I loved what I saw of Adam and Christoffer’s relationship in The Other Book. But in Adam Only I couldn’t find what I expected. It was mainly sex: no pI loved what I saw of Adam and Christoffer’s relationship in The Other Book. But in Adam Only I couldn’t find what I expected. It was mainly sex: no plot, no romance development. Their relationship is based on sex. Repetitive, cheap-porn-like sex. They become addictive to each other. I love stories with lots of sex scenes, but (most of the time) I also want deep and palpable emotions.
The story is told from dual, third person viewpoint. This ‘thing’ between them seems unhealthy. There is a quite big age gap, but mainly their behavior what makes the relationship unbalanced. The ‘master’ thing is thrown in the story but never developed.
How could he explain when it barely made sense in his own head? He wanted to be owned without being shackled. He craved to be used without being punished. He needed a master, but he needed to feel free. He would lie down at his man’s feet if he could be sure he wouldn’t get stepped on.
Christoffer keeps calling Adam ‘a boy.’ The word ‘boy’ appears more than 70 times, the term ‘his boy’ 19 times, and there are many times ‘his dream boy’, ‘my boy’, ‘my/his sweet beautiful boy’, ‘my good sweet boy’, ‘his beloved boy.’ Oh, and there are 34 ‘young man’ and 21 ‘big man.’
I don’t mind the age gap, but the heavy emphasis on it never let me forget it. Even in the last line:
“You’ll stay?” “Yeah,” his boy breathed, and Christoffer tightened his hold on him.
Merged review:
I loved what I saw of Adam and Christoffer’s relationship in The Other Book. But in Adam Only I couldn’t find what I expected. It was mainly sex: no plot, no romance development. Their relationship is based on sex. Repetitive, cheap-porn-like sex. They become addictive to each other. I love stories with lots of sex scenes, but (most of the time) I also want deep and palpable emotions.
The story is told from dual, third person viewpoint. This ‘thing’ between them seems unhealthy. There is a quite big age gap, but mainly their behavior what makes the relationship unbalanced. The ‘master’ thing is thrown in the story but never developed.
How could he explain when it barely made sense in his own head? He wanted to be owned without being shackled. He craved to be used without being punished. He needed a master, but he needed to feel free. He would lie down at his man’s feet if he could be sure he wouldn’t get stepped on.
Christoffer keeps calling Adam ‘a boy.’ The word ‘boy’ appears more than 70 times, the term ‘his boy’ 19 times, and there are many times ‘his dream boy’, ‘my boy’, ‘my/his sweet beautiful boy’, ‘my good sweet boy’, ‘his beloved boy.’ Oh, and there are 34 ‘young man’ and 21 ‘big man.’
I don’t mind the age gap, but the heavy emphasis on it never let me forget it. Even in the last line:
“You’ll stay?” “Yeah,” his boy breathed, and Christoffer tightened his hold on him.
A stand-alone, getting-together story, with many characters (Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Blaise, Luna, Neville, Pansy, Padma, Molly, Arthur, many new ones, A stand-alone, getting-together story, with many characters (Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Blaise, Luna, Neville, Pansy, Padma, Molly, Arthur, many new ones, too).
I got bored at the quiz-night, even more at the clothes-shopping scenes, though later turned out these scenes had a purpose.
I usually love the author’s works, but this one was disappointing....more
No rating because it's a fanfiction, and usually I like the author's works.
Both Harry and Draco are totally out of character. Overlong, over-romanticNo rating because it's a fanfiction, and usually I like the author's works.
Both Harry and Draco are totally out of character. Overlong, over-romanticized, boooooooring storyline, tons of secondary and tertiary characters, endless conversations, 10 years of longing (so not Harry), uncertainty, hesitation (also very unHarry-like), everything is slow and "languid".
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Still, I'm planning a Sara's Girl marathon this summer, so just...
