#White Trash Warlock by David R. Slayton

[abookishidentity]

Urban Fantasy thoughts part 2

It's very interesting how in each urban fantasy book I have read the main character is constantly hurting for money. Then again, there have been quite a few science fiction books in which the starship captain isn't exactly raking in the dough.

Urban Fantasy main characters are deeply broken people which makes sense as they have seen a lot. Something interesting about reading about a deeply broken person who is just constantly trying to survive and defeat bad creatures.

I remember looking up Sandman Slim on youtube and seeing someone comparing the book series with Jim Butcher's Dresden Files series. So I checked out Storm Front by Jim Butcher and I just couldn't make it through it which was disappointing as the entire series was at the library it seemed. Didn't like how women were written, or at least the vampire women were, and I didn't like the main character.

Here are other urban fantasy books I did like:

-Dead Things by Stephen Blackmoore - I want to get more into this series.

-The Dead Take the A Train by Cassandra Khaw and Richard Kadrey - how I could not like this? Richard Kadrey cowrote it.

-Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone - I love the Craft Sequence series.

-White Trash Warlock by David R. Slayton - Pretty good book.

-Rosemary and Rue by Seanan McGuire - I would read more of this book series. I haven't read many books about the fae.

-The Devil You Know by Mike Carey- Currently reading this book. I definitely would want to read more of this series.

Other urban fantasy books I have read /tried to read but will not continue.

-Storm Front by Jim Butcher- already gave my reasons. It's quite disappointing and I'm not slogging through several books before it gets better.

-Moon Called by Patricia Briggs- I didn't finish this book. Too much werewolf pack rules shit.

-Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews - It was a pretty good book. A lot of werewolf in this book. The constant talk of who is the alpha and pack rules just kind of annoys me.

-Spider’s Bite by Jennifer Estep - Once again, it was pretty good. She was a deadly assassin which was cool. Didn't like that she lusted after the cop. Sometimes I forget that urban fantasy protagonists can just be ridiculously horny.

That all being said, I possibly need more recommendations for urban fantasy. Hopefully they are the libraries I frequent.

[haveyoureadthisqueerbook]

[musicboxghost]

The romances in White Trash Warlock by David R. Slayton = Hide by Rainbow Kitten Surprise

The romance in Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots = Vampire Empire by Big Thief

Feel free to message and geek out about these books if you know them ❤️ Book fandoms are tiny but my love for them is immense.

[books-to-add-to-your-tbr]

Title: Adam Binder

Author: David R. Slayton

Series or standalone: series

Publication year: 2020

Genres: fiction, fantasy, LGBT+, paranormal, romance

Blurb: Guthrie was a good place to be from, but it wasn't a great place to live...not when you were like Adam. Adam Binder hasn't spoken to his brother in years, not since Bobby had him committed to a psych ward for hearing voices. When a murderous spirit possesses Bobby's wife and disrupts the perfect life he's built away from Oklahoma, he's forced to ask for his little brother's help. Adam is happy to escape the trailer park and get the chance to say "I told you so"...but he arrives in Denver to find the local magicians dead. It isn't long before Adam is the spirit's next target. To survive the confrontation, he'll have to risk bargaining with powers he'd rather avoid, including his first love: the elf who broke his heart. The Binder brothers don't realise that they're unwitting pawns in a game played by immortals. Death herself wants the spirit's head, and she's willing to destroy their family to reap it.

[aurorawest]

Reading update

White Trash Warlock by David R Slayton - 4.75/5 stars

Urban fantasy with a protagonist from a trailer park, who, for bonus points, got sectioned by his older brother as a teen. Daddy issues, mommy issues, and brother issues, what's not to like? I ordered everything else by this author I could find when I finished the book, including the other two books in this series.

The Fascinators by Andrew Eliopulos - DNF

Boring.

The Revolutionary and the Rogue by Blake Ferre - DNF

Boring, with the added crime of actual plot happening but still, somehow, nothing actually happening. I kept reading whole pages and realizing I had no idea what I'd just read.

