This just wasn't the book for me. I tried really had to get into the book but I couldn't. The pacing felt rushed and there seemed to be too much going on with the plot.

Title: Winter

Author: M.Raiya

Genre: LGBTQIA Romance

Pages:

Rating :3

Outwardly happy with his life, inwardly Aster longs for a dom of his own: someone he can trust with his heart, body, and soul. Then while in Montreal, in the midst of a snowstorm, he meets a mysterious man, Vanor, who seems like a dream come true. He gives Aster the safe word 'winter' and their night together seems made of magic. But over breakfast the next morning, Vanor literally vanishes before his eyes. Shocked and confused, Aster returns helplessly home to Vermont.



Months later, Vanor appears on his balcony, naked and half-frozen, in the midst of a snowstorm. Shortly after, two men appear and snatch Vanor away—with dire threats of punishment if he escapes again, and Aster soon finds himself dragged into a world most humans are not supposed to know exists


My thoughts

Would I recommend it? Yes, but only to the ones who read these types of books.

Would I read anything else by this author? Yes

First off I should say that this is an LGBT QIA fantasy romance (m/m) and since it does have BDSM in the story it's also an erotic romance, so if you're not into that type of romance then this might not be for you. As for the story itself the author tells an intriguing tale with flowing sensual prose, and intriguing characters. But there were times that the story felt a bit slow, and the world building while the idea was cool in its own way, it felt that there need to be a bit more to it. But overall I did enjoy the story as well as the characters. With that said I want to thank NetGalley for letting me read and review it .

Aster is a confident, free spirit who works in a sex shop in Vermont. While on a trip for his boss, in Montreal, he meets Vanor, a mysterious golden-eyed man who fulfills every longing and idea of the perfect Dom that Aster has ever had. Unfortunately, he vanishes into thin air the next day, leaving Aster hurt and confused. His confusion increases exponentially when Vanor appears naked on his balcony in the middle of a snowstorm, as do two other men, only to have them all vanish into the night. After ending up in the ER, Aster finds himself in a new world, faced with the fact that his lover isn’t quite human nor is he free. In order to have his Dom and the future he wants, Aster must shake up this new world, and do so by making an enormous sacrifice.

Fair warning, I LOVE fantasy/sci-fi/magic, etc., and am a huge nerd, so world building is very important to me and plays a significant role in my enjoyment of a story. So, if the world building is shoddy, the rest of the story needs to be very strong for me to ignore it and any inconsistencies. Therefore, read this review/take my rating with a grain of salt. That being said, Winter had potential to be a great read—an intriguing concept, BDSM, and fantasy, all rolled into one. Unfortunately, the delivery fell way short for me. There are enough gems in the writing and Aster’s character that the makings of a cohesive, well-paced and well-structured story are there, which makes it that much more disappointing that they didn’t come together.

Sometimes the writing is lyrical and whimsical, other times it’s clunky; additionally, there are enough grammatical errors such as, “the darkness fell was full of eyes,” (or, in one case, a chopped off sentence) that it was distracting. It also didn’t help that the pacing and dialogue in some scenes are rushed and unbalanced. Some of the scenes felt like they were in such a hurry to introduce some piece of exposition or reach some narrative point that cogent conversations/development weren’t really priorities. Moreover, the magical element just felt lazy. The magical creatures in the story are called Intrepids. What are they, you ask? Well, “there isn’t much to tell,” according to the book.

They are connected to an element (sky, fire, water, metal or earth), and do magic. Some live for centuries, some don’t (couldn’t tell you why). Apparently most Native Americans and some Vikings were Intrepids, and there is a social hierarchy, with Sky Intrepids being at the top, as well as slavery because their society is too old to change. This has “chilling” parallels to “historical Indian culture and the present,” according to Aster’s sociology degree, which only makes sense in the story if you don’t think about it too hard; otherwise, if most Native Americans had magic (and let me tell you, these are some serious magical powers), then their oppression by colonizers doesn’t make sense unless the settlers were mostly Sky Intrepids too??? Things are randomly introduced or slotted into the narrative to serve the story or the social issue, but without adequate coherence, such as some other creatures that may be Intrepids but are different somehow (also unclear), to spice up the story, to make Aster’s boss, Cara, relevant, to have a fun magic action scene that ends in cock cages, as well as the making of rash decisions that basically lead to a sudden training montage, etc.—the story just jumps all over the place and needed a good content editor.

As for the BDSM, it’s as magical and slipshod as everything else. For lack of a better way to put it, Vanor is basically Aster’s soul-dom. Their love and BDSM activities happen with the speed of a werewolf/vampire/supernat mating bond, so almost none of the rules or tenets of actual BDSM apply. Like the magic, it’s there to titillate and add spice and interest to the story. At the end of the day, I can see people enjoying Winter. There is insta-love/insta D/s connections for those who like that. Aster is a decent character with a kind heart, his and Vanor’s relationship “development” is definitely unique, and the D/s inspired kink sprinkled with magic will work for some.