DNF at 5%, so no rating. Too much unnecessary drama for my taste, non-communication, dumbass heroine and violent heroes. I’m afraid there is much moreDNF at 5%, so no rating. Too much unnecessary drama for my taste, non-communication, dumbass heroine and violent heroes. I’m afraid there is much more to come, so I quit....more
**spoiler alert** It started pretty good. The fact that Magnus didn’t tell Michał who he really was when they first met was okay. But he started datin**spoiler alert** It started pretty good. The fact that Magnus didn’t tell Michał who he really was when they first met was okay. But he started dating him, and still didn’t tell him. I just didn’t get it.
“You wouldn’t let me see you! I had to do something!” Oh, then it’s okay.
I found Magnus’ behavior stalkerish and kind of violent. Not physically violent, but he was clearly disrespectful of boundaries.
“Believe you? Really?!” “You gave me no choice, dammit!” His voice boomed…
And then:
“Just… If you try walking away I’ll run after you.”
It seems to be a serious issue. Michał feels humiliated and vulnerable, still, for some insane reason, he decides to trust Magnus, because he is smart and wonderful (his words, not mine), and they start a relationship.
Random issues: - The wonderfully written first kiss scene is interrupted by a ‘baby’. I hate it. It’s totally on me, I know. Anything else works for me, even ‘babe.’ But I just can’t stand ‘baby.’ I can’t explain it, I just can’t. -Their first time starts passionately then they stop to paint each other with chocolate. Wasting time, if you ask me. Maybe it’s cute and romantic for others, but I want passion, dammit. I should have read the blurb more carefully. -Using the word ‘toddler’ in a simile in a sexual description:
“Michał!” he exclaimed, surprise and a mild warning in his suddenly loud voice. But his arms tightened around me, and his hips rocked. Yes. I threw one leg over his, spreading myself open as his hand slid down my belly and caught my cock, stroking lightly. I was ravenous for more. Now when I could have this again, have sex with a man I felt safe with, a man who loved me, I was greedy like a toddler.
A toddler??
- The intention of public proposal. Michal and Magnus witness a public proposal, and Michał expresses his dislike of it:
“I think it’s weird when they pop the question in public. It’s like it would count less to just ask privately. And on a vacation no less… I don’t know. It’s like…more for the show than for a real-life commitment.”
Totally agree with this, I hate public proposals and public love confessions. But it turns out that Magnus wanted to propose to him like that and Michał is the one who apologizes. So to make it right, he decides to propose to Magnus right on the spot. And Magnus’ reaction:
He laughed so hard there were tears running down his cheeks all the way into his beard.
>>> The End<<<
Seriously. I was turning a page back on my Kindle that maybe something went wrong, but no. It’s the last line.
The first book I read by Roe Horvat was The Other Book and it was amazing, but Vanilla Clouds was a huge disappointment for me....more
Story 6000 years earlier, Cratus, a sentinel of Zeus, had defied Zeus’ order and had spared a life he should have taken. He had been punished severely,Story 6000 years earlier, Cratus, a sentinel of Zeus, had defied Zeus’ order and had spared a life he should have taken. He had been punished severely, his godhood taken, and forced to live on Earth as a mortal, deprived from even the tiniest morsel of happiness or satisfaction. Plus, he has been tortured and killed every night, and resurrected by the morning ever since.
The story sets in the present: the Greek pantheon is threatened by two Source gods, Noir and Azura. As Cratus (now Jericho) is a Source god himself, the Greeks send two Oneroi gods, Phobos and Delphine, to convince him to fight on their behalf, and in return he’d get back his godhood and powers.
The first 30 percent is very repetitive and boring. The rest seems chaotic and soap-opera-like. New and old characters are thrown randomly into the plot: Greek Gods, Source Gods, Oneroi, Skoti, Atlanteans, Daimons, Dark-Hunters, Gallu demons, the “original gods of sun and of fire” – I’m not sure I mentioned everyone. Plus the maze in which they are all connected somehow.
Romance The insta-love is justified with fate, no development.
Characters Jericho is tortured yet he has compassion and a soft side – unexpected even for him. He is tall and handsome with a lethal aura, and insanely hot.
Delphine is beautiful and perfect, with grace, a playful and caring attitude, and incredible fighting skills.
By the way, in this world all of the male characters are insanely handsome and tall, with a lethal aura, and all the women are petite (except Astrid, who is tall), beautiful, funny and wise.
