#Jordan L Hawk

[aurorawest]

Summer Reading Update (part 1)

Teach the Torches to Burn by Caleb Roehrig - 4.75/5 stars

This was a really well done retelling of Romeo and Juliet. I read another book from the Remixed Classics series, Dear Henry, and while that one was also good, it felt like it adhered too slavishly to The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, so sometimes things seemed to be happening only because they happened in the original. And I haven't actually read the original book, it was just...easy to tell. Teach the Torches to Burn never felt like that, and I loved how it fleshed out so many of the characters from the play.

You Should Be So Lucky by Cat Sebastian - 5/5 stars

I feel like tumblr sings this one's praises enough that I don't really have to, but—everyone should read this. Everyone should read all of Cat Sebastian's books. I think I liked this one better than We Could Be So Good, but that could just be because I've found myself becoming more and more of a sucker for sports romances.

Unhallowed by Jordan L Hawk - 4.75/5 stars

Sad to say goodbye to the Whyborne and Griffin series, but I already love this spinoff!

Soul of Ash by HL Moore - 3.75/5 stars

Crow's Fate by Kim Fielding - 3.75/5 stars

The Sleeping Soldier by Aster Glenn Gray - 5/5 stars

I sound like a broken record re: Aster Glenn Gray, but please read her books. If you like Cat Sebastian's mid-century romances (like You Should Be So Lucky!) you like Aster Glenn Gray. This one is ostensibly a Sleeping Beauty retelling, but one where the sleeper actually sleeps for 100 years. In this case, it's a Union soldier who is put in an enchanted sleep in 1865 and wakes up in 1965 and oh my god, it's so good. It examines racism, it examines toxic masculinity, it examines homophobia, and how same-sex platonic affection became taboo. I'm pretty sure this woman has never written a bad book, but this may be her best.

Alec by Kaje Harper - 3.75/5 stars

Artemis by Andy Weir - 3.75/5 stars

Oak King Holly King by Sebastian Nothwell - 4.75/5 stars

I loved this one! There are so many books about Faerie and they can be pretty hit or miss for me, but this one struck just the right balance of otherworldly, inhuman creatures and characters I could root for. Shrike and Wren were lovely.

Imperfect Illusions by Vanora Lawless - DNF at pg 56

Orchestrated Love by AJ Buchanan - DNF at pg 1

Razorblade Tears by SA Cosby - 4.25/5 stars

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern - 5/5 stars (reread)

The Only Light Left Burning by Erik J Brown - 5/5 stars

Excellent sequel about what happens after you make it to the last bastion of civilization after the apocalypse.

Unwieldy Creatures by Addie Tsai - DNF at pg 12

A Nobleman's Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel by KJ Charles - 5/5 stars

Oh man. This may have displaced the Will Darling Adventures as my favorite KJ Charles book. Wonderful MCs, A+ side character arcs, and villains you really loved to hate. I rambled on a lot about this book to my wife after I finished it.

Stars in Your Eyes by Kacen Callender - DNF at pg 156

His Lordship's Secret by Samantha SoRelle - 3.75/5 stars

Us, Et Cetera by Kit Vincent - 5/5 stars

Cinderella retelling with androids but Christ on a bike was this a painful read. Really, really well done. Highly recommended.

Charming Young Man by Eliot Schrefer - 5/5 stars

My 5 star rating diverges pretty sharply from the average Storygraph rating for this book, and I'm not sure why, other than maybe people thinks it's PrObLeMaTic. It was definitely not a super happy book, though it ends on a good note (that's a pun btw!). I thought it was a great book about a period that isn't often written about (1890s Paris) with a fascinating protagonist (who was a real person).

Dark Heir by CS Pacat - 5/5 stars

It's a CS Pacat book; it's the sequel to Dark Rise; obvs I loved it. I don't understand why this series is shelved under YA except that Pacat's publisher thinks more people will buy them. This series is the gay Lord of the Rings you always wanted and somehow is an even slower burn than Captive Prince.

