Review: Of Gods and Monsters: Hades by Wulf Francú Godgluck

******WARNING*******
This is not a story about a hero, or some bad boy-badass-antihero.
This is a love story between two monstrous villains and one valiant kid, held together by their entwined heartstrings.
It won't be pretty.
It won't be pleasant.
There's no fluffy good feelings about it.
It will rip out your heart and never give it back.

Breno Hades el Oscuro took no bullshit from anyone. He ruled the crime world of the United States. When the King fell, what was left in the ashes was not the small boy that grew up without his father, not the same kid that chose a life of crime at seventeen, nor was it the King who had killed and clawed through a river of blood to stand at the top.

The King was dragged from his throne of bones into a deep dark pit, leaving only the raw flesh of a savage monster to crawl out of Hell.

One that knew love, but didn't want it again.

Kemono Orochi was destined to inherit the legacy of his father, known as The Dragon's Tongue. It was an inheritance he never wanted it, never desiring the power that came with the title of Dragon. Kemono ended it all by tearing off the Dragon's head, watching the serpent's remains be consumed in hellfire. Now tormented by the scars of his past inflicted by his father, he is struggling to come to terms with the Akuma he has become.

One that wants to devour everyone in his path to protect the only one that matters to him.

The only person that had ever made his icy heart beat.

His heart. His love. His beautiful pride.

Rex Hunter dreams of becoming a principal ballerino...all fierce, like a Phoenix. But this Phoenix has lost his wings and fallen prey, straight into the clutched claws and callus hands of two vicious beasts. Each bore the blackest of hearts, each desiring to keep him safe, cherished and loved unconditionally. Or was Rex just destined to be the goo that would stick two shattered souls together and prevent them from forever falling to pieces?

There will be blood, gore and nasty shit.

There will be watersports, crude, angry, sometimes sensual and other times just downright dirty and dysfunctional sex.

BUT...

There will always be LOVE...

Because even villains understand the tortured scars love leaves in its wake.

Series: Of Gods and Monsters Title: Hades
Author/s: Wulf Francú Godgluck
Publication Date: January 2016
ISBN13: 9781311871787
Buy it from Amazon

Maria's Rating: ★★★★★

My god I love this book so much. Which is surprising, because I was very skeptical proceeding to this after reading the first installment. But man, am I SO GLAD I gave this book a chance.

The first thing I noticed is the improvement in the writing and the storytelling. I was not a big fan of Colt and Beo's book, but even from the first page of Hades' story I could easily tell that I would be in for a very good ride. The writing is solid; Wulf has a unique way of stringing words together that makes the dark and the twisted and the ugly sound... beautiful. Romantic, even. The book has a language of its own, and despite my initial misgivings, I got used to it pretty fast and ended up considering it as one of the best things about the book.

This being said, I do need to point out that following the text can be confusing at times because of the foreign words thrown here and there (so glad I took Spanish 10). I wish the glossary of terms had been added in the beginning instead; that would have made reading much easier. I also saw other readers point out that they never knew about the glossary until they finished the book, so it was pretty useless. Maybe this can be a consideration in a re-edited version? Do they still do that sort of thing?

In any case, it was around 30 pages into the book that I realized I was gonna be in love with this installment. Bears and twinks are hot, but scary, ugly, temperamental bears with cute, feisty little twinks are just so much hotter. Just imagine how happy it made me to realize that I was gonna get 300 pages of that. Literally one of the happiest moments of my life. I was practically tearing up and nearly ditched the application I was supposed to write.

I love Hades. I've been rooting for him since I first met him in Colt's book. Nothing is pretty when it comes to this guy, but that's a big part of why he appeals to me so much. He has a filthy mouth and he has absolutely no illusions when it comes to his physical appearance. Hell, he'll be the first person to admit all the bad things about himself, the way he looks, the way he lives his life, etc. He admits he probably has image issues, which I thought was really funny (I'm sorry lol). And again, that's why I like him so much: Because in the same breath, despite all the tough guy talk, he easily admits that he would be more than happy to have someone to protect and nurture and cuddle with. AND DAMN IF THAT DIDN'T WIN ME OVER. I'm a big sucker for tough guys who are softies on the inside.

Honestly, I think Hades is actually much nicer than he gives himself credit for, including but not limited to the following reasons:

1. He takes the couch and tells (orders) Rex to sleep on the bed the night he returns home after getting out of prison. It's not really a big deal, until you remember that Hades just got out of prison after four damn years, where he was tortured and beaten every single day; asked to fight to amuse the guards; and made to sleep on some filthy, dank cell. I mean, sure, the life he leads must make him quite familiar with the ugly side of everything, but it's also worth remembering that he's pretty filthy fucking rich, so it's not hard to imagine that one of the things he must have missed was the comfort of an actual bed. And, y'know, he could have been a dick about it since he owned the place anyway, but that he insisted that Rex take the bed? Totally earned him lots of brownie points.