All in all I read Dream Warrior two years ago, but I had to re-read it now because I didn’t review it then and I couldn’t remember a word from it.
I started to read this series more than 10 years ago, and I loved it back then. But obviously, my reading taste has changed a lot, and I don’t enjoy PNR books as much as I did. I’ve abandoned not only this one, but many PNR series I had started to read because of the same reason. Sometimes I feel guilty about it, so I read the next one in line, but they usually don’t satisfy me. Sadly, it happened again with Dream Warrior....more
Daniel is a weatherman in Denver, lives with his boyfriend Chase (whom he refers to as his husband) - they have been together for fifteen years. But DDaniel is a weatherman in Denver, lives with his boyfriend Chase (whom he refers to as his husband) - they have been together for fifteen years. But Daniel’s job is boring and unsatisfying, and his relationship is dying.
When Daniel loses his parents in a car crash, he goes back to his hometown Laramie, and tries to deal with his parents’ house. The house is full of clutter and it seems impossible to finish the job. Landon, a neighbor and a friend of his parents’ helps Daniel to deal with all the stuff in the house. Weeks pass, and Daniel and Landon are getting close to each other.
The story is actually about Daniel discovering and accepting that his long-term relationship with Chase is over and starting a new life with Landon.
A magic cookbook appears from nowhere, in which each meal has some kind of special effect. With the help of the cookbook Daniel is starting to see clearer his life and relationship.
The cookbook is the only “mystical” element in the story, and it is not explained. It’s just thrown into the plot as a device to get things into motion.
There is too much focus on Daniel and Chase’s relationship, and I also missed the excitement of Daniel and Landon getting together. First, I felt it too slow, but when Daniel (view spoiler)[finally breaks up with Chase, they move in together too quickly (hide spoiler)].
The story is told from Daniel’s viewpoint, in first person. It’s a very limited narrative, and he didn’t even manage to make me like him. Chase and Landon are one dimensional: Chase is boring and cold and kind of a loser, Landon is perfect and wonderful and amazing.
Unbalanced story, poor “fantasy” element, steamless erotic scenes, unlikeable characters. Palm reading and horoscopes are not my things either.
I know I'm in minority with my opinion on this book, but it was awful. Believe me, I don't enjoy not enjoying a boI've read only book 1, Dogwood Days.
I know I'm in minority with my opinion on this book, but it was awful. Believe me, I don't enjoy not enjoying a book.
So, I was seduced by the author (I read Blindsided by her and loved it) and by the pretty cover, and sadly I didn’t pay much attention to the blurb. I don’t enjoy small town stories. I like my stories to focus on the romance and on the main characters. Irrelevant episodes from the lives of caricaturish secondary characters I really don’t care about just bore and annoy me.
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I skimmed a lot, and tried to find those parts where Jefferson Lee and Zane were involved – it was not easy. There was not enough emphasis on the romance – it was lost in the sea of all the happenings in Holly Creek.
This kind of humor didn’t have much effect on me; I found Jefferson irritating; Zane’s character was seriously lacking; the romance was undeveloped, and that one and only erotic scene was awfully trite.
Actually, the first half of this extra episode is about the last couple of days before Will and Patrick are leaving for their honeymoon, the se2 stars
Actually, the first half of this extra episode is about the last couple of days before Will and Patrick are leaving for their honeymoon, the second half is about Will’s meddlesome and self-centered parents ruining it.
Ryan (view spoiler)[dying in liver failure from drinking is a surprise, I’d prefer if he came around, but I guess sometimes it’s just not possible to redeem an antagonist. (hide spoiler)]
The world building is quite interesting, with an unusual approach to vampires and angels. The storyline is not bad, but the romance is awful, I reallyThe world building is quite interesting, with an unusual approach to vampires and angels. The storyline is not bad, but the romance is awful, I really don’t know where the love comes from. I didn’t managed to like the main characters, Elena and Raphael, but the secondary characters were amazing, especially Illium and Dmitri. ...more
Secrets and lies, dishonesty, schemes, one of the MCs hiding being gay for seven years from his best friend and neighbor with whom he eats dinner basiSecrets and lies, dishonesty, schemes, one of the MCs hiding being gay for seven years from his best friend and neighbor with whom he eats dinner basically every day (not dating anyone or dating in secret?), said best friend not having anyone in his life for the last 15 years (only his neighbor), so is his ex, who, btw, is hiding a relationship from his son for 1 whole year, then more lies, and some more dishonesty. What a wonderful relationship/ family they’ll make!