Reviewed by Jovan

Rating 3/5

This was a really out there book for me. First, I've never read a M/M novel before so that took some getting used to. Then the concept of BDSM felt too rushed for me, especially at the start of the book and how abrupt it all went. The fantasy/paranormal concept of the plot made it a bit interesting but again too rushed. If it was expanded and the pacing slowed down a bit I would have enjoyed the story more.

Outgoing Aster has no trouble meeting people. His job has him discussing details of the newest sex toys with ease, but he can’t find the right man. Aster longs for a Dom, someone that he can give his heart and body to, along with his trust. While on a trip to Montreal, Aster meets Vanor, a man who is everything Aster thinks he has ever wanted. Vanor wants Aster to trust him and gives him a trusted safeword, “winter,” as they spend one extraordinary night together. But in the morning, Vanor disappears right before Aster’s eyes. With no choice and no idea what is going on, Aster goes home to Vermont.

It’s months later and Aster simply cannot forget Vanor. It’s then that Vanor appears in the middle of a snowstorm, naked and freezing, but he can’t stay. Two men also appear to take Vanor away and Vanor has no free will and no choice but to go with them. It’s not long before Aster learns of another world that humans aren’t supposed to see. A world that may call to Aster for many reasons and a world from which he needs to save Vanor, so they can share they life they so desperately want together.

For New-to-Me Author Week in our Reading Challenge Month, I did well in this first challenge. M. Raiya writes an intriguing tale, with flowing, sensual prose; intriguing characters; and a unique story.
Aster and Vanor spend one night together and their connection is remarkable for having just met. Vanor is everything Aster has ever wanted; he wants his own Dom, he wants to submit, and he longs for a special connection. He cannot figure out how Vanor is taking charge the way he is, but he’s too caught up in the moment to give it too much thought.

Aster is an interesting character. He overcame bullying in school and now he wears his hair how he wants, wears the clothes he wants, and wearing makeup sometimes is all just part of his appeal. He is now living life on his own terms, but he certainly wants a man of his own. And, Aster is stronger than even he knows, and he is the true hero of the book.

The original appeal of this story for me was the mention of Vanor inexplicably disappearing. The book is fairly well layered and Raiya keeps the intrigue high by not only giving out just a little information at a time, but by also adding more to all Aster has to absorb and adapt to. The intimate scenes between Aster and Vanor added a bit of D/s, but were also descriptive, sensual, and evocative in tone. There’s not much else I would be willing to explain about this book in detail in order for other readers to come in with a fresh perspective.

When the world Vanor lives in is revealed, I needed more. I needed more throughout the entire book from him, his father, and several other areas that I can’t call out. I needed to know a lot more specifics of what happened to Vanor when he disappeared, and I needed much more detail on Vanor’s full history to truly pull this all together for me. The ending as well, with Vanor, seemed to fold in on itself and I needed more there as well. Again, I can’t call it all out, but I needed more world building and more justice. But, there were many parts that I did enjoy, specifically the characters. And, if M. Raiya were to write another book in this series, as there is still a lot to explore, I would be all in and would also look into any future releases from this author.

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Thank you NetGalley and Less Than Three Press for this ARC.

This is a difficult one to rate.
The author has some mad crazy writing skills...

"Snow still fell, thick and heavy, white and silent with the kind of beauty only found in a deep winter night."

The book possessed an interesting concept...
A race of immortal beings spawned before the Viking era that derive from the five elements of metal, air, earth, sea and fire who live among humans until they are "awakened" and then begin training into their magical being.

The pace of the story is where this fell short with me. The start was all very rushed (even for a paranormal romance). I think had it been paced out a bit more this could have been phenomenal!
The insta-love is always a bit hard to accept for me. It just doesn't seem plausible to fall in love with someone you know nothing about. Lust? Sure, that's instant, but love? That takes time to develop and usually requires some form of informational exchange between the two people above and beyond sexual interests, a first name and knowing which city they live in.

The Intrepid world was very cool existing inside the human realm. I wish that it had been developed a bit more than it was. Very cool concept, I just think it needed more time to come to fruition than the less than 200 pages of this book.
I will be creeping the author's existing library for something more my pace. The potential is there, I just need to find it.

" Not the slightest breath of air moved, so the wet flakes floated down in my flashlight beam as though in slow motion, clumping together, weighing down my limbs, the ground, and me as I walked."

Absolutely gorgeous! I'm blown away but this author, if they're not new they're new to me and I'm completely enchanted.

Winter is the most original story I've read in ages. I had absolutely no idea what would happen next, which was utterly unusual for me and I wish it would happen more often.

I've got no idea how to even begin to review the characters and the story, and I don't want to ruin anything by doing it wrong. I'm going to have think on it and see if I can do it justice, but the possibility of disclosing some aspect of the story and spoiling anything would be a tragedy.

Till then, please take my word for it? Winter is spectacular!

Couldn't put this book down. Was an enthralling story and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. Will definitely recommend to customers at my work!