This entire book is the epitome of a chef's kiss. I can't think of a single thing I cwould change in it. The dynamic between our two main characters, the very smart and insightful way of approaching trauma and discovering onesself (to go into detail, the way the trans character was introduced and brought up?! Phenomenal! I already described this to friends and customers as a fantastic rich and dynamic fantasy that everyone MUST get their hands on and read.

I had the opportunity to read A Strange and Stubborn Endurance as an e-arc while on vacation and I immediately pre-ordered when I finished, which speaks to how much I enjoyed it! Yes, there are some problems I had with it (more on that below), but all I want in books right now are queer political marriages and slow burn romances, and this had that in spades.

ASaSE follows Velasin, the son of a lord who is sent off, in disgrace, to another country for a political marriage. Very early into the book (~15-30 pages in) Vel is sexually assaulted by his ex and this event sets the trajectory of the book. Despite its dark start, and continued dark events, ASaSE is a story of healing with a central slow burn romance.

I enjoyed the pacing, the romantic plot, and the character development/healing journey. The balance between happy moments and the stark realities of dealing with past traumas and social conditioning was well-done. Moments went from sweet to dark at the snap of a finger, but it never felt forced or shocking, it felt realistic to Vel's triggers and the escalating events of the story. This was also mostly the same with moments that went from dark to light (though some didn't work for me) - with time skips, or the characters intentionally acting to bring lightness to a dark moment.

However, the book is lacking in the external plot. The murder mystery/political intrigue plot lacked substance. It does contribute to the romance and the pacing/romance beats, but it would need a lot more to stand on its own. There was too much wild goose chasing for me, particularly when our MCs could have solved the problem a lot earlier if they'd made any effort/been suspicious of literally anyone.

But honestly, until the end, I didn't really care about that because the characters' journeys and the romance were at the forefront of the story and both really worked for me.

I definitely recommend checking out A Strange and Stubborn Endurance!

CW: On page SA, suicidal ideation, self-harm, animal death, homophobia, violence

As the third son of a landed noble, Velasin vin Aaro has very few expectations for his future. In Ralia's homophobic society, Velasin has accepted that he will never marry and that his preference for the company of other men must remain a secret. When Velasin is unexpectedly summoned by his father for a visit, he's shocked to learn he's been betrothed at the behest of the King to a woman from a noble family in the neighboring country of Tithenai. Until recently the two nations have been at war. Both countries are looking to this marriage to strengthen relations and stabilize peace.

What Velasin doesn't expect is that the lover he has recently parted ways with would follow him to his father's estate. When Velasin refuses to leave with him, his lover sexually assaults him and to Velasin's even greater misfortune they are seen by the envoy from Tithenai who is arriving to escort him to his wedding. The envoy offers up the brother of his intended for the match instead, as Tithenai does not discriminate against same-sex relationships. Despite being terrified that he is heading from one assault straight to another, Velasin is forced to accept the new arrangement both to keep the alliance and because he has been exiled by his father.

Velasin's new intended is Caethari Aeduria, soldier and middle child of the Tiernan. Cae spent years riding against raiders against Ralia and earned the name the Wild Knife. With forces aligned against their marriage and danger closing in, Velasin and Cae must learn to rely on each other if they're going to track down the culprits and make their marriage work.

A Strong and Stubborn Endurance is a little bit mystery novel, a little bit fantasy novel, and a large bit romance novel. If you are not a fan of romance novel conventions or on page sexual assault and frequent discussions of said sexual assault, this is not the book for you. In all honesty I think the promo materials and ad copy for this book do not do enough to warn about the rape scene, so please believe me when I say it is explicit. It is also brought up throughout the rest of the book as Velasin processes his trauma, so it's not something you can simply skip over if this is triggering for you.

To be entirely honest, this wasn't the book for me, for multiple reasons. Part of that is personal preference. This book simply did not hit me right. But part of it is also execution issues.

