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Consorting With Dragons
Lord Jasen of Grumhul has a gambling problem. Or rather, his father has the problem, but since he's gambled away everything that was rightfully Jasen's, it's become his problem, too. With no money and no skills to earn a living, his best bet for getting away from his father is to present himself for marriage at Court in the Draelands, the kingdom at the center of the Allied Realms. Jasen's courtly manners aren't the most refined (to say the least), but he hopes he's still capable of attracting at least a minor lord.
He isn't looking to cause a scandal, but that's exactly what happens when he immediately attracts the attention of both a powerful dragon and King Rilvor himself. The King serves as the mystical link between the magic of the dragons and humankind; since the death of his wife two years before, magic in the Allied Realms has suffered. He must take a spouse this year, and the fight for his favor has gotten downright vicious.
No one, including Jasen himself, thinks he's a proper match for the king. But the growing affection between them can't be denied. Jasen loves Rilvor, but he's petrified about becoming lord consort to a king. Unfortunately, the two can't be separated, and Jasen must decide if true love is worth all the trouble.
Consorting With Dragons has been nominated for three awards at the M/M Romance Group's 2014 Member's Choice Awards:
Best Debut
Best Fantasy
Best Love's Landscapes Story
This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love’s Landscapes" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.
This story may contain sexually explicit content and is intended for adult readers. It may contain content that is disagreeable or distressing to some readers. The M/M Romance Group strongly recommends that each reader review the General Information section before each story for story tags as well as for content warnings.
He isn't looking to cause a scandal, but that's exactly what happens when he immediately attracts the attention of both a powerful dragon and King Rilvor himself. The King serves as the mystical link between the magic of the dragons and humankind; since the death of his wife two years before, magic in the Allied Realms has suffered. He must take a spouse this year, and the fight for his favor has gotten downright vicious.
No one, including Jasen himself, thinks he's a proper match for the king. But the growing affection between them can't be denied. Jasen loves Rilvor, but he's petrified about becoming lord consort to a king. Unfortunately, the two can't be separated, and Jasen must decide if true love is worth all the trouble.
Consorting With Dragons has been nominated for three awards at the M/M Romance Group's 2014 Member's Choice Awards:
Best Debut
Best Fantasy
Best Love's Landscapes Story
This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love’s Landscapes" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.
This story may contain sexually explicit content and is intended for adult readers. It may contain content that is disagreeable or distressing to some readers. The M/M Romance Group strongly recommends that each reader review the General Information section before each story for story tags as well as for content warnings.
119 pages, ebook
First published July 28, 2014
182 people are currently reading
1,855 people want to read
About the author
Sera Trevor
13books213followersSera Trevor is terminally curious and views the 35 book limit at her local library as a dare. She’s a little bit interested in just about everything, which is probably why she can’t pin herself to one subgenre. Her books are populated with dragons, vampire movie stars, shadow people, and internet trolls. (Not in the same book, obviously, although that would be interesting!) Her works have been nominated for several ŷ M/M Romance Reader's Choice Awards, including Best Contemporary, Best Fantasy, and Best Debut, for which she won third prize in 2015 for her novella Consorting With Dragons.
She lives in California with her husband, two kids, and a cat the size of three cats.
She lives in California with her husband, two kids, and a cat the size of three cats.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 438 reviews
August 3, 2014
Brace yourselves, people. In fact, you might want to sit down for this. There is NO SEX in this book AND I loved it.
I'll give you a minute to catch your breath. Trust me I surprised myself. I'm chalking it up to the dragons.
DRAGONS!!!!!!
I'm stunned again by a novice author's contribution to the LL event. There is a lot of talk about "a warm feeling" that Jasen feels frequently and at some point I started to feel the same. I found myself grinning and when it was over I felt a little sad that we had to part ways.
Ms. Trevor certainly isn't lacking in storytelling skills nor world building. I wish I could live in the Draelands with the Tasenred and Woria (the dragons). She created this AU with a Regency feel complete with corsets. Love Regency AND corsets, but� don't get too esssited. Jasen is not exactly a fan of the corset. It's not as much fun when they don't like it, but maybe if Rilvor got to unwrap him� I digress.
Jasen gets sent to the court in an effort to marry and keep his father in booze. This court feels like the ton complete with a nemesis in the pernicious Princess Polina. She is a BIIIIIIIIIIITCH. I kind of felt sorry for her. A tiny little bit. He also meets his partner in crime, Lady Risyda, who is hilarious! She's incorrigible, goads Polina every chance she gets, smoke kara wood from a hookah, has a wealth of pithy one-liners, relishes being in trouble� she's a great character. Lady Isalei Is tasked with trying to prepare Jasen and the other lords and ladies to become queen or lord consort and is the epitome of a stern but fair headmistress. I couldn't get Professor McGonagall out of my head.
is very much a romance between Jasen and Rilvor. It's told entirely through Jasen who struggles mightily with the possibility of taking on all the responsibilities that would accompany becoming Lord Consort of the Drae. In addition to courtly responsibilities Rilvor has four small children who still need parenting. I appreciated that he (a) wasn't a gold digger, (b) stayed true to himself and (c) carefully contemplated his future. Yes. Yes, I liked all the characters even the bitch, but the world building was exceptional.
The dragons have the ability to bless people which transmutes into some sort of magical ability. I won't spoil all the wonderful dragon stuff, but� THEY GET TO RIDE THE DRAGONS!!!!!!!!!
ERMAGAHD!!!!!!!!!!!!
Great, great story and yet another fantastic addition to the LL event. Many thanks to Ms. Trevor and her team. I do hope she'll continue to write. I'd dearly love to read more about Draeland.
Update 8/2/14: Ms. Trevor has in fact written a follow up called Bound and Determined. One word: Meow.
April 8, 2018
Back in 2014 when I read the original version of this story I was overjoyed with the dragons and world building of this slow burn, Cinderfella romance. What Sera Trevor has done with the expansion of that story is wonderfully cinematic making it was again a delight to read.
Jasen tells the story of his falling in love with King Rilvor despite all the pomp and circumstance he's subjected to at Court. Jasen hails from Grumhul which eschews high customs. The Grummish are practical people who aren't afraid of hard work and love their mudball (sounds similar to soccer), but his father has drank and gambled away their money which puts Jasen in the position of trying to secure a wealthy husband to sustain them. Somehow his father secures a highly coveted place for him at Court and lays on the 'your poor ole dad' pretty thick as encouragement.
One of the things I really liked about Court is the lack of heteronormativity. It seems counterintuitive given how rigid the protocols are but a bright spot in an otherwise uncompromising society never hurt anyone, right?
All the provinces in the Allied Realm send their most eligible daughters and sons to the Draelands annually to strengthen bonds through marriages, but also to increase power. Many of these nobles are dragon blessed which gives them some sort of magical ability; that ability can intensify if the marriage is a strong one.
Since Grumhul has no dragons Jasen is automatically believed to be a poor match and certainly not worthy of the King's affections. The King, however, did not get the memo because he is smitten upon first meeting. Jasen, after being called by Tasenred (one of the dragons) and wandering the grounds, has no idea who the King is whence they meet. He's in his low country attire and quite plainspoken all of which Rilvor finds refreshing.
Tasenred is my favorite. There are other dragons but Tasenred is one pushy dragon and I hearted the bejeezus out of him. He takes a shine to Jasen and their connection was heartwarming to read.
