
Review:
This was such a sweet, adorable romance!
It was sort of enemies to lovers, and Wyn was an asshole at first. But once they got past that part, I found their romance to be an incredibly cute slow-burn. I don’t call a lot of standalones slow-burn, but there were so many little moments of intimacy and tension as the two grew closer, holding hands, kissing knuckles, leaning close to whisper in the other’s ear, lightly caressing a leg, realizing they were staring at the other… That’s the way to do it. And then mmmm. That scene in the garden? Mmmm.
It was more than just tension though. They genuinely cared. They supported each other. Wyn saw how smart and skilled and hardworking Roger was and how he was always trying to make the world better, and he made sure to tell Roger how great he was. Meanwhile, Roger understood how difficult living in the city and going to social gatherings was for Wyn and would be his shield, make excuses for them to take a break, and check on Wyn because he cared about his well-being in a way no one else ever had. Things like that. They saw the best in each other and brought out the best in each other. Once they got past their issues, it was a very healthy and sweet relationship.
This was a queernormative world and a m/m romance. Roger was also fat and seemingly demisexual and/or gray ace. And I loved how Wyn always made sure Roger knew they didn’t have to do anything he was uncomfortable with and also that Roger could ask him to stop at any time. And it really was as simple as that, just a complete non-issue.
The characters were easy to care about and feel for. Roger was a sweetheart. Wyn was definitely mean at first, but I understood why he’d acted that way once I got to know him.
I felt the story lost steam a bit near the end, once the romance lost tension, but there was still sweetness and the plot of working on magic together.
The audiobook, narrated by Matt Simpson, was enjoyable and pleasant to listen to. Voices were just different enough, and it all sounded natural.
Overall, this was a lovely and magical queer historical romance!
Recommended For:
Anyone who likes somewhat slow burn romance, queernormative society and characters, fat and demisexual rep, historical fantasy, very sweet and adorable romance, and magic.
Thanks for reminding me about this one! I bought it on release day, but haven’t gotten to it yet. I like how you describe their romance with the slow burn and them genuinely caring about the other. Good to know Wyn’s behavior of being mean at first makes sense when you get to know him and doesn’t go on too long. I definitely want to get to this one soon.
It’s so cute, I think you’ll at least like certain things about it, if not the whole thing.