitute.

The second half where the non-con hit, I didn't care for. The writing lacked emotion and made me feel detached from Connor, which keep in mind the story was told strictly from Connor's POV. I tried getting into the kinkiness, but no success. The smut leaned towards more pain and humiliation than pleasure. Thankfully, the pain and humiliation weren’t too far-out for my taste. Nevertheless, I remained disinterested. The ending fizzled out and left me feeling dejected.

I rate the short story 2-stars for it was okay. I think I would have liked the story if it was presented in comic form.

#2: Obedience Classes by Sean Michael

Imagine shapeshifter romance stories as junk foods, a donut for example. Now imagine distilling the sugar from the donut and condensing it into a cube, a sugar cube to be specific. This short story was like a sugar cube; it condensed all the ingredients that make shapeshifter romance popular and indulgent to read.

I loved Trevor's feistiness and his unwillingness to be dominated and how it contrasted with Dirk's alpha maleness and his urge to dominate. The story alternated between Trevor and Dirk's POV, and the chemistry between the couple was just riveting. The sex scenes were hot and unabashedly numerous. I went "yay" as if I was frolicking on a sunny field of flowers, swirling around with my arms extended outward. *sings* The hills are alive with smut! Hahahaha!

Second to smut in goodiness was the dialogue. The dialogue was cheesy with its "Mine" and "Mate" coming from Dirk and profane with its "Fuck you" and "Asshole! Leave me alone!" coming from Trevor. It was unabashedly sex-centric, none of this "let's get to know each other" crap.

I rate the short story 4-stars for I really liked it. It aced its way into my smutty pick-up-me pile.

#3: What it's Worth by Gryvon

Ian was a hard character to connect with even though the story was told strictly from his side. He was one of those grumpy people who see imperfections in everything and everybody, including himself. It was as if the concept of fun was foreign to him in spite of the guy's worldly knowledge as a nonfiction writer.

The story bored me until Ian was sent to a secret sex club. My boredom changed into (mild) irritation when Ian saw the danger in the sex club but proceeded anyway with his plan and predictably got himself entrapped. I couldn't see Ian as a sexual creature and his rapist, Vincenzo, as anything more than a faceless hung top. Once the non-con smut was over and they parted, my irritation picked up again. By the end, I was left feeling dissatisfied.

I rate the short story 2-stars for it was okay. The short story impressed me as a pointless vignette.

#4: Blindside by Stella Harris

The pacing was slow. The couple were both closet cases. The smut took its time and occurred in limited amount. But guess what? I enjoyed the story. I enjoyed it a lot.

I liked how Matt was blindsided with his dream of Dylan coming to fruition. I liked that Dylan persevered against Matt's shyness and confusion. The breadth of Matt's reactions to Dylan was enchanting to read.The premise was executed perfectly to my liking.

I rate the short story 4-stars I really liked it. This short short was the most romantic (and least non-con) in the anthology.

#5: Unnatural Means by T.C Mill

The story's premise didn't appeal to me. Thankfully, it wasn't as dark or preachy as I feared. The story was told strictly from Isak's side, and I found him dull. What little non-con smut was there in the story was fleeting in its titillation. I couldn't be any less interested in Isak's horniness for Sain.

His interaction with Sain was pedantic and subdued, which was odd and disappointing given the setting of the story. Injustice is one of the quickest ways to get a rise out of me, but in this story I couldn't be bothered to feel anything for Sain. All I felt for Sain was curiosity of his supposed crimes and then mere disinterest once I learned what those crimes were.

I rate the short story 2-stars for it was okay. I liked the nice ending, but that's mostly all I liked about the story. Well, beside that one smut scene.

#6: Salting the Earth by Heidi Belleau & Violetta Vane

The writing was dreadful. It had too many incomplete sentences, run-on sentences, and tangent descriptions. This story was the most difficult to read out of all the stories in the anthology. I was glad at the least that the storytelling was kept strictly from Ronan's side, because otherwise my exasperation would have quickened.