The Red Scholar's Wake by Aliette de Bodard - DNF

OMFG CAN I CATCH A BREAK. This was such a disappointing DNF, too, because I'd really been looking forward to it. One of the characters is a spaceship and it bills itself as a space opera? Yes please. But after the initial marriage of convenience setup, it's just all a bunch of pointless, boring conversations. Nothing happens. I flipped ahead. Still nothing happening. Not a space opera but definitely cozy sci-fi, which I think I officially hate.

Honeytrap by Aster Glenn Gray - 5/5 stars

An FBI agent and a GRU agent get assigned to work a case together in 1959 and they fall in looooove. But oof, this book was so good. I'm not sure I've ever had a time skip hit me in the gut so hard. I really can't recommend this book enough, it fits squarely in my niche interest of mid-century America or Britain m/m romance. I think Natasha Pulley also awakened something in me with The Half Life of Valery K, because I seem to be a sucker for gay Soviet men. Speaking of, if you liked The Half Life of Valery K, I bet you'll like this too! Anyway, read this, but be prepared to be hurt by it.

Ordinary Monsters by JM Miro - 4/5 stars

X-men meets Strangers Things with a dash of English boarding school, set in Victorian Britain.

Human Enough by ES Yu - DNF

Promising until it devolved into boring, pointless conversations and tumblr posts on neurodivergence.

Olympic Enemies by Rebecca J Caffery - DNF

I put this down on page 12 and my wife grabbed it to flip through it, cackling at the amateurish prose.

Frost Bite by J Emery - 4.5/5 stars

Snowed-in cabin fic with an enemies to lovers romance between a vampire and a (former) vampire hunter. It was cute and a quick read.

The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner - DNF

Very Not Like Other Girls. Also read a review that said pregnancy was a huge focus of the book, and that's a squick for me.

Reverie by Ryan La Sala - 3.75/5 stars

This book didn't quite live up to the promise of its beginning (missing memories, bizarre disruptions to time and space) and the writing was a little twee at times, but overall I enjoyed it. This was the author's debut, so I suspect subsequent books will probably be better. I did feel like the teenage main characters were weirdly inured to death, which also contributed to me knocking of a quarter of a star from what would otherwise have been a solid 4 star book.

All Souls Near & Nigh by Hailey Turner - 3/5 stars

If you like The Tarot Sequence by KD Edwards, this series might be worth picking up. I will say, though, that it's nowhere near as good. I think it's a combination of pacing and too many characters that detracts from my enjoyment of this series. This is the second book and I enjoyed it more than the first, probably because I sort of remembered the massive cast of characters from the first one. It's one of those things where I really don't think they're all necessary and some should be combined with others. The pacing is also...weird. It's pretty much nonstop action. At one point I think the main character drove back and forth between various crime scene locations and his office like 5 times in a day.

That said! Despite the issues, clearly I still picked up book 2, and I'll probably read book 3 at some point. I really like the two main characters.

[talking-books-n-spice]

I know it’s been forever and I really do intend to post more Regalia City, but we’re not here for that.

I just need to holler about this book I’m listening to:

WHITE TRASH WARLOCK by DAVID R SLAYTON

First off it was free on Audible’s catalogue, not sure if it still is. But do yourself a favour and look into it.

I have been thoroughly engaged almost from the get go. When I read the blurb I liked the general idea, but the content itself is just beyond expectation.

No spoilers!

But if you like urban fantasy, LGBTQ romance, and stacked mysteries, I cannot recommend this book hard enough!

I’ve honestly never looked into queer romance before, just due to not thinking I can relate as a reader, especially with the main character being male. And I have been proven wrong in that thinking. I am getting just as many fuzzy, cute feelings and absolute heartache over this man’s romance rollercoaster as I would with a straight female character’s.

The layered mysteries (with the main one having a super unsettling antagonist) have me sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for the next big drop of discovery.

If there is another book, I am hunting it down. In general I may just go looking into all of David’s work now.

So if you’re looking for something new to try, I highly suggest this one.

