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A review by jtorres118
Not All Himbos Wear Capes by C. Rochelle
4.0
What a treat it was to listen to this erotic tale!
"Not all Himbos Wear Capes" is an audiobook centered around two super-powered rivals, Captain Masculine (Butch) & Doctor Antihero (Xander), who begin seeing one another romantically after connecting on a dating app. The conflict arises from the fact that not only are they each other's nemesis, but somehow, they are unable to identify the other as their super persona. Thus, the listener follows their love story as they develop feelings while also blissfully unaware that they are in love with their arch enemy. What will happen once the couple finds out their true identity? That is for the listener to look forward to...
I was recommended to listen to this story from a friend, and it was perfect timing too, considering I was about to embark on a 7-hour long road trip. What better way to pass the time than to fantasize about two burly men fooling around together? From the start, I was hooked in the characters' universe, as superheroes, villains, and "normies" quarreled over their imbalance of power within society. Topped off with the couple's personal dilemmas, and you have yourself a block of tension that can be cut with a knife.
For the positives, I'll begin with the narration. The speaker of the story can be what makes or breaks a listener's attention span. You can have the sexiest erotica ever, but if the reader is unenthusiastic with their words, it'll result in a DNF for a lot of people. Thankfully, that wasn't the case for me, as I was enthralled by John Solo & Philip Alces' interpretation of Butch & Xander. They each possess a unique voice to their character that kept me entertained all the way to the end.
With Solo's innocence and naivety, he develops a multi-dimensional version of Butch, where he is both a powerful hero enacting justice to protect civilians and also a needy partner, longing to find control in his life as falls for the suave yet intimidating, Xander. Alces has a smooth wave to his voice that washes over the reader like water, as you will be swept off your feet by his ability to tantalize our ears with seductive words. But he is not without a weakness, as Xander is presented as a villain, though not as strong as others around him, causing an inferiority complex that is often solved when under the covers with his ever-doting himbo.
These two are not innocent angels, as they both carry some dark thoughts about the world that normally would require them to seek therapy. However, the tone is made clear in this story that it's all meant to be taken lightly and with comedic effect. I was laughing whenever Butch went against his idealistic morals, and found arousal at the thought of breaking the rules from time to time. Same could be said for Xander; though he is more inclined to villainy, the moments where he threatens to murder anyone who dares to hurt Butch is enough to have me swooning in my seat. These two clearly love each other, and by the end, you'll crave to have the type of love that they do.
But no story is without faults. If you're not interested in two men falling in love while also spewing some of the most lust-driven sentences that would make Hugh Hefner blush, then this will not be for you. It may also not be a good read if you're looking for a slow burn, because this is far from it. In regards to unveiling their true identities, it does take time (frustratingly so), but the sex itself comes fast & hard. By chapter 3, these two are drooling over each other like a dog would to a piece of steak, and it is DELICIOUS! But it is still an acquired taste, and may come off as the couple in heat rather than falling in love.
I do have my own personal complaints with the story that keeps it away from being a perfect 5-star. For starters, Xander. I love him and the arc he goes through, but when you really think about it, what exactly MAKES him a villain? The actions he takes to inflict violence upon Earth is nothing more than the regular job of a marine biologist. Frankly, nothing he does appears to be evil in any way and even when he conjures up a plan to turn it against the normies, that never comes to fruition. So basically, we are hearing about a villain who only got that title because of his family background, and not from any harm he has caused to the community.
Secondly, I have to harp on Butch as well. He was undoubtedly my favorite character, and when I moved forward to its sequel, I missed him very much. Oddly enough, he reminded me of myself when getting into a new relationship: insecure, panicky, and ignorant to the joys of romance. But one thing I couldn't relate to was his extreme jealousy. It peeks its head a couple of times, so it didn't bother me enough to quit the story, but it was like a blemish on an otherwise flawless statue. It was unsavory behavior for him to detest others who came near Xander, even more so considering these are the civilians that he's meant to PROTECT, yet if they get in the way of his love life, it's lights out!
Speaking of love life, Xander was also possessive, but in a much more concerning way. This is also grazed upon, but I still didn't ignore how he'd order Butch to eat even when he didn't want to. Though this is done with the context of keeping Butch healthy and not ignoring his basic needs, there's something about the delivery that still had me worried about how far Xander would go with this control.
Last I'll say is that there is a lot of tension, but no dramatic payoff to the ultimate reveal. I sat through 85% of the story waiting (BEGGING!) for one of them to finally recognize the other as a super, and once that's crossed, I imagined there to be some anger. A little bit of betrayal, but right as it's unveiled, the story shifts to a greater conflict and the two reconcile without ever arguing. Look, I'm not a big fan of those contrived "third act breakups" myself, but in this case, it felt wayyy too easy for Xander & Butch to come to terms with who the other one was. But on the bright side, you can expect a happy ending from these men, and no pointless couple drama to muddy the waters.
I couldn't believe how much fun I had listening to this book! At the time of this review, I just finished, "Gentlemen prefer Villains" the 2nd part of the Villainous Things series, and I don't see myself stopping there. But, it'll take a lot of sexy chemistry from the new couples to get me to like them more than Xander & Butch.
They're quirky, funny, very hot & versatile; just the perfect light-hearted romance that proves there is a power better than super strength or laser beams- the power of LOVE.
