A review by wart
Gabriel's City: A Tale of Fables and Fortunes by Laylah Hunter
3.0
You can read this and other reviews at Things I Find While Shelving
I received a free ARC via NetGalley
Under normal circumstances, this would be a 4-5 star book.
It’s very much a story about two people, more so than it is a story that is heavy on plot. It’s about Colin, a rich nobleman who finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time and winds up getting sucked into the underbelly of the city he’s used to. The city of thieves and murders, the city of living hand to mouth, never sure if you’ll have to steal your next meal or if you’ll have a roof over your head.
In this city, Colin meets Gabriel. Gabriel who is kind of a legend around the city - a monster, kissed by the Lady (death), her chosen one. Gabriel who’s grasp of reality is a little on the iffy side. Gabriel who calls Colin Drake because for him Colin is a dragon in disguise - a great, rich, noble beast, hiding among the humans.
And in a way, perhaps he is.
It’s about Colin becoming Drake. Becoming the man Gabriel sees in him. It’s about Drake being an anchor for Gabriel’s sanity.
And I loved that aspect of it. I loved it so much.
But I can only give this book 3 stars. Because of the sex. Not that it was poorly written, no, it was the fact that Gabriel, even when he’s lucid, doesn’t read like he comprehends enough to fully consent to sex and that gave the sex a level of skeeve that I know wasn’t intended, but for me it just didn’t feel right. It might just be me, but that’s just how I read Gabriel.
I received a free ARC via NetGalley
Under normal circumstances, this would be a 4-5 star book.
It’s very much a story about two people, more so than it is a story that is heavy on plot. It’s about Colin, a rich nobleman who finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time and winds up getting sucked into the underbelly of the city he’s used to. The city of thieves and murders, the city of living hand to mouth, never sure if you’ll have to steal your next meal or if you’ll have a roof over your head.
In this city, Colin meets Gabriel. Gabriel who is kind of a legend around the city - a monster, kissed by the Lady (death), her chosen one. Gabriel who’s grasp of reality is a little on the iffy side. Gabriel who calls Colin Drake because for him Colin is a dragon in disguise - a great, rich, noble beast, hiding among the humans.
And in a way, perhaps he is.
It’s about Colin becoming Drake. Becoming the man Gabriel sees in him. It’s about Drake being an anchor for Gabriel’s sanity.
And I loved that aspect of it. I loved it so much.
But I can only give this book 3 stars. Because of the sex. Not that it was poorly written, no, it was the fact that Gabriel, even when he’s lucid, doesn’t read like he comprehends enough to fully consent to sex and that gave the sex a level of skeeve that I know wasn’t intended, but for me it just didn’t feel right. It might just be me, but that’s just how I read Gabriel.