I would like to thank NetGalley for giving me an audio-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I really wasn't sure what to expect going into this. We have a trio of characters -- Avra, Tevari, and Julian -- who are on an adventure/pirate ship and just the amount of shenanigans that takes place was entertaining. I found Avra to be tedious/tiresome most of the time, but he also had a lot of great lines that had me laughing.

The polyamorous relationship was well done in that they all complimented each other and played to each others strengths. I did like that although a lot of the jokes were very sexual in nature, there was no spice on the page. One thing I have to say, the plot itself felt lacking at times, and I found myself not caring about what was happening but continuing because the characters were entertaining and moved things along quickly.

Overall I enjoyed the way this book felt cozy and silly. I didn't take much of it seriously and I think because of that I had a good time. Plus, the audiobook narrator did a great job with bringing this to life.

Everything I hoped for and more. Well written; witty, loveable characters. Perfect balance of action & character development.

I’ve heard Running close to the wind described as a queer, pirate adventure novel and that grabbed my attention immediately, but it was a bit different to what I was expecting. First, the narrator did an amazing job with all the character voices and accents. They were all lively and distinct and I really enjoyed the entire narration, it definitely added to the zany atmosphere of the story. Overall the story is very chaotic and many times I had to go back and read the description to see where the story was supposed to be going. I still had a fun time but the story can be a little hard to follow at times. I really liked all the characters though, I could picture them clearly and they were all well thought out. I know this is based in the same world as one of the authors other series, I haven’t read it but I still understood the world so I don’t think it’s required to read first. This is very silly and fun, a great one to read if you’re looking to add some levity to your reading list

Thanks to NetGalley, RB Media and Alexandra Rowland for this ALC

This book was absolutely hilarious! 5 ⭐️ read!!! I laughed so many times. One of the main characters is urkel annoying. The kind of person who gets under your skin but you still like them because they’re funny and genuine. The character wanted to sleep with just about everyone!
I liked how the monk character, Julian, used conflict resolution techniques. He was great at seeing what people need and helped people talk to each other. It was great!
The end with the cake judging contest had me dying laughing. I loved it so much!
An absolute gem of a book.

3.5
I'm having such a hard time rating this book. While it was funny and I really liked most of the characters there is just something missing. The story had so much potential and I feel a little disappointed by the ending. Even if it had been one more chapter or an epilogue.
That being said, I loved that there were so many queer characters and I think the non binary rep was done well.
Overall a pretty funny book that could have been more but is worth the read if you're looking for a quick and fun book.

This audiobook was hilarious!
The book is well done for the type of story that it is. It was my first experience with pronouns in fiction, but it was written so well that it seemed natural despite it being new for me. The narrator was very good, and he was a good fit for the story. Each character had their own voice and the rhythm was smooth. There were so many 'big personalities,' that I imagine it was quite the challenge!

As I mentioned, this is certainly a comedy. The characters are larger than life, and the comedy is literary slapstick. I laughed so hard! Avra is an unlikely hero as a self-proclaimed "flibbertigibbet" who bumbles his way through multiple adventures. His main love interest, Teveri, both benefits from, and despises Avra's ability to always be in the right place at the right time.

Although this is a closed door/ no spice story, S3x is a major player. Not only does Avra have his on-again/ off-again love interest, but he's made it his life's work to convince brother Julian to give up his vow of celibacy. It seems as if his air-headed ways are doing the trick!

This is not serious fiction. It's a light, slapstick comedy that touches on some heavier themes in the most delicate way - as many of us would do in real life. I enjoyed it!!

2.5 rounded down. First off, the narrator did a really great job with diversifying the voices and adding personality to the characters and the writing!!! That said, the voice for Avra got a little bit frustrating to listen to after a while with following him.😅 But at the same time, it fits him so well so can I actually be upset about that? 🤣 I don't really know what exactly would have endeared me more to him even if I still was able to appreciate him as a character somewhat. I feel like the humor in the story itself was trying a bit too hard in ways with there being so many dick jokes and sex jokes that after a while it just kind of didn't hit the mark for me. And to making things closed door after all that didn't make sense to me. But I still enjoyed the cast, and the back and forth with Avra and Tev and Julian!