The role the dragons play in this realm was marvelous and something that didn't stand out in the original version.
The Court and its protocols were also explained much better too. Court is largely a popularity club reminiscent of the ton, complete with corsets, ridiculously high heels and hairstyles, balls, organized activities, all of which are supervised and exceedingly proper with the requisite backbiting and jockeying for place, and yet somehow Jasen still forges some lifelong friendships. The secondary characters of Princess Polina, Lady Risyda and many of the tertiary characters like Lady Isalei and Larely played a larger role.
Nevertheless, Jasen isn't really cut out for Court. He plays along and does as told, but he is Grummish through and through, preferring to be outdoors, playing mudball or doing something useful which oftentimes prompts him to sneak out of the castle and made for some entertaining scenes.
Generally speaking, I like my romances when the MCs spend a significant amount of time together and while Rilvor and Jasen spend some time together, I craved more. They have chemistry and a few heart to heart conversations were had, but their relationship isn't well developed, instead relying on the de rigueur fairy tale instalove.
Jasen comes into his own, but he did run a little hot and cold, sometimes seemingly self-possessed and others harried. His thoughtfulness and diligence in deciding whether or not he was suited for the responsibilities of Lord Consort to Rilvor are what won me over. I also liked that he stayed true to himself AND that Rilvor loved him because of all those qualities.
If there were to be a follow up I would be interested in seeing where their story goes, because I'm smitten with the world Sera Trevor has built. If you're in the mood for a sweet, high fantasy, no sex fairy tale then give Consorting with Dragons a try. There are new twists and turns in the narrative, so this is definitely not the same story from the DRitC event.
An ARC was provided by the author.
Jasen tells the story of his falling in love with King Rilvor despite all the pomp and circumstance he's subjected to at Court. Jasen hails from Grumhul which eschews high customs. The Grummish are practical people who aren't afraid of hard work and love their mudball (sounds similar to soccer), but his father has drank and gambled away their money which puts Jasen in the position of trying to secure a wealthy husband to sustain them. Somehow his father secures a highly coveted place for him at Court and lays on the 'your poor ole dad' pretty thick as encouragement.
One of the things I really liked about Court is the lack of heteronormativity. It seems counterintuitive given how rigid the protocols are but a bright spot in an otherwise uncompromising society never hurt anyone, right?
All the provinces in the Allied Realm send their most eligible daughters and sons to the Draelands annually to strengthen bonds through marriages, but also to increase power. Many of these nobles are dragon blessed which gives them some sort of magical ability; that ability can intensify if the marriage is a strong one.
Since Grumhul has no dragons Jasen is automatically believed to be a poor match and certainly not worthy of the King's affections. The King, however, did not get the memo because he is smitten upon first meeting. Jasen, after being called by Tasenred (one of the dragons) and wandering the grounds, has no idea who the King is whence they meet. He's in his low country attire and quite plainspoken all of which Rilvor finds refreshing.
Tasenred is my favorite. There are other dragons but Tasenred is one pushy dragon and I hearted the bejeezus out of him. He takes a shine to Jasen and their connection was heartwarming to read.
The role the dragons play in this realm was marvelous and something that didn't stand out in the original version.
The Court and its protocols were also explained much better too. Court is largely a popularity club reminiscent of the ton, complete with corsets, ridiculously high heels and hairstyles, balls, organized activities, all of which are supervised and exceedingly proper with the requisite backbiting and jockeying for place, and yet somehow Jasen still forges some lifelong friendships. The secondary characters of Princess Polina, Lady Risyda and many of the tertiary characters like Lady Isalei and Larely played a larger role.
Nevertheless, Jasen isn't really cut out for Court. He plays along and does as told, but he is Grummish through and through, preferring to be outdoors, playing mudball or doing something useful which oftentimes prompts him to sneak out of the castle and made for some entertaining scenes.
Generally speaking, I like my romances when the MCs spend a significant amount of time together and while Rilvor and Jasen spend some time together, I craved more. They have chemistry and a few heart to heart conversations were had, but their relationship isn't well developed, instead relying on the de rigueur fairy tale instalove.
Jasen comes into his own, but he did run a little hot and cold, sometimes seemingly self-possessed and others harried. His thoughtfulness and diligence in deciding whether or not he was suited for the responsibilities of Lord Consort to Rilvor are what won me over. I also liked that he stayed true to himself AND that Rilvor loved him because of all those qualities.
If there were to be a follow up I would be interested in seeing where their story goes, because I'm smitten with the world Sera Trevor has built. If you're in the mood for a sweet, high fantasy, no sex fairy tale then give Consorting with Dragons a try. There are new twists and turns in the narrative, so this is definitely not the same story from the DRitC event.
An ARC was provided by the author.
July 28, 2014
(Just as a warning, this was my prompt so I am biased as all fuck about how I feel about it. That being said...)
This was basically everything I was hoping it would be. It was romantic and funny and the characters...omg the characters were so bloody brilliant. I loved the world building, loved how she took little things from my prompt and made them come to life. This is pretty much free of angst and it was such a nice, good, damn near perfect story.
I was supposed to be in bed hours ago, and I have another review due in a few hours from now, and all I can think is that I really really want to go back and reread it all over again.
Thank you, Sera. Thank you so damn much!
This was basically everything I was hoping it would be. It was romantic and funny and the characters...omg the characters were so bloody brilliant. I loved the world building, loved how she took little things from my prompt and made them come to life. This is pretty much free of angst and it was such a nice, good, damn near perfect story.
I was supposed to be in bed hours ago, and I have another review due in a few hours from now, and all I can think is that I really really want to go back and reread it all over again.
Thank you, Sera. Thank you so damn much!
May 19, 2019
3 Stars
A really wonderful premise boasting high fantasy, magic and dragons, and an interesting set up where lords and ladies of the realms undergo intense prep and training to snag a coveted spouse.
This story stars Jasen, who is definitely a fish out of water and because of his financial situation (made dire by his drunkard gambling father) he really has no choice but to offer himself up and see if any rich lord will take interest and want him for a husband. He never thinks to even consider he’s a prime catch, nor that he would come into magical abilities that call to the venerable dragons that everyone worships.
This aptly portrays Jasen’s personal and external conflicts as he’s totally unprepared for any sort of responsibility, let alone catching the eye of the widowered king himself. Peppered with some fun moments as Jasen’s being groomed and subjected to an inordinate amount of lessons, there were also some lovely scenes as King Rilvor courts him. Beware lots of jealousy, a spiteful rival, and a frustrating father that made me want to throw and break things. Also for a book with “dragons� in the title, they were sadly sorely lacking.
Regardless of my minor quibbles, many have enjoyed this, and it’s always a bonus when something is free. For those wanting perhaps a more fully realized story, the expanded version of 175 more pages is currently up for grabs on KU! Enjoy!
A really wonderful premise boasting high fantasy, magic and dragons, and an interesting set up where lords and ladies of the realms undergo intense prep and training to snag a coveted spouse.
This story stars Jasen, who is definitely a fish out of water and because of his financial situation (made dire by his drunkard gambling father) he really has no choice but to offer himself up and see if any rich lord will take interest and want him for a husband. He never thinks to even consider he’s a prime catch, nor that he would come into magical abilities that call to the venerable dragons that everyone worships.