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Enough is enough. DNF at 50%.
Ooh, and what is "taboo" here??? Please don't tell me it's two men having sex...
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Sam is turning 30 in three weeks, and he has a "20s Must Do List". One of the items on it is "Do something sexually taboo." It's a gay romance. I just don't get the title, it's upsetting.
At least I have a date tonight. Maybe just spending time with a woman will help me get rid of these random, intrusive, somewhat taboo thoughts.
It’s unsettling to think I’ve kissed a guy, but even more unsettling is that it makes my cock stir. It’s the taboo in it, I think. The thrill of doing something a lot of people frown upon.
“I just want to do something a little . . . taboo. If . . . I mean . . . we could experiment...
Doing the taboo—or just thinking about it—really seems to do it for me.
“I don’t think it’s wrong, ” I say hurriedly to Luke. “But it is . . . taboo, you know?
Why did I have to do the taboo with Luke? Yes, I liked being with Luke—really liked it. But it was the taboo of it. It was.
I almost didn’t finish it. I considered quitting at the first chapter: crazy rich and perfectly beautiful characters, annoying frat problems. Then – fI almost didn’t finish it. I considered quitting at the first chapter: crazy rich and perfectly beautiful characters, annoying frat problems. Then – for whatever reason – I went on.
But I skipped a lot of pages. A lot.
The frat house issues left me totally uninterested. The characters were too black and white, too papier-mâché. The storyline was predictable.
But the writing style is pretty good, the interactions of the two main characters are entertaining, the sex scenes are hot. Although too bad that (view spoiler)[Keaton’s first time topping (hide spoiler)] was off page.
The romance is sugary sweet and unbelievable, and apparently money can solve many things. Well, at least that’s true.
Ben and Dean have been friends for a year. Out of the blue, Ben asks Dean to (view spoiler)[fuck him (hide spoiler)]. Yes, just like that. Because – hBen and Dean have been friends for a year. Out of the blue, Ben asks Dean to (view spoiler)[fuck him (hide spoiler)]. Yes, just like that. Because – he says – he’s curious.
Dean is reluctant as he is convinced that this would ruin their friendship. He does it anyway, you know, because he can’t resist. After that Ben (view spoiler)[confesses he is attracted to Dean, he even states he loves him (hide spoiler)]. The reason he wanted (view spoiler)[to be fucked before talking to Dean about his feelings was that he wanted to know if he likes gay sex or not (hide spoiler)].
Nevertheless, as he (view spoiler)[enjoyed himself with Dean, he is ready to start a relationship with him (hide spoiler)].
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Both of the main (there are no secondary characters) characters are utterly irritating: Ben is pushy and just makes no sense, Dean’s behavior is opinionated and ridiculous. No heat, no backstory, only a joke about snoring…
This whole situation is a nonsense. An affectionate and sincere marriage is not like the one presented here, friends don’t talk to each other like theThis whole situation is a nonsense. An affectionate and sincere marriage is not like the one presented here, friends don’t talk to each other like the way James and Kent do, and – not that I know much about this – I don’t think the everyday life of a president is like that. This story is very artificial and unrealistic. The characters are thinking way too much about the same thing over and over again, the writing style is killing me, no humor, no steam, no development.
It’s really difficult to find a good polyamorous story, and this one is a disappointment again....more
I love friends-to-lovers stories, but this one was a huge disappointment: confused narration, undeveloped romance, irritating characters with incohereI love friends-to-lovers stories, but this one was a huge disappointment: confused narration, undeveloped romance, irritating characters with incoherent behavior, annoying situations, disconnected motifs, and many things unexplained.
Only one quote:
It was one hell of a kiss. They were both giggling when they parted.