What a fantastic read! I was hoping for a fun queer story about pirates and, while I received exactly that, it was much more! We got a semi-retired spies with an unbelievable amount of luck, we got an angry, rather broke pirate captain with a spooky dildo collection, we got a clever gorgeous monk with a slutty past and celibacy vow, we got sea serpent mating season that grounds ships in the pirate republic, we got an extremely valuable secret that our characters try to sell, we got a very ambitious but not very talented in diplomacy ambassador, we got a festival for pirates, fences, locals and tourists due to serpent breeding season and of course we got a cake competition, because what respectable festival doesn’t have a cake competition?! All served in a hilarious sauce with the side of fantastic storytelling, sprinkled with brilliant worldbuilding and a proper queer representation.
It’s a perfect book to start the pride month with.

As I had received a complimentary audiobook copy, I would like to praise the narrator. He made the novel so much better with the way he read it. Also big thanks to RB Media and NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are my own. What a fantastic read! I was hoping for a fun queer story about pirates and, while I received exactly that, it was much more! We got a semi-retired spies with an unbelievable amount of luck, we got an angry, rather broke pirate captain with a spooky dildo collection, we got a clever gorgeous monk with a slutty past and celibacy vow, we got sea serpent mating season that grounds ships in the pirate republic, we got an extremely valuable secret that our characters try to sell, we got a very ambitious but not very talented in diplomacy ambassador, we got a festival for pirates, fences, locals and tourists due to serpent breeding season and of course we got a cake competition, because what respectable festival doesn’t have a cake competition?! All served in a hilarious sauce with the side of fantastic storytelling, sprinkled with brilliant worldbuilding and a proper queer representation.
It’s a perfect book to start the pride month with.

As I had received a complimentary audiobook copy, I would like to praise the narrator. He made the novel an amazing experience.

I really liked this narrator and his voice for Avra really worked for me.

This was fun in a stupid way but I still kind of enjoyed it. I'm conflicted about it. I liked all the characters and their interactions but there were way too many dick jokes.

I don't see the comparison with Six of Crows.

This one's for the Our Flag Means Death fans, with those same vibes of taking a traditionally more "serious" genre in a wonderfully human, irreverent direction that feels completely natural and incredibly funny. A lot of this comes down to Avra, who as a character is A Lot: he's the sort that says what he's thinking, and what he's thinking is usually either a sex joke, trying to get attention, or charmingly sweet. He's an ex-spy with incredible (probably magical) luck, which everyone else recognizes and also uses to their advantage (at one point tying him up in the hold because "his luck wont let him drown and if we're attacked, the hold will be the first to flood"). There's also just the pirate society of the Cove, which features a hilariously insult-rich cake competition, fences who ask for blue dogs as a dare, and the sort of society where everyone knows everyone as well as everyone's reputation and it's usually played for laughs.

As in A Taste of Gold and Iron, while there's a lot of dancing around a relationship (this time with Tev and their on-again-off-again relationship with Avra and with Julian and his inconvenient vow of celibacy) and a lot of references to sex (though this time far more, and far more in the jokes realm), everything is closed door. So while Avra makes multiple comments about swallowing Julian's dick with a python or brings up Tev's spooky dildo collection (and has written a song about it), it's all referenced or commented on and not on-page.

There are so many times that I just laughed out loud (or yelled) listening to this - it's fun and funny and Casey Jones does a fantastic job of all of the different voices and accents - but I think a lot of the enjoyment will come down to if it is your taste in humor and where on the line of endearing vs annoying Avra falls for you. There are a number of quieter moments, especially between him and Tev, especially when references Tev's past and their reasons for becoming a pirate and a captain, which balance out the fast-paced hijinks of the rest of the book, but it still definitely comes down as a fluorescent (in more ways than one) wild ride as opposed to the muted political intrigue of A Taste of Gold and Iron

First of all, a little thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the ability to listen to this early!

This story is exactly what you’d imagine if the funny side character became the main character in the second book. It is hilarious and ridiculous and honestly exactly what I’d personally want in a pirate adventure. Normally I’m not really tempted to read pirate books (with the exception of The adventures of Amina Al Sirafi) but Alexandra Rowland proved herself to be an excellent writer with her last book so I was very excited to start this!!

