Reviewed by Donna

TITLE: Killian

SERIES: Whispers from a Hidden World #1

AUTHOR: TN Tarrant

PUBLISHER: MLR Press

LENGTH: 208 Pages

RELEASE DATE: October 25, 2018

BLURB:

Regent Killian Larrestes survived a harrowing attack and the betrayal of his family by his mother, and has since worked to help them all recover, learning the complexities of protecting and commanding a large, sprawling Clan.
Shiloh Zahirris is seeking Sanctuary from a marriage he doesn’t want when he ends up under the protection of Killian Larrestes. Killian takes him in, and they find themselves falling in love. But will social objections, personal insecurities, and someone seeking revenge destroy their chance at happiness?

REVIEW:

I don’t know what I was expecting when I picked this book up, but it wasn’t this.

In a nutshell, the book begins with a young Killian just having escaped a sexual assault by his fiancée, a marriage arranged by his mother as the head of their house. Years later Killian finds himself in a position to aid a second young man, Shiloh, escape this same woman as she once again refuses to take no for an answer. Against a backdrop of political maneuverings the two men fall in love, but their happily ever after isn’t as easy as it should be due to the matriarchal society they belong to. Not to mention Anan, the twice-thwarted fiancée who believes she can simply take whatever man she fancies.

This book is unlike any other that I’ve read before. And while I enjoyed the relationship between Shiloh and Killian well enough, for me, this story was all about the society they lived and the way the author opened my eyes to the misogynistic bullshit I’ve always accepted as normal.

The author uses the first scene, that of Killian denouncing his attempted rapist, to really whack you across the face with just what it is to exist in a gender controlled society. It was a scene that I have probably read many times before, usually in historical romances, where a young virginal woman will appeal to her imposing father to save her from the handsy asshole that she has been betrothed to. And I’ve thought nothing of it, because that’s just how it was in the past and we know better now (well, somewhat). But flipping those gender roles brought attention to the situation, made me take notice, and OMG, I realized just how horrible it all seemed. It occurred many times throughout the book, scenes that should have been nothing more than mundane occurrences, like the local men descending on the house to prepare it for a wedding, but it annoyed the heck out of me that it was considered a man’s job and why were the women too good to help!? Honestly, I never would have questioned it if it were the other way around. I have no idea if the author wrote this book intending it to be a feminist call to arms, but hey, I’m hearing the cry, that’s for sure.

I really think that some readers will love this story, for its uniqueness if nothing else – not that there is anything wrong with the rest of it. I really hope that the author chooses to continue this as a series because I’m definitely interested in reading more of this world that was the most fascinating combination of historical vibes with trackpants and internet.

RATING: 

BUY LINKS: 

Amazon

MLR Press