This aptly portrays Jasen’s personal and external conflicts as he’s totally unprepared for any sort of responsibility, let alone catching the eye of the widowered king himself. Peppered with some fun moments as Jasen’s being groomed and subjected to an inordinate amount of lessons, there were also some lovely scenes as King Rilvor courts him. Beware lots of jealousy, a spiteful rival, and a frustrating father that made me want to throw and break things. Also for a book with “dragons� in the title, they were sadly sorely lacking.
Regardless of my minor quibbles, many have enjoyed this, and it’s always a bonus when something is free. For those wanting perhaps a more fully realized story, the expanded version of 175 more pages is currently up for grabs on KU! Enjoy!
April 23, 2018
I really liked this book... however I do feel that the author missed a golden opportunity to achieve perfection for two reasons. First off, as one of the two MCs Rilvor should have had equal coverage as Jasen. Sadly, his character was pretty much left two-dimensional and empty. Considering this was an "expanded edition" I would have expected better. The other reason I could not give this book 5 stars was that around 76% through the book in my opinion the author resorted to angst for angst sake which tends to piss me off. One thing about this book that particularly impressed me was the author's world building, she did an incredible job with it. The dragons nd how they worked into the magic system and human culture was very impressive! This book was a fun read and I did enjoy it. It's just that it could have been so very much more!
Read
March 19, 2018*ETA 3/19/18 - Hi you guys! At long last, I've finished the novel-length expansion! Go check it out --->
The bonus story is no longer canon, but I'll leave it up as an AU.
*drops another smoke bomb, disappears again*
__________________
Jumping in real quick to direct your attention to a follow-up short story I've written. It's called "Bound and Determined," and can be found at my website . (Warning for some extremely mild bondage. Also, NSFW.)
Also, I've made a "Consorting with Dragons" , which some nifty pictures related to the book.
And now I will vanish as mysteriously as I appeared. *drops smoke bomb*
The bonus story is no longer canon, but I'll leave it up as an AU.
*drops another smoke bomb, disappears again*
__________________
Jumping in real quick to direct your attention to a follow-up short story I've written. It's called "Bound and Determined," and can be found at my website . (Warning for some extremely mild bondage. Also, NSFW.)
Also, I've made a "Consorting with Dragons" , which some nifty pictures related to the book.
And now I will vanish as mysteriously as I appeared. *drops smoke bomb*
December 12, 2014
This book was such a pleasant surprise. I don’t remember what exactly I was expecting when I started reading this(maybe something darker) but I certainly didn’t expect to receive so much positive energy and have such a good time. While reading this story, a warm feeling spread through my whole body and stayed there! A feeling that I see that others have also experienced.
This is an amusing funny romantic story that deserves to be a lot more than a short novella. The author’s writing skills are simply brilliant. Jason’s first real encounter with a dragon was so beautifully described that I could see it in front of my eyes and feel the warmth that Jasen felt in his heart.
This is a sweet short regency story with dragons, court manners and gossips, high heels and even corsets! Do I need to say more to intrigue you? I think this is actually a very delicate scenario to work around, considering the main character is a male who has to present himself as a consort and deal with corsets and yet not even for a second he lost his masculinity in my eyes and felt feminine to me.
The world building is wonderful. All characters are unique, with distinct personalities of their own and they all have a role to play, from Jasen himself to his companions, teachers and even enemies. Side characters are so well-written that I mistook another character as King’s hidden identity just to be surprised later on and I am usually good at guessing things right. I did predict certain turn of events at the end of the story but even that was fun. Jasen himself is funny, kind and true to himself. I love how he didn’t change who he was and how he thought of his future with a logical mind and wasn’t blinded by his feelings. He wasn't a perfect angel either and that made him even a better character in my eyes. Since this is a love story, I would have liked for the king, the other end of this romance, to show more intensity in his character or simply play a bigger role but not every king has to be like that and I came to like Rilvor as a kind gentle king who is simply too tired of dealing with everything on his own and needs someone to share his burdens with and simply rely on.
I was smiling the whole time I was reading this and like all good books, this story came to an end way too soon. I would have loved to read more about court games and politics and things Jasen has to deal with in a royal magical court.
I enjoyed this story so much that after finishing the story, I immediately looked for other books written by this talented author and I was disappointed when I realized this is her first book.*pulls hair in frustration* I certainly hope to read more books from her in the future.
At the end, this little story was a pleasant surprise, a real delight and a bundle of positive energy.
This is an amusing funny romantic story that deserves to be a lot more than a short novella. The author’s writing skills are simply brilliant. Jason’s first real encounter with a dragon was so beautifully described that I could see it in front of my eyes and feel the warmth that Jasen felt in his heart.
This is a sweet short regency story with dragons, court manners and gossips, high heels and even corsets! Do I need to say more to intrigue you? I think this is actually a very delicate scenario to work around, considering the main character is a male who has to present himself as a consort and deal with corsets and yet not even for a second he lost his masculinity in my eyes and felt feminine to me.
The world building is wonderful. All characters are unique, with distinct personalities of their own and they all have a role to play, from Jasen himself to his companions, teachers and even enemies. Side characters are so well-written that I mistook another character as King’s hidden identity just to be surprised later on and I am usually good at guessing things right. I did predict certain turn of events at the end of the story but even that was fun. Jasen himself is funny, kind and true to himself. I love how he didn’t change who he was and how he thought of his future with a logical mind and wasn’t blinded by his feelings. He wasn't a perfect angel either and that made him even a better character in my eyes. Since this is a love story, I would have liked for the king, the other end of this romance, to show more intensity in his character or simply play a bigger role but not every king has to be like that and I came to like Rilvor as a kind gentle king who is simply too tired of dealing with everything on his own and needs someone to share his burdens with and simply rely on.
I was smiling the whole time I was reading this and like all good books, this story came to an end way too soon. I would have loved to read more about court games and politics and things Jasen has to deal with in a royal magical court.
I enjoyed this story so much that after finishing the story, I immediately looked for other books written by this talented author and I was disappointed when I realized this is her first book.*pulls hair in frustration* I certainly hope to read more books from her in the future.
At the end, this little story was a pleasant surprise, a real delight and a bundle of positive energy.
August 13, 2016
Such a fun read! The world building was so well done, and I loved the characters and the dragons. I loved how even the secondary characters had such distinct personalities. The story was all about Jason, though, and he was awesome. Rilvor's character wasn't as clearly drawn, but he also didn't spend as much time on page. Their romance was sweet, but a little tame. I didn't even care, though, because the rest of the story was so good :D
ETA: Steamy bonus story on author's website
ETA: Steamy bonus story on author's website
October 28, 2015
World building - good
Secondary characters - good
Dragons - good (obvs)
Main characters - less good, especially Rilvor, king of the bland placeholders
Story - less good.
It could have been about dragons (!) or magic, but the navel-gazing of an underachieving stoner is interesting also (-___-).
Secondary characters - good
Dragons - good (obvs)
Main characters - less good, especially Rilvor, king of the bland placeholders
Story - less good.
It could have been about dragons (!) or magic, but the navel-gazing of an underachieving stoner is interesting also (-___-).
August 9, 2014
Jasen and his friends are well drawn but I could not gather up enthusiasm for the writing or for the story or for Rilvor, I could not find the spark. Reminded me of Barbara Cartland’s romantic fare when I was young.
June 26, 2015
Above 3stars but not quite a 4star. A nice little fantasy with plenty to like:
- Dragons
- A downtrodden Lord (who shock-gasp is not a virgin!)