The world building is interesting and the novel starts at a quick pace, but once it reaches the meat of the story it gets bogged down by a tangent heavy first person point of view. Velasin is not allowed a single unquestioned opinion, statement, or lack of prejudice. Each time this happens there is a lengthy story or reason given that derails the book, sometimes for pages on end. No minor character detail or story element is left without this examination. It's worst in Velasin's POV, but Caethari's also suffers from this same issue. While a little of this is helpful to establish a character, the constant use it did nothing but make reading a tedious affair. The total book clocks in at 544 pages but if the tangents had been reigned in it could easily have been a much tighter 350 pages.

My other major issue with the book was pacing. While some of this is obviously due to the aforementioned tangents, some of it was poor plotting. A lot of the main part of the book relies on incident after incident occurring at an incredibly wild rate, so much so that it started to feel less like part of the mystery and more like a stalling tactic to give a plausible amount of time for the romance to happen. Even the conclusion felt oddly rushed for how much had led into it, despite also feeling like reading it took one thousand years.

Then there was the romance element. While I'm not a huge romance reader, I do read them and enjoy them. I mention this because I want you to understand that I know what I'm talking about when I say some of the romance parts read like a bad self published Kindle Unlimited romance and the sex scenes were so overly described they became awkward. Beyond that, the pace set for Velasin and Cae's relationship development is bonkers. This is definitely a situation where your mileage may vary, but boy was it a deal breaker for me.

Having said all that, I do think there are great parts to this book. The characters were interesting and so was the world building. It's a diverse book which brought in influences from non-European cultures and reveled in them. Meadows also has a good eye for description which helps flesh out the world. I can't say I'd recommend it though.

Thank you to Net Galley for providing me with a copy of this! Please note the huge trigger warning for rape, self harm and attempted suicide in this book. The on-page rape happens very early on and although I believe the topic is handled well and with care, it is graphic, sudden and is a large focus of the book (and this review).

The book follows Velasin, a closeted gay man, whose father has arranged for him to marry a girl from their neighbouring nation Tithena. An awful series of events leads to Velasin’s preference for men being exposed, but the Tithenai envoy is happy to offer up the girl’s brother for marriage instead. Not everyone, it seems, is happy about Velasin’s arrival in Tithenai and murder and mystery is soon afoot. First of all, I have discovered that I love queer arranged marriage plots and this has big Winter’s Orbit vibes, with its intricate world building, a focus on healing from trauma, and marriage for political purposes (although obviously more magic and less space).

The sexual violence at the start is harrowing and does come as a massive shock if you’re not expecting it. The book gets very dark, very quickly, so once again, please be careful when picking this up. The trauma is handled sensitively and with care, and seeing Velasin’s new husband Caethari support and help him through his recovery is emotional and really sweet. The care, respect and admiration that Cae shows Velasin is so tender and after the horror of the first chapters, watching their romance is unfold is a delight.

Markel, Velasin’s mute valet, is an absolute legend and deserves a Best Side Character award. The rest of the supporting cast are interesting and incredibly diverse, making for a rich and exciting fantasy world. The world building is excellent, and really interesting, especially with the contrast between Velasin’s very conservative country and Caethari’s very open one, which leads to a lot great discussions on gender. There’s great non-binary, trans and disability rep throughout the book, which is interwoven into the world building.

There’s lots of running around palaces discovering murders which gives the plot a good pace. Horses are also featured heavily, if you’re a former horse girl like me. The political mystery is intriguing and good fun, and does provide a contrast to the heavier and darker themes of trauma recovery, although at times these two storylines don’t feel like they intermesh properly. Whilst individually both are well written, one will typically get put on the back burner whilst the other takes centre stage, which occasionally means the tone and mood of some scenes feels off.