Of Knights and Books and Falling in Love by Rita A Rubin - DNF at pg 50

Cover Story by Valerie Gomez - DNF at pg 176

Letters to Half Moon Street by Sarah Wallace - 4/5 stars

[zefenrian]

[haveyoureadthisqueerbook]

[witsserviceablesubstitute]

Stories are not reality. They use many tools to reflect reality but they are not beholden to the same rules. What's more, they reflect Romance just as readily as they reflect Realism. Stories require a suspension of disbelief. Some willingness to look outside yourself to pick apart meaning. An ability to empathize with experiences not your own so you can better see why and how it was put together the way it was. Stories are ephemeral and intangible, a collective fever dream with meanings that shift depending on the dreamer. They are also deliberately constructed and come with their own concrete intentions, histories, and baggage unique to each culture, genre, and medium the story is told in.

If I had one wish when it comes to critiques of fiction, it's that people come at a story from where it is first and everything else can come later. For example, critiques of YA are going to be different to that of Adult works. Those teenagers are heroes and sexual agents because it's important teenagers be allowed their own coming of age journeys— explorations of sex and sexuality a big part of that period of self discovery for many. (That doesn't mean sex has to be a PSA either, it can be raw and awkward and weird and uninhabited). E.g. No, that immortal/older supernatural being falling for our teen hero isn't a predator (well... there are layers). What they are is a extremely common teen power fantasy. (However, if you did want to read a YA series that deconstructs that particular trope and explores how horrific such a dynamic would be, I'd recommend 'The Fever King' and 'The Electric Heir' by Victoria Lee. Brilliant and harrowing books).

Okay, so, anyway. I've been watching a very good YA show called Dead Boy Detectives. (I have a feeling the people following me are reading those words with exasperation, "No shit"). It's fun spooky hijinks but it's also a beautiful piece of cinematic storytelling that uses a variety of mixed mediums to get its points across. It makes this queer nerds heart happy and deserves more space to tell the story it wants to tell and subvert the tropes it wants to subvert. However, in case it doesn't get that space, I wanted to recommend two queer book series that fans of the show may want to look into. The 'Whyborne & Griffin' series by Jordan L. Hawk (each book gets better and better, and also, the actor that plays Edwin would make an excellent Whyborne) and 'The Last Binding' series by Freya Marske.

[haleandwellmet]

Continuing on my quest try more book cover illustration by doing my own take on a cover for Widdershins 🌀

[mushabon]

Inspired by Whyborne & Griffin: Widdershins Book 1" by Jordan L Hawk. I've been wanting to do a W&G piece for so so so long and I'm so glad to have finally had a moment to do so. What better scene than this one to make my heart burst into 1000 pieces <3

[evenaturtleduck]

Parenting lesson #17 from the Whyborne and Griffin series: if you're racist or homophobic about your future son in law you can fuck right off and out of the story, but if you merely attempt to sacrifice him to an eldritch god you can definitely come back from that one ❤️

[dandelion-roots]

[ID: a digital sketch in two panels. in the first griffin fixes a blushing whyborne's suit collar and says, there you go. in the second, griffin is kissing his husband's cheek. End ID]

[polycraftory]

September 2024 Reading Wrapped

I don't know what happened this last month, but all three of us went absolutely feral and read so many books each?? We are going to try to narrow down a few favs each but it's a challenge this month.

You can find all our Storygraphs with reviews for these in our pinned post or by looking up the usernames on the graphics!

It was so hard to pick a favorite since I had so many 5 star reads last month, but when all else fails I'll fall back on good polyamory rep. Championship by Alethea Faust, book 4 of Sex Wizards, continues to be an excellent kinky time! Also I read the first SPECTR collection by Jordan L. Hawk, and it's exactly what I hoped it would be: a polyamorous triad involving a normal guy, the vampiric demon eating storm elemental that is possessing him, and the exorcist who is trying to help. Think Venom mixed with monster of the week paranormal investigation. I am so ready for more!

Nic's favorite book was Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle. It's a horrific look into just how bad AI could get in the film industry paired with a compelling horror plot line. Their favorite manga was definitely Therapy Game Restart by Meguru Hinohara: a cute and spicy contemporary BL romance with adults having adult problems.

