Tusk Love is Jester Lavorre’s favorite bodice ripper, and for a good reason! Unlikely companions Guinevere and Oskar meet one night on the Amber Road and are brought together by Oskar’s sense of duty and Gwen’s desire for adventure.

Critical Role Campaign Two nostalgia absolutely drove me to this book. I think it stands just fine without any prior knowledge about Exandria, but it is full of plenty of nods for those who are familiar. I think this is a swoon-worthy romance novel done very well, and while the speed of the relationship developing wasn’t totally my taste, it is completely in expectation for the genre as well as what we know about the book from Jester. It’s a sweet romance set in a world where kindness is a hard fought for ideal and treasured value. What’s not to love?

If you love Anya and Dimitri’s relationship from Anastasia or are fond of the Tristan and Isolde romance, I think this book will be right up your alley!

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the eARC.

4.5 stars

Obsessed!! The start was a bit slow for me because it took a while for me to love it and to start liking Guinevere but once Oskar came in the picture, everything got way way better. Fictional men really do make a difference. Oskar was perfect, honestly one of the best MMCs I've read about in a while. Their romance was slow and sweet and I absolutely loved how Oskar loved and took care of Guinevere. I'm going to need like 5 more books like this!!

I'm still not sure what Critical Role is and while having knowledge about it will probably make your reading experience better, it is def not necessary.

Tusk Love is a beautifully written tale of love, adventure, and defying fate. It’s spicy, heartfelt, and one of the most romantic books I’ve read in a while. If you’re looking for a romance that burns slow and steady, with enough tension to keep you turning the pages, this is your book.

Tusk Love is a sweet, cozy romantasy to snuggle up with. Humorous and daring, I found that I greatly enjoyed the adventure that Guinevere and Oskar shared together on the Amber Road; the book shined brightest for me as they encountered friends, enemies and magic during their travels. Watching Gwen and Oskar's relationship bloom was also sweet, though the romance between them lacked a certain spark for me. I feel like their romance would have been amazing if they had the pages to allow for a longer slow-burn desire to build. As it is, I loved the honest friendship that developed between the two as both came to understand and learn from one another.

As a long time fan of Critical Role, getting to travel through Wildemount was a treat. I'd love to see Guanzon play in the Exandrian sandbox again. Also, did anyone else hear Matthew Mercer every time a side character spoke? No? Just me?

Did someone roll a natural WHORE because this book is HORNY and it hit the crit.

This book was everything. This book was a beautiful sweet treat that I ate up. There was not a part of this story that I was bored in. Every chapter was paced beautifully and the vibes were so consistent for both characters.

Guinevere is like that lizard in Frozen 2 that lights itself on Fire but just wants to curl up for cuddle. Like she doesn’t know how she got here or really the logistics of much but she is here to give it 1000% effort with 1000% enthusiasm. I love her. She is a sweet baby angel who I want to protect at all costs.

Oskar is everything I want in a grump. He is capable. He is determined. He is fighting for his life to just hold onto one dream when he is bamboozled by essentially a walking talking fairy floss princess. And then he is just the heart eyes emoji with a scowl and I die.

*clears throat* SCREAMS IN GRUMPY SUNSHINE IN EXANDRIA

Thea really threw her whole ass into this story and honestly I’m just so happy to be here and want to cry for five years in a happy moist pile.

As a non-dungeons and dragons girly, this gave me all the cosy fantasy vibes I could have wanted, with a nice sprinkling of spice on top! It was low angst (which is sometimes sooo needed, I love my morally-grey shadow daddies but sometimes you just want a cosy hug in book form!!) and just a super fun adventure, I loved Guinevere who was giving major rapunzel vibes and Oskar was so refreshingly emotionally intelligent I could have wept 😅

Overall, a super fun, whimsical adventure with two characters who I already can't wait to revisit (pls say we're getting more books in the Tusk Love universe??)

I lived for this. Funny, romantic, and weirdly emotional for a book that started off feeling like a parody. There's heart beneath the chaos, and the chemistry? Chef’s kiss. If you love fantasy romances that don’t take themselves too seriously, this one’s for you.