- A family-man King
- Dragons
- A strong female character
- An alcoholic father who clearly loves his son despite his [the father's] weakness
- Dragons (I do like Dragons!)
Lady Risyda is entertaining I'd have liked to have been reading her story. Polina I wasn't sure about, I started to feel sorry for her but there's a strange sociopathy about her, her self-awareness doesn't quite make sense.
The main characters were pleasant but the king was fairly bland, he could have been developed more. More of the Dragons would have been good too, because Dragons!. The friendship between Jasen and Risyda seemed to have more emphasis than the Jasen and King Rylvor connection. While I enjoyed the story I wanted a bit more there.
There's a to help you visualise though for me viewing the fashions conflicted with the relatively modern tone of the fic and while the story stops at shared kisses there's a nsfw snippet.
- Dragons
- A downtrodden Lord (who shock-gasp is not a virgin!)
- A family-man King
- Dragons
- A strong female character
- An alcoholic father who clearly loves his son despite his [the father's] weakness
- Dragons (I do like Dragons!)
Lady Risyda is entertaining I'd have liked to have been reading her story. Polina I wasn't sure about, I started to feel sorry for her but there's a strange sociopathy about her, her self-awareness doesn't quite make sense.
The main characters were pleasant but the king was fairly bland, he could have been developed more. More of the Dragons would have been good too, because Dragons!. The friendship between Jasen and Risyda seemed to have more emphasis than the Jasen and King Rylvor connection. While I enjoyed the story I wanted a bit more there.
There's a to help you visualise though for me viewing the fashions conflicted with the relatively modern tone of the fic and while the story stops at shared kisses there's a nsfw snippet.
April 10, 2018
For an expanded story, it should have been... better. Fellow reviewer Cleo put one of my strongest issues with this longer version into a better synopsis than I could muster: “I felt like the MC turned into a completely useless Disney princess type character - honest, beautiful, trusting, and with less sense of self preservation than one of my houseplants.� When the story concluded I knew no more about Rilvor than I did in the shorter book, nor the dragons. I would like to have experienced another story set in this universe rather than this attempt to make a perfectly wonderful novella into something I simply didn’t care for.
July 31, 2024
The world building is very interesting. It's a cute story but for the horny readers, it is not explicit lol.
December 21, 2014
3.5 stars
This is one of the longest stories from Love Landscape's Event that I read this year. Came to me after my friend Didi reviewed it awhile ago. Now, I totally commended on the fairy-tale / fantasy context of this story. Medieval fantasy / fairy tale doesn't always come easy for me to enjoy (I prefer something more URBAN fantasy ;p). However, I found this story as easy to follow, both the prose and the plot ...
I really liked the Court that taught all these marriage prospects was both for ladies and consorts. I think it's probably one of the things I enjoy from fairy tales like this, no bigotry or homophobia. I loved reading about how Jasen, from Kingdom of Grumhul, found his way to the dragons and the etiquette lessons, dressing lessons, all the while wearing corset and high heels (YEP!). The world was pretty fascinating -- with people being dragon-blessed (given an ability) and being dragon-called (requested a service by dragons). The dragons were majestic too! I loved them.
The characters I loved the most, however, interestingly were NOT the main characters. I loved Lady Risyda -- Jasen's fellow Court member. She could easily be a female character that I loved to read again and again (much like Christine from "Whyborne and Griffin" series). I also loved Larely, the guardian who got his heart 'bruised' after realizing that Jasen only saw him as a friend.
The main characters were actually the reason why I couldn't give this 4* yet. I thought Jasen was quite whiny and a bit selfish. I understand that he wasn't really wanting to be given the responsibility to the whole draeid and draidess -- and that he was still young and probably it contributed to this attitude of him. But the whole "I don't want to marry the King" and "I love Rilvor but not his role as a King" made me act like Lady Isalei. I questioned whether Jasen would be able to take his role as the King's consort...
It also didn't help that the romance between Jasen and Rilvor was a bit lackluster for me. I guess I needed more time of Jasen and Rilvor as a couple. I felt that Jasen and Risyda, heck even Jasen and Larely, had more screen-time. Rilvor came a bit bland to me as well. Again, I felt more towards Larely compared to Rilvor (which made me happy to hear that Larely would get his own story in the future).
But all in all, for a debut story from this author, I enjoyed it. I would look forward to another story from this realm.
PS: The cover is probably one of my favorites from this year's event!
PSS: Check out the pinterest that the author created:
This is one of the longest stories from Love Landscape's Event that I read this year. Came to me after my friend Didi reviewed it awhile ago. Now, I totally commended on the fairy-tale / fantasy context of this story. Medieval fantasy / fairy tale doesn't always come easy for me to enjoy (I prefer something more URBAN fantasy ;p). However, I found this story as easy to follow, both the prose and the plot ...
I really liked the Court that taught all these marriage prospects was both for ladies and consorts. I think it's probably one of the things I enjoy from fairy tales like this, no bigotry or homophobia. I loved reading about how Jasen, from Kingdom of Grumhul, found his way to the dragons and the etiquette lessons, dressing lessons, all the while wearing corset and high heels (YEP!). The world was pretty fascinating -- with people being dragon-blessed (given an ability) and being dragon-called (requested a service by dragons). The dragons were majestic too! I loved them.
The characters I loved the most, however, interestingly were NOT the main characters. I loved Lady Risyda -- Jasen's fellow Court member. She could easily be a female character that I loved to read again and again (much like Christine from "Whyborne and Griffin" series). I also loved Larely, the guardian who got his heart 'bruised' after realizing that Jasen only saw him as a friend.
The main characters were actually the reason why I couldn't give this 4* yet. I thought Jasen was quite whiny and a bit selfish. I understand that he wasn't really wanting to be given the responsibility to the whole draeid and draidess -- and that he was still young and probably it contributed to this attitude of him. But the whole "I don't want to marry the King" and "I love Rilvor but not his role as a King" made me act like Lady Isalei. I questioned whether Jasen would be able to take his role as the King's consort...
It also didn't help that the romance between Jasen and Rilvor was a bit lackluster for me. I guess I needed more time of Jasen and Rilvor as a couple. I felt that Jasen and Risyda, heck even Jasen and Larely, had more screen-time. Rilvor came a bit bland to me as well. Again, I felt more towards Larely compared to Rilvor (which made me happy to hear that Larely would get his own story in the future).
But all in all, for a debut story from this author, I enjoyed it. I would look forward to another story from this realm.
PS: The cover is probably one of my favorites from this year's event!
PSS: Check out the pinterest that the author created:
July 31, 2014
Check list:
*Funny Protagonist. Check
*For Check
*Men using corsets. Check
*Cool DRAGONS flying around or hugged by the protagonist. Check
*Protagonist with long hair. Check
*Quick but very credible romance. Check
*Adorable kids. Check
*Protagonist in high heeled shoes Check
Wait a second... Did I said MAN IN CORSET AND HIGH HEELS? Check Check Check
Yes... I did.
And no, it's not an erotic story. This short don't even has sex scenes. It a very funny fantasy, VERY well wrote and FOR FREE! Go get your copy too!