Overall, a beautifully crafted fantasy world with a great cast of characters, and a romance that is refreshingly full of healthy communication. Velasin and Caethari are likeable characters and the development of their relationship is gently paced, allowing for Velasin to heal and find himself again, whilst also letting the desire and chemistry to build between the two of them.

Thank you to the author (Foz Meadows) and publisher (Tor) for an advance reading copy of A Strange and Stubborn Endurance. This did not influence my thoughts or opinions. A Strange and Stubborn Endurance releases July 26th, 2022.

A Strange and Stubborn Endurance checked all of the right boxes. When I read the line ”arranged marriage meets queer fantasy romance,” I never placed a review request so fast before. The juxtaposition of a culture of repression to one of acceptance set up the foundation for a plot rich in mystery and political intrigue.

As with the culture, the characters are juxtaposed against each other and you'll find an exploration of healing and self-worth. I mentioned in my content warnings that there is a sexual assault within the story. It is the inciting incident and occurs very early. I do wish we could get to a point where sexual assault isn't used to set the characters onto their character journey. There is a journey of healing following the assault, and the character does have to face his abuser at least two times afterwards, if I am remembering correctly.

I really enjoyed the relationship that developed between Velasin and Caethari. There is a forced proximity aspect that helped to facilitate communication and in turn friendship and trust. Another addition that I loved was Velasin's valet, Markel. He communicated primarily through sign and it's not something usually done in books. The place that Caethari was from welcomed kemi-- third-gender souls who possessed an identity beyond male or female. I loved how open and welcoming Caethari's homeland was compared to Velasin's.

The plot was faced paced and at times, the characters didn't have a chance to slow down. There were periods of time when I felt the plot worked like this: something bad happened, Velasin and Caethari were informed, no one saw how it happened, they went to investigate, and this cycled through a few times. At one point, they always seemed to be reacting instead of being able to be proactive.

A Strange and Stubborn Endurance was full of secrets, political intrigue, scheming, and machinations. Despite being wrapped up in the twists and turns, I was able to figure out the main villain about 25-30% into the story. This was low on magic use. I wished there was more magic included because it was some of the more interesting details. By the end, there were one or two things that were never brought up again despite being mentioned a few times, such as the rosewood chest-- I really need to know if Velasin ever retrieved it. The writing was elegant and beautiful. The descriptions of the clothing and food were some of my favorites, and I wish I could have some of those little suns myself!

Content Warnings: sexual assault, suicidal ideation, self-harm, animal death

This was fantastic. I didn't know what to expect going into this, but it really blew me away. I also really appreciated that it had content warnings inside the book. Will definitely be recommending this.

Exceptionally beautiful story with drawing and super intriguing characters and the plot line that has you not only engaged but also keeping you on the toes every now and then. Can’t recommend enough!!

I received a copy of this book for review from NetGalley. This book is beautifully written, but before you do anything else, check the content warnings. The main character endures on page trauma, and spends a good part of the book learning to deal with the fallout from those events, and if this is something that is hard for you, then you can wait to read it.
With that being said, I could not put this book down. This is a long book, and a lot happens, but it absolutely does not lag. This is primarily a romance, but there is a lot of political intrigue and mystery to carry the emotion along, and it all happens relatively quickly. The characters are handled with sensitivity, and the plot is interesting. Cae is utterly soft for Vel, and I absolutely adore him, and want to bring him home for cuddles. The only downside is that I was left feeling a little unsure about whether this was a stand alone or the first book in a series. Otherwise, I loved this book, and enjoyed that it has the same feel as Everina Maxwell's Winter's Orbit.

A Strange and Stubborn Endurance is an engaging YA romantic fantasy with some darker themes at the center of the plot. The story has tons of political intrigue and a well-developed romance. Vel is betrothed to a woman in a diplomatic union when he is walked in on by the envoy getting raped by a male ex-lover. The envoy suggests he marries the brother of his bride instead because they are accepting of male-male relationships. The country Vel is from, however, does not. They violently oppose the marriage which ends up being a fight for survival every step of the way. The romance is a slow-burn and is very sweet. Highly recommended!

