H.E. Edgmon

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
0🌶 (YA) - But there's some intense tension though

Wyatt has been in hiding for a few years now. He grew up with a family that resented his very existence, and his future has been all but signed away since childhood. After a horrible accident he escaped and was able to find love and acceptance with an indigenous family in Texas who's daughter, Briar, is his best friend. But his past has just come calling: his childhood fiancé has just found him again and is show more insisting he come back to rule by his side.

Couple key problems with that whole situation:
1) When the marriage contract was signed, Wyatt was still living as a girl... and the intention was for him to become queen. Now that he came out as trans... the queen part is off the table.
2) In that same vein... his old best friend and fiancé Emyr had been intending to marry him as a girl... and even if he still had feelings for Emyr... Wyatt has no idea if Emyr would still reciprocate those feelings.
3) Love and friendship aside... Wyatt is a witch born to Fae parents and witches are treated horribly in the Fae kingdoms, like second class citizens. Wyatt isn't exactly keen to go back to a world where his only value was seen as the mate of the new King and potential mother to his heirs. Hard pass.

Sadly that original marriage contract was signed in blood, and now Wyatt is forced to dive right back into a world of danger, prejudice, and political upheaval.

This is the first installment of a gripping story that explores the sometimes impossible choice between being true to yourself and sacrificing yourself for the greater good (or maybe finding the elusive third path). There are so many important struggles and topics that the author is able to tackle and give a perspective on through the eyes of both our MMCs and our side characters.

Through Wyatt, we see the struggle he faces as not just a trans man but also as a member of the marginalized witch community in an antiquated and almost segregated Fae world. We see Emyr struggling to create a more fair and just Fae society, but having to fight against everyone, including his family, to do it. We see Briar as a warrior for good change on all fronts, willing to call out the injustice and hypocrisy she sees all around her. We see Wyatt's sister coming to terms with how brainwashed she was as a child by her parents and the consequences it caused for her brother. Plus so so many more.

The best way to learn about the world is to see it from a diverse variety of perspectives, and the author has given us quite the gift with this story and the vast diversity of the cast of characters. And somehow, with all of that intense topic coverage... the author still manages to infuse snark and brevity into Wyatt's voice (it's a single POV) to give us hope.

I listened to this in a single day and am already ready to dive into book 2 to see how this story continues! show less

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
🌶/4 (YA) - All fade to black YA level but the connection is electric

This is the second half of an incredible duology. We continue right where we left off from Book 1 and everything just keeps ramping up and all of the topics that were brought up in the first part of this story got an even deeper dive.

On gender identity and sexuality - Wyatt and Emyr both learn so much about themselves and each other in this second installment. From how they really feel show more about each other & the nature of their bond, to how they identify in so many different ways, this was a beautiful and complicated look into the minds of two teenagers who have to figure out who they are...all while trying to save their entire world. Just a bit of added stress right?

On family and friendships - Wyatt and Briar both go through quite the transformation in learning about themselves, each other, and how their relationship has evolved over the years. They needed things from each other when they met, and as they've grown those needs have changed... and so have their expectations on how their friendship and relationship should function. Getting to watch this evolution of how their own personal growth correlated to how they interacted with each other was so interesting and powerful. The character development for these two was staggeringly complex throughout the duology and one of the most intriguing parts for me. Not to mention ALL of the other side characters, but these two were the most special for me.

On social and societal issues - Oh right, this isn't just a book about friends and partners, oh no, there's also a war breaking out at the same time that threatens to tear apart the very way of life for the Fae and the Witches. We see so much growth from our main and supporting characters as they learn to navigate an increasingly hostile political reality, the breakdown of the fragile fae-witch relations, and the introduction of people from the other side of the door.

We go on an increasingly intense and at times dark journey to find peace and acceptance for all of the different kinds of beings in their world. It's a powerful story and one that not only left me guessing, but delivered a few punches to the gut and heart along the way. I highly recommend this duet. show less

Whoa, that was an intense tale. I love the messaging -- that we all need to take responsibility for being less greedy and for living more lightly on the world. I loved the fast paced adventure, and the trans journey and the found family of the lost boys. I loved the centering of an Indigenous worldview. There was a lot of death. There was a lot of suspense. Spoiler: the dog survives.

I debated taking off half a star because, especially at the end, there were sometimes scenes with so much action and so many players that it was hard to keep track of where everyone was and what they were doing, but I decided that the confusion in my mind was probably in line with the vibe the author wanted. This book drew quite a bit from confusion, actually. Gem, the main character, spent much of the story struggling with their own memories/"dreams" and uncertainty about how to process show more them. It wasn't until nearly the very end that we, the readers, were finally given a glimpse at what their reality had been before everything began to fall into chaos. The main cast of characters were not who they seemed to be; Gem's father may or may not have once been aware of the truth of the situation, before mental illness began to taint and destroy his understanding. Buck, perhaps my favorite character, was mentally muddled to the point of riddle-speak, even if he turned out to be such a powerful player in the game.

Gem was a character who was hard to like at times, but they were sympathetic even so. Their damage didn't disappear when they came into their strength, which was a relief. (When near the end they had the thought that they should go back on their medication, I felt like cheering. Really, every character in this book could probably use a heap of therapy, even if the therapists themselves would likely need their own therapy afterward.) It was harder to sympathize with Enzo, though small things--his candor toward Gem, his unexpected protectiveness toward his human parents, his sharp regrets (if that's the correct word) when he was forced to examine himself--went some way toward ameliorating that, and it will be interesting to see how that character grows in the second book. Willa Mae was easier to like...though I am eager to hear more their actions before the group was expelled into our world.

And that cliffhanger was an excellent one, leaving me speechless for a moment. I'll definitely be picking up book 2. show less