As for the plot, it was ho hum. Because of the writing, I couldn't keep track of the Sidhe cast. The gist I got was that there some sort of challenge and an orgy was forced upon Ronan. I was glad Ronan managed to prevail by the end. Still, just like in those other short stories in the anthology the ending left me dissatisfied.

I rate the short story 2-stars for it was okay. This short story was definitely the worst one of the anthology.

In Conclusion

I rate the anthology 3-stars for I liked it. The anthology was a mixed bag, but I'm very glad to encounter two gems of a short story, which was much more than I expected given my experience with anthologies.

Obedience Classes and Blindside felt like they were specifically written just for me. They hit on all my kinks. Hell, yes!

Goodreads | Amazon

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REVIEW: The Last Grand Master by Andrew Q. Gordon

The Last Grand Master by Andrew Q. Gordon
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The story began with a blast of urgency. In the first couple chapters, our hero rode a unicorn, teleported while riding a unicorn to get there faster, swung killer magic to get through an army of bad guys, kicked some asses, — *takes a deep breathe* — rescued a surrounded party of allies leading to more ass kicking, discovered his soul mate, more magic, contributed majorly to the evacuation of a doomed kingdom, accepted his soul mate, more magic, more ass kicking, and finally when they finished evacuating, bombed the entire place to kill the bad guys who were rushing in. Bam! *exhales*

In short, the beginning = awesomesauce.

I was reluctant to read The Last Grand Master because it didn't have anything that specifically appeals to me other than the fact that it's a fantasy with a mm-romance subplot. I expected the book being fantasy that the "good parts" weren't going to kick in till late in the story. The book proved me wrong, obviously.

+ the plot

The plot eventually slowed down, and things were going well. That is till around the second quarter of the book when it took a sharp turn for melodrama. The good news was that the plot limited the melodrama within a chapter. The bad news was that every and now then there would be a chapter reeking of melodrama. The writing seriously needed to apply the art of subtext; the dialogue can be stilted and maudlin sometime.

The plot was long winded and lost some of my attention, especially towards the end where most of the melodrama resided. Not until the climax in the last quarter did my attention was regained and held at the level it was in the beginning.

+ the hero

The main reason for the melodrama was Farrell, the hero. Every time he talked about his sad past, he did it an overly emotional, drawn out, info-dumping way. It always felt contrived and absurd instead of heartbreaking as intended. Other than that, I had no problem with Farrell and his other flaws, which included a handful of insecurities.

Farrell was unabashedly a Gary Stu, and I loved it. He was a prince, a king (dual-titled if you will), a hero, a chosen one, and a grand master-level wizard (one out of the living two, the other being Meglar). He has a bond with a unicorn, and not just any unicorn, but with Nerti, queen of the unicorn. He has a soul mate, and not just any soul mate, but with Miceral, warrior prince of the Munchari race. You get the point. I really liked that the hero never hesitated to unleash his abilities to the fullest unlike so many countless, countless Urban Fantasy protagonists I have read about.

Farrell was not the bad kind of Gary Stu because he was actually competent and he did have limits, believe it or not. His Gary Stu-ness also doubled as an issue because the poor guy tried to do everything because people looked to him to fix their problems, which usually led him to overextend himself and acquire injuries and take perceived failures, especially where deaths were concerned, hard in the heart.

I liked that in spite of being a super wizard Farrell still had a lot to learn and wanted to learn. I liked that he didn't completely depend on magic for everything and realized magic had its limits; dude took martial art training. What I loved best about Farrell was that he was smart and sensible, how self-aware he was of his status and limits, which he sometime ignored so he could help people.

In short, hero = Gary Stu, but not stupid.

+ the romance

Despite being insta-love and rather cheesy, I thought the romance was good. What I liked best was how uncomplicated it was, how easily and quickly the two adjusted to each other. I didn't doubt their love. Speaking as a fan of smut, I was a little disappointed that the sex happened off page. But hey, the story was a fantasy, not a romance, so I got the point.