#IndigoEmployee

My Rating: 5 stars!!!!

I trust Jester Lavorre’s book recommendations with my life 🍭

As someone who has experienced all the “Tusk Love” jokes in the Critical Role community, getting to actually read it was mind boggling, and I loved every second of it. Gwen was this kind yet sheltered woman off to see the world in a way that I could only call Rapunzel from Tangled (❤️) with grumpy yet large puppy Oskar by her side. I loved the two of them together, I thought their journey to be fun and their relationship adorable, and I loved the side characters met along the way who all made such interesting additions. And the steamy scenes, they sure were steamy.

Absolutely obsessed.

What a romp! This book was everything I hoped it would be as a fan of Thea Guanzon, Critical Role and all things Dungeons and Dragons.

The two main characters are lovable and so cute together. I liked the pacing, side characters and the fairly low stakes plot. It was a cosy vibe. I sort of want a book around each of the side characters now, please?

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced digital copy.

Omgz, I loved this cover. I couldn't resist!

As far as the book, this is a weird one for me to review, because despite some tropes and cliches that I generally don't like, I really did like this book. It's a light and easy read. The two main characters are both kind and considerate to each other. There's some light adventure and some surprisingly insightful moments.

Now, I will note that I generally don't like grumpy/sunshine books, because the men tend to be toxic or borderline toxic. And yuck, let's not bolster the idea that it's okay for men to be toxic. And the whole damsel-in-distress thing is overdone and perpetuates the idea that women are weak and need men to save them. BUT this book somehow pulled it off in a way that didn't feel particularly damning to either gender. The characters were both very lovable, albeit in entirely different ways.

The plot was a bit thin, and the intimacy felt rushed—it happened too soon and too frequently, and it was always over in a blink. Still, I enjoyed the various challenges that the characters faced. And, particularly towards the end, there were some good life lessons. Superficially, this is a book about...lust. But really the subtext is much deeper. This is a book about personal growth, following your heart, and letting go of toxic relationships, no matter how much it hurts.

Yeah, I kinda loved this one. Fast and freeing. Sweet and cozy. I would definitely read more if this book becomes a series.

Y’all… listen to me when I say this is the best romantic fantasy book of the year!!!! 6 ⭐️!! It has absolutely everything you could want - perfect pacing, descriptive world building, fully fleshed-out characters, humor, multiple unique spicy scenes, an empowered FMC who is both soft and strong, and a devilishly handsome MMC who is in touch with his feelings?! You better believe I’ve already pre-ordered this book and will be rereading it as soon as it’s published this summer. I can’t wait to return to this love story again and again.

- Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review! -

This book was so fun! If you love very spicy romance fantasy books then you will love this book! I highly recommend it!

A fast-paced, romantic (very spicy), and humorous adventure! The nods towards the multiple critical role references were satisfying to spot and the author included some amazing one-liners that were incredibly critical role-coded. A definite recommendation for anyone who wants a funny, deeply romantic and spicy fantasy read!

Tusk Love is a fantasy romance with maybe a three to four-chili spice level. We see strong character development for both male and female protagonists throughout the novel, with some accompanying tragic backstory to really drive the positive changes home. Maybe I read this too soon after finishing Monsoon Rising, but I was expecting the chemistry between the lead characters to be similar to that of Alaric and Talasyn. I found the chemistry to be a bit rushed and not convincing. The writing styles also felt inconsistent at times, reading like a classical novella in some parts and a modern love story in another. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the adventures of Guinevere and Oskar and I find myself wanting to know more about the "Tusk Love Universe."

the speed at which I requested this title just by seeing the text alone and instantly hearing Laura Bailey's dramatic reading of Tusk Love in my brain....

y'all, i have a hate-hate relationship to most of the Critical Role novels. I was bored by the Lucien book, and I didn't feel like the Vex&Vax book was well-written, but THIS. This was everything I could have wanted a book based on an in-universe bit could have been the way Matt Mercer first described the group stumbling upon it in the campaign. It's fun, romantic, with just enough Critical Role nods to make a fan feel at home.