2. He goes to a ballet boutique to get stuff for Rex. Hello? As if we'll easily forget that he scares people off with his appearance? I literally laughed out loud when it mentioned that he bumped against the damn door chime because of his height. And of course the entire experience turned out quite bad because of judgmental people, but it wasn't like he didn't expect that. And that's the thing: he knew what would happen but he still went anyway, because he wanted to give Rex something and make his boy happy. He even bought a tiara for the random little kid in the store. GUYS. He's practically screaming #boyfriend material. How can you not be onboard?

3. He treasures his family so much. From his mother we learn that he took his promise to his dad pretty seriously. He took care of his mother and sister when his dad passed away, going to school even though he wasn't interested in order to make sure that he would be able to look after his sister. Not only a thoughtful boyfriend but a damn amazing brother and son, too? Damn.

4. He cares about the members of his gang a lot. I get that it's supposed to be normal in their group, but what really made an impression on me is how these people also care about him very much. I think my favorite is actually Witch, because he blows shit up and that's hella fun. Also, let's not forget Wendigo, whose backstory we get a glimpse of in his conversation with Hades.

5. He buys Rex magnolias for no reason. Because pink for Rex's blush and white for his soul. GODDAMN IT. This guy's sweetness is gonna end me.

Rex. Rex is the son of Dean Hunter, the Old Devil Eyes and lemme tell you, it's perhaps because of this why the kid is not a fragile little flower despite his size. First of all,  he has a thing for bad guys who can probably break him in half without breaking a sweat. I really don't buy his thing for that Kemono guy, because I feel like he just got stuck with Kemono and had no other options so he "fell in love" with him, but whatever. I still like Rex because although he was pretty frightened of Hades at first (we can't blame him; even Hades admits he's scary), he was able to look past all the tough guy exterior and reach out to Hades. 

He's also  pretty assertive when he wants to. I particularly enjoyed him calling out Hades on the whole Beo fiasco because yes, Hades has to drop that Beo chapter of his life already. God, I can't stand it when people still think about people they shouldn't think about anymore. Although I guess I'm pretty biased because I'm okay with Hades and Beo, since Hades has already accepted the fact that Beo will be with Maxus while he welcomes a future with Rex instead.

Also, shoot, I guess at this point it's pretty obvious I'm a huuuge Hades fangirl because wow I've spent so much time talking about him already. Which I guess is the reason why I can't even start to give a fuck about Kemono. I'm sorry (not) but I really couldn't pay as much attention as I should have had whenever there would be chapters from Kemono's perspective. Liiike. Can we please not deal with all his emotional baggage. I mean, look dude. You had your chance but you blew it. I'm enjoying Hades' story just fine, thank you very much. Seriously, I get upset when Rex even brings up Kemono, because, y'know. That's in the past already; let's move forward and never look back. That kind of thing.

Right, before I forget, I just need to rave about my favorite part of the book, where Hades punishes Rex for doing stupid shit while they're traveling. Spanking and all that aftercare jazz makes me want to weep with  joy. For the punishment and the cuddles after. Also, mad props to Hades for being tough on Rex. Totally won me over. Wulf's writing really tugged at the feelings in that one.

If you've read the book you'll know it ends in a cliffhanger. Which is terrible for readers, so I'm really glad I read this just now, because damn, all the waiting would have killed me. At this point, I'm really, really worried about the sequel, because, like I said, I don't give a shit about Kemono. But the third book sounds like it will be about him. I mean, the title is Komainu, which is the lion-dog statues that you see when you go to Shinto shrines in Japan. AND THAT WORRIES ME. A LOT. Does it mean we get to see more of Kemono? Because, again, seriously, I can't even begin to give a fuck. I'm here for Hades. I swear, I'd be really, really upset if Hades gets sidelined UGH THAT WOULD BE TERRIBLE.

Also, what's that bullshit in the blurb from Hades' perspective that "he [Rex?] will choose another man"?? I DON'T NEED THAT NEGATIVITY IN MY LIFE. Also oh my god Rex you make me want to tear my hair out I hate it so much when a person can't make up their mind about who they're in love with just please fucking pick Hades.

Fingers crossed that the third book won't be menage because I hate that shit and I'm already super invested in Hades and Rex together.