5 stars
*Funny Protagonist. Check
*For Check
*Men using corsets. Check
*Cool DRAGONS flying around or hugged by the protagonist. Check
*Protagonist with long hair. Check
*Quick but very credible romance. Check
*Adorable kids. Check
*Protagonist in high heeled shoes Check
Wait a second... Did I said MAN IN CORSET AND HIGH HEELS? Check Check Check
Yes... I did.
And no, it's not an erotic story. This short don't even has sex scenes. It a very funny fantasy, VERY well wrote and FOR FREE! Go get your copy too!
5 stars
October 30, 2021
Look, I think it's partly a me-problem here because this book hit so many tropes I dislike that it honestly never stood a chance with me. I was bored - and rolling my eyes with annoyance - through a vast majority of it and only became mildly engaged around the 75% mark when the romance picked up a bit and the dragons and magical elements actually made more than a vague surface appearance. (But don't get your hopes up; the dragons are by and large beautiful window dressing handed important plot points yet otherwise not present.)
I debated whether to even write a review or rate this, but ultimately decided that I don't owe any special treatment to something just because I know so many others loved it and I can see the potential it has. This is about what I thought, and for me this was a boring, trope-filled mess which didn't live up to my expectations.
When I chose a gay romance involving dragons and magic, I expected more dragons and romance with less - make that zero - heterosexual romance tropes. Alas, however, more time is spent on things which make Jasen (the main character) feel like a female love interest whose gender has been changed than is spent on the fantasy elements. In fact, he even fits the trope of being someone who normally dresses sensibly then gets pressured into wearing "fashionable" corsets, stockings, lace, and high-heeled shoes. 🤦♀� After all, corsets create the ideal shape for... men, apparently. Literally, that's what the story says. Blah, blah, trim waists and straight backs, blah.
For a hint of amusement: He even gets squeezed into too-tight pants that take ten minutes to fasten in the back and fulfills the (very often female) trope of asking how he's supposed to use the bathroom in those clothes. Except I imagine the second he sat or bent, such clothes would burst at a seam... assuming he didn't get castrated from the lack of circulation in his nethers or suffer a paralyzing pinched nerve. I don't know about anyone else, but I can't take the notion of such attire seriously, mostly because of the hyperbolic way it's presented. Ten minutes to fasten while he's laying down, and somehow he can still walk and sit?!
Oh, and on the topic of het-romance tropes: There's also a moment where Jasen's friend who has clearly been crushing on him gets led on for what I presume is a cheap laugh. You know the scene, if you're familiar with m/f romance: main character asks friend of their preferred gender to help them get undressed in a frenzy of urgency, mentions needing them vaguely, gets kissed because the friend takes it as an advance. Then, of course, the main character is offended that the friend took it as such because no they just had to change clothes and this fashionable stuff can't be removed alone. Cue dramatically heartbroken friend with a crush and a mountain of unnecessary angst where the friendship seems at risk.
Though, to be fair, there are also some frustrating universal and m/m romance tropes, as well. Chief among them in prevalence is the insta-love trope - of the 'been on three dates and already want to be soulmates forever' variety, at that. I'm serious. The magic of this world requires the King and his mate become magically soul-bonded, but after the first time he sees Jasen, King Rilvor knows that's who he wants as his partner. And by their third or fourth date, Rilvor is talking marriage and eternity and oh he never imagined he'd be able to feel true love but now he does. I don't think I'd mind too much, if they spent more time together and didn't feel like cardboard cutouts, but most of the book details interactions with the other potential suitors who are basically grade school mean girls. The few, fleeting moments Jasen and Rilvor spend together just aren't enough to convince me they have an epic love.
While we're on the topic of love, I also need to mention that bisexuality doesn't seem to be a valid option in this book. It's assumed twice, only to be shot down and disproven both times.
The first time is with the previously mentioned friend, Larely. He accepts kisses from a woman he's friends with, which leads Jasen to believe they're being intimate on the side. Thus, when Larely flirts with him, Jasen assumes he's just a naturally flirtatious person. (Come to think of it, this may be bypassing an assumption of bisexuality and leaning right into 'if you like both you're a slut' territory... 🤔) But nope, turns out Larely is embarrassed by and slightly repulsed from the woman's kisses, likening it to kissing a sister. See, he only likes men, of course. Can't have a bi guy interested in our main character, I suppose.
The second time, with Rilvor, is even worse. See, the King had a wife. He has four children she birthed. She's dead from an illness... that likely arose because he didn't love her romantically and therefore their soul bond was weak. He thought he'd always have to just take wives and never 'know true love'. Yeah. That trope. The one where the man has a wife, has kids with her, but is actually gay. And also he'd been having flings with other men while his wife was alive, too. But it's okay, he loved her as a friend and the mother of his children. 🤮 But, again, I guess we just can't have a bi guy interested in our leading man.
Why? That's all I want to know. Why is bisexuality treated as so damn invalid? If it were just one or the other instance, I'd have assumed it was a unique trait of one character's personal sexuality. But twice?! Highly sus.
But anyway, I suppose I deviated into a bit of a rant. Back to the main topic. Other tropes I can't stand which were included are: catty mean girls; romantic rivalry with someone who feels entitled to the love interest; pretending to be chaste and lying about past sexual experience; bonding with the love interest's child by encouraging they break rules to have fun; 'I love you but I hate everything about the sociopolitical position I'd be in if I married you'; see-sawing relationship angst; jealous friend magically okay upon realizing their crush is truly in love with someone else; love interest pretends to be less in love around others and main character gets offended despite knowing the societal customs involved; letting a mean girl's rumours drive a wedge in a relationship.
I was especially annoyed by the whole chasity thing because it made Jasen look like a complete idiot. I just... My man, look, your love interest has a dead wife and four children and also used to cheat on his wife with random hookups. He is in no position to give the slightest modicum of a fuck about the fact you've kissed other men before him. Why is this a thing to lie about?! And if he did care, it would make him a creepy hypocrite who didn't deserve Jasen anyway. So again, it made Jasen look like a complete dunderhead.
Actually, most of Jasen's actions made him seem clueless and/or idiotic, so maybe I set the bar too high when expecting better of him. But he's basically the heroine of a harlequin romance, so I should have known better. No, I don't mean to misgender him; I mean that he's written in the same way as a female would be in one of those novels. Down to being all over the love interest and wanting to be together forever... until marriage is on the table. Despite having literally gone into the royal court with explicit intent to get married to someone. 😤🤦♀�
Perhaps I would find it easier to accept how Jasen is treated basically the same as a woman in a (poorly written) het romance, if only the point was to parody or subvert the tropes. And maybe I'd think that were the intent, if not for the pointlessly gender-segregated aspects of the world building. Priests aren't just draeids; the females are called the incredibly awkward term draeidesses. Female suitors can become wives, but male suitors can only become lord consorts - even when marriage is involved for both. Heterosexual pairings are usually preferred among nobility for the sake of procreating and it's been three hundred years since the last time a same-sex couple ruled the kingdom. The King was literally once trapped in a marriage void of romance, producing children with his wife despite being homosexual, because it was expected of him. Thus, it's clear the men and women in this world aren't treated equally and homosexual relationships aren't quite seen as equal to heterosexual ones... So why is Jasen basically written as the female lead of a heterosexual romcom?
Like most things about the storytelling choices, it makes no sense.
What's really sad, though, is that I liked the concept and glimpses of actual romance. I love the idea of dragons being magical near-deities who bless worthy humans with magical powers. I don't even dislike the idea of seeing a character try to navigate the royal court and learn the customs of a privileged society. I just don't like how it's executed in this work. I spent most of this book being bored to death and annoyed by the catty mean girls, bitchy mentors, highschool level relationship angst, and paper-thin characterizations.
