Reviewed by True
TITLE: The Blacksmith’s Apprentice
AUTHOR: Bey Deckard
PUBLISHER: Self-Published
LENGTH: 274 pages
RELEASE DATE: December 12, 2022
BLURB:
Eyck didn’t need anyone.
Eyck lived a good life in South Galetsy. A respected blacksmith, he spent long days making swords for the Border War, and even though he ached by day’s end, the last thing he thought he needed was an apprentice. He had his work and his best friend, Pash, and that was fine.
When Wex showed up on his stoop asking for work, Eyck agreed to take him on—no matter that Wex turned out to be prickly and secretive and an absolute bloody pain in the tail to work with. Well… mostly.
Wex didn’t want anyone.
Wex was tired of just scraping by. A freed slave and ex-convict, Wex was stubbornly determined not to let his breed caste or muteness stop him from carving out a decent life for himself. All he needed was a little help getting there.
Words like “trust”, “love, or even “desire” weren’t part of Wex’s vocabulary, and he didn’t want them to be—those words could enslave just as easily as iron. He was using the blacksmith to learn a skill, nothing more. Problem was, Wex couldn’t get Eyck out of his head.
REVIEW:
This story takes place in a non-human fantasy world, and what a wonderful fantasy scenery it was!
There are different kinds of creatures from different breeds, Leveks, Kirmen, Duvals, Ulvels, up to nine… to be honest, there’s more just read the story!
There is a caste system, there’s slavery, abuse and rape so mind the content warnings.
Eyck is a blacksmith, one day he saved a slave from his cruel owner by buying him and setting him free. The boy left, to return five sun cycles later. A lot has happened to Wex he can’t talk about, literally, because he can’t speak. With visual signs, they understand each other.
Eyck is a gentle guy, well respected in the community, he’s willing to take Wex as his apprentice.
Wex is a grown-up guy now, with fur and fangs, he’s grumpy and mistrustful. His past was awfully hurtful. He doesn’t want to be touched by Eyck. He wants to be educated and leave as soon as possible.
He’s confused by his feelings for Eyck. To take some of his heat off he seeks his release with others.
Eyck is a bit jealous, so it’s him who can’t touch, others can. He has to take a step back and lock his attraction away. Easily said with Wex in his face the whole day.
It doesn’t matter how grumpy Wex acts, Eyck is only showing kindness and warmth.
Very gently something sweet is blooming.
The world created was stunning, and quite challenging, with non-human creatures, imagine soft fur, fangs, and sensitive tails. Different breeds and social classes, but recognizable. There’s an unexpected turn that was quite surprising.
The connection between Eyck and Wex was amazingly built up. Their sexual interactions are arousing and hot. Both guys are somewhat complicated characters and quite engaging.
Again, a stunningly detailed world and society are created, cleverly crafted, and worked out.
The plot and subplots were captivating and well-developed.
Overall a story I only put down when finished.
RATING: 
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