Gabe's top picks are hard because they read so many books, but the Assistant to the Villain series by Hannah Nicole Maehrer (an office drama in a fantasy villain's lair) and Exposed by H. L. Day (a post-apocalyptic romance featuring a guy on the run and his stalker) probably edge out the others (and were some of my favs as well). They insist on also giving honorable mentions to Junker Seven by Olive J. Kelley (a space romance about the queer liberation movement) and Song of Carcosa by Josh Reynolds (straight up an Arkham Horror spinoff about Venice and the King in Yellow).

[mywingsareonwheels]

Obscure fandoms mashing up in my head again: Jordan L Hawk's Hexworld universe would fit so beautifully with the morseverse. I mean one is a series of turn-of-the-20th-century m/m fantasy romance novels set in New York and the other is... not, but you have:-

some unrealistically good/anti-bigotry police detectives[1], but they are dealing with horrible amounts of corruption higher up.

general tackling of issues of discrimination but also ferocious loyalties

and a main character who keeps being very underestimated by the powers that be but whose colleagues really learn to adore them (even when they're an awkward git)

So I'm now envisaging Morse being a Familiar (cat, hedgehog, squirrel, something like that) and Thursday being his Witch (and things proceed more happily from there than in the show because Dammit). Morse becomes very much part of the Thursday family thanks to this, one way or another. And them both dealing with the discrimination Morse faces, but goodness would it work well. Jakes is an unbonded dog Familiar (and the boys at Blenheim Vale all were Familiars...); Hope his Witch but like Thursday she turns out to be an awesome one. Max could be a forensic hexman as well as a pathologist; at some point he ends up bonding with Dorothea (some form of bird Familiar?) with their relationship being platonic but utterly beautiful. :) Bright a Witch who starts out carrying the usual prejudices but unpacks them massively and then ends up bonding with a tiger Familiar (naturally). I'm not sure which way round Trewlove and Fancy are, but they had been wondering about bonding but hadn't actually done it by the end of series 5. *sobs a bit*

[1] Yes I *do* most emphatically include all of the main character detectives in Endeavour in that.

[fourthleafluckart]

The Forgotten Dead by Jordan L Hawk

Queer Book Draw Challenge 15/20

75% done! :O

[ID: An illustration of Nigel and Oscar sitting next to each other on the child-sized bed in Mike's room. The bed is crowded with heaps of children's clothes, and the walls are decorated with posters of its former inhabitant's interests. Nigel's hand is on Oscar's thigh and Oscar's hand is on Nigel's back. Nigel is leaned forward into the light, squinting slightly as if to see more clearly. His expression is intense, soulful, and a little bereft. Behind him, Oscar's eyes are closed, and a peaceful expression rests on his face. A stream of light comes in from the window and a the shadow of a figure is just visible amongst the beams reaching out to Nigel. End ID]

Tip Jar | Commissions

reduced color version under cut

[aurorawest]

Reading update

Light Up the Lamp by Kit Oliver - 5/5 stars

Kit Oliver can do no wrong, I guess. I figured I'd like this one a lot given that I loved her other two novels, but hockey books usually aren't five star reads for me. Along comes this book! Unrelentingly lovely, and even though I knew it was going to have an HEA, I still found myself worried that Gil wasn't going to figure shit out.

The Faerie Hounds of York by Arden Powell - 5/5 stars

Gorgeous book that read like a dreamy, dark fairy tale. The first book by Arden Powell I read was really funny, and this was like the complete opposite. Powell has range! This one is sad, but still has a happy ending. If you like Emily Tesh's Greenhollow Duology, I highly recommend this one. They're definitely in the same vein.

Deosil by Jordan L Hawk - 4.75/5 stars

I was SO SAD to get to the end of this series. Whyborne, Griffin, Christine, Iskander, Persephone, Maggie, Niles...I could go on, I love them all. It's hard to say good-bye but they all got a wonderful ending.

The Inside Edge by Ashlyn Kane - 3/5 stars

The Taste of Desert Green by Kim Fielding - 4.25/5 stars

Your Lonely Nights Are Over by Adam Sass - 1/5 stars

Crushed Ice by Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James - 4/5 stars

Roustabout by Morgan Brice - 3/5 stars

Prince in Disguise by Tavia Lark - 5/5 stars

Loved this one just as much as the first in the series. I expected the Draskorans to be...idk, like stereotype fantasy barbarians, so it was extremely refreshing that they weren't.

