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PROMO BLITZ: Jingle Bells & Tentacles Spells by Chloe Archer
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BLOG TOUR: The New Worlds by Jaye C. Watts (Excerpt)
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REVIEW: Black and Brown by A.E. Via
Ravens: Black and Brown – A.E. Via
Grace’s composed, yet lethal disposition balances his partner Mirage’s impulsive nature, creating a duo—the second-generation Brown Ravens—with the potential for greatness.
Grace was one of the most decorated sharpshooters in the Marines. He’s fiercely committed to righting the wrongs that plague the world and protecting the innocent.
But there are too many rules and strict orders in the armed forces the Ravens don’t have.Mirage left his world without a trace.
He has a brilliant mind and more degrees in science and medicine than one person could ever hope to obtain.
Now that the Ravens are done administering their treatments, Mirage can throw knives so fast they turn into phantom blades before he disappears in a way that leaves his enemies in chaos and confusion. And Grace can hit a target from three miles away.When together, their form of silent communication in the field is astonishing. Grace’s subtle body movements speak their own language and his long, intense stares into Mirage’s grey eyes have created a special bond neither of them saw coming.
A forbidden romance that won’t stop them from being the second-best assassins in the world.Triggers: Violence
Our introduction to the Ravens was in Ex Meridian, Book 7 of Nothing Special, a book that had me waxing poetic with how GOOD it is. Ex and Meridian are the first-generation Ravens, code-named Blacks. They’re partners turned lovers in a forbidden romance that forever changed their lives.
In one of their missions, they worked with the Nothing Special cops. The book left me so intrigued, I was beyond ecstatic when I learned A.E. Via created a series about these enhanced black ops assassins.
Black and Brown opens the series with the second-generation Ravens, code-named Browns. The secret program significantly enhanced their abilities, giving Mirage super-fast, super-accurate knife-throwing skills and sharpening Grace’s already formidable sniper skills. Their unique fighting style has Grace using the big guns while Mirage is behind him in the shadows, making it seem like knives are coming out of nowhere.
Mirage was a former combat medic, surgeon, and scientist with multiple doctorates and the son of decorated army medics. He talks a lot, and nearly burned Grace’s kitchen trying to fry bacon. Grace was a former military sniper from a small town family with a deadbeat dad who killed his mom. He’s a man of few words and a Bobby Flay in the kitchen. I swooned at the many dinner dates Grace lovingly prepared for his man!
The story follows the evolution of their relationship, from when they were recruited into the program, the enhancements, trainings, and their years in the field, up until that fateful day, Grace witnesses an unguarded moment between Ex and Meridian. It changed the way he saw his partnership with Mirage, giving him hope they could be something more.
Later, they learned there’s a traitor in their organization, and it’s time they choose their own mission.
Mirage and Grace’s dynamic reminded me a lot of God and Day, with a big, taciturn man and a talkative, slightly smaller one. But Mirage and Grace are memorable and different enough. Mirage, talkative and smaller, is the top. My favorite part is how he is always greatly appreciative of Grace’s silence, wrapping it around himself like a comfort blanket.
Another thing that stood out is how the author’s writing has greatly improved. As much as I loved Nothing Special, the first books were clunky and amateurish. Happily, the series improved as it progressed.
Here, the writing is much more refined, the plot well-thought-out, and the romantic development was natural, deliciously slow burn, and hella heartmelting for a pair of deadly assassins. The sex scenes were at the right moments, compared to the poorly deployed ones in the other earlier books. The action scenes were fast-paced and suspenseful, with just the right tension and thrill to keep things exciting.
The vulnerable moments were tenderly intimate. There’s something precious about the big badass Grace being needy and touch-starved, and Mirage being the only one he showed that side of him. When they’re not being secretly sweet and cuddly, they’re intense and fiercely passionate!
It’s best to see the Blacks in action first in Ex Meridian before diving into the Ravens. Black and Brown is told in dual POVs, and also Meridian’s. I loved that we have the Blacks again. My only wish was that the POVs were more balanced. We don’t have Ex’s, and he was kinda shoved to the sidelines.
Black and Brown is a close-proximity, sci-fi-lite, forbidden romance between two assassins from a super-secret black ops program. In a life of guns and knives, it is also two men building trust, exploring intimacy, and speaking volumes in comforting silence and thoughtful gestures. Overall, a thrilling and emotional story of badass assassins and cozy husbands!
Rating:
4 Stars – minor quibbles but I loved it to bitsSoundtrack: We’re In This Together
Artist: Nine Inch Nails
Album: The Fragile
If you like my content, please consider using my Amazon affiliate links below to buy your copy of Black and Brown. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying Amazon purchases at no additional cost to you.
BLACK AND BOWN Kindle | Audiobook
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BLOG TOUR: Captains of Oartheca by James Siewert (Excerpt)
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COVER REVEAL: Captains of Oartheca by James Siewert (Excerpt)
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BLOG TOUR: Into The Gray Scale by Oge Mobuogwun (Excerpt & Giveaway + Q&A with Author)
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PREORDER BLAST: Millennium Bug by Yvonne Knop (Excerpt & Giveaway + Q&A with Author)
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NEW RELEASE BLITZ: Black Leather Night and Other Tales by Will Okatii (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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REVIEW: A Bright Celestial Sea by Chani Lynn Feener
A Bright Celestial Sea – Chani Lynn Feener
Pryor Oro came to the Olympus to find a missing Imperial, not fall for one.