This is a hard book to rate because I cannot broadly recommend it to any reader out there. If you have read the description and you are interested- it is a book that does deliver in a satisfying manner! But you should also be aware of the need to heed the content warnings in this case. The prose was lovely, but needing to put the book down shortly after it gets going is hard to forget.

First things first – the content warnings, since this book has a lot of them and some are pretty graphic, so content warnings for: sexual assault, suicidal thoughts, trauma, self-harm, animal death, homophobia, and ableism. I also haven’t seen many people mention this, but sexual assault does happen VERY early on in the book (like, within the first few chapters so it isn’t a spoiler) and the rest of the book deals a lot with how the character heals from that trauma.

Despite how hard that particular scene was to read, I did appreciate how the healing process was handled. While this book does also revolve around a mystery, I would definitely say the book is more about healing, finding one’s self worth, and challenging gender stereotypes, although it doesn’t shy away from the darker aspects of dealing with trauma.

This book also has a ton of representation, with many of the characters being queer, a prominent side character is mute and uses sign language with the main characters, nonbinary rep (they use “thir” pronouns), as well as trans rep. I’m sure that there are other things that I’m missing, because this book has so many and they all felt so natural and fit in with the story so well!

I loved meeting Velasin and Caethari, and their slow burn romance was so heartwarming, especially as you start to see how deeply they care about each other. I loved how open and honest they were with each other, and I loved how Velasin finally got to be who he really is without needing to hide a part of himself. I love the arranged marriage trope, and the political intrigue was fascinating as well.

I did enjoy the setting, although I do wish we had gotten to see more of it. I also wish we had seen more at the end of the book, because while it is a satisfying ending, I still had questions and it definitely leaves room for a sequel, although it seems that this is just a standalone at the moment. I definitely wouldn’t say no to seeing another book with these characters and expanding on their story!

Overall, this is a great romance story in a fantasy setting. A lot of popular romance these days tends to lean towards one (or both) characters being abusive or mean, so having two characters who were just purely kind to each other was so refreshing. I highly enjoyed this one, and I think that a lot of other people will enjoy it too, if you are able to get through those first few chapters!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of A Strange and Stubborn Endurance by Foz Meadows. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for providing an ARC to review.

Before the review I want to do a quick trigger warning for this book. Rape and attempted suicide are themes in this novel, so if this is something that you are sensitive to, you can go accordingly.

Velasin and Caethari were a wonderfully matched couple. They really were able to complement each other. Which is what I want in the arranged marriage trope. Not only do they have great chemistry, but their romance is so sweet as Velasin recovers from his past traumas. If I had any complaints, it would maybe be the pacing was so fast when it came to the various attacks. I didn't feel anyone had time to breathe, but that didn't take away anything from the story. I give this book 4/5 stars.

I finished this book a while back, then set it aside to reread as I wasn't sure how to evaluate it: I read about 60-70 percent of it in one go, then found myself poking at it over a number of days.

On the second read I realized what was going on, at least with my perception. I don't know what gender For Meadows is, nor does it matter, but the book has all the tropes and language of an m/m novel written for a female audience, mixed with a fantasy mystery.

The worldbuilding, for the most part, was pretty convincing, though I really wanted to love it because of the diversity he finds in Tithenia, when he comes to complete an arranged marriage with another guy. The contrast with his homophobic home country injected the story with extra feels, when Velasin, one of our heroes (trigger warning: rape) comes emotionally as well as physically damaged to Tithenia. I also liked his husband Caethari, and though all the signs are there of what is going to happen, so there were few surprises, I enjoyed the progression to their happy ending.

But then the book wasn't done, though emotionally it felt complete. There was the murder mystery that had to be solved, when the culprit was obvious pretty much from the gitgo. Suspense can be tough to handle (when the audience knows and the characters don't) but here it dragged, especially as so much of the court intrigue felt tacked on after the fact, much of it off-stage.

