Reviewed by Sarina
TITLE: Romanus
SERIES: Midsummer’s Nightmare
AUTHOR: Mary Calmes
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 70 pages
RELEASE DATE: January 27, 2016
BLURB:
2nd Edition
Stopping to offer help one sultry summer night, Mason James is unprepared for the change that this simple act of kindness will bring. After giving an old man a ride home, Mason discovers a new, magical, and even dangerous world he cannot hope to understand. But he also finds Luc Toussaint and is intoxicated at first sight… and even the secret Luc protects won’t be enough to keep Mason away from the truth of his heritage and their love.
1st edition published by Dreamspinner Press, 2010.
REVIEW:
Coming off a double shift, Mason James is exhausted but not so much that he doesn’t stop to help the old man walking along the side of the road. Thinking only that he’s doing a good deed, Mason takes the elderly man home only to encounter more strangeness than his overly tired brain can handle. Whatever is going on with the group of people he’s run into gets pushed back to the furthest corner of his mind, however, when he meets Luc Toussaint. Luc is everything he’s ever wanted in a man all wrapped up in one supremely sexy package but Luc has secrets that could push Mason away before they even get a chance.
I love Mary Calmes, I really do; a lot of her stories are comfort fics to me. Mason was an interesting character; he’s a fireman and used to helping people even if he isn’t on the clock. You could tell that he cared but that he was also a bit gun shy when it comes to relationships. (With good reason, as you find out.) Luc you never get to know as much as I would’ve liked; he doesn’t understand why Mason wants to be with him but isn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth, so to speak. The story was interesting and though it was a standalone, it felt as though it would’ve been a good start to a new series; I would love it that was the case but alas, I am to live with the disappointment of no sequel. This was on the shorter side and I don’t want to ruin Luc’s secret so I’ll just say that if you’ve read the Change of Heart series you may enjoy this one. Also, if you purchased this book previously, there were no changes made except to the cover, so don’t go out and buy it again.
RATING:
BUY LINKS:
[…] I never actually expected to see a sequel to Romanus so I was both surprised and pleased when Chevalier was released. I enjoyed seeing both Mason and Luc again and it was nice having a longer story to find out more about what a Romanus truly is. Aside from the main characters, however, you don’t really get to see many of the characters from the previous story at all; the new characters weren’t bad, and I enjoyed the Guardians quite a bit, but it would’ve been nice to have seen more familiar faces this time around. Also while Chevalier is over twice the length of the previous story, it almost felt a little incomplete to me for some reason and the worst part is that I really don’t know why. The story is complete but it felt as if some things were a little rushed or glossed over in places and that could account for my feeling as though something was missing at the end. The story had a good pace overall and I loved reading about the Gargoyle origin story; it was also great seeing Mason find purpose by the time he left to go home but I find myself still wishing for more in this universe. Things don’t feel resolved for me yet so I’m hoping, really hoping, that there will be more to come. If you enjoyed the first book, you should enjoy this one as well, and if you haven’t read Romanus yet, you can find my review of it here. […]