[drackiszunk]

90 BOOKS COMPLETE!!!

This was a good read, looking forward to reading the rest of the series.

[booksteacupandreviews]

White Trash Warlock by David R. Slayton - dark paranormal urban fantasy

#WhiteTrashWarlock is intriguing, heartfelt, fast-paced and dark paranormal urban fantasy with a complicated plot and imaginative world. #AdamBinder #mtmctours @drslayton @mtmctours check out full review ⬇️

White Trash Warlock is intriguing, heartfelt, fast-paced and dark paranormal urban fantasy with a complicated plot and imaginative world. White Trash Warlock (Adam Binder #1) by David R. Slayton Publication Date : October 13, 2020 Publisher : Blackstone Publishing Read Date : Genre : Urban Fantasy / Paranormal Pages : 320 ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 4 out of 5. Disclaimer – Many thanks to author and…

[localcryptidinspo]

-from White trash Warlock by David R. Slayton

The book I'm reading isn't real lmfao

[theslythernfreak]

top three books/book series at the moment?

!!!

The Tarot Sequence by KD Edwards (forever and always.ive reread all three of them like 5 times)

White Trash Warlock by David R Slayton (similar vibes to first one. i cant buy the 2nd one yet. i must be Patient)

On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong (reread it recently. cried a bit. 10/10. go read)

[franticvampirereads]

Twenty Books Challenge

Hypothetically, you are only able to keep 20 of your books. Only one book per author/series. So what books are you keeping?

Tagged by the lovely @dkafterdark! Thank you for the tag, this was literally the hardest thing ever 😭💕!

1. Lady Knight by Tamora Pierce (this one has my heart and always will)

2. The Last Sun by K.D. Edwards

3. I’ll Be The One by Lyla Lee

4. Therapy Game Restart vol 1 by Meguru Hinohara

5. On The Ice by Amy Aislin (it’s so hard to pick just one!! 😭)

6. On A Sunbeam by Tillie Walden

7. Network Effect by Martha Wells

8. White Trash Warlock by David R Slayton

9. The Scapegracers by H.A. Clarke

10. In Strange Woods by Claire Cray

11. Blank Canvas by E.M. Lindsey

12. Taproot by Kezzy Young

13. Wild Blue Wonder by Carlie Sorosiak

14. Wolfsong by TJ Klune

15. Psycho by Onley James

16. Cherry Picked by May Archer (it was so fucking difficult to pick just one May Archer book 😭)

17. Charisma Check by Charlie Novak

18. Bite Me! By Fae Quin

19. Best Laid Plans by Roan Parrish

20. Role Model by Rachel Reid (I love Shane & Ilya but I love Harris & Troy just as much! 😭💕)

Tagging: @glaciya @therefugeofbooks @godzilla-reads @sleepyphilia and anyone else who would like to do this tag and hasn’t yet!

[thenighttrain]

books read in 2023

finally continuing my yearly tradition. all rated out of 5 stars. bolded are my faves!

The Daughters of Izdihar (The Alamaxa Duology, #1) by Hadeer Elsbai ★★★☆☆

A Taste of Gold and Iron by Alexandra Rowland ★★★☆☆

Last Violent Call (Secret Shanghai, #3.5) by Chloe Gong ★★★☆☆

The Magician's Daughter by H.G. Parry ★★★★☆

The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi (Amina al-Sirafi, #1) by Shannon Chakraborty ★★★☆☆