That said, overall it was an engaging read, and I'll certainly be on the lookout for more by this author.

Slow and a bit meandering, this is a book that covers some very real and dark emotions, while still having some interesting magical worldbuilding. The period-style writing read much easier than I was anticipating, which was a plus! I think fans of Winter's Orbit by Everina Maxwell will really really love this one.

I loved the political nature and lgbt aspect of this book, but the pacing was a bit slow for my particular taste. The trauma was raw and handled with care, which is great to see with such harsh topics. The world-building was very good and I enjoyed the place. I enjoyed the first 100 pages, but then I became a bit annoyed because the mystery and romance didn't seem to blend at all (one was interrupted for the other). I went in for the plot and stayed for the characters. Overall, it was a good story, but it could have been better.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for allowing me to read this ARC!

Content Warning: death, violence, murder, rape (on-page), victim-blaming, homophobia, self-harm, suicidal ideation (including suicide attempts), PTSD, animal death.


Velasin vin Aaro is shocked when his father announces that he has arranged a marriage for him, in the neighboring country of Tithena. Not only is Velasin unsure of being forced to move to a country he knows little about, but he will also be married to a woman -- and Velasin is gay. But when something horrible happens, revealing Velasin's sexuality, the Tithenai propose that he marries not Laecia Aeduria, but her brother, Caethari. Desperate to get away from his native Ralia, Velasin agrees, but when he arrives in Tithena, it becomes very clear that not everyone is happy about this alliance between the two countries, and will do anything to stop it. Teaming up with his new husband, Velasin and Caethari try to hunt down the murderous faction plaguing them at every step, and discover that sometimes, love can bloom in the strangest of circumstances.

Finally, a highly anticipated book that I absolutely adored! Swept up in the first few chapters, enamored with Meadows's gorgeous use of language, I realized quite quickly that this was most likely going to be the kind of book I just fell in love with. And that's exactly what happened!

I love books that deal with arranged marriages, as they're often able to explore a side of romance and emotion that is sometimes absent in more quickly formed relationships, and I was so pleased that this one was actually a gay romance. Both Velasin and Caethari are instantly lovable; Velasin in particular, with his sharp, cutting witticisms and sometimes frustratingly obstinate personality, stands out as a character who will leave a lasting impression upon readers. Velasin's manservant (who is more like his best friend), Markel, was also very well-written, and the fact that he is mute and uses sign language to communicate was another exciting addition. We don't often see characters like that (or any disability of any kind), and so it was a breath of fresh air. As far as characterization goes, I do think that Caethari's sisters, Riya and Laecia, suffered a bit in comparison to others. They were both very interesting, and I would've liked to see a bit more of their inner worlds, too.

This book is beautifully diverse, as I'm sure you'll have gathered from some of what I've written above. Caethari's sister, Riya, is a lesbian; there are several nonbinary characters; a transgender character; and most of the cast is dark-skinned, to some degree. How refreshing it was to read something that had no qualms about including a diverse ensemble of characters, and did it without batting an eye.

As for the plot, it's so unique to find a book in this genre that doesn't follow the tried-and-true fantasy formulas. Although there's plenty of Velasin and Caethari finding themselves, there's also a bit of a murder mystery going on, complicated by the layered politics both of Tithena and Ralia. While many other readers seemed to be disappointed by the revelation of who the villain is, I didn't mind it; I suspected who it was long before the reveal, but to me, it didn't seem rushed or hasty -- just the opposite, in fact. The clues are there from the very beginning, which is more than I can say for some books. I didn't feel cheated, either, as if Meadows had purposefully kept things from me in the narration that would've otherwise helped us to understand who might be behind everything.