The main character, Avra, is ridiculous and adorable. He basically has the power of luck but that’s also totally unprovable and he is very agnostic about it himself. And he is honestly a delight to read about and ended up being weirdly complex somehow.

Tev on the other hand, is the character you’d say is the mc. Dark and gloomy with a tragic backstory, the determination and amazing leadership skills. That’s like. Exactly what a usual mc is like.

I love the dynamic of everyone and I really really wish there will be a secodn book here.

This whole book is just sex jokes( but no on page sex), comedy and adventure


And I can’t end the review without complimenting the amazing narrator Casey Jones who did such a good job with the audiobook. It was top notch! Again! One of my favorite narrators ever and weirdly perfect for this!!

This book was fantastic. The narrator was amazing and it was hilarious. The main character although a little annoying was a a blast to follow along with. I will definitely be ordering it for my store and recommending it to customers.

“Lots of people told me it was surprisingly sexy…well, technically they said ‘unexpectedly sexual.’”

That basically sums up this book. At the start, I was looking forward to a swashbuckling adventure with some irreverent humor and just a jolly good time. But I’m sorry, after the 12th dick joke in the first two chapters, it just started to feel like someone trying to do a standup set the entire time. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good innuendo or dirty joke! But the sheer frequency began to be grating- like overplaying the same joke so much that it isn’t funny anymore. Avra’s incessant chattering was probably emphasized even more via audio. The narrator was great at his voice, but when he was the only one talking the majority of the time, it was just exhausting. I will say, there were witty and hilarious moments that were often helped by his very dry counterpart. But the rest of the time was filled with tangents (there was an entire 10 minutes of of Avra being told to get on a specific boat and it just felt so unnecessarily long) and more standup monologuing. It was also surprising how closed door the book was for how horny. Will, at its core the general world and adventure were intriguing. I was just too distracted by Avra.

This book was super goofy and funny!! A little too over the top at points but did have me laughing out loud! The plot was simple and intriguing but the characters were where it really shone. I loved the main character, he was so funny and his monologuing was great. I would definitely read a lot more books set in this world. I recommend the audiobook as it really brought the characters to life!

🌈Queer rep: bi male main character, M/NB relationship, eventual M/M/NB poly relationship. Nonbinary secondary character, FF relationships. Mention of a culture with a third gender.

You know when the main character is greeted by old mates with approximately seven "No"s of dismay, that this book is not going to be a normal ride. Irrepressibly funny, horny (but not in a weird or creepy way), and sweet, this latest entry into Alexandra Rowland's Mithalgeard/Chantiverse world of books is once again unlike all the others. It's rife with satire, references, and puns. The dialogue, the descriptions, and the situations the crew of the Running Sun get into are all literally laugh-out-loud funny at times, interspersed with some real discussion of emotions, what to do when boat cops pull you over, what happens when governments start to consider people "meat", and the most unhinged cake competition you'll ever wish you could attend. On top of all that, it features multiple LGBTQ+ characters in variety of roles and jobs.

Running Close to the Wind is, in part, a love letter to every pirate movie you've ever seen. Its main characters are all ADULTS - over age 30! - who hilariously refer to the single 17yo member of the crew as "an infant, a baby, still wet." It's so refreshing to see adults having adventures and real struggles.

I cannot summarize what happens, but here's some highlights: a spy cursed with luck, a captain having the WORST time, a celibate monk whose main tenet is Rational Thought, a secret pirate cove, giant sea turtles, ghosts, curry, a new ambassador, boat cops, seagulls, cake competition, luminescence, SO MANY TEETH, and a guy carving a giant skull into a mountainside.

I loved this book so much that I can't even write about it in a normal way - this review would become entirely too long if I listed everything I enjoyed about it. There is SO MUCH BOOK IN THIS BOOK! Even outside the plot, it adds a ton more detail to the world of Mithalgeard that Alexandra Rowland has been creating across multiple books (this is the 8th, and completely standalone).