The Lies of the Ajungo (Forever Desert, #1) by Moses Ose Utomi ★★★☆☆

The Surviving Sky (Rages, #1) by Kritika H. Rao ★★★☆☆

The Will of the Many (Hierarchy, #1) by James Islington ★★★☆☆

Immortal Longings (Flesh and False Gods, #1) by Chloe Gong ★★☆☆☆

Gods of the Wyrdwood (Forsaken, #1) by R.J. Barker ★★★☆☆

To Shape a Dragon's Breath (Nampeshiweisit, #1) by Moniquill Blackgoose ★★★☆☆

Fourth Wing (The Empyrean, #1) by Rebecca Yarros ★★★☆☆

The Third Daughter by Adrienne Tooley ★★★☆☆

After the Dragons by Cynthia Zhang ★★★★☆

Blood Over Bright Haven by M.L. Wang ★★★★☆

White Trash Warlock (Adam Binder, #1) by David R. Slayton ★★★★☆

The River Has Teeth by Erica Waters ★★★☆☆

The Drowned Woods by Emily Lloyd-Jones ★★★☆☆

All That’s Left in the World by Erik J. Brown ★★★☆☆

Fury of the Dragon Goddess (Adventures of Sik Aziz #2) ★★★★☆

The Water Outlaws by S.L. Huang ★★★★☆

My Dear Henry: A Jekyll & Hyde Remix by Kalynn Bayron ★★★☆☆

Serwa Boateng's Guide to Vampire Hunting (Serwa Boateng, #1) by Roseanne A. Brown ★★★☆☆

Hamra and the Jungle of Memories by Hanna Alkaf ★★★★☆

Bonesmith (House of the Dead, #1) by Nicki Pau Preto ★★★☆☆

Garden of the Cursed (Garden of the Cursed, #1) by Katy Rose Pool ★★★★☆

Race to the Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse ★★★☆☆

Don't Want to Be Your Monster by Deke Moulton DNF

The Buried and the Bound (The Buried and the Bound, #1) by Rochelle Hassan ★★★★☆

The Meadows by Stephanie Oakes ★★★☆☆

If Found, Return to Hell by Em X. Liu ★★★☆☆

Amari and the Night Brothers (Supernatural Investigations, #1) by B.B. Alston ★★★★☆

Starter Villain by John Scalzi ★★★★☆

Amari and the Great Game (Supernatural Investigations, #2) by B.B. Alston ★★★☆☆

The Chalice of the Gods (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, #6) by Rick Riordan ★★★★☆

The Fragile Threads of Power (Threads of Power, #1) by V.E. Schwab ★★★☆☆

The Hexologists (The Hexologists, #1) by Josiah Bancroft ★★★☆☆

Foul Heart Huntsman (Foul Lady Fortune, #2) by Chloe Gong ★★★☆☆

Darkhearts by James L. Sutter ★★☆☆☆

The City Beautiful by Aden Polydoros ★★★★☆

Séance Tea Party by Reimena Yee ★★★☆☆

The Prince's Poisoned Vow (Infernal War Saga, #1) by Hailey Turner ★★★☆☆

The Emperor's Bone Palace (Infernal War Saga #2) by Hailey Turner ★★★★☆

Beholder by Ryan La Sala ★★★★☆

Curious Tides by Pascale Lacelle ★★★★☆

The Forest Demands Its Due Kosoko Jackson ★★★☆☆

Reforged by Seth Haddon ★★★☆☆

The Scarlet Alchemist (The Scarlet Alchemist, #1) by Kylie Lee Baker ★★★★☆

Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White DNF

The Spirit Glass by Roshani Chokshi ★★★☆☆

Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Törzs ★★★☆☆

All That Consumes Us by Erica Waters ★★☆☆☆

Frostheart (Frostheart, #1) by Jamie Littler ★★★★☆

The Vanquishers (The Vanquishers, #1) by Kalynn Bayron ★★★★☆

When You Trap a Tiger by Tae Keller ★★★☆☆

Dark Moon, Shallow Sea (The Gods of Night and Day #1) by David R. Slayton ★★★☆☆

Dark Heir (Dark Rise, #2) by C.S. Pacat ★★★★☆

[lgbtqreads]

Hey there, im looking for MLM YA or MG with magic or super powers

Do you have any recommendations?

Sure! Try The Fascinators by Andrew Eliopulos, The Rules and Regulations for Mediating Myths and Magic by F.T. Lukens, The Extraordinaries by TJ Klune, Reverie by Ryan La Sala, White Trash Warlock by David R. Slayton, and The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas.

[strugglinguist]

March Books

Act like we're not already well into April by the time I got around to doing this, but hey! I have my books I read for March. :) They are again presented in the order I read them.