We have a prologue where Sean (Tag) realizes that he is in love with his best friend Jase. Fast forward two years: Sean has a kid fIt was simply bad.
We have a prologue where Sean (Tag) realizes that he is in love with his best friend Jase. Fast forward two years: Sean has a kid from a hook up, and he and his little boy just get abandoned by the mother of the child Lisa. Though Sean and Jase haven’t really stayed in touch in the past two years, Sean feels it’s okay to call his once best friend in the middle of the night and ask him to come over. Because he needs him. And he also feels it’s time to tell Jase how he feels about him (fitting title, huh?). Jase suddenly realizes that he has always been attracted to Sean, and in two days he decides to live happily ever after with Sean and Cody (the little boy).
The storyline is crap, the characters are superficial, the feelings are not palpable, the romance is abrupt, the sex scene is totally unrealistic and MF-like. There are hardly any dialogues, and even those are very artificial.
The narrative is awful. Almost the whole story is told from retrospect: things are told but not shown. It’s annoying and boring.
Oh, and one of my biggest pet peeves : the “baby” endearment. I really hate it....more
The story seemed interesting: erotic sci-fi, polyamorist society, DP… I was totally up for it.
BUT.
The storyline is gappy, the characters’ feelings foThe story seemed interesting: erotic sci-fi, polyamorist society, DP… I was totally up for it.
BUT.
The storyline is gappy, the characters’ feelings for one another are based on only their perfect appearances, and the social system is ridiculous: the ONLY legal form of marriage is the union of four men. If you have only two partners, you don’t get a marriage license, and it is also illegal to have penetrative sex.
The main character, Tabansi, had found two wonderful men, Trevor and Christopher on his very first “soiree”, but they were unable to find a fourth partner for a long time. Trevor and Christopher died in an accident when they had been on their way home with news about the guy they'd finally found to complete their marriage group. Tabansi is devastated since then, and now he has very limited choices to proceed in his life. He has to find a marriage group to join soon, or he will be forced back to the “soiree house” to find new partners. He is allowed to have only three more soirees, and if he fails, he is going to be declared a spinster, and he will be in danger of losing his job as a doctor (why???) and forced into prostitution (again, why???). What kind of fucked up system is that???
The story starts with Tabansi encountering three men in the gym, Maddock, Jordy and Taggart, and he is instantly, insanely drawn to them, and it totally mutual. Maddock happens to be the guy Trevor and Christopher had found back then. After their death, Maddock was devastated too, but meeting Jordy and Taggart has eased his grief a little… At the beginning of the story, Maddock’s intentions are romantic and noble: he wants to give a future to Tabansi, but he is afraid what happens when Tabansi finds out who he is. But it never happens, Maddock never tells Tabansi he was supposed to be the fourth partner to their marriage group, so this problem is solved.
The writing is awful, and not just because it’s repetitive (the term “older man” appears 25 times, “younger man” 47 times, “Trevor and Christopher” or “Christopher and Trevor” 22 times), but because of the poor depiction of characters and of their relationship too. Maddock had fallen in love with Tabansi just by looking at a picture Trevor and Christopher showed him. Later Maddock states love is not an option for him.
He had never loved anyone before. He didn't know how to love someone. So while some part of him wanted to… love Tabansi, the rest of him was well aware of the fact that he was incapable of such an emotion. It was practically foreign to him.
How happy his partners, Jordy and Taggart, would be if they knew this… If Maddock has never felt love before, what kind of relationship was that with them? [image]
Maddock wants to keep things with Tabansi “purely physical”. A couple of pages later they all united in a sublime ceremony with earth-shattering orgasms, white lights and all.
Being who he was… what he was, he was more likely to destroy someone if he truly loved them and he couldn't destroy Tabansi.
What was he???
Apart from the poor writing and the superficial portrayal of emotions and relationships, it’s not the kind of polyamory I want to read about. The beautiful thing in polyamory is that it is so free-form, you have so many choices. I’m a polyamorist, but I don’t think it is the only way people should live. Forcing a certain form of relationship or marriage system on people, even if it happens in fiction, is not right. [image] ...more
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