The shining star of A Strange and Stubborn Endurance is Velasin and, by association, his burgeoning relationship with Caethari. Velasin has been through hell, and I felt that Meadows handled all of the difficult topics brought up in this book with grace. There is an on-page rape scene, very early on, which many people felt (understandably) uncomfortable with, but for me, none if it felt gratuitous or cheapening to the narrative. Velasin's growth over the course of this huge book was slow, sometimes painful, and beautifully executed. Everything he did, in regards to Caethari, felt like it made sense, and while everyone's journey of healing is, of course, different, I appreciated the slowness and gentleness of Velasin's.

All in all, this book is simply fantastic. I highly, highly recommend it, and I think that this is such a refreshing take on the fantasy genre. It's beautiful, heartfelt, sometimes funny, sometimes very, very dark, and the journey is well worth it.

Thank you to Tor Books for a copy of A Strange and Stubborn Endurance in exchange for an honest review.

Trigger warnings are going up top this time, folks; it’s impossible to separate this review from its trigger/content warnings and spoilers related to that.

A Strange and Stubborn Endurance contains on-page depictions of rape, as well as self-harm and suicide attempts. The rape serves as an outing that leads to a character being disowned. Other content warnings: sexism, strong orientalist vibes, body horror, death (human and non-human), queer death, arranged marriage, queerphobia, (consensual) sexual content and ableist language (perhaps used to reflect an old-timey vibe?).

Summary
“Stolen me? As soon to say a caged bird can be stolen by the sky.”

Velasin vin Aaro never planned to marry at all, let alone a girl from neighboring Tithena. When an ugly confrontation reveals his preference for men, Vel fears he’s ruined the diplomatic union before it can even begin. But while his family is ready to disown him, the Tithenai envoy has a different solution: for Vel to marry his former intended’s brother instead.

Caethari Aeduria always knew he might end up in a political marriage, but his sudden betrothal to a man from Ralia, where such relationships are forbidden, comes as a shock.

With an unknown faction willing to kill to end their new alliance, Vel and Cae have no choice but to trust each other. Survival is one thing, but love — as both will learn — is quite another. — from the publisher


The great
Despite myself, I couldn’t put this book down; I finished it in one day — reading from 8 am to 6:30 pm. The story is gripping and Foz Meadows certainly knows how to create endearing characters. You’ll likely be rooting for Cae and Vel from the moment they meet. In general, A Strange and Stubborn Endurance does interpersonal relationships well. Those that should feel lived-in, do, and those that feel hesitant, do.

I can’t speak to whether the nonverbal representation in this book is good, but I enjoyed that there is a nonverbal character. Add to that, he has a love interest. The relationship is pretty off-the-page, but it felt like more than people with disabilities are often given. There’s also a fair amount of LGBTQ rep in this book, including trans/nonbinary rep, which we love to see.

But, when all’s said and done, I felt kinda gross for enjoying the book. Because, ooo man alive, is it problematic.

The odd
A Strange and Stubborn Endurance is a dual POV book. For some reason, Vel’s POV is in the first person while Cae’s is in the third. I couldn’t for the life of me figure out why. If anything, this decision created confusion.

I read a lot of queer fiction, which, of course, often includes narration rife with sentences with two same-gender third-person pronouns. It’s not hard to do this with clarity, but Meadows wasn’t able to (at least in the unfinished review copy I received). In general, the book was a tad long and could have withstood another edit.

I understand that many fantasy authors borrow from the real world when world-building. Meadows could have been more careful, though. Tithena feels sort of like when you read a recipe that’s described as “Asian” just because it’s got some soy sauce and ginger in it. For example, the capital city is named Qi-Katai. Qi is a very important concept in Chinese culture, while Katai is both a city in India and Japanese slang. I also don’t think it’s a coincidence that one of the book’s villains is named Killic, which sounds an awful lot like kılıç, the Turkish word for sword or blade.

