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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
First of long series and not a true ending.
Overall, a well written story with a happy for now ending. This is the first book of the series and sets the tone, describes main & supporting characters, the scene and direction. It’s refreshing to read a novel that includes gays, transgender and women in predominantly male roles plus romantic interests. There are plenty of reviews that give a synopsis of the story & characters, so I won’t write anything about it. The author is new to me, but I’m glad I’ve taken the opportunity to read her work. I recommend this book to anyone interested in reading a great story. There isn’t a true ending, but you can continue reading the series.
Overall, a well written story with a happy for now ending. This is the first book of the series and sets the tone, describes main & supporting characters, the scene and direction. It’s refreshing to read a novel that includes gays, transgender and women in predominantly male roles plus romantic interests. There are plenty of reviews that give a synopsis of the story & characters, so I won’t write anything about it. The author is new to me, but I’m glad I’ve taken the opportunity to read her work. I recommend this book to anyone interested in reading a great story. There isn’t a true ending, but you can continue reading the series.
I enjoyed the plot and idea for this book (I didn’t continue with the series). The writing is good, and the creativity too. I struggled to get really engaged with the characters though, I didn’t feel as connected to them and they felt a little lacking in depth. Overall it is a nice read though, and highly reviewed by others.
A solid beginning to a series. I enjoy what we've seen of the world so far, the characters leave a strong impression without being total archetypes, and I could really get into the relationships. I do have a lot of questions about the surrounding world, but I trust that answers are coming soon. I love that gender identity and fluidity are at the forefront, and the scene where Andoc asks Carivel what to call her in private and she almost cries before answering almost made ME cry lol.
My only nitpick is... IDK, I am clearly here for the poly and I'm clearly up for it, but it seemed a very quick jump for two people who've been together for so long to invite another person not only into their bed but their HEARTS so very quickly. Unless I'm misunderstanding, Andoc and Senovo knew of Carivel before the events of the book, but didn't know her on a personal level, and for them to become so close, SO quickly (no even a week has passed!) was kind of jarring. Forgivable, but jarring. The courtship period is often the best part of a romance, and I feel like we didn't spend enough time there!
I listened to the audio-book as read by Gwendolyn Druyor, who has a great voice and did a great job creating personality and accents for the different characters. And I like that she puts EMOTION into her reading. She would, however, sometimes sound like she was vaguely holding back laughter, which I wasn't too fond of. But the narration was awesome.
Pretty excited to see where the plot goes from here.
3.5 stars.
My only nitpick is... IDK, I am clearly here for the poly and I'm clearly up for it, but it seemed a very quick jump for two people who've been together for so long to invite another person not only into their bed but their HEARTS so very quickly. Unless I'm misunderstanding, Andoc and Senovo knew of Carivel before the events of the book, but didn't know her on a personal level, and for them to become so close, SO quickly (no even a week has passed!) was kind of jarring. Forgivable, but jarring. The courtship period is often the best part of a romance, and I feel like we didn't spend enough time there!
I listened to the audio-book as read by Gwendolyn Druyor, who has a great voice and did a great job creating personality and accents for the different characters. And I like that she puts EMOTION into her reading. She would, however, sometimes sound like she was vaguely holding back laughter, which I wasn't too fond of. But the narration was awesome.
Pretty excited to see where the plot goes from here.
3.5 stars.
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I downloaded this from Amazon because it was free and I have a weakness for smutty menage. To be honest, I didn't expect it to be particularly good, but I ended up really enjoying the story (and yes, also the menage).
This certainly wasn't a perfect book: the writing was at times clunky and unpolished; the plot was fairly simple and not especially compelling on its own - although I am curious to find out where it goes next; and the setting was a fairly generic pseudo-Europe (I kept picturing the British Isles in the time of the Romans).
There is also an extensive use of tropes in the book, but I didn't necessary find this to be a drawback. The author doesn't rely on trope as a stand-in for actual character development, and the familiar plot elements highlight her skillful depiction of emotions and relationships.
In other words, where this book really succeeds is in its characterization. I was impressed by the complexity and authenticity of the main character's emotional reactions to the events in the story, and I was very interested in that character's experience of gender - something I'm not sure I've ever seen explored to this extent in a story of this type. The description of the two male partners was also quite nuanced, enough so that I DIDN'T want to smack the "alpha male" character the majority of the time. The dynamics between all three of them were portrayed thoughtfully and convincingly. I could feel the progress of the relationship(s) through the book, both sexually and romantically. Oh, and the sex - when it finally happened - was totally hot.
I will definitely be reading the rest of the books in this series.
This certainly wasn't a perfect book: the writing was at times clunky and unpolished; the plot was fairly simple and not especially compelling on its own - although I am curious to find out where it goes next; and the setting was a fairly generic pseudo-Europe (I kept picturing the British Isles in the time of the Romans).
There is also an extensive use of tropes in the book, but I didn't necessary find this to be a drawback. The author doesn't rely on trope as a stand-in for actual character development, and the familiar plot elements highlight her skillful depiction of emotions and relationships.
In other words, where this book really succeeds is in its characterization. I was impressed by the complexity and authenticity of the main character's emotional reactions to the events in the story, and I was very interested in that character's experience of gender - something I'm not sure I've ever seen explored to this extent in a story of this type. The description of the two male partners was also quite nuanced, enough so that I DIDN'T want to smack the "alpha male" character the majority of the time. The dynamics between all three of them were portrayed thoughtfully and convincingly. I could feel the progress of the relationship(s) through the book, both sexually and romantically. Oh, and the sex - when it finally happened - was totally hot.