Anyway, I really liked that in this fantasy world same-sex relationships were a non-issue/normal, barring that odd chapters-length subplot of a minor character coming out. Speaking of which, while that subplot ended happily, the heir issue remained unresolved. It also pulled the issue of heirs from the back of my mind to the front. It was already in the back of mind because Farrell and Miceral were princes. Shouldn't the issue of heirs come up, particularly when each, as far I know, didn’t have any siblings or relatives to be backups...?

Thankfully, the issue was not a glaring kind because the two have an abnormally long life expectancy so there is more than enough time to figure it out.

+ the world building

The world was developed in many places, but where it concerned Haven, the Big Bad, and the gods it tripped. I like that Farrell welcomed every refugee to his kingdom, Haven, but I found it hard to believe that Haven would have enough resources to house and feed everyone. Not to mention jobs; idle hands are the devil's playground. I also found it hard to believe that every refugee from many different kingdoms of many different cultures would get along easily, especially when some of those refugees were nobles and surviving royals. Yeah, right. Haven was treated like it was fucking heaven and everyone kumbaya-ing.

The Big Bad was Meglar, your Evil Wizard Lord stock villain who is bent on world domination. Meglar's character development was shallow, but I didn't take issue — yet — because in book 1 he haven’t make an appearance, so far only by quick-to-be-defeated faceless proxies. In the next book, I hope there will be answer as to why the gods, six of them in total, can't simply throw a lightning bolt at the dude and kill him already.

Speaking of the gods, I didn't like how much trust Farrell placed in them even though in book 1 everything they had done had been good and timely. Farrell was asking for a world of hurt if he thought the gods always planned with his best interest in mind, or for any mortal for that matter; the thing about pursuing the greater good is that it always demands sacrifices. Anyway, the gods weren't any more developed than Meglar. They were good guys because they were good guys.

In Conclusion

I rate The Last Grand Master 3-stars for I liked it. The book lost some steam in the middle of the book, but I still enjoyed the story. If you're in the mood for a non-thinking, linear fantasy and want a hero who can already kick ass and succeed instead of waiting for book X of series Blah for the hero to attain competency, try out the book. If only some of the qualities of this book would transfer to the Urban Fantasies I read...

My favorite part was the fact that the Farrell and Miceral each bonded with a unicorn. Gay guys riding on unicorns, there should be more of that. Just saying.

Goodreads | Amazon

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REVIEW: The Prince's Groom by KT Grant

The Prince's Groom by KT Grant
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

CAUTION: Long Review

The Prince's Groom (TPG) began with Thomas wishing he could have the same love with Martin after watching his sister, Daisy, marry Martin's fellow pirate, Chelsey — the lesbian couple from book 1. Martin then interrupted Thomas's reflection with a long make-out session that reached to chapter 2. Yet Thomas remained unsatisfied with the vague status of their relationship and soon demanded Martin to give him something that will persuade him to stay with Martin.

Thomas demanded to know more about Martin, starting with Martin's first name. They both wanted each other but Martin's silence on his past pushed Thomas away. One year later in chapter 3, the two men still pined for each other.

With such a beginning, I expected angst (and hoped it wasn't heavy) from a story of two men desiring each other but do not get together. Thus, I was pleasantly surprised at how little angst and how big the action TPG had.

With around 49,000 words, TPG was told in 3rd PoV from Thomas and Martin's sides, the two protagonists, and from Ramona's side, one of the two antagonists.

The Characters

Thomas quickly got my sympathy after he was rebuffed by Martin, but he later lost some when I read how easily he fell to Ramona's machination. I forgave Thomas for his lack of perspicacity, I couldn't forgive him for his lack of spine. Thomas standing up to Martin wasn't enough for me to view Thomas as a courageous character.

Martin, OTOH, was a strong character. My one gripe against him was how he thought he was too old for Thomas when age wasn't the issue that caused the breakup, it was Martin's closed book attitude.

