Under the Dragon Moon: The Belamour Archives, Book 1

A lot of MM romance consists primarily of the main couple and then straight people, or other potential pairings for future novels. And it's. fine. To be honest, I'm not even sure I noticed it until I read Under The Dragon Moon. This book captures what it feels like to be a queer person in queer community. It feels authentic in a way not many books in the genre do. Also, the parts that cover transness feel accurate and lived-in. What everyone else has covered is true, too: the world building is intriguing, the plot is engaging, the characters are memorable. But the author also knows their stuff, and that matters to me as a reader.

This was an interesting story that pulled me in. This book is definitely worth a reread to get a grasp on some things that flew over my head. Looking forward to how the author will expand this world.

I wanna say first off I am more of a horror/thriller fan and I used to read a lot of fantasy books but haven't in a long time that isn't manga. This book made me fall for hard and fast for the urban fantasy genre all over again. The world building is just *chef kiss*! I normally do not leave reviews cause of my adhd mess of a brain but I really feel like I should cause people NEED to read this and maybe seeing the amount of reviews influence people to pick this gem up. Mael Nguyen is such a interesting guy that I love being in his shoes and experiencing the world as him! The magic system and how he works within it is so natural feeling and I love when he does do little teaching moments with Leo and the Kid. At one point I was like bro is so autistic coded and literally the next page he said he was and I was like OH! WELP LOL idk what Mael's deal is, i mean I do kind of, but gawd I see why Leo falls hard and fast for him cause I ended up jealous and want Mael for myself! Leo Greyson reacts to things literally the same way I would if I was there and maybe cause I can relate to him I got SUCKED into the world. His little ADHD (it's not said that he does have ADHD but I do and it's so on par) rants are so great and totally realistic and hilarious! He's charming when he flirts and hilarious at the wrong time but even so he has this darkness inside of him that's so realistic for a happy go lucky type of guy. And I know I just said I was jealous of him cause I like Mael but I'm…

MM, Urban Fantasy, Mystery, 1st Dual POV Status: KU, Same Couple Series Mael: Autistic, Transmasc, POC (Vietnamese), Bi, Verse, Warlock, Half-Fae (Unseelie), Physically Mid 40s, 70 Yrs in the Human Realm, ~90 Yrs Old, Long Hair, Heavily Tattoed, Top Scars, Lives in a Sentient Bookshop, Collects Rare Magical Artifacts, Single for 1-2 Decades, Knows Sign Language, Has Nightmares (Sometimes Visions), Magical Synesthesia, Left Handed, Traumatized, PTSD, OCD, Anxiety, Depression, Chronic Pain, Kleptomania, Has an Adopted Kid (Raised for 10 Yrs, 18 Yrs Old, NBi, Fae), Wealthy, Past Drug Abuse/Addiction Autism Rep: Introvert, Hates Small Talk, Sensory Issues, Special Interest (Magic), Insomnia and Fatigued, Mention of Shutdowns, Mention of Co-Regulation, Magical Equivalent of Noise Cancelling Headphones, Mention of Stimming, Situational Mutism, Info-Dumping, Hyperfixations, Scripting in Conversations, Internal Monologues, Lack of Eye Contact, Bedroom and Apartment Filled with Things (Collecting Objects) Leo: ADHD, Human (Now with Guardian Magic), 27 Yrs Old, Bi, Verse, Punk, Radio Host, Musician (Indie Rock Band), Raising His Recently Orphaned Neice (8 Yrs Old, Warlock, POC (Half Black), Magical Synesthesia), Long Hair, Heavily Peirced Ears, Wears Rings and Bracelets, Painted Nails, Freckles, Protective, Traumatized, Anxiety, C-PTSD, Knows a Bit of Sign Language, Wears Skirts Ocassionally, ACAB, Light Pain Kink, Has Been to Therapy, Parental Abuse as a Child, Past Alcohol…

What an absolute delight! Mael Nguyen is an autistic, transgender fae warlock whose patron is a sentient magical bookshop in New Orleans, Louisiana (the Belamour Archives). “Bela” as he calls her, literally pushes him into aiding Leo Greyson in searching for the thief who murdered Leo’s sister and in locating a dragon egg bonded to Leo’s adopted niece Remy. The lore is compelling (Djinn! Dragons! Magical bonds!) but it’s the characters that really make this one memorable. The theme of family being more than blood runs throughout – found family is my favorite trope, honestly. This one has excellent LGBTQIA+ representation as well. And there’s a completely adorable budding romance (with some spice) between Mael and Leo. A treat to read, and I highly recommend it. I’ll definitely be continuing the series, as it’s clear the author plans on taking these characters in interesting directions!