You don't necessarily need to know much about the Mighty Nine to read this book, though the location names may confuse you. I think a rudimentary knowledge of D&D or general fantasy tropes would be enough for a newcomer to understand and enjoy this read.

Before I give you my thoughts, I must preface this: I am a HUGE Critical Role fan. I have been for the last 8 years. My sister asked me to start catching up with the episodes of Campaign 1. By the time I had caught up, Campaign 2 was in full swing. Jester is my favourite CR2 character, and the first mention of 'Tusk Love' had me in stitches. Of course, the lore of Tusk Love grew arms and legs, but so did that tiny voice in the back of my head saying, "God, I would love to read this book!"

But now it's real, and it was a joy to read. I struggled to put it down. Every single thing that Laura, Matt, or the rest of the table improvised about the book's plot has been taken by Guanzon and woven into the real thing. I think you would read the book at face value if you didn't know much about Critical Role. But for the fans, there are so many references to the world of Exandria as created by Matthew Mercer that you can tell that Guanzon is a real fan, making the book an exceptional experience for Critters.

As for the plot itself - it's a light-hearted and fun book that, whilst being easier to understand if you are a Critter, would be enjoyable for anyone. It's undoubtedly more romance than fantasy, so if you go into the experience of reading this book with that in mind, it will deliver that romance that leans into some of my personal favourite tropes - grumpy x sunshine, forced proximity, slow-burn romance, one-bed-at-the-inn, and forbidden love. But that doesn't mean romance is the only plot point! The characters each have their struggles in this story, which allows for clear character development.

I'm so grateful to have read this book, and 2017 me would be so jealous!!

I wish this site would let me put more than 5 stars. You know an author is great at what they do when they can write completely different stories and knock it oit of the park every. single. time. Thea has such a great way of bringing life to her characters. She also has the best banter!

The slow burn pining back and forth was just spectacular. I love Guin and Oskar so much and need another book about them ASAP!

One of my guilty secrets is that I really enjoy Orc’s as main character, don’t know why, but that is it. The MMC is a half Orc on a quest to go visit his mother’s family, but stumbles on a “damsel in distress”, although she didn’t need that much help in the end. He ends up helping her complete her trip to meet her parents and her new betrothed, because trouble just seems to be following her.

I really enjoyed this read. The banter was fun, and the slow burn romance from tolerating one another to realising that they’ve fallen in love was good as well.

Thank you for this eARC!

I love Critical Role, and all things Vox, and Thea's other novels.

Unfortunately this kind of felt all over the place, I wasn't super invested until the very end, and even then I'm not sure I would have kept going if I didn't feel a sense of obligation.

There wasn't one particular reason, it just felt kind of all over the place.

The FMC was very flat, I LOVED Oskar, but he frankly deserved better and more of a story redemption or I'm not sure just more. With that said, I recognize that this world isn't meant to give all, and most if not all CR and Vox characters have tragic backstories.

The FMC had this outstanding power, but I feel like we barely got to see it, and when we did it was brief and never truly explained.

I did love the world and travel aspect, and I LOVED that all animals stayed whole and healthy because Pudding and Vindicator were my favorite characters, so thank you Thea.
Overall, this WAS a cozy, sexy, comfy read, and I'd definitely recommend it for fans of cozy, low stakes and especially for fans of things like Vox - with the exception of knowing this is low stakes and cozy.

Tush Love (Critical Role) is a fantastic cozy fantasy romance novel! The world-building, plot, and characters are all very well written and developed.

I absolutely loved Gwen and Oskar’s relationship. It was fun to see the rescuer/rescuee change into something more sweet. And to see a sweetheart like Gwen picking away at Oskar’s gloomy and hard exterior had me laughing until the end. The mystery and magic at the end of their story was the perfect cherry on top because I was dying to know what was in the trunk throughout the journey.

Overall, Tusk Love is the perfect blend of action and romance with a HEA ending and characters you will love!

Thank you to both NetGalley and Del Rey, Random House Worlds, Inklore for providing the eARC.