Title: Sympathy for the Gods
Series: Briar Constance, Book Three
Author: Tallie Rose
Publisher: NineStar Press
Release Date: 08/29/2023
Heat Level: 3 – Some Sex
Pairing: Male/Female, Female/Female
Length: 70900
Genre: Fantasy, Fantasy, family-drama, gods, blood magic, lesbian, bisexual, nonbinary, witches, fae, murder, death, prime minister
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Description
With the death of Eliana, Briar had hoped the danger for her and her friends had passed, but killing a Goddess comes with consequences.
As Briar struggles to deal with her new life and responsibilities as conduit, Bastianna rallies others to try to destroy everything she is working for. A group of fanatics, known as Believers, want Briar to pay for her sins. Meanwhile, Eliana’s father Ivian wanders the earth as a fallen God. When he joins the Believers, lured by their promise of revenge, everyone Briar loves is in danger.
Will her new powers of Conduit be enough to keep them safe? Can Briar once again defeat a God?
Sympathy for the Gods
Tallie Rose © 2023
All Rights Reserved
Soren had developed the unfortunate habit of watching Fauna sleep, her chest gently rising and falling, her hair fanned out around her face. It had only been a few weeks, and he wasn’t sure exactly what was happening between them, but more often than not her days ended up at his house. He felt like a character in a made-for-TV rom-com, obsessed with a girl who had other things on her mind. Sometimes she looked at him and he knew she wasn’t seeing him at all.
She was still mourning her mother, spending all day with her grandfather. She’d barely seen Briar, though he suspected that was intentional. Fauna cringed when she looked at her, the strange ethereal glow of her face, her perfect skin.
The changes in Briar didn’t bother Soren as much as they did Fauna. She was still Briar, crass, hard-headed, his best friend. He didn’t care if she looked like a Goddess, so long as she was still in there. And she was. He was sure of it. A little lost, a little broken, but there.
But between the Constance cousins things were still a mess, there was a fallen God, Vestia was dead, Briar was the conduit. Like the changes in Briar, none of it bothered Soren too much. The worst of it was over, Eliana was gone. Bastianna might be a pain in the ass but it would take Briar all of two seconds to end her—not the worst foe he could think of. And as far as Ivian, well, he’d been mad, but now he wasn’t a God and no one had heard from him. All they had to do was wait a few more months and that threat would be gone too.
But he couldn’t vocalize any of that. He couldn’t say how excited he was to get on with the next bits of his life. He had sat through his father’s funeral and he hadn’t been able to say what he felt then either—relief. His father had gone out in the best way he could and now he couldn’t hurt anyone, couldn’t hurt Soren, anymore. But those weren’t thoughts for a funeral.
They definitely weren’t things to say to Fauna, who was still mourning her mother. So he watched her sleep while his insomnia grew worse. It was a sad state for him, spending his nights pining over a girl who was already in his bed. And he had such skills to offer to take her mind off things, but they’d hardly even been utilized.
He’d managed a few hours of sleep in between loud thoughts in his head, but now he watched as the sun made its way over the horizon outside his window, illuminating the world, and bringing the city to life. Fauna stirred, rolling over in her sleep.
“Not again.” She laughed, propping her head up on her hand, though her eyes were barely open. “Tell me you slept.”
“A little. I’m nervous.” He glanced over to the nightstand where her engagement ring nestled in its depths. He’d met hundreds of politicians but Cliff Constance scared him more than they ever did.
“He’s going to love you.” But the twist of her lips gave her away. He opened his mouth to object, but she cut him off with a kiss. Her fingers trailed along his jaw, featherlight pressure that sent shivers down his spine.
He pulled her closer, tangling the sheets between them. He was falling in love and for the first time in his life it didn’t make him want to run away. He wanted to stay, to build something that was theirs, only theirs. A life between them. “I’m going to make you so happy, Fauna. I swear it.”
She pulled him to her, curling herself into his body. The strawberry scent of her shampoo wafted into his nose and he ran his nails along her arm. She made a small noise at the touch and looked up at him. “Thank you for being patient.”
“Of course.” He kissed her slowly and her body relaxed against him.
Her phone rang from where she’d left it in the kitchen. The tone was one she’d set for Briar. Fauna pushed herself up from the bed and he groaned. She kissed his cheek and stood up, in his old shirt and shorts that really earned their name.
Soren fell back onto his bed, breathing in the scent of her still on the sheets. Wild plans swam in his head. Maybe they could get away for a while. Cliff couldn’t complain that much. She’d lost her mother. She was overwhelmed. She needed a vacation. He made a list of locations with direct flights from Endlyia while Fauna’s voice floated down the hallway, the words indecipherable.
The voices stopped and her bare feet barely made noise on the hardwoods.
“We’ve got to go see Briar.”
“I want to see you. Naked. Please.”
She came across the room and for a second he thought he might get his wish as she leaned down, bringing her lips to his ear. Her breath was hot on his skin. “Later. Get dressed. And don’t forget, whatever you wear, you’ll see my grandfather in it.”
He made a noncommittal noise. “Well, I’m cursing your cousin. May she never know an orgasm again.”
“I doubt it will stick.”
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Tallie Rose lives in Charleston, SC with two kids, five cats, two goldfish, and one dog. She spends her spare time thrifting, watching bad TV, and reading books.
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