On the space station Olympus, a disappearance and a theft has captured the attention of the Intergalactic Police Force. Assigned to the case, Pryor heads to the World Ship in order to search for a missing prince. While there, he’s forced to work with the Emperor, Wystan Aurelius, who seems to never let Pryor out of his sight. Confused over why a man he’s never met is acting so possessive, Pryor’s urgency to solve the case and get away from Olympus and its ruler intensifies, even as the unruly Emperor starts to grow on him.
Wystan Aurelius finds life on a World Ship dull, until Detective Pryor steps onto his ship, and into his territory.
More concerned with discovering who has stolen missing medical technology, Wystan couldn’t care less about a vanished prince from another planet. At least, not until he sees how invested in the case Pryor is, and realizes how upset he gets when he doesn’t have the Detective’s full attention turned his way, and his way only. Wystan finds himself at a crossroads. Force Pryor to accept him by telling the truth? Or win him over the old-fashioned way?
Wystan’s secrets could unravel everything, but he isn’t the only one hiding things. Pryor’s privy to some classified information could end up turning the entire galaxy for a loop. Together, the two must navigate through their emotions and the seedy underside of Olympus to solve the case before it’s too late, and life, as they both know it, is altered forever.
A Bright Celestial Sea is another book written by Chani Lynn Feener in the same sci-fi universe as Between the Devil and the Sea and A Sea of Endless Light. It does not have a name yet, but I’ll call it IPF-verse since the Intergalactic Police Force is one thing common with the other books. Also, the MCs are IPF detectives with secrets they desperately want to stay buried.
The opening puts us right in the thick of things. From what I could suss out, a member of the Tiberian imperial family, nephew to the Empress, is missing. A critical illness, a top-secret nano-technology, and a classified medical procedure were uncovered. There’s an assassination attempt, and either imperial twins, sons of the Empress, might be involved, but then they were supposed to be dead.
All of this happend in Olympus, which is the world ship of the Vexans.
I spent half the book untangling the convoluted plot. For one, I was confused by all the names that came up. I was audiobooking this, and the Tiberian Imperials had very close-sounding names that I didn’t immediately realize there were several of them.
Roth is the nephew, the party boy wasting Tiberian tax money on lavish shindigs across the galaxy. Rath is his twin and is said to have died at birth or missing (I’m not sure). Ross is the twin most favored by the Empress, so he’s spoiled rotten. Rune is the unwanted, sickly spare.
The world-building was just enough to establish there are world ships, essentially artificial planets, and Olympus is ruled by twin Vexan emperors Wystan and his sister. The two alternately ruled every six months. It seems the Tiberians and Vexans are born in pairs, and this is a key element here.
Also, Vexans have the most beautiful eyes, which are the color of galaxies. The cover grabbed me with the image of Wystan and his eyes.
It helped that I had read the other books, so I was able to piece together the setting. Similarly, we have an IPF team led by Detective Pryor Oro and Inspector Castor (forgot his last name). Immediately, sparks flew as Pryor butted heads with the cocky and shamelessly flirty Wystan, who made it clear he wanted the detective.
Also, Pryor is a Tiberian, and saying the case hits close to home is a gross understatement, as we later discover.
The author was building some delicious antagonistic USTs, but I couldn’t fully enjoy it. I was too busy trying to understand what was going on. This is also the very thing that makes the mystery so compelling. I was in the dark until the bad guy showed his cards.
The second half was full-on squee-tastic BL manga vibes, with my favorite childhood connection trope working its magic. Because Pryor was that abused young boy Wystan wanted to protect once upon a time ago, and adult Pryor is strength, competence, and hurts rolled into one irresistibly gorgeous package.
The detective is still dealing with PTSD and amnesia, and the emperor is that possessive, adoring seme patiently waiting for his hot/cold yet can’t stay away uke, to remember and/or admit they knew each other as children. Meanwhile, it wouldn’t hurt to shower the overworked detective with TLCs and assist, a.k.a. insert himself in the investigation whether the detective wants him to or not.
This part tied beautifully with the mystery, giving us an edge-your-seat villain showdown and a slow-clap-worthy takedown of the person who hurt Pryor the most. It was fanfuckingtastic! And so satisfying, especially knowing what Pryor had gone through. It totally made the book for me!
A Bright Celestial Sea is a story of unwanted children, secret identities, and inescapable ties. The “cold open” and figuring out who’s who took some time for me before the story hit its stride. But I’m thrilled I stuck around. Ultimately, It was a rewarding experience.
Overall, a complex mystery and a sweet sci-fi romance between two men who shine the brightest at their most vulnerable.
Rating:
4 Stars – minor quibbles but I loved it to bitsSoundtrack: Celestial Bodies
Artist: Ghost Data feat. Jovani Occomy
Album: The Occulus Occult
If you like my content, please consider using my Amazon affiliate links below to buy your copy of A Bright Celestial Sea. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying Amazon purchases at no additional cost to you.
A BRIGHT CELESTIAL SEA: Kindle | Audiobook
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RELEASE BLITZ: World Enough and Time by Chad Grayson (Excerpt & Giveaway)
