Silk and Steel #1: Silk & Steel

Reread 5/5 stars Upon rereading this, I found a new appreciation. Strong writing, strong character development. A push, a pull in the story. I didn’t know what to expect the first time, but the second time, a little wiser, I engaged more. And it was quite beautiful to feel the story, feel Lysander, feel Eroan. Such damage, such strength, such will and determination from both of them to survive. After I read it the first time it DID stick with me. When that happens, I know there is something more to the story I haven’t processed and I don’t always know why. I just feel it. I don’t overanalyze. So I reread it in anticipation for Iron & Fire. I’m so glad I reread this so soon after the first time. This one will stand out for me. I believe it is written in the 3rd person limited voice, but it feels different. It feels both old and new. It is MM fantasy. It isn’t obscene or vulgar, as a matter of fact, it is quite tame compared to other MM novels I’ve read. I really enjoyed this. The Author also has a prequel short story call Sealed with a Kiss that is absolutely worth reading. I believe its free on her website.

Very well written, if only a couple of spelling errors. Over all, the storyline is intricate, dark, and suspenseful. However, the main characters, as intense and complex as they are, are hard to figure out. They come off as hardened and passionate, a bit broken by a broken and cruel world, but they both have parallel circumstances in some ways. The part that displeased me the most was how they are portrayed as unable to perform their respective manly duties in that they both only prefer men, but then they seem to have no problems being with certain women, which seems to be the only explicit descriptions provided by the authors. It's as if they want them to be male star-crossed lovers but then they don't ever really have any sordid interactions with one another and the sexually explicit scenes are only of those with women... Kind of disappointing for a m/m romance... Otherwise, the story is exciting and convoluted. The HUGE cliffhanger at the end was a bit annoying though...

I’m going to need a soft and fluffy book before I tear into the next part of this series. Don’t get me wrong. It’s gloriously torturously hard to read. It’s epic levels of tragic kind of like Romeo and Juliet if one was a dragon and the other an elf. I wasn’t aware at first but this takes place in a post apocalyptic earth where dragons showed up and took over, but there are also elves. Who looked after the humans until something bad happened. And now the dragons have evolved and are spreading across the globe the elves are almost gone and the humans keep to enclaves where they try to recreate industry and power. This is well written but please mind the content warnings. There is a lot of stuff here that could be problematic for some so read that first, then jump in. Just maybe bring a blanket and a mug of something warm because ooof this was dark fantasy with tiny embers of hope trying to stay alive.

Let me start by saying that I go into every book I read with an open mind-- everyone has their own tastes and ideas of angst and sorrow. I don't judge at all. In fact I'm definitely one of those people that nose dive into the worst things possible and if it wasn't for that I probably would have dropped this immediately. Read the triggers people! Or actually, read the reviews! The triggers do not cover the intensity of what's going on in this novel. There's very, very prevalent mother/son "action" going on right from the start, and lots and lots of noncon. I loved the concept of this plot, really. But the worldbuilding fell incredibly flat that it sort of made the rest kind of difficult to read because I had so many questions, all being "why?" It's not clear why there's been wars and conundrum going on, nor is it clear why the elves want the dragon queen dead so badly. There's also not really a clear motivation from either main character. I suspect that it will span across the next books, but I definitely think worldbuilding is the most important aspect of the first novel. I will say it's got me buying the next book just to figure out what in the world (literally!) is going on. So maybe this was just a great marketing tactic. Who knows? The characters themselves are all pretty three dimensional and well written, though. I absolutely loved Lysander especially during the last act (where all of the angst and inc*st seemed to be worth the read, actually). But Lysander and…

Okay so first things first you really need to read those trigger warnings. You can find them in the sample of the book and they pull no punches. I bought this book a year ago, started reading it and had to put it down bc of well those trigger warnings There are extremely disturbing themes in this book. It took me a year to come back to this book and finish it. For real. The trigger warning says implied incest, nothing shown. Really?? I mean Jesus this evil dragon queen is grabbing her sons you know what be warned some of it is indeed shown and it’s f’ed up. I would be cautious about reading this book if a person is already struggling with trauma of any kind, I’m afraid it may be triggering. I wouldn’t suggest reading it. Look for Tal Bauers books instead, he’s a great author who writes gay romance. Josh Lanyon is a good one too. As well as Alice Winters and Hayley Turner and Aimee Nicole Walkers Zero Hour Trilogy. These authors have heavy themes but not like this. It’s up to you though what you can handle and what you choose to do. SPOILERS and wait a minute! Did the blurb say Eroan was bisexual? Did I miss that? I mean he did have sex with Janna but he was thinking of Lysander the entire time 🤷🏼‍♀️ After having to wash my brain in holy water a few times I can say that Lysander and Eroan do have heart and based on who they are as people, with Lysander SPOILERS away from his evil brood SPOILERS I can see their relationship developing into a beautiful one. But that…