Given all that, I can't rate this highly. I originally thought I'd be kind and give it two stars for 'it's okay' - until the absolutely infuriating last 10% which was so mind numbingly agitating I'm not even going to explain beyond saying Jasen is an undeserving idiot and pasting my final status updates:
So, yeah. A mostly boring read with a mess of annoying tropes and an infuriating last-minute conflict - which, by the way, is quickly and ridiculously (and predictably) resolved after a huge hoopla of unnecessary drama and angst. 'Extremely disappointed' is the polite way to express the dissonance between what I wanted from this book and what it delivered.
If anything, my choices for the Read A Rainbow challenge are proving the old adage that you shouldn't judge a book by its cover.
I debated whether to even write a review or rate this, but ultimately decided that I don't owe any special treatment to something just because I know so many others loved it and I can see the potential it has. This is about what I thought, and for me this was a boring, trope-filled mess which didn't live up to my expectations.
When I chose a gay romance involving dragons and magic, I expected more dragons and romance with less - make that zero - heterosexual romance tropes. Alas, however, more time is spent on things which make Jasen (the main character) feel like a female love interest whose gender has been changed than is spent on the fantasy elements. In fact, he even fits the trope of being someone who normally dresses sensibly then gets pressured into wearing "fashionable" corsets, stockings, lace, and high-heeled shoes. 🤦♀� After all, corsets create the ideal shape for... men, apparently. Literally, that's what the story says. Blah, blah, trim waists and straight backs, blah.
For a hint of amusement: He even gets squeezed into too-tight pants that take ten minutes to fasten in the back and fulfills the (very often female) trope of asking how he's supposed to use the bathroom in those clothes. Except I imagine the second he sat or bent, such clothes would burst at a seam... assuming he didn't get castrated from the lack of circulation in his nethers or suffer a paralyzing pinched nerve. I don't know about anyone else, but I can't take the notion of such attire seriously, mostly because of the hyperbolic way it's presented. Ten minutes to fasten while he's laying down, and somehow he can still walk and sit?!
Oh, and on the topic of het-romance tropes: There's also a moment where Jasen's friend who has clearly been crushing on him gets led on for what I presume is a cheap laugh. You know the scene, if you're familiar with m/f romance: main character asks friend of their preferred gender to help them get undressed in a frenzy of urgency, mentions needing them vaguely, gets kissed because the friend takes it as an advance. Then, of course, the main character is offended that the friend took it as such because no they just had to change clothes and this fashionable stuff can't be removed alone. Cue dramatically heartbroken friend with a crush and a mountain of unnecessary angst where the friendship seems at risk.
Though, to be fair, there are also some frustrating universal and m/m romance tropes, as well. Chief among them in prevalence is the insta-love trope - of the 'been on three dates and already want to be soulmates forever' variety, at that. I'm serious. The magic of this world requires the King and his mate become magically soul-bonded, but after the first time he sees Jasen, King Rilvor knows that's who he wants as his partner. And by their third or fourth date, Rilvor is talking marriage and eternity and oh he never imagined he'd be able to feel true love but now he does. I don't think I'd mind too much, if they spent more time together and didn't feel like cardboard cutouts, but most of the book details interactions with the other potential suitors who are basically grade school mean girls. The few, fleeting moments Jasen and Rilvor spend together just aren't enough to convince me they have an epic love.
While we're on the topic of love, I also need to mention that bisexuality doesn't seem to be a valid option in this book. It's assumed twice, only to be shot down and disproven both times.
The first time is with the previously mentioned friend, Larely. He accepts kisses from a woman he's friends with, which leads Jasen to believe they're being intimate on the side. Thus, when Larely flirts with him, Jasen assumes he's just a naturally flirtatious person. (Come to think of it, this may be bypassing an assumption of bisexuality and leaning right into 'if you like both you're a slut' territory... 🤔) But nope, turns out Larely is embarrassed by and slightly repulsed from the woman's kisses, likening it to kissing a sister. See, he only likes men, of course. Can't have a bi guy interested in our main character, I suppose.
The second time, with Rilvor, is even worse. See, the King had a wife. He has four children she birthed. She's dead from an illness... that likely arose because he didn't love her romantically and therefore their soul bond was weak. He thought he'd always have to just take wives and never 'know true love'. Yeah. That trope. The one where the man has a wife, has kids with her, but is actually gay. And also he'd been having flings with other men while his wife was alive, too. But it's okay, he loved her as a friend and the mother of his children. 🤮 But, again, I guess we just can't have a bi guy interested in our leading man.
Why? That's all I want to know. Why is bisexuality treated as so damn invalid? If it were just one or the other instance, I'd have assumed it was a unique trait of one character's personal sexuality. But twice?! Highly sus.
But anyway, I suppose I deviated into a bit of a rant. Back to the main topic. Other tropes I can't stand which were included are: catty mean girls; romantic rivalry with someone who feels entitled to the love interest; pretending to be chaste and lying about past sexual experience; bonding with the love interest's child by encouraging they break rules to have fun; 'I love you but I hate everything about the sociopolitical position I'd be in if I married you'; see-sawing relationship angst; jealous friend magically okay upon realizing their crush is truly in love with someone else; love interest pretends to be less in love around others and main character gets offended despite knowing the societal customs involved; letting a mean girl's rumours drive a wedge in a relationship.
I was especially annoyed by the whole chasity thing because it made Jasen look like a complete idiot. I just... My man, look, your love interest has a dead wife and four children and also used to cheat on his wife with random hookups. He is in no position to give the slightest modicum of a fuck about the fact you've kissed other men before him. Why is this a thing to lie about?! And if he did care, it would make him a creepy hypocrite who didn't deserve Jasen anyway. So again, it made Jasen look like a complete dunderhead.
Actually, most of Jasen's actions made him seem clueless and/or idiotic, so maybe I set the bar too high when expecting better of him. But he's basically the heroine of a harlequin romance, so I should have known better. No, I don't mean to misgender him; I mean that he's written in the same way as a female would be in one of those novels. Down to being all over the love interest and wanting to be together forever... until marriage is on the table. Despite having literally gone into the royal court with explicit intent to get married to someone. 😤🤦♀�
Perhaps I would find it easier to accept how Jasen is treated basically the same as a woman in a (poorly written) het romance, if only the point was to parody or subvert the tropes. And maybe I'd think that were the intent, if not for the pointlessly gender-segregated aspects of the world building. Priests aren't just draeids; the females are called the incredibly awkward term draeidesses. Female suitors can become wives, but male suitors can only become lord consorts - even when marriage is involved for both. Heterosexual pairings are usually preferred among nobility for the sake of procreating and it's been three hundred years since the last time a same-sex couple ruled the kingdom. The King was literally once trapped in a marriage void of romance, producing children with his wife despite being homosexual, because it was expected of him. Thus, it's clear the men and women in this world aren't treated equally and homosexual relationships aren't quite seen as equal to heterosexual ones... So why is Jasen basically written as the female lead of a heterosexual romcom?
Like most things about the storytelling choices, it makes no sense.