But hey, all my pessimism aside, I'm giving five solid stars to this second installment. And yup, in case you missed it: I really totally love Hades and hopes he gets a spectacular happy ever after.

Review: The Dungeon Black Duology (Unearthed, Revived) by Kora Knight

Book 1: Unearthed

Love. The most powerful force in existence, but also the most ruthless. Cunning and deceptive. Man’s greatest Achilles heel. Leaving all who embrace it weak and vulnerable.

At least that’s how Dom-for-hire Max Kelley sees it, after the love of his life knocked him on his ass. A brutal blow that not only stole his breath, but decimated his ability to trust. Turning him cold and cynical. The TKO he never saw coming.

Love. A mistake Max won’t ever make again.

Meaning no more relationships—not exactly a hardship. Just the thought of dating makes him queasy, and one of the reasons he doms for a living. To sexually engage without the poison of intimacy. The other reason? To keep his demons sated. With whips and chains, and scandalous kink. A fiery mix that always hits the spot.

That is, until a bright-eyed beauty walks into his life and refuses to leave.

Sean Matthews. College senior and flirt extraordinaire. Max’s newest—and greenest—client sub. Man, is he delicious; able to push Max’s buttons, able to make him crave the things he knows he shouldn’t. Sound the alarm, this can only mean trouble. Unfortunately, deterring Sean proves virtually impossible, and now Max finds himself at a crossroads.

Man up and kick his favorite sub to the curb… or succumb to his own caged desires.

Book 2: Revived

Love unearthed his heart from the cold, hard ground.
Now comes the fight to revive it.

Love. Just when Max Kelley thought he’d eradicated it from his life for good it snuck back in, in the form of his beautiful new sub, Sean. Something that Max is far from happy about. In fact, he fights it tooth and nail. Having his world decimated was hell on earth, an experience he’d go to any lengths to avoid repeating. Problem is, while his head is determined to protect his heart, his heart can’t stop thinking about Sean. Sean, his perfect sub, his perfect match, his perfect everything. Which makes him that much more of a threat. Were Max to claim him and then lose him, the devastation would be far greater than even Kevin’s death. So, in order to ensure his heart and soul stay intact, he must once again eradicate love from his life. Eradicate Sean from his world. But Sean is a scrapper, just like Max, and refuses to give up without a fight. In their final showdown of fiery passion and wills, whose heart will come out in one piece?

Series: The Dungeon Black Duology  Title: Unearthed (Book 1), Revived (Book 2)
Author/s: Kora Knight
Publication Date: 2016
ASIN: B01M02MDLH
Buy it from Amazon

Maria's Rating: ★★★

I'm gonna write only one review for the duology because I honestly don't believe I can do this twice. So here goes:

Man, this was an exhausting read. There were multiple times when I contemplated just skimming the rest of the novel because IT JUST TOOK SO GODDAMN LONG TO GET ANYWHERE. This wasn't terrible per se, but I feel that this book would have benefited a lot by slashing at least 50% of the word count because most of it was just a rehash of what was already said in the first book. If it wasn't that, the same scene that we already read from Sean's perspective would be retold from Max's perspective, and then vice-versa. By page 100 I was so ready for the angst to end, but oops no, we get subjected to the torture maybe a dozen more times. God fucking damn it. Will this ever end??

Kora Knight's biggest strength is writing the sex. We all know that from her first series, Up-Ending Tad. I loved that one; I gave five solid stars to the first three books that I read and reviewed. In Max's and Sean's story, though, I feel that Knight's editors should have reined her in at some point and told her to stop. JUST STOP. I know, I know, people will argue that it's a BDSM book, so duh, sex should be expected. But there's only so much sex that you can include in a 500-page book, and there's only so much sex that readers can actually enjoy reading without hurling. It got old really, really fast, especially coming from the first book. I honestly don't know what they were thinking by not dividing the book into multiple parts.

I mean, based on pure arithmetic alone, we have the following: Up-Ending Tad was made up of 6 books and had an average of 97 pages each, which sold at $2.99 per book (I counted, sue me). Suppose they did the same for this duology and split it into several books with 100 pages each at $2.99 per book. The second book alone would have been five short books, which would have sold a total of $14.95. Granted, readers would have been bored out of our minds by the third book because of the repetitiveness, but I think that would have been much easier for us to follow and swallow (no pun intended) than a single 500-page book.

