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MANGA: One Side In Room
One Side In Room – Mitsuko
Oka, a student, whose gaze could be considered menacing to others and which has led him to be apart from the rest, is in love with Saeki, a handsome student who attends his university.
A few days after the entrance ceremony, during the welcome party of his club, Saeki kisses Oka and tells him: “you’re adorable”.
Ever since that moment, both of them start sharing more and more time together in Oka’s house. They even had more intimate interactions than just kisses. Oka thinks Saeki might be with him on a whim due to his relaxed personality. However, Saeki might be actually taking his actions towards Oka quite seriously…One Side in Room is a closed proximity, tsundere romance between two university students with opposite personalities.
Oka has a resting bitch face and crippling social anxiety, which prevents him from interacting with other students. He’s attracted to the super popular Saeki, who caught Oka staring at him often.
Saeki met Oka on the train after witnessing the introverted man kindly offering his seat to another passenger. When they were both at a drinking party, Saeki took his chance and kissed Oka. Since then, Saeki kept showing up at Oka’s apartment any chance he got.
This would have been your run-of-the-mill opposites attract romance, but Saeki won extra points for being the only seme who’s concerned about how his uke felt after seducing him.
While there is no dub-con, Oka goes along with the flow, wondering why Saeki is doing what he is doing. Our boy is pretty much resigned that his crush was experimenting and will soon go back to girls.
A part that pinched the heart was Oka, always leaving space on the other side of his bed, just in case Saeki arrived in the middle of the night. Saeki often does, attaboy! The biggest emotional arrow to the kokoro is that Saeki and Oka have heartfelt things to say to each other, and they don’t know how. Oh, the agony!
The romance was slow-burn, angsty, and full of delicious pining. This allowed the characters to grow and develop, making their connection feel genuine and relatable. Oka is my introverted spirit animal, and Saeki proved himself worthy by staying true and speaking from his soul.
Their story, especially the beginning reminds me of this Arctic Monkeys song:
Stop makin’ the eyes at me
I’ll stop makin’ my eyes at you
What it is that surprises me is
That I don’t really want you to
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REVIEW: The Witch and His Crow by Ben Alderson
The Witch Trials: The Witch and His Crow – Ben Alderson
‘Rule them. Win. Become Grand High.’
My name is Hector Briar, and I live for revenge. It’s been eighteen years since Witch Hunters murdered my parents, and still the night haunts me. A part of me died that night, when six-year-old me was forced to listen to their brutal murder. Since then, I’ve gone from prey to predator. I spend my nights stalking Oxford’s streets for those who’d see me slaughtered for being what I am. A witch. And more than that, the son of the last Grand High.
I’ve spent the last years hidden in the shadows, not only from Witch Hunters but also my own kind. But one fateful night lands me directly in the hands of the people I’ve been evading my entire life-the Coven. Whereas the Witch Hunters want to destroy me, the Coven want me for a darker fate. For my blood. It’s the key to starting the Witch Trials – a contest to find the next Grand High, a contest where witches battle to the death, or madness.
Thrown into the middle of the very contest my mother died trying to prevent, I must make allies with my enemies if I wish to survive the first night. Not so bad when my ally so happens to be an attractive blue-eyed, 6ft-something, tattooed from neck to navel, bloodthirsty rival-Arwyn Morgan.
But I soon discover that not is all as it seems. There are dark forces lingering in the shadows and the truth is a hard pill to swallow. The Witch Hunters seek a Champion of their own. Enemies and allies lose all meaning when a wolf invades the flock.
Surviving the Witch Trials quickly becomes the least of my worries when ancient forces reveal their true natures. Something dark stirs within me, waiting for its inevitable freedom. I’m the key to keeping it locked away, or freeing it.
The Witch and his Crow is the first book in a MM paranormal romance new series of heart-pounding romance, witchcraft, and bloodthirsty enemies, perfect for fans of The Serpent and the Wings of Night and Her Soul to Take
The Witch and His Crow is the first book of The Witch Trials, an intriguing paranormal romance by Ben Alderson. I thought it would be a pairing between the witch and a crow shifter.
The witch is Hector Briar. He was orphaned at the age of six after his parents were murdered by witch hunters. His mother, Heather, then the Grand High of witches, left him in the care of a shadowy entity that takes the form of a crow.
Hector grew up under the care of his familiar, Cayman, hunting the hunters and hiding from the coven. He’s an air witch and a telekinetic. One day, he is caught and coerced to join The Witch Trials since his Briar blood is key to a big secret.
The plot then focused on a Battle Royale/Triwizard Tournament-style contest with three trials. Ever since watching the OG Japanese movie Battle Royale, other stories with this plot tend to pale in comparison. The book didn’t offer anything new, so in this aspect, it was more or less standard fare.