I coud go on and on; having just one (or even a few) of these elements wouldn’t bother me. But when it’s case upon case upon case, it feels othering and orientalist. It doesn’t help that so much of Tithena is examined through Vel’s eyes (his culture is more “Western”). In this way, A Strange and Stubborn Endurance creates a monolith of the “East,” however unintentional it may be.


The ugly
*Heavy spoilers in this next section*

Sexual assault isn’t something society takes seriously enough, but that is exacerbated when we’re talking about the sexual assault of men. I appreciated that examination — and the complex feelings Vel has about his assault. These are discussions that need to be had. That being said, there are moments within the text that verge on trauma porn — because there was an imbalance of showing and telling.

If the point of the book — which I believe it is — is to focus on Vel’s healing, then why show the rape on the page? Why not focus more on his reaction to touch after? There is no right way to heal, so my issue here isn’t with the time frame in which Vel is comfortable having sex. It’s that during his healing, we see him hate any kind of touch, then he tells us he’s ready for sex. And then we see the sexy times.

Practically the only times we get to see Vel being touched consensually prior to getting together with Cae is when he’s in panic mode. It just isn’t particularly satisfying (though the sex scene is).

And, finally. What’s with the way this book treats women? The number of times Vel says something super sexist and Cae doesn’t correct him makes zero sense. Tithena is supposedly an egalitarian society, so I don’t understand … like, I get that people are people and we all have flaws. It just really doesn’t fit with the utopic society Tithena seemed to be.

Should you read it?
Maybe? At the end of the day, I think this book means well. It sets out to tackle some tough stuff and show a healing process, which, in theory, it does. Am I being over sensitive? Maybe? Would I call this a problematic fave? No. But it’s definitely a “problematic enjoyed.”

A Strange and Stubborn Endurance is out July 26. 📚🗡

An utterly beautiful and tender romance at the heart of a fantastic fantasy world. The mystery element is engaging throughout and while I was a little disappointed with how it was resolved, the rest of the story and the characters around it more than made up for it.

Despite being massive in size compared to the novellas I usually read, I read "A Strange and Stubborn Endurance" in two days.

At first, I legitimately wasn't sure I'd like it. I read an awful lot of fanfiction in the 90s, and the first part of the book felt very much like the author had taken one of her old 1990s AU fanfics and scrubbed the identifying details.

You see, (and while I won't spoil anything past this, this is the introduction and premise so I have to start with it) it starts with a nobleman getting an arranged marriage to a girl, then immediately (within the first 2% of the book) being raped by his male ex, which the envoy walks in on, and everyone assumes that it was consensual (it explicitly wasn't, and was deeply traumatic). The envoy is from a culture where male-male marriage is permitted so they suggest swapping the sister for the brother and continuing the diplomatic marriage. Which is accepted, but also, HIS culture doesn't permit it, so the father kicks him out for being gay so he's essentially exiled into this marriage. (I do appreciate the author for putting a trigger warning about the sexual assault at the start of the book; I was able to go into reading it without being surprised.)

It felt so familiarly (and anachronistically) 1990s that I wasn't sure I'd finish it. I decided to give it to 25% before DNFing (which in a book this long is about 150 pages) and I'm glad I did, because at about 15% into the book all those tropey, familiar, out-of-date-feeling elements completely cleared up.

What it ends up being is a complicated political intrigue story. The protagonist, Velasin, is most at home when dealing with intrigue (unlike the love interest, Caethari, who is helplessly embroiled in things but is not at all suitable to them). He's able to actually relax into the situation BECAUSE suddenly he's now dealing with inheritance drama and political factions -- and of course, Caethari is kind and strong and a good friend. Unfortunately, someone appears to be out to either kill or scare away Velasin, and they're trying to frame Caethari about it. This never causes a split between them (which I appreciate, because I don't love a miscommunication story) because they're actually communicating and they earn each other's trust convincingly early on, but it means that they know that someone is actively maneuvering against <i>them</i> as a new political couple. It's them against the world while also having to try to get Velasin settled in a totally different culture and also, you know, try to work through trauma while being in an arranged marriage. And it's extremely well done.