I didn't start out liking Sean. He wasn't bratty like I originally imagined he would be, and I guess that just kinda messed with the vibe I got from him from Scott's and Tad's book. He was written as more mature, which wasn't bad exactly so I guess it's just my preference, but I felt that more cheekiness and brattiness to his character would have worked well against Max. I did like Sean's persistence, though, and I was honestly baffled by how determined he was to get to Max. Maybe it's just the length of the prose, since I know the scenes take place every Tuesday each week, but it felt like he put so much effort into the whole thing despite being rejected each and every time. It's like... a druggie hooked on heroin and just can't fucking let go. Normally I'd call him stupid for being so eager to get his heart broken over and over again, but I guess at this point I'm just too exhausted after reading the duology back to back to really manage being pissed off.

As for Max, well I loved the heartbreak in the first few chapters of the series and I really liked how it showed us who he was before he was the scary roommate that Tad met in the previous series. I also loved how Knight went in-depth about Max's and Scott's relationship; how it started and how it eventually got to where they were when we first met them. I felt it was believable, and I really sympathized with both characters' struggles.

That being said, though, there's something about Max that disappointed me just a little. Maybe because he was introduced as the big bad Dom in Tad's and Scott's book, but I just felt like he didn't give that vibe when he and Sean finally met. It wasn't exactly extraordinary and so didn't quite meet my expectations (I wanted something explosive, okay). For one, I expected him to be... much more ruthless and distant and serious, but he was... actually pretty normal. Which, again, is not a bad thing, but I think my point is that he was originally introduced to us as this sexy, mysterious, ruthless Dom who became a big softie when it came to his sub - we were being set up for a super tough, no-nonsense guy. But when he was finally introduce I honestly felt that he fell short of my expectations. Dude's not supposed to be as human as the rest of us - at least in the beginning. That would have made the whole chase more intriguing, prolonged the struggle and made his inner conflict more believable and his surrender much sweeter. But nope, instead we got him totally affected by Sean from day 1, which removed all this mystery to him too damn early in the story. Which I just found to be really disappointing. You have issues, dude. Find a shrink.

On the other hand, I am honestly fascinated by Kai and Breck. I can't believe the people around them don't suspect shit, because I absolutely want to know more about them. Especially Kai, because his little scene with Sean told me that he's a very capable Dom and pretty fucking twisted himself. I love that shit. I have this theory that Breck stayed away from Kai because of his scholarship but now that he's graduated and I assume that complication is gone, what's gonna happen? So exciting. I hope their book gets published soon.

I also love Marcie and Jay and the running gag about the two of them wanting a photo of Tad and Scott in action. That never gets old, I swear to god. Marcie is like my very own self-insert in the book, and I feel a lot of readers can relate. Also, Ned is a dumbass and I like him despite his lack of exposure so far.

Tad and Scott are still very dear to me, but I have to say, I didn't particularly enjoy their presence in this book. Scott in small doses is okay, because it makes sense; after all, he is Max's best friend. But what I don't understand is why his and Tad's story had to be thrown into the mix, when the series should be all about Max and Sean. Tad and Scott already had their own series, so the spotlight should have been more focused on Max and Sean. Fine, all those scenes tied things together (e.g. what were Tad and Scott doing while Max and Sean were here etc). But it could have been handled better, could have been written in a way that did not distract from the main protagonists of this new series. Shit, if it's just pandering to the readers, I'm sure many of us would have been okay with being given a separate short book containing an epilogue of sorts about Tad and Scott and their relationship and whatever. Up-Ending Tad's second installment was a 73-page ebook (chapter?) that sells for $2.99 on Amazon. Goes to show fans would have bought a separate spin-off ebook, no matter how short.

Given how much pain I had to endure to get to the fucking ending of the goddamn angst in this book, I just feel like the ending was too abrupt and SO NOT WORTH IT. Like?? I needed to see more of Max and Sean cuddling?? Kissing?? Being ridiculously sweet and disgusting together?? I was impressed by Max's mini-breakdown towards the end and I actually really appreciated how it kicked him hard enough in the nuts to realize how much he loves Sean, but goddamn it, his Kevin story? Vague as fuck. I don't even know if Sean 100% understood what happened to that guy. Also, that drunk sex between Sean and Max a bit towards the ending was goddamn stupid. All those pretty words thrown around and then Max forgets practically everything in the morning after? I don't know who okay'd that shit.

Also really? Backpacking across Europe as our happy ever after? Max is too old for that shit, and I don't mean it physically. I mean it like an old man who's too jaded and too settled to literally take a hike no matter how cute his boyfriend is.

Overall this series is just frustrating. Which sucks because I was fascinated by Max in Tad and Scott's series, and I think he deserved better. Deep sigh. The attempt was there, but I don't believe it gave justice to the Max I met in Up-Ending Tad. Three stars.