Ramona was a spoiled, scheming socialite who wanted Thomas for a husband whether Thomas wanted her or not. I found her deliciously evil and enjoyed her PoV.

Things I Didn't Like

I wished I knew how old Thomas was because the story only said he was young, Martin was 41, and implied the romance was May-December. Moreover, the story didn't develop Thomas well as a "former exiled prince of the Isle of Ilgeria and longtime resident of the country of Flaundia" (chapter 1). Why was he exiled, and why was he exiled to Flaundia? The story never said.

I did not care for William. I felt bad for him for being rebuffed by Thomas after William confessed his love for Thomas, but William getting his petty revenge against Martin broke my sympathy for him. William was Thomas's secretary and he sexually serviced Thomas which led me to believe him banging Thomas was part of his job and not for love. I believe William confused the intimacy for true love. William sabotaging Martin made TPG unnecessary melodramatic. TPB would have been better if William remained a loyal servant and friend to Thomas and his crush for Thomas was done away with.

I also did not care for the two loose ends TPG had. The first loose end was between Julia's feeling for Maria and how it played a part in Julia's husband's death. Julia's subplot was barely touched upon. Developing the subplot might have made TPG unnecessary long but I would've like to see Julia have her HEA after suffering so much from her evil sister Ramona.

The second loose end was with Jaxson, the second antagonist and Martin's long-lost brother, and how he refused to reveal his reasons why he killed their parents. I wanted Martin to have closure for his tragic past.

Things I Liked

Despite the loose ends, I liked how the main conflict was resolved. The ending for Ramona was fitting. I really liked how during the climax Julia redeemed her pitiful self by stepping up to help defeat Ramona and help our heroes. Julia was my favorite supporting character in TPG.

I appreciated the rehashing of book 1 because I didn't read it. I enjoyed the Daisy and Chelsey's post-HEA. I found their scenes and the rehashing in the right amount that book 1's couple didn't pull the spotlight from book 2's couple.

Thomas was nice. Martin was a sweetheart. The romance between the two was convincing, and I liked how their separation didn't last as long as I feared.

Except for William's love subplot, I enjoyed all the twists and turns as I enjoyed all three PoVs. I like how the twists and turns quickened the pace which resulted no slow moments for me.

In Conclusion

TPG had little angst — which I didn't expect, moderate amount of action — which was more than I expected, and flushed with good smut — which I expected and successfully received. The sex scenes between William and Thomas was hot. Of course, the sex scenes between Martin and Thomas was the hottest.

I rate TPG 3-stars for I liked it.

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REVIEW: Empath by Axel J. Moeller

Empath by Axel J. Moeller
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

CAUTION: Long Review, Spoilers

Empath is a simple story of two mages falling in love and fighting bigotry.

Orphaned and deeply religious, Zonal is a Wanderer (the story's term for mage) with a strong empath talent who get craps thrown at him most of the entire plot. The story even starts off with Zonal trudging through rain, wearing a useless magical cloak, being burdened with a lame horse. Fast forward, Zonal gets tortured, magically mutilated, kidnapped, brainwashed, and magical mutilated again. Fortunately, the scenes were not graphically depicted. The author written it so the readers would feel tear-jerkingly bad for Zonal but not to the point of macabre.

Todd is a levelheaded Wanderer with a talent for teleportation. He irritates Zonal the first time they met, but they quickly fall in love. Their first time together in bed created a soulbond, which surprisingly made the story a soulmates-themed romance. I was dumbfounded that almost everyone except the couple knew they have a soulbond. It wasn't until late in the story that a high-lord Wanderer told Zonal of the divine connection.

Zonal and Todd are apart in much of the plot, with Zonal facing his inner demons and Todd on an assassination mission. Two wars are going on, a sword-and-shield one against a rogue Baron (who we later found out is a self-hating gay) and a political one against a group of religious fanatics. In a kingdom that relies heavily on magical might, the anti-magic relic the rogue Baron possessed makes the perfect defense. The Church (nonmagical believers) and the Legion (magical believers, the order of the Wanderers) have always been at odd. So when a Wanderer—Zonal is seen praying at a Church, some religious fanatics saw an opportunity to convert the Wanderer to their side...by whatever means.