I found myself liking both characters very much, and because of this, I never had to question what they saw in each other. They're both very affected by the things that have happened to them, but they aren't defined by them either. The storyline goes back and forth between all the mandatory parties and political maneuvering and visitation of so and so that high level political people have to do, and the free time they have to go investigate the murders and threats that keep happening to and around them. I found this very realistic, honestly -- they WOULD have 95% of their time caught up in what has to be done, formally, for people who are essentially royals being involved in an arranged marriage, but I think it would be insane if they didn't want to snatch whatever time they could to talk through what they'd learned and try, whenever they could, to follow up on their own leads. And of course, the two end up very closely tied together, so things that happen in one area are extremely relevant to the other. It's very good writing.

The romance is well-developed and going from nervous friends through to passionate lovers is believable. The chemistry is definitely there.

The secondary characters are also great, and very diverse. Markel, Velasin's mute best friend and valet, is smart and fun and they adore each other very believably; I loved how sign language went from something they developed because back 'home' nobody but Velasin would even talk to Markel, to a sign of what people were worth knowing if they wanted to also learn how to communicate, to something that was viewed as just common sense to start teaching more generally. There's a lot of nonbinary and trans characters as well, and a lot of POC characters (which is to say, this is obviously a fantasy world, but they're given physical descriptions that match a variety of ethnicities from our world). Everyone is given their own motivations and reasons for acting how they do; nobody feels like a supporting character in someone else's story.

I did find it weird that Velasin's sections were told in 1st person POV and that Caethari's sections were told in 3rd person POV, so head's up about that so you don't get thrown by it.

The only thing that holds me back from 5 stars is that the ending wasn't quite as satisfying as it could have been; the characters' DID get there through investigations, albeit indirectly -- there was still less of their initiative bringing them there than it could have been. As well, there were SO many different instances of attacks where someone knocked on their door with New Bad News (all within a couple of days) that they began to blur together and I have trouble picking them apart in my memory even though I JUST read it (I also began to find it hard to believe that they didn't end up jumpy, nervous wrecks any time anyone tried to get their attention, it happened so often).

To summarize: Despite the beginning feeling oddly like it was using writing tropes and so on that were almost characteristically 1990s, it solidly went into someplace very modern with its diverse political fantasy intrigue story while also writing a strong romance with great characters. I liked it quite a bit and would happily read more with these characters!

You could slap me with the physical copy of this book and i would smile because i love it that much. Legit, this is one of the only two fantasy books I’ve given 5 stars this year.

A beautifully written political fantasy with an emotional slowburn romance.

I cried 3 times in the first 100 pages. It isn’t all emotional, but Velasin’s trauma is heart-wrenching and i really appreciated how Foz Meadows handled it in a delicate yet raw way. It meant a lot to me. (TWs below)

This story is full of court drama, political intrigue, and assassination plots, but not once did I feel overwhelmed by all the world-building. Foz truly has a gift! All the characters were incredibly fleshed out and I felt like I knew them as friends. (Markle was probably one of my fave characters!)

Did I wish the final villain reveal had a little more pizzazz? Sure, I had hoped it would be a little more shocking. BUT for me, this story is primarily about Velasin healing from his trauma and letting himself fall in love with Cae more than anything else and that is why I am keeping it a 5-star.

(I have seen some people say that they felt the story was dragging on...but trauma is not something that a person can easily overcome, it is not something they will forget in a few days.)

*Rep: Many of our characters are queer.
Markle, who is Velasin’s butler-bestie is mute and uses sign language to communicate.
The kem use “thir” pronouns (nonbinary rep)
There is bodymagic that allows a person to change gender (trans rep)

*HUGE TW for on page rape, suicidal ideation, attempted self harm, PTSD/trauma, homophobia, animal death (horse)