Genre: Fantasy, Romance
LGBTQ+ Category: Gay
Reviewer: Jay
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About The Book
Three interconnected fantasy tales of danger and romance by best-selling MM author Edward Kendrick. Contains the stories:
Of Another World: Castaways Tony and Daniel learn they are far from home from elf Brion who says only King Cerdic can send them back. Tony and Cerdic are drawn to each even though Tony refuses to believe the island’s shifters are guilty of the crimes that sent them to Stronghold. He offers to prove it by going there undercover. Will Tony survive so he and Cerdic can act on their feelings? Only time will tell.
Of the New World: Tony and Cerdic wed, and life settles down until a new problem arises. Bandits are robbing wealthy lords. Tony and mage Leofric come up with a plan to stop them, with Cerdic’s consent; despite the fact they think Tony may be the true target. In the process, Tony learns why Leofric has given up on love. Can Tony change that? It depends on whether they survive their confrontation with the bandits.
Of a Harsh Winter: Qildor, a shunned crossbreed, is resigned to his lonely existence. Then a harsh winter sends him to warn the King that something is very wrong. Mage Pilore believes him and what he learns as they look for the cause leads him to believe an evil wizard is responsible. As they seek him, Pilore and Qildor form a bond, but will they get the chance to take it beyond that when they locate the wizard?
The Review
This box set contains three novellas. The first two feature Tony and Daniel. They are shifter brothers who can also teleport and find themselves in another world of shifters and elves via a portal. The stories follow their adventures and their romances. Tony ends up married to King Cerdic while Daniel marries the daughter of a court advisor.
The third tale concerns the romance between Qildor, an elf/shifter half breed, and Pilore, an elf mage. The brothers appear in this story too but only as minor characters.
The adventures are what might be termed cosy mysteries the protagonists need to solve: why the shifters are shunned by the elves, who is behind the highway robberies, and how a harsh winter has not only worsened but also stopped a waterfall. They are competently but simply told. The style leads the reader to think this is young adult fiction, in which the fantasy elements include paranormal characters, magic wielding mages, teleportation, the worship of Greek and Roman goddesses and a portal from our earth, none of which are explained or explored in any detail.
On the other hand, each novella has explicit sex scenes which further the romances, but veer out of young adult territory. A quick but pleasant read.
The Reviewer
I’ve been doing book reviews on my website, crossposted or linked to various social media, for a few years. I read a number of genres but I really enjoy all kinds of speculative fiction so thought I’d like to share my views with you. I love sci fi and other speculative fiction because of the way it can, at its best, make us see ourselves in a new light. Quite apart from the exciting stories, of course! I used to be an English teacher, and I’m a writer (fantasy) so I can be quite critical about style etc. but I hope I can also appreciate properly some books that don’t appeal to me personally but might be simply perfect for others. I have, obviously, read widely, and continue to do so.