If you're looking for a cute and sweet romance, look elsewhere. The story focused on homophobia and religious intolerance. The story was black and white because it was apparent who the enemies and friends were—the bad guys were totally bad, and the good guys really good. Though the story was political in nature, it didn't felt forced because there weren't any sermon or lecture. The politic were in the actions with friends accepting the couple and the enemies killing them.

You think a war story with homophobia and religious intolerance would be violent and vicious, but the fantasy was very tamed. Even as our heroes were facing dangers, both physical and psychologically, I never felt any dread. Somehow, someway, I always felt that Zonal and Todd were going to make it.

A small gripe I have was the magical system the author set up. The author was not clear on the classification of paranormal abilities. Apparently telekinesis and empathy are mental powers, but pyrokinesis and teleportation are magic. What was the difference between magic and mental?

And there is the soul-bond which is neither magical nor mental because it is divine, a gift from the Goddess that everyone believes in. Since it's divine, this makes soul-bond potentially the greatest weapon anyone can have. The soul-bond is the crux of the story because it is what allows the good guys to win against the anti-magic relic, the brainwashing, and ultimately the wars.

Empath contains a simple message: bigotry is bad, love conquers all. I give this story 3 stars for an I-like-it.

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REVIEW: Myths and Magic: Legends of Love edited by Anne Regan

Myths and Magic: Legends of Love edited by Anne Regan
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

CAUTION: Spoilers

The 1002nd Arabian Nights Tale
2/5. Fantasy. So Princess Sceherazade was a guy...and Sultan Shariyar realized his homosexuality after executing wife after wife until he married a wife—the "Princess"— who was a really a guy after "she" told a homoerotic story. What? O.o

A Fairy in His Bed
2/5. Urban Fantasy. I didn't get it, what's with Daniel thinking Quinn's a slave? Did it ever occur Daniel to just ask Quinn point-blank if Quinn wanted to stay with Daniel out Quinn's own free-will?

Kissing the Dragon
1/5. Urban Fantasy. Didn't care for Bao at all. You would think I would relate to him considering somewhat similar childhood experience, but unlike him I don't hate my own heritage...I'm just indifferent to it. =P It's a big difference. LOL. Beside that, I detest protag who have low self-esteem. Only thing I like about this story was Abner.

Something Pipeth Like a Bird
2/5. Fantasy. Humorous story. Would have liked it if there was a graphic sex scene... because I'm a perv? =d

Greenleaf's Blessing
1/5. Fantasy. Though this story ended up on a HFN note, somehow it felt more like a set up to a really tragic story, i.e. like this was the prologue of a really long and convulated story.

On Wild Wings
2/5. Fantasy. A simple Disney-esue story.

The Sower and the Reaper
1/5. Sci-Fi. Kinky. Not a romance. Did the scientists who made Ozzie a god knew Ozzie would need to shag one of his worshippers so that Ozzie can use his godly power to its full extent? Anyway, this was a bittersweet story.

The One
2/5. A nice story but the ending was somewhat unsatisfying because it left a small possibility that the couple might not escape the hunters. I would have like it to end when Rylan and Thorin found their sanctuary, build a home, and cuddled in bed together.

Of Genies and Monsters
3/5. A very funny story. I can actually imagine a novel of a sequel to this story.

The Wild Hunt
2/5. A sweet story but it ended on a bittersweet note even though it was HEA. I dislike the riding into the sunset ending, and in this story it was riding into the midnight ending.

The Light of Foreign Places
1/5. Fantasy. Where did the couple ended up? I didn't get this story, and didn't like either character really.. =/

Night and Day
2/5. Urban Fantasy. I would have like this story except it was written in the 2nd POV which was irritating. I like the world-building in the story, reminded me of mainstream UF novels. I like how the author set up the Greek pantheon to be forgotten gods and now rendered as only supernatural beings, though still powerful, living among humankind.

