Title: Wishbone
Author: Lauren P. Burka
Publisher: Torquere Press
Publisher URL: http://www.torquerebooks.com/
ISBN: 978-1-60370-911-8
Genre: [M/M] Historical Fantasy
Rating: 4 Nymphs
Literary Nymphs Reviewer: Mystical Nymph
As a low class male whore, Wishbone lives and works near the docks and is forced to take on any and all clients, in order to earn enough money to survive. He’s even willing to take on a rich and mysterious shih-aan, despite their reputation for danger and violence. What he gets is more than he ever expected…food, cleansing, a night of seduction and an introduction to an alien culture that will change his world and life in ways he never imagined.
Sir is a member of the alien race that won a bloody war with the human race, nearly ten years ago. Posing as a rich and influential merchant, he spies on the human world around him; watching for signs of trouble, while gathering information useful to his people. When he takes Wishbone back to his home, he gets much more than he expects or wants. He gets a thief, servant, sexual partner and an intelligent student, willing to learn his language and culture, even when doing so will change his status in the human world forever.
When I started Wishbone, I wasn’t certain what to make of the book. It’s interesting and set in an intriguing and richly detailed historical fantasy world, filled with different races, complicated politics and some unusual cultural practices, but it’s still a bit odd. It also drags you into the story from the first pages. I particularly liked Wishbone’s character and thoroughly enjoyed the creative explanation of how he got his strange nickname. As the lone holdover from the family and home he no longer had…well, the only words that come to mind are sad and touching. I guess that’s why Wishbone initially fixated on Sir…he wanted a home, a safe place in the world and someone to love him.
I didn’t like Sir for at least half the book. He’s a hard character to understand. On the surface, he’s cold, calculating and emotionally distant from Wishbone and the other individuals in his world. He’s also a highly sexual being, with only a thin veneer of humanity covering the animal struggling to burst free. Sigh. That’s one thing I never felt I had a good handle on - exactly what the shih-aan race looked like. They’re not a typical vampire or a werewolf, but some kind of unique, interesting, and dangerous amalgam. I know I had the parts, but I could never picture them as a whole, in my minds’ eye.
Sexually, Sir and Wishbone are pretty evenly matched, once the newness of their strange relationship wears off. They’re intense, physical, passionate and determined to make the other scream with pleasure and maybe a little pain.
The portion of the story dealing with Wishbone learning Sir’s language and culture and helping in his investigation of the local priests was my favorite. They allowed Ms. Burka to expand on Wishbone’s world and personality nicely, letting the reader become part of their rich, but sordid world.
Author: Lauren P. Burka
Publisher: Torquere Press
Publisher URL: http://www.torquerebooks.com/
ISBN: 978-1-60370-911-8
Genre: [M/M] Historical Fantasy
Rating: 4 Nymphs
Literary Nymphs Reviewer: Mystical Nymph
As a low class male whore, Wishbone lives and works near the docks and is forced to take on any and all clients, in order to earn enough money to survive. He’s even willing to take on a rich and mysterious shih-aan, despite their reputation for danger and violence. What he gets is more than he ever expected…food, cleansing, a night of seduction and an introduction to an alien culture that will change his world and life in ways he never imagined.
Sir is a member of the alien race that won a bloody war with the human race, nearly ten years ago. Posing as a rich and influential merchant, he spies on the human world around him; watching for signs of trouble, while gathering information useful to his people. When he takes Wishbone back to his home, he gets much more than he expects or wants. He gets a thief, servant, sexual partner and an intelligent student, willing to learn his language and culture, even when doing so will change his status in the human world forever.
When I started Wishbone, I wasn’t certain what to make of the book. It’s interesting and set in an intriguing and richly detailed historical fantasy world, filled with different races, complicated politics and some unusual cultural practices, but it’s still a bit odd. It also drags you into the story from the first pages. I particularly liked Wishbone’s character and thoroughly enjoyed the creative explanation of how he got his strange nickname. As the lone holdover from the family and home he no longer had…well, the only words that come to mind are sad and touching. I guess that’s why Wishbone initially fixated on Sir…he wanted a home, a safe place in the world and someone to love him.
I didn’t like Sir for at least half the book. He’s a hard character to understand. On the surface, he’s cold, calculating and emotionally distant from Wishbone and the other individuals in his world. He’s also a highly sexual being, with only a thin veneer of humanity covering the animal struggling to burst free. Sigh. That’s one thing I never felt I had a good handle on - exactly what the shih-aan race looked like. They’re not a typical vampire or a werewolf, but some kind of unique, interesting, and dangerous amalgam. I know I had the parts, but I could never picture them as a whole, in my minds’ eye.
Sexually, Sir and Wishbone are pretty evenly matched, once the newness of their strange relationship wears off. They’re intense, physical, passionate and determined to make the other scream with pleasure and maybe a little pain.
The portion of the story dealing with Wishbone learning Sir’s language and culture and helping in his investigation of the local priests was my favorite. They allowed Ms. Burka to expand on Wishbone’s world and personality nicely, letting the reader become part of their rich, but sordid world.
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