What's really sad, though, is that I liked the concept and glimpses of actual romance. I love the idea of dragons being magical near-deities who bless worthy humans with magical powers. I don't even dislike the idea of seeing a character try to navigate the royal court and learn the customs of a privileged society. I just don't like how it's executed in this work. I spent most of this book being bored to death and annoyed by the catty mean girls, bitchy mentors, highschool level relationship angst, and paper-thin characterizations.
Given all that, I can't rate this highly. I originally thought I'd be kind and give it two stars for 'it's okay' - until the absolutely infuriating last 10% which was so mind numbingly agitating I'm not even going to explain beyond saying Jasen is an undeserving idiot and pasting my final status updates:
90% - This is the most stupid, obnoxious, infuriating, contrived bullshit last second drama that could and should be resolved with simple communication. UGH!
92% - "Boohoo! Nobody will ever love me because I'm not a nice person! So I will continue not being a nice person and try to destroy lives because waaaaah I'll never be loved because I'm not a nice person!"
I've seen better-written villains by kindergarten kids telling stories off the tops of their heads.
So, yeah. A mostly boring read with a mess of annoying tropes and an infuriating last-minute conflict - which, by the way, is quickly and ridiculously (and predictably) resolved after a huge hoopla of unnecessary drama and angst. 'Extremely disappointed' is the polite way to express the dissonance between what I wanted from this book and what it delivered.
If anything, my choices for the Read A Rainbow challenge are proving the old adage that you shouldn't judge a book by its cover.
August 2, 2018
3.5 stars
May 25, 2019
I really enjoyed this. I've not read this author or listened to this narrator before, and I highly recommend both. Jasen and Rilvor are the least likely of matches, and I loved seeing them become a couple. This is a fantasy so there are differences in their world to ours - magic and dragons - and then the similarities like hierarchy. Jasen is part of the lower class of nobility, and he isn't a virgin, which is used in an attempt to blackmail Jasen away from the King.
There is a lot going on and I was always excited to pick this up again. Good characters (I never knew who to trust, but I knew who not to trust), good interactions and believable plot line.
If you enjoy romantic fantasy with some mystery, you should give this one a try. 4.5 stars.
There is a lot going on and I was always excited to pick this up again. Good characters (I never knew who to trust, but I knew who not to trust), good interactions and believable plot line.
If you enjoy romantic fantasy with some mystery, you should give this one a try. 4.5 stars.
June 20, 2019
sera trevor has been dragon-blessed with the ability to be a fucking incredible writer
October 6, 2018
3.5 Stars......So I’m a bit late reviewing this one. All I have are my notes I took after reading it and before writing a better review. As it stands, I’m going to let the notes take the place of my review because, while brief, they pretty much sum up the book for me.
I just expected a bit more.
Notes:
Little chemistry, great world building, sassy best friend, wtf corsets for men? where’s my UST? I liked Jasen. Liked the fact that there was no issue of sexuality aside from needing to propagate in case of royalty. Catty and bitchy. Reminded me of Tournament of Losers a bit, but not as well done.
**Advanced review copy provided by the author in exchange for an honest review**
I just expected a bit more.
Notes:
Little chemistry, great world building, sassy best friend, wtf corsets for men? where’s my UST? I liked Jasen. Liked the fact that there was no issue of sexuality aside from needing to propagate in case of royalty. Catty and bitchy. Reminded me of Tournament of Losers a bit, but not as well done.
**Advanced review copy provided by the author in exchange for an honest review**
October 7, 2014
Offered for FREE from the M/M Romance Group's Love's Landscapes event. Thank you too all the amazing authors who participated!
This was an enjoyable afternoon read. I will admit that I thought myself quite clever, and figured out in the first chapter that the king was hiding himself as the cute guard and maybe could even shapeshift into a dragon! Except, for the fact that I was totally wrong. But anyhow, still a sweet story.
Got a little long-winded at times with the courtly specifics and I did skim a bit to get back to dialogue. I will admit that I would not have a minded a little more to their romp in the bushes. Jasen and Rilvor had some sweet moments, and they told us many dates and weeks had past, but I didn't quite feel the passion. It seemed a little platonic at times and I little more hanky-pankey would have helped that.
The author has a bonus scene, , where we finally get the steam we wanted. And she mentions that she plans on a still free expanded version, where "we get to see Grumhul in all of its glory and meet Queen Urga the Unimpressed." To be honest, I'm not sure I care about all that (although that is a truly amazing nickname). I hope the expanded version focuses on more relationship and chemistry building between Jasen and Rilvor.
October 17, 2020
Audiobook reviewEvery now and then you come across books that really surprises you. This is one of those times for me. Consorting with Dragons isn’t a new book. I’ve come across it many, many times before. Yet somehow I’ve always dismissed it, thinking it wasn’t my cup of tea. How wrong I was� What an adventure Sera Trevor and Philip Alces took me on. I don’t know what I expected but it sure wasn’t this beautiful Cinderfella tale about a king and a nobleman and a meddling dragon or two. I can’t really put my finger on exactly what made me fall for the book, I mean there weren’t any spectacular fights, flights or intrigues, and maybe that was it. It wasn’t overdone. It was just right.
May 6, 2020
2.5 stars
I think it was the absolutely marvelous narrator, Philip Alces, who unwittingly helped highlight what's wrong with this expanded version of a favorite novella. In my review of the most recent version of the ebook, I quoted fellow GR reviewer Cleo who put one of my strongest issues with this longer version into a better synopsis than I could muster: “I felt like the MC turned into a completely useless Disney princess type character - honest, beautiful, trusting, and with less sense of self preservation than one of my houseplants.� I can't remember the last time I rolled my eyes so much and was this disgusted with a protagonist who truly was a gutless wonder. As I said in my review of the expanded book, I did NOT feel this way with the 2014 novella.
I think it was the absolutely marvelous narrator, Philip Alces, who unwittingly helped highlight what's wrong with this expanded version of a favorite novella. In my review of the most recent version of the ebook, I quoted fellow GR reviewer Cleo who put one of my strongest issues with this longer version into a better synopsis than I could muster: “I felt like the MC turned into a completely useless Disney princess type character - honest, beautiful, trusting, and with less sense of self preservation than one of my houseplants.� I can't remember the last time I rolled my eyes so much and was this disgusted with a protagonist who truly was a gutless wonder. As I said in my review of the expanded book, I did NOT feel this way with the 2014 novella.
December 6, 2017
3.5stars. Solid novella. Good premise. Quite charming. Snorted a couple of times.
May 14, 2018
4.5 Stars
Everything I loved about the first one is still here...only with more detail and more scenes of Jasen being the most imperfectly perfect kind of candidate consort. The expansion also provided wonderful opportunities for other court antics/scenarios, and I liked the addition of other nobles to woo the potential consorts.
My previous complaint about the female rival still stands, but it's a lot less vociferous now; Polina was fleshed out a bit more, her motives & fears revealed and while that off-page character development remained off-page, I like the way the story was re-told...and how Jasen handled the jealousy with acceptance, eventually allowing them to become friends.
One thing I thought odd though was that it didn't show the separate Drae wedding event, and in the original version it was said that ceremony was "a more important affair." I'd have liked it if that small section had been retained.
And having kept Polina in the story long after she (originally) departed when Jasen confronted her means she didn't join the Dragon Sisterhood (which are basically nuns); that was part of the story I liked because it made her apologies and contrition seem sincere and her determination to become a different kind of person more memorable. But I guess friendship & groomsmaid is good enough.