Old Time Religion by EH Lupton - 5/5 stars

Ahhhhhhhh I love this series!! I really really enjoyed the first book, and I loved this one even more. Really good, really original. I can't recommend this one and Dionysus in Wisconsin enough!

A Thief and a Gentleman by Arden Powell - 3.5/5 stars

The Devil to Pay by Katie Daysh - 4.75/5 stars

If you like Patrick O'Brian but find yourself thinking, surely this could be more gay? Then Katie Daysh's books are for you. This is the second in the series and I was delighted to learn yesterday from her newsletter that she's working on the third, because I definitely am not ready for the series to end! The first book was from Nightingale's POV (there might have been some bits from Courtney's POV? But not many), and this one is entirely from Courtney's. Courtney and Nightingale didn't actually get to spend much time together in this one so I hope they catch more of a break in book 3.

Lord of Eternal Night by Ben Alderson - DNF at pg 6

The Engineer by CS Poe - 4/5 stars

The Larks Still Bravely Singing by Aster Glenn Gray - 5/5 stars

If you're not reading Aster Glenn Gray yet, why not? Why not??? Seriously, if you like Cat Sebastian, PLEASE give Aster Glenn Gray a try. I have yet to read a book by the woman that isn't gorgeous. This book is set right at the tail end of WWI and into the interwar period and is about two young English men who were injured and invalided out of the army. They're both disabled (Robert, the POV character, is missing a leg, and David is missing a hand) and have PTSD.

Also recommended if you like KJ Charles's Will Darling Adventures trilogy. The Larks Still Bravely Singing is just straight historical romance, not romantic suspense, but it deals with similar themes.

Guardians of Dawn: Zhara by S Jae-Jones - DNF at pg 24

Mr Warren's Profession by Sebastian Nothwell - 4.75/5 stars

LOVED this book. I think it's the only historical romance I've read that uses the Industrial Revolution so heavily in the plot, which I really enjoyed. Plus, gorgeous cover.

Honey Mead Murder by Dahlia Donovan - DNF at pg 5

A Market of Dreams and Destiny by Trip Galey - 3.25/5 stars

String Theory by Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James - 3.75/5 stars

One Night in Hartswood by Emma Denny - 5/5 stars

I honestly don't know why, when I received this book in like, November, I didn't immediately put it on the top of my TBR pile. I knew I was going to love it; I was super excited to get my copy. Every time I've shuffled my TBR (like, my actual physical TBR...it's a whole thing...it's actually been mistaken for my full book collection but haha no that's just 200 books I haven't read yet sitting on my stairs...), I've lamented that it's not closer to the top. And then I realized, this is literally my TBR and my own weird fake rules that I've made up about it, so I can actually just pull it from the stack and read it now. So I did!

And yeah, I loved it. So much. Raff and Penn will probably live rent free in my mind forever, not to mention Ash and Lily. I loved the medieval setting (another setting you don't see much in queer historical romance!) and how it really felt like a different world than ours. Plus I'm a sucker for road trip romances. And daddy issues. And horrific scars.

And ugh, the training scenes. The sexual tension. The PINING. Masterfully done. Chef's kiss.

Also we're going to find out who Oliver was, right? RIGHT??? And what happened to Penn's brother?

Out of Touch by Michael Sarais - DNF at pg 7

The Long Call by Ann Cleeves - 4.25/5 stars

Always enjoy a mystery that's well-paced and well-written. I've never actually read anything by Ann Cleeves but I'm going to pick up the rest of this series.

The Death I Gave Him by Em X Liu - DNF at pg 284

[cav-core]

One of my favorite things about the wider Whyborne & Griffin verse is just how much of an aneurysm the Endicotts would give HP Lovecraft if he just thought about them.

[haveyoureadthisqueerbook]

[kd-heart]

Widdershins turns 10 in a few days and today is Whyborne and Griffin’s anniversary, so I made tiny versions of them.

They’re still very hard to pose, but I’m so proud of their little noses and eyebrows! And I had to use glue to get Griffin’s hair to sit right, but it was worth it!

A few work in progress pics under the cut

[not-dorian-grey]

Excuse me but what is a line this fucking raw doing in this happy little gay fantasy story?