Reviewed by Larissa
TITLE: Lancelot
SERIES: Theriot Family Book 3
AUTHOR: Silvia Violet
PUBLISHER: Self-published
LENGTH: 282 pages
RELEASE DATE: September 9, 2021
BLURB:
When I met Julian, I wanted to hate him. He’s my opposite in every way.
I’m impulsive. A rule breaker. A criminal.
He likes things quiet and orderly.
But when I made demands, he stood his ground, and I knew I had to have him. I never imagined a mousy, uptight librarian could push all my buttons, but he does.
To win him over though, I’ll have to do the impossible: Prove that occasionally, I can be reserved and restrained. And show Julian that he can trust a criminal with his heart.
REVIEW:
Silvia Violet’s Lancelot is the third book in her The Theriot Family series and is by far the best of the three. In many ways, the book is substantially similar to the prior two books in the series, Remington and Corbin. We get all the sex-heavy, action-filled, M/M romance we’ve come to expect from Ms. Violet, along with danger and intrigue from two warring mafia families. However, unlike Remington and Corbin, in Lancelot, Ms. Violet takes the time to develop the context for the relationship between Lancelot, Remington’s eccentric, impulsive, monkey-accessorized younger brother, and Julian, the uptight, lonely librarian standing in the way of Lancelot’s mission to obtain a message left for Remington in the Library’s archive room.
In the majority of the books set in Ms. Violet’s Marchesi Universe, we get insta-love with insta-ownership, exhibited by our mafia/vigilante male protagonists through a lot of caveman, testosterone-laden, “He’s mine” conduct. This type of power dynamic seems to sit in Ms. Violet’s comfort zone because each book replicates that Dom/sub-type relationship to some degree.
We do get that in Lancelot as well, but Lancelot’s romantic love interest, Julian, has a complex personality, a strong backbone, and a level of stubbornness that hearkens back to the dynamic between Niall and Marco in Niall, Vigilance Book 2. Here, it’s even more intriguing because Julian’s mousy exterior belies his true personality, including his strong attitude and a wild streak that spurs him to experiment and let go so long as he feels safe to do so. Lancelot’s mission is to convince Julian that he is that guy, the one Julian can depend on and feel safe with. Lancelot eventually succeeds in that mission, with a little (or a lot) of help from his monkey Tony, Lancelot’s adorable, dependable sidekick.
The inclusion of Tony the monkey is preposterous TBH, yet totally welcome as he provides the highlight of the book. Tony’s adorable and his scenes are funny and heartwarming especially when we see him interacting with Julian. Most importantly, Tony serves as a vehicle through which we can see who Lancelot truly is beyond the reckless demeanor that has eroded his family’s belief in his trustworthiness.
We get significantly more emotional connection between Lancelot and Julian than we’ve seen with prior Marchesi universe couples. That’s part of what makes Lancelot work where prior books have struggled. Lancelot and Julian’s relationship takes a slightly slower track and it contains a level of respect and even deference that are absent from many of the other Marchesi universe relationships. Despite Lancelot and Julian’s obvious differences, the dichotomy in Julian’s personality makes perfect sense as does how it dovetails with Lancelot’s personality and vulnerabilities. In short, we see and understand how and why they work as a couple.
When we add all of this to the action, low-level suspense, and hot sex usually found in Ms. Violet’s stories, you end up with a terrific book in Lancelot. So long as you’re not looking for anything too deep or slow-paced, you can’t go wrong with this highly enjoyable, low-angst, mafia-style, New Orleans-based adventure, featuring a healthy dose of spicy romance between an engaging, likable couple, and an endearing monkey sidekick to boot.
RATING:
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