Still no resolution for his bestie and other groomsmaid, Risyda, though. She doesn't want to marry yet, but is afraid her father will cast her aside if she doesn't. She had a suitor, who she liked but didn't love, and we don't know how all that turns out for her. I was kind of hoping she'd find that dragon spark again and become a Draedess maybe?
Also, Larely, the guard (who I wanted to have his own novella) was re-written to have a different background, and did NOT go work in his father's vineyard (which was a cover anyway) but had a much more important role to play after all of the nobles were removed from power in a neighboring kingdom. That change makes me want a story for him even more!
So, in short there were some wonderful improvements while other details that I liked were removed or changed...and there were still a few slightly dangling threads; on the whole, a much more rich and engaging tale. I'm so glad Sera took the time and effort to do this.
Everything I loved about the first one is still here...only with more detail and more scenes of Jasen being the most imperfectly perfect kind of candidate consort. The expansion also provided wonderful opportunities for other court antics/scenarios, and I liked the addition of other nobles to woo the potential consorts.
My previous complaint about the female rival still stands, but it's a lot less vociferous now; Polina was fleshed out a bit more, her motives & fears revealed and while that off-page character development remained off-page, I like the way the story was re-told...and how Jasen handled the jealousy with acceptance, eventually allowing them to become friends.
One thing I thought odd though was that it didn't show the separate Drae wedding event, and in the original version it was said that ceremony was "a more important affair." I'd have liked it if that small section had been retained.
And having kept Polina in the story long after she (originally) departed when Jasen confronted her means she didn't join the Dragon Sisterhood (which are basically nuns); that was part of the story I liked because it made her apologies and contrition seem sincere and her determination to become a different kind of person more memorable. But I guess friendship & groomsmaid is good enough.
Still no resolution for his bestie and other groomsmaid, Risyda, though. She doesn't want to marry yet, but is afraid her father will cast her aside if she doesn't. She had a suitor, who she liked but didn't love, and we don't know how all that turns out for her. I was kind of hoping she'd find that dragon spark again and become a Draedess maybe?
Also, Larely, the guard (who I wanted to have his own novella) was re-written to have a different background, and did NOT go work in his father's vineyard (which was a cover anyway) but had a much more important role to play after all of the nobles were removed from power in a neighboring kingdom. That change makes me want a story for him even more!
So, in short there were some wonderful improvements while other details that I liked were removed or changed...and there were still a few slightly dangling threads; on the whole, a much more rich and engaging tale. I'm so glad Sera took the time and effort to do this.
October 14, 2023
2.5 stars
Really strangely paced. Very slow at first and then all of a sudden A LOT is happening and it felt rushed. I was enjoying the first half but then it kind of lost me.
I liked Jasen as a character, though his musings about whether or not to tell someone something - each time ending in him deciding not to say anything - started to really grate on me. This of course feeds into what at first appears to be the climax of the story but ends in a non-issue.
The basis for the actual conflict here was clever, but I wish more character development had been given to Jasen concerning his dislike of court politics and the fact that he actually didn't want to shoulder the responsibility of being the consort and the magical stabiliser for the land. That's not just going to go away and I didn't think his change of heart was convincing.
I also didn't like the whole virginity plotline in general. It doesn’t quite devolve into slut-shaming but I still don’t like it.
I liked the king, though I can’t say I really believed in their connection. They must have met, like 5 times, before committing to their undying love.
The subplot with Larely was entirely superfluous.
I did not like Jasen’s father who got away with seemingly everything, or the queen of Grumhul and her projecting.
This was available on Audible Plus and the narration is pretty decent though it was very slow and I had to listen to it even faster than I usually would.
Really strangely paced. Very slow at first and then all of a sudden A LOT is happening and it felt rushed. I was enjoying the first half but then it kind of lost me.
I liked Jasen as a character, though his musings about whether or not to tell someone something - each time ending in him deciding not to say anything - started to really grate on me. This of course feeds into what at first appears to be the climax of the story but ends in a non-issue.
The basis for the actual conflict here was clever, but I wish more character development had been given to Jasen concerning his dislike of court politics and the fact that he actually didn't want to shoulder the responsibility of being the consort and the magical stabiliser for the land. That's not just going to go away and I didn't think his change of heart was convincing.
I also didn't like the whole virginity plotline in general. It doesn’t quite devolve into slut-shaming but I still don’t like it.
I liked the king, though I can’t say I really believed in their connection. They must have met, like 5 times, before committing to their undying love.
The subplot with Larely was entirely superfluous.
I did not like Jasen’s father who got away with seemingly everything, or the queen of Grumhul and her projecting.
This was available on Audible Plus and the narration is pretty decent though it was very slow and I had to listen to it even faster than I usually would.
September 14, 2018
It must be maddening to feel so much weight over what you see no value in.
July 21, 2023
Lovely
August 20, 2021
This was a short but interesting story. Sure I wasn't a fan of how many times Jasen desribed himself as a whore, since he wasn't really one(well didn't have that job), but for sure I can agree on the fact that since he was 16, he really tried to break some records, in how many ppl he slept with...(he was only 20) Anyway the king didn't mind about his non-virginity, and actually not even did I.
There were many heterosexual elements, Rilvor had been married before to a woman and had 4 sweet kids, but this didn't annoy me, and actually the former Queen, all the time she contacted Jasen in his dreams, sounded like a good woman who really wanted all the best for the man and the kids she had loved. In the end their marriage had been arranged and both had had other lovers in the time they were together, Rilvor and the Queen had only been good friends, bcs the King was always gay.
The king was sweet and caring, and also if only 30, he had already been on the throne for over 13 years, and had a 12 years old son(the oldest, the others were 8, 5 and 2 and girls). I liked the kids, but I would have liked to see more scenes with them, since they were a big part of the King's life. I also wished there was more background story, but in the end for a quick read, this book wasn't bad and had also lesbian chars something that I liked to see, since usually women are only the evil in M/M books.
There were many heterosexual elements, Rilvor had been married before to a woman and had 4 sweet kids, but this didn't annoy me, and actually the former Queen, all the time she contacted Jasen in his dreams, sounded like a good woman who really wanted all the best for the man and the kids she had loved. In the end their marriage had been arranged and both had had other lovers in the time they were together, Rilvor and the Queen had only been good friends, bcs the King was always gay.
The king was sweet and caring, and also if only 30, he had already been on the throne for over 13 years, and had a 12 years old son(the oldest, the others were 8, 5 and 2 and girls). I liked the kids, but I would have liked to see more scenes with them, since they were a big part of the King's life. I also wished there was more background story, but in the end for a quick read, this book wasn't bad and had also lesbian chars something that I liked to see, since usually women are only the evil in M/M books.
September 27, 2017
4 stars.
Oh, this was such a sweet story! A Cinderfella comes to the palace and cathes the eye of the king...ooh, goodness! It was all very fairytal-ish, and was all prim and proper, but it strangely just enhanced the charm of the book.
Totally delightful read.
p.s. There is a bonus scene of Jasen&Rilvor's wedding night -
Hello, smut!
Oh, this was such a sweet story! A Cinderfella comes to the palace and cathes the eye of the king...ooh, goodness! It was all very fairytal-ish, and was all prim and proper, but it strangely just enhanced the charm of the book.
Totally delightful read.
p.s. There is a bonus scene of Jasen&Rilvor's wedding night -
Hello, smut!
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