"Not all Himbos Wear Capes" is an audiobook centered around two super-powered rivals, Captain Masculine (Butch) & Doctor Antihero (Xander), who begin seeing one another romantically after connecting on a dating app. The conflict arises from the fact that not only are they each other's nemesis, but somehow, they are unable to identify the other as their super persona. Thus, the listener follows their love story as they develop feelings while also blissfully unaware that they are in love with their arch enemy. What will happen once the couple finds out their true identity? That is for the listener to look forward to...
I was recommended to listen to this story from a friend, and it was perfect timing too, considering I was about to embark on a 7-hour long road trip. What better way to pass the time than to fantasize about two burly men fooling around together? From the start, I was hooked in the characters' universe, as superheroes, villains, and "normies" quarreled over their imbalance of power within society. Topped off with the couple's personal dilemmas, and you have yourself a block of tension that can be cut with a knife.
For the positives, I'll begin with the narration. The speaker of the story can be what makes or breaks a listener's attention span. You can have the sexiest erotica ever, but if the reader is unenthusiastic with their words, it'll result in a DNF for a lot of people. Thankfully, that wasn't the case for me, as I was enthralled by John Solo & Philip Alces' interpretation of Butch & Xander. They each possess a unique voice to their character that kept me entertained all the way to the end.
With Solo's innocence and naivety, he develops a multi-dimensional version of Butch, where he is both a powerful hero enacting justice to protect civilians and also a needy partner, longing to find control in his life as falls for the suave yet intimidating, Xander. Alces has a smooth wave to his voice that washes over the reader like water, as you will be swept off your feet by his ability to tantalize our ears with seductive words. But he is not without a weakness, as Xander is presented as a villain, though not as strong as others around him, causing an inferiority complex that is often solved when under the covers with his ever-doting himbo.
These two are not innocent angels, as they both carry some dark thoughts about the world that normally would require them to seek therapy. However, the tone is made clear in this story that it's all meant to be taken lightly and with comedic effect. I was laughing whenever Butch went against his idealistic morals, and found arousal at the thought of breaking the rules from time to time. Same could be said for Xander; though he is more inclined to villainy, the moments where he threatens to murder anyone who dares to hurt Butch is enough to have me swooning in my seat. These two clearly love each other, and by the end, you'll crave to have the type of love that they do.
But no story is without faults. If you're not interested in two men falling in love while also spewing some of the most lust-driven sentences that would make Hugh Hefner blush, then this will not be for you. It may also not be a good read if you're looking for a slow burn, because this is far from it. In regards to unveiling their true identities, it does take time (frustratingly so), but the sex itself comes fast & hard. By chapter 3, these two are drooling over each other like a dog would to a piece of steak, and it is DELICIOUS! But it is still an acquired taste, and may come off as the couple in heat rather than falling in love.
I do have my own personal complaints with the story that keeps it away from being a perfect 5-star. For starters, Xander. I love him and the arc he goes through, but when you really think about it, what exactly MAKES him a villain? The actions he takes to inflict violence upon Earth is nothing more than the regular job of a marine biologist. Frankly, nothing he does appears to be evil in any way and even when he conjures up a plan to turn it against the normies, that never comes to fruition. So basically, we are hearing about a villain who only got that title because of his family background, and not from any harm he has caused to the community.
Secondly, I have to harp on Butch as well. He was undoubtedly my favorite character, and when I moved forward to its sequel, I missed him very much. Oddly enough, he reminded me of myself when getting into a new relationship: insecure, panicky, and ignorant to the joys of romance. But one thing I couldn't relate to was his extreme jealousy. It peeks its head a couple of times, so it didn't bother me enough to quit the story, but it was like a blemish on an otherwise flawless statue. It was unsavory behavior for him to detest others who came near Xander, even more so considering these are the civilians that he's meant to PROTECT, yet if they get in the way of his love life, it's lights out!
Speaking of love life, Xander was also possessive, but in a much more concerning way. This is also grazed upon, but I still didn't ignore how he'd order Butch to eat even when he didn't want to. Though this is done with the context of keeping Butch healthy and not ignoring his basic needs, there's something about the delivery that still had me worried about how far Xander would go with this control.
Last I'll say is that there is a lot of tension, but no dramatic payoff to the ultimate reveal. I sat through 85% of the story waiting (BEGGING!) for one of them to finally recognize the other as a super, and once that's crossed, I imagined there to be some anger. A little bit of betrayal, but right as it's unveiled, the story shifts to a greater conflict and the two reconcile without ever arguing. Look, I'm not a big fan of those contrived "third act breakups" myself, but in this case, it felt wayyy too easy for Xander & Butch to come to terms with who the other one was. But on the bright side, you can expect a happy ending from these men, and no pointless couple drama to muddy the waters.
I couldn't believe how much fun I had listening to this book! At the time of this review, I just finished, "Gentlemen prefer Villains" the 2nd part of the Villainous Things series, and I don't see myself stopping there. But, it'll take a lot of sexy chemistry from the new couples to get me to like them more than Xander & Butch.
They're quirky, funny, very hot & versatile; just the perfect light-hearted romance that proves there is a power better than super strength or laser beams- the power of LOVE.