The Flower Boy
3/5. Urban Fantasy. Not a romance. So frigging rare to see Urban Fantasy utilizing eastern mythology. Ugg. Point to this story for having something fresh. Kissing the Dragon doesn't count 'cause I didn't like it. I rarely like bittersweet stories but this one is done right. The sex scene was written so beautifully that it took me a while to realize that Lan didn't have to shag Philip for Philip to reunite with his father. Maybe it was payment for granting Philip's wish? Eh, whatever, it's a nice story. Gentle sex with a hot-looking god is not such a bad way to pay.

Overall...
2/5 for the anthology. Read it once, and don't care to read it again.

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REVIEW: His Slave by J-Time

His Slave by J-Time
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

CAUTON: Spoilers

For the first and second chapters, I was ecstatic for the story to begin. I was expecting with glee for Trent to defy his circumstance and the Prince and escape from slavery. Sadly that never happened. The chapters were mostly about Trent and his slow, really slow blossoming love for the Prince despite the slavery issue. In short, Stockholm Syndrome.

We never learn why it was a tradition for the Prince on his 20th birthday to own his very first slave. Nor do we learn why all the boys chosen for the slave selection were happy to become the Prince's slave (except for Trent of course). WTF? Were all the boys except Trent crazy? My guess is that the tradition allows the Prince to have his first sexual experience without the danger of illegitimate pregnancy. But then why slavery? Wouldn't it just be easier, cheaper, and more merciful to pay some boy for a quick ride in the shack than to pay his his family with land and title to give up their son for slavery? It was never explained why Scott would have a better reputation if he chose a "challenging" slave or how Trent got into the slave selection mess.

I became disgusted with Trent when he deluded himself that he'll still have Scott's love after Scott's marriage. Even if that was so, Scott's future wife will definitely do something about it. And when Trent asked Scott not to marry, did Trent not realize Scott was a Prince and needed an heir? Though good for Trent for confronting Scott on the marriage issue, it was possibly the only sensible thing I thought Trent did. At the end when Trent and Scott reunited, Scott's wedding to a princess would take place the very next day! How is it a romance when one of the lover is marrying someone else? Nothing was really resolved. Even if Scott was King and pish-posh the wedding, he still needed an heir!

There was absolutely no world building in this story whatsoever. It was entirely centered on Trent and Prince Scott in Prince Scott's room. Seriously, just the two of them in Scott's room. No character development either. All I know is Trent is something-teen slave with greedy SOB for parents and Scott is a 20 years old Prince with princely duties. There was no mention of their history, their likes, their dislikes, nothing. All I got was that Trent didn't like being a slave (no duh!) and Trent didn't like being a prince despite the privileges.

The pacing was slow. I had a hard time time staying interested. There was no action in the story. No hot erotica. It was all napping, eating, and bathing. Even the raping in the first few chapters seemed tamed. The story lacked energy.

Also, who was Sebastian anyway? The King's adviser? The Prince's adviser? The minister?

The only good thing I can say about this story was that it wasn't badly edited.

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REVIEW: Spoils of War by Aleksandr Voinov & Raev Gray

Spoils of War by Aleksandr Voinov and Raev Gray
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I didn't like this short story because I couldn't find myself to care for Achilleus. I see alot of talk about how he really love Patroklos, even to forsake Ares's offer of granting Achilleus a godhead. Good for Achilleus for sticking with his true love, but I never emotionally connected to this love. For a mm-romance between two characters, one of them—Patroklos—was only mentioned by name and never seen in a scene.