Audiobook notes - Casey Jones from Rowland's A Taste of Gold and Iron returns for this one, and does an absolutely stellar job. There are MANY voices and accents, and Avra is an absolute goblin/gremlin/muppet of a man who absolutely cannot carry on a normal conversation for more than half of this book, and Casey does so well with the weirdness. Avra's annoying - and he's meant to be! - but that's balanced by Captain Teveri and Brother Julian's calmer tones as well as the normal 'narrator' voice. When we have group scenes, each character has different accents AND vocal tones, so everyone is easy to keep track of and connect to. This is among my top 5 audiobooks of all time, easily.

I laughed out loud so many times while listening to this DRC kindly provided by Netgalley. I was on board as soon as I knew it was a story about pirates in a queer normative, low-fantasy world. Disclaimer: I have not read "A Taste of Gold and Iron," so I cannot compare this book to that one.

I went into this hoping for "Our Flag Means Death" vibes and was quick to realize the stakes are much, much lower. Avra is no Stead when it comes down to it, but Teveri is comfortingly like Ed with less murder.

I give it four stars because of how much I laughed. At times I found Avra exceedingly annoying, but how annoying the rest of the characters find him sort of makes up for it. If that makes any sense. I'm definitely going to be checking out the first book.

My sincerest thanks to Alexandra Rowland, Tor, and NetGalley for an audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Where to even begin… I fucking loved this book! Gay pirates! If you’ve ever wondered what it must be like in Stede Bonnet’s head dialed up about 10x, this is the book for you. If that doesn’t sound at least a little intriguing, spare yourself now. This is OFMD crossed with a dash of Cat Sebastian’s Kit Webb, plus a lot more vulgarity (because pirates). On top of all that, it reads like the silliest, most ridiculous Dungeons and Dragons live play.

Avra, an endearingly pathetic former spy, has accidentally stolen a valuable secret, and he turns to Tev, a pirate and his on-again-off-again ex, to help him sell it. Along with the crew and a mysterious, hot monk, they make their way across the sea to the pirate island where they plan to fence the secret. Will the ambassador catch them? Honestly who cares, it’s a great time regardless.

This is the fourth in a row of excellent queer books I’ve gotten from NetGalley this month!

Thanks to NetGalley and RB Media for allowing me a copy of this audio book in return for an honest review.

I don't give 5-stars ratings often, but this book is now one of my favourites!

Avra Helvaci, a sex-obsessed ex Arasti spy with a seemingly unlimited amount of luck, steals secret government papers and begs aid form his ex-lover, Teveri az-Haffar, a pirate captain, and their crew, including the very hot but celibate monk Julian. What follows is a laugh- out-loud adventure of near misses, friendship building, giant turtles, sea serpents and a pirate cake competition.

Casey Jones, as the narrator, was a brilliant choice to bring this world to life. His characters were easily discernible from each other, and his comedic timing was superb. A scene where Avra was particularly annoying, causing a sailor to start screaming, caused actual tears of laughter.

I was slightly apprehensive at first as I realised it was set in the same world as one of Ms. Rowland's previous novels, "A Taste of Gold and Iron". In fact, it takes place just weeks after that one. I hadn't been too much of a fan of AToGaI but I was swept away by RCttW; it is written in a totally different tone. Where AToGaI was an inoffensive, pretty watercolour of a story, RCttW was a vibrant, sexy, in-your-face graffiti art of a book.

I couldn't listen to this book quickly enough; I wanted to consume every candy pop of delight it had to offer. The characters were the right amount of quirky, with Avra being overly annoying, but, tempered with the dry sarcasm of Teveri and the sultry calm of Julian; the whole experience was brilliant. I am obsessed with this version of Rowland's writing and beg her to do some more with these characters. Something about this style reminded me of Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels, a complement I wouldn't give lightly.

I would happily recommend this novel to fans of comedic fantasy and sexy pirates.

It was a good book got quite a few laughs out of me I really enjoyed listening to it .. I would love to know what became of the main three characters I also really loved cat he was great

DNF - I just couldn't get into this. It's like we we're matching poles of a magnet just completely repelling each other and no matter what I couldn't bring my focus in to it. I couldn't tell you a single thing that happened - it felt like white noise in the background. I'm not saying the book is bad. By all means it could just be I'm burnt out but I just know i have no interest anymore