I will definitely be reading the rest of the books in this series.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I don’t really know why the book ended where it did, but I loved so much of this. I cannot get enough romances with non-binary main characters and the way this was done was just lovely.
4,5 stars. This book was such a wonderful surprise for me!
I wasn't familiar with the work of R. A. Steffan before. I found The Horse Mistress while doing some research on poly romance (I'm in the middle of writing a book series which contains a poly romance and looking for inspiration/things to avoid) and really loved how thoughtfully and lovingly the author approached the relationship(s) between Carivel, Andoc and Senovo.
Writing a non-binary/trans character in a fantasy setting is definitely not an easy feat — but here it is done with respect and care. Although it started a bit slow for me, I soon realized it was necessary. The world she has created is alive and vibrant with details; secondary and even tertiary characters are more than just a name on a paper; the author's love and knowledge of animals shines through.
And although the plot is straightforward enough (tribe gets attacked by invaders, needs to make uneasy alliance with neighboring tribe to fight back), the social and gender dynamics discussed throughout make this a captivating read.
Oh, and in case you care (of course you do): some of the best sex scenes I've ever read in queer romance — or any kind of romance for that matter.
I'm telling you, I am now a fan of R. A. Steffan's writing. Since then, I've read a few more of her books and I'm happy to recommend her to anyone who'll listen.
I wasn't familiar with the work of R. A. Steffan before. I found The Horse Mistress while doing some research on poly romance (I'm in the middle of writing a book series which contains a poly romance and looking for inspiration/things to avoid) and really loved how thoughtfully and lovingly the author approached the relationship(s) between Carivel, Andoc and Senovo.
Writing a non-binary/trans character in a fantasy setting is definitely not an easy feat — but here it is done with respect and care. Although it started a bit slow for me, I soon realized it was necessary. The world she has created is alive and vibrant with details; secondary and even tertiary characters are more than just a name on a paper; the author's love and knowledge of animals shines through.
And although the plot is straightforward enough (tribe gets attacked by invaders, needs to make uneasy alliance with neighboring tribe to fight back), the social and gender dynamics discussed throughout make this a captivating read.
Oh, and in case you care (of course you do): some of the best sex scenes I've ever read in queer romance — or any kind of romance for that matter.
I'm telling you, I am now a fan of R. A. Steffan's writing. Since then, I've read a few more of her books and I'm happy to recommend her to anyone who'll listen.
Let’s just ignore the cover and focus on the story.
It’s a solid 4 stars, it only missed a bit more of world building and a better dive into the two MMC’s already existing relationship to get truly attached to them.
- Trans representation ( the MC is genderqueer)
- Polyamory
- Eunuch MMC
- Safe practice of BDSM (mostly bondage and orgasm control)
- Virgin MC
- Patriarcal world. The author does a good job at questioning it through her MCs. It is subtle but it represents very well the struggle we face everyday, despite this being a fictional world. Also, there’s a matriarchal type of tribe that we get to know a bit later in the books and the author does a good job with it being realistic and, obviously, better than the patriarcal, sexist and misogynistic tribe they come from.
- Wolf shifter. Unclear whether there’s magic and other types of supernatural creatures.
This was sweet and beautiful. The way they accepted her melted my heart. As a non binary person, the struggles and questions the MC had going through his head resonated with my own, and therefore it was very easy for me to get attached to her.
I still remember the tears of frustration, carefully hidden from all who might see and judge me for them, after trying to tell the priests that my spirit was more male than female. It just happened to be hidden inside the body of a slender girl child. Watching the girls my age as I grew up was like looking at something foreign, something... other. Sometimes it felt as though the only thing I had inherited from my sex was a love of attractive men. (
It’s a solid 4 stars, it only missed a bit more of world building and a better dive into the two MMC’s already existing relationship to get truly attached to them.
- Trans representation ( the MC is genderqueer)
- Polyamory
- Eunuch MMC
- Safe practice of BDSM (mostly bondage and orgasm control)
- Virgin MC
- Patriarcal world. The author does a good job at questioning it through her MCs. It is subtle but it represents very well the struggle we face everyday, despite this being a fictional world. Also, there’s a matriarchal type of tribe that we get to know a bit later in the books and the author does a good job with it being realistic and, obviously, better than the patriarcal, sexist and misogynistic tribe they come from.
- Wolf shifter. Unclear whether there’s magic and other types of supernatural creatures.
This was sweet and beautiful. The way they accepted her melted my heart. As a non binary person, the struggles and questions the MC had going through his head resonated with my own, and therefore it was very easy for me to get attached to her.
I still remember the tears of frustration, carefully hidden from all who might see and judge me for them, after trying to tell the priests that my spirit was more male than female. It just happened to be hidden inside the body of a slender girl child. Watching the girls my age as I grew up was like looking at something foreign, something... other. Sometimes it felt as though the only thing I had inherited from my sex was a love of attractive men. (
Wow!
Someone recommended this book in a Facebook group I’m in and it was free so I figured I’d give it a try.
I was thinking I had to write a 5 star review by chapter 3!
These characters are so well written. You can’t help but fall in love with all three. The storyline is flawless and you get sucked into the book almost immediately.
I’m going to go buy book 2 now. I can’t wait to see what happens next!
Someone recommended this book in a Facebook group I’m in and it was free so I figured I’d give it a try.
I was thinking I had to write a 5 star review by chapter 3!
These characters are so well written. You can’t help but fall in love with all three. The storyline is flawless and you get sucked into the book almost immediately.
I’m going to go buy book 2 now. I can’t wait to see what happens next!