meitachi | books, books, books: 2016 sept-nov

Life continues, reading continues! And thank god for it.

Prince of Silk & Thorns by Cherry Dare - Original m/m slavefic, basically, with more sex and less political intrigue than Captive Prince, lol. It read quickly and was fairly entertaining for what it was, but it's not meant to be a meaty or fleshed out world or mythology. Some references to fallen angels, some expected, and not nearly as much noncon as you'd think, because of course the main characters are going to be In Love and Not Evil. It might've been more interesting if one or both were evil, actually.

Promises by Marie Sexton - Tough non-stereotypical gay dude in small town Colorado becomes BFFs with straight dude cop and develops feelings and straight dude cop has Issues coming to terms with that, and with himself. And yes, it comes with all the glorious angst and doubt and unresolved (and then resolved) sexual tension, and of course par for the course small town homophobia. There's even jealousy over a casual hookup and I'm-not-gay-denial-dating-with-a-woman. All the tropes! Of course there's a happy ending. Fun read, knowing exactly what you're getting yourself into.

Strawberries for Dessert by Marie Sexton - Sequel to Promises, focusing in on one of the main guys' ex-hookups and his story of finding true love. A little more complexity in the characters and their relationships in this one, with one of them being the stereotypical flamboyant gay and the other one not quite sure he wants to be that out. Some family background angst as well. This gave me feels, although I didn't find the sex as hot as some reviewers claimed. Either fic has spoiled me or I need serious character attachment first.

Nor Iron Bars a Cage by Kaje Harper - Fantasy world with magic, royalty, and dudes in love! Longer and more intricate worldbuilding here, some thought into magic theory and the kingdom's history. Really nice. Lovely relationship between the two leads who are friends but have been separated for years until present day. You can tell the genuine care between them, so there's less romantic tension because you know how they feel; it's overcoming other outside obstacles, including the main character's past trauma. There was character growth and actions with consequences, woot.

Cut to the Quick by Kate Ross - Murder mystery set in the Regency period? Combining two things I dearly love and giving us a hero detective who happens to be the ton's most fashionable dandy. God, yes, this is what I want. And it was great! Very period feel, very cozy mystery feel, and it's just such a comfortable read, with all confusing twists and red herrings in the lead up to the solution. And well drawn characters who have their own motivations which may or may not be involved in the death... Loved this. Happy it was first in a series of four books, but alas only four because the author passed away before writing more. Glad to have what we do though!

The Soldier's Scoundrel by Cat Sebastian - A new m/m regency author, very exciting! She writes well, captures the period, lots of good sexual tension and some outside plot as well. I personally would've loved more frothy balls and such ridiculousness since that's what I crave of my Regencies, but this was less of that because of the class difference between the main characters. I'd love to read more from her, more plots and tropes please. Always more UST please.

A Broken Vessel by Kate Ross - Number two of the Julian Kestrel mysteries, and still excellent. Even more lovely female characters in this and a broader exploration of class here, with Dipper and his sister showing one side of London, and Julian infiltrating the usual ton circles. There was a lot of unhappy and dark things here, but it was nice to see that seedy underbelly of London that isn't all just frothy dresses and rich nobles angling for marriage. I liked that Sally got to play a major role.

Frederica by Georgette Heyer - A reread because after the grittier mysteries, I did want a palate-cleanser of the formulaic, and excellently written, Regency romance. I adore Frederica and her siblings and how great/obnoxious they are. I love Alverstoke not knowing what to make of them, being accidentally good with them, and developing feelings. I love his petty side towards his sisters and how Frederica gets rewarded for being nothing but herself. That's the dream, right?

MARS by Fuyumi Soryo - MARS was a nice reread, a solid 15 volumes of iddy teenage angst and love. I remember it being far more dramatic, but rereading as an adult...really they're just two unfortunate kids from unfortunate, fucked up families, and unfortunately it's not that rare or unusual. And often those are the people most drawn to each other anyway. Their friends live relatively average lives untouched beyond some generic teenage angst. But the emotional h/c of Rei and Kira finding each other and figuring it out is cute and cathartic. They don't get a happy ending, per se, but sort of a happy middle -- a keep on going, we still have more to come. And maybe that's more optimistic.

Whom the Gods Love by Kate Ross - Number three of Julian Kestrel and again delightful in its own way. Some lovely characters, some fucked up characters, but always engaging and interesting. We get to learn a little more of Julian's past in this one, though he remains pretty unassailable as a great guy and excellent protagonist. But I don't really need too many shades of gray with him; I like him as is and I'm okay with that.

Now onto catching up with this year's One Piece volume releases, the last of the Julian Kestrel mysteries, maybe try out The Comfortable Courtesan, and a few other fantasy ebook recs, one light-hearted and one dense worldbuilding.