Another thing about Achilleus I didn't like is his wanting to kill and enslave every Ilion, including women and children. I read stories with hateful protagonists, but they always have a reason for their hate, even if such a reason is simply sociopathy. But considering Achilleus actually loves someone, sociopathy isn't that reason. I don't know, it just seem to be anti-characteristic of an honorable warrior. Maybe I'm just reading in it too much and that Achilleus was just saying that to placate Ares. *shrug*

I didn't really understand why Ares would offer Achilleus a godhead. Wouldn't making more gods make more competition? Especially among worshippers, which would lead to religious wars. I know, I know, Ares, god of *wars*. But even god of wars need worshippers or else there's no point in being a god. You can't be a leader without followers, a god without worshippers.

I believe if the short story had a scene where Achilleus and Patroklos reuniting and then making love, then I would have rated the story higher.

Goodreads | Smashwords

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REVIEW: Magic's Price by Mercedes Lackey

Magic's Price by Mercedes Lackey
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

The books are well written, I'm not debating that. What I am hating is the main character, Vanyel. I usually tolerate goody two-shoes to a great extend, but this character just want to make me barf. Pretty much he sacrifices everything in order to save his kingdom, a kingdom that doesn't even like him for who he is and only care for his supermagic.

Frankly the ending suck, so if anyone is expecting a HEA or HFN, this series is not for you—it's a tear-jerker. It's one thing to give up your life for the greater good, it's another thing to give up your afterlife defending the kingdom that will totally forget about you within a month's time. The former suck, the latter blows it all to hell. Sure, they'll mourn for you...for a minute and then it's back to "omg, we need another mage to defend us." Lame.

I feel so frustrated reading this series that I kinda wish Vanyel just died in the first book and saved me the trouble of reading the sequels.

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REVIEW: Sacred Fate by Eressë

Sacred Fate by Eressë
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

CAUTION: Major Spoilers

Stupid Characters

Unlikable and sometime idiotic characters. There is a difference between being innocent and being naive, and unfortunately Lassen fell into the latter. Lassen stupidly fell in love with Rohyr despite knowing Lassen could only ever be the king's concubine and not his consort. No matter, how much they love each other it was unrealistic of Lassen to not consider whether he could have a happy future with Rohyr. Love may be blind, but it sure as heck isn't stupid.

Rohyr was idiotic in the fact that he fell prey to his uncle Imcael's scheme. Just because they share the same blood doesn't mean loyalty was a given, and Rohyr fell for that *hard*. Royal family members who backstab each other for the throne? How UNsuprising. Moreover, you think Rohyr would have taken this history lesson to heart considering he remember his past-life as another king who was dealt the same crap. Past-life! OMG! Not only so, it made no sense that he accepted to marry Tyrde when he knew Lassen was his soulmate, knew the loss of his soulmate in a past-life when both Rohyr and Lassen were different people. How could he repeat this mistake? And then he expected Lassen to stick around? And slapped Lassen when Lassen didn't and thought that Lassen was pregnant with another man's baby? What a SOB!

Tyrde, stupid stupid evil Tyrde. Tyrde, if you wanted the throne, you could at least pretend affection for your king. Did you really expect Rohyr would endear himself to you for an occasional bang in the bed and your strict adherence to royal protocol? Did you really think mind-reading Rohyr would not discover your scheme to eliminate Lassen? It's fine if you make clear of your ambition, but it's NOT fine to alienate the one person your amibition rested upon.

Ending Kinda Suck

The end-fight felt rushed. It would have been better if Lassen learned to make use of his newly-founded psychic skill and to release it in the fight against Tyrde. So when Rohyr had to help out Lassen, it made the victory seem hollow.

Epic World

The world-building was superb, almost as epic as LOTR (the films). I literally felt the history of Ylandre moving across my eyes. I like how the author asserted the extinction of female-kind and the male-pregnancy right from the beginning. It didn't feel sexist to me because she build these people up as hermaphroditic aliens. Technically, this wasn't a mm-romance since the people were not truly male.

The sex scenes were creatively-worded so I wasn't bored by their shagging. Though the sex didn't evoke the oh-la-la hotness, but it was touchingly sweet.

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