An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green

A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor by Hank Green

Balanced on a Blade's Edge by Lindsay Buroker

Deathmaker by Lindsay Buroker

Blood Charged by Lindsay Buroker

White Trash Warlock by David R. Slayton

Trailer Park Trickster by David R. Slayton

Deadbeat Druid by David R. Slayton

Patterns in the Dark by Lindsay Buroker

The Blade's Memory by Lindsay Buroker

Under the Ice Blades by Lindsay Buroker

It was largely a month of re-reads, since I'm officially out of my abundance of Audible credits and have no money. I started by rereading Hank Green's books about The Carls. If you have not read them, they are a beautiful love letter to humanity and an honest look at fame and being flawed. Also aliens!

Then I turned to Lindsay Buroker's Dragon Blood series (and returned to it for the second half of the month). While I'm not a huge fan of the narrator of the audiobooks, I absolutely adore the series. I first read them about two years ago. It was nice to revisit those characters. This author writes the BEST battle scenes! Seriously. Air battles with planes, shamans, and dragons! So often authors skip over the actual battles, but Lindsay leans into them. They can take up most of a book and are FASCINATING! I remember being sorely disappointed once I moved onto another book that the battles were boring as hell. Lindsay Buroker has me spoiled!

The new reads for me this month was David R. Slayton's Adam Binder trilogy. By the time I was half way through the first book, I was already demanding friends read it. The books are EXCELLENTLY written! Gay romance, magic, family trauma, death herself, and mysteries on mysteries. I cannot believe this is Slayton's debut. Seriously. So good. He has a book coming out later this year apparently, and I will DEFINITELY check it out.

[citrine-elephant]

i swear there's almost a psychic sense of queerness for those who are queer.

it makes sense - to understand the vibes, you *might* have an idea of the vibes around you. not 100% guarantee, of course.

picked up a book today from the library. "white trash warlock" and after reading two reviews, it looks like the protag is gay. no indication from the cover nor the intro teaser thing. i could just feel it in my bones.

just pure fuckin vibes drew me to it

will give update when i start reading

edit: so there is wording throughout it that probably clicked lol, but i was stressed when i grabbed it. the author's (david r slayton) lil blurb mentions having difficulty finding books with diverse backgrounds.

[lalazeewrites]

Hi! So I love your writing in aO3 and I was wondering if you have any favorite books or pieces of literature that you’ve read that you would be willing to share that has inspired you’re writing!

Hi Anon!

I think, like any writer, I carry a lot of inspirations. Because my work tends to be dialogue heavy, I tend to be heavily inspired by movies whose dialogue grips me deeply.

But in terms of books and authors, I have LONG been a collector of poetry. I'm eternally fascinated by narrative flow, and how a poet can impress a deeply powerful emotion or moment or unearth a memory with one or two very short, specific lines. I have a A LOT of poetry books, and I like to buy quarterly poetry magazines, if I happen to come across them at B&N.

I am inspired Richard Siken both Crush & War of the Foxes, Ocean Vuong (again, both of his publications), Anne Sexton, Warsan Shire, Leonard Cohen's books of poetry (he wrote a lot more poetry than he did even write songs), Johnny Cash has a poetry book called Forever Words. Smear: Poems For Girls, Satan Says, . .

Okay, I decided instead of listing, I'd show you some of my favs! That way if you're curious, you can zoom in and check them out.

Books & authors that inspire me: Anne Rice, since I was twelve. She made me think I had something worth writing about. Jonathan Safran Foer, specifically Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, Jack Kerouac, the White Trash Warlock trilogy by David R Slayton, Matt Haig's Reasons To Stay Alive (non-fiction), the entire writings of Erich Maria Remarque but especially All Quiet on the Western Front and Heaven Has No Favorites, Abarat by Clive Barker, Good Omens (read it when I was 17 and it changed me lol) . . .

I do have another ask in my inbox of recent favorite reads, so I'll do a proper list of current books that I enjoyed too! I hope this was a good answer and not just the wild flailings of my mind.