The crow, Cayman, was sadly absent for most of the story. He was the most intriguing character, and I wanted more interactions with him and the other characters. I hope he reappears in future books in one form or another.
The weakest aspect for me was the main characters. Try as I could, I didn’t connect with any of them. The characterizations felt shallow, and I felt Hector. as the 1st person narrator didn’t seem to own the story. I could swap another character, perhaps Salem, the scarred witch, and it would still work.
In the opening chapter, I was genuinely impressed by Hector. He appeared formidable as the lone wolf confronting the witch hunters, with only Caymen at his side. However, during the Witch Trials, he often jumped to rash conclusions and made questionable decisions that left me wondering how he had managed to survive alone for so long.
Arwyn, the enemy-turned-lover-turned-enemy-again, wasn’t necessarily cardboard, but he was the typical tall, dark, and witchy love interest mold. Even his big reveal wasn’t that surprising. But boy, that ending sure changed my mind about it. Darkness is a good look for the hunky witch.
Romy also piqued my interest in the opening chapter. Then she turned into some kind of manic pixie dream girl, conveniently catering to whatever Hector needed. Too bad because her gift is one of the scariest and the most helpful. She’s a fire witch who can melt flesh and bone, or conversely, mend them.
The strongest aspects were the world-building and the magic system. The vibe is wonderfully gothic. Think overcast skies, ancient castles, old graveyards, and secret passageways. This is a world where old magic no longer exists, and witches have gifts, typically associated with an element. It’s immersive despite Hector as narrator and a big factor why I stuck with the book.
They worship Hecate, and as the story progresses, we learn the limitations of Hecate’s powers and that darker forces exist in the periphery, biding their time. I’m hoping the darker forces will come into play more in future books. The combination of old magic and gifts would also make the world richer and more dangerous if they continue with the trials.
Hector, Arwyn, and Romy form a tentative coven and navigate the trials while dealing with betrayals from all sides, even among themselves, and enemies coming out of the woodwork. Everything hinges on Hector’s family legacy, and when it comes down to the wire – BAM! That twist was insidious and hella creepy!
And just like that, Hector became a million times more interesting and I’m super hyped for the next book. It came at the very end but still, a complete gamechanger!
The Witch and His Crow is a mixed-bag but won me over in the end. Atmospheric, fantastically witchy, with a bombshell ending that crept up the spine.
Rating:
3.5 Stars – that place between like and loveSoundtrack: Shadow
Artist: Amigo The Devil
Album: Born Against
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THE WITCH AND HIS CROW: Kindle | Audiobook
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SOUNDTRACK: Shadow by Amigo The Devil
Soundtrack to The Witch Trials: The Witch and His Crow by Ben Alderson
Shadow by Amigo The Devil for a book where a boy who grew up in the shadows learned to embrace the darkness in his blood.
And every rule we follow was also made to brеak
And everything we lеt go, there’s something else we take
A goal without ambition is a key without the lock
And who is there to listen when the shadow has to talk?…
Only feeling alone around people
Getting by, making it believable
Love without compassion is fire without a spark
But who protects the shadow, better than the dark? -
We drag around a shadow with every step we take
And every bad decision, now also theirs to make
The thief that only borrows in a sea without the shark
But who protects the shadow from the dark?A thousand different angles say the circles name in vain
Are we crucifying the savior or a masochist in pain
The knife without the handle, a shark without the sea
But who will give the shadow everything it needs?And every rule we follow was also made to brеak
And everything we lеt go, there’s something else we take
A goal without ambition is a key without the lock
And who is there to listen when the shadow has to talk?The time we take to wonder the point of being alive
The small talk we depend on like drinking piss to survive
The daughter of the addict wears her wedding dress to prom
And no one cares to find out where the shadow’s coming fromThe old interpretations of how everyone should look
The cold and spiteful rhetoric inspired by a book
And hate without tradition is Noah without the ark
And who protects the shadow from the dark?Only feeling alone around people
Getting by, making it believable
Love without compassion is fire without a spark
But who protects the shadow, better than the dark? -
MOVIE FEATURE: In From The Side
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NEW RELEASE BLITZ: At Her Service by K.S. Trenten (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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RELEASE BLITZ: Power Forward by Jodi Oliver
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FLICKer: Sacrament
Featuring LGBT short films I found around the interwebz a.k.a Youtube. Okay sucky intro, but yeah, that’s it.
A gay married couple must confront their religious differences when family starts pressuring them to get their baby baptized.
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RELEASE BLITZ: Possessive Puckboy by Eden Finley & Saxon James (Giveaway)
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BOOK TOUR: Lovely Dark and Deep by Elisa A. Bonnin
