Entertaining though sometimes frustrating pirate soap opera. A little too heavy handed with the details for me. Ends on a cliffhanger. ( )

When I saw that Raised by Wolves is one of TJ Klune’s favorite m/m romance series, I knew I had to read it. And sure enough, this is historical romance/adventure at its finest. It’s a lengthy read, and a first installment in a reeeaaally long-ass series. I like long books, but considering the genre and my sometimes not-so-great attention span, I was afraid I might get bored halfway through. WRONG! There is not one boring moment in this book.

Will (aka John Williams) and Gaston are two extremely scarred people who are still dealing with the aftermath of their past experiences. They're beautifully complicated characters, and they work so well together - they’re like two pieces of a whole, complimenting each other in many different ways. I liked that there’s no insta-love in this. The way their relationship progresses - the gradual build-up of trust and affection and the deepening intimacy - is just so freaking genuine. It’s definitely one of the highlights of this book.

This isn’t an easy read by any means. It addresses some serious issues such as past rape & abuse, PTSD, etc, and is one of the angstiest and slowest burns I’ve ever read. It’s not all so dark as it may seem, though, and the plot is actually super entertaining. Will is an excellent narrator with a very interesting worldview and I loved being in his head. All the pirate shenanigans provide an excellent balance to the complex character & relationship development, and the dynamics among the Brethren are something else entirely!

Let me just say that before reading this, I had no particularly strong feelings about pirates, one way or another, but now I want to become one. ( )

I have no idea how to review this, but I want to give it a try because I promised myself I'll start reviewing books I loved at the same rate I review those I don't like. So here goes.

The main character (and the one whose POV we're in throughout the book) is Will, an adventurer and a mercenary. He is from a noble family, but ran away from his home in England as a teenager and did odd jobs as a mercenary across the Continent. When he had to flee Florence because he killed a noble's son in a duel, he decides to return to England. He is sent by his father to tend the family's property in Jamaica to the English town of Port Royal.

"That remark, coupled with the name of the Chocolota Hole, visited upon me the realization that I may have landed in a town full of armed sodomites."

There he meets Gaston the Ghoul, a French buccaneer of some ill repute. They form a fast friendship and Will is quickly thrown into an adventure on a privateer ship set to rob the Spanish galleons. The rest of the crew assumed Will and Gaston are matelots (pairs of buccaneers committed to each other in all things - practical and romantic alike; matelotage is a marriage in all but name).

"If we fight alongside men we love, we do not fight for our lives or gold or glory or kings, but for each other. Death is less painful than watching a loved one die; and no fear is as great as being alone after the battle. And no man would appear as a coward in his lover’s eyes."

Will and Gaston are aware there's something between them and they don't try to set the record straight, and they continue to deepen their (mostly platonic) relationship.

"I may be embarrassed that others consider me to have a lover, but I am honored that it is you."

It is my understanding that the writer did extensive research into the ways of 17th century buccaneers, and I always enjoy reading fiction with a historical setting backed by facts. I have no doubt the setting has been romanticized a bit but it doesn't seems excessive, and I have no trouble believing things were exactly as represented in the book (though I am by no means an expert).
The writing is also contemporary to the setting, which added to the general feel of reading a personal account or maybe an adventure novel written at the time.

Will is a languid narrator prone to philosophizing. I personally enjoyed his voice but I've seen some reviewers who didn't. By MM romance standards, this story moves at a glacial pace. Slowest of the slow burns. There is little to no sex and a few action packed scenes. You have been warned :D

Do not start this book if you're not in it for the long haul. This book could arguably be read as a stand-alone (I have done it the first time I read it 4 years ago), but it is not a finished story. It doesn't end in a cliffhanger, but be ready to want to read the entire series in one go.

I encourage anyone who enjoys historicals to give it a try! ( )

This review was originally posted on Hot Stuff for Cool People.

I can’t for the life of me remember why it was I wanted to read this book to begin with. Something about it must have struck me, though, because I had it on a list of things to read, and, when I had enough money, decided to buy it. I got it home and still couldn’t remember why I’d wanted it- I usually read fantasy, so this was not really up my alley. And, frankly, after reading the back of the book, I thought it sounded dull. But I had it, so I started in.

Oh. My. God. I am so, so thrilled that I bought and read this. This is definitely one of the finer things I’ve ever read. The writing is so beautiful and thrilling that I was immediately sucked in. The characters are so wonderfully developed, through their actions and the eyes of other characters, that I saw each one as interesting and unique. All of them, including the many supporting characters, are troubled and flawed and so lively and gorgeous. Even the most minor of characters had a distinct, complex personality.

The story of strong yet damaged men, roaming about on the sea, caring for each other, fighting battles, and living as they want to live, is quite captivating and entertaining. What I really loved, though, was the writing. I’m not sure exactly what it was about it except that it was so amazingly good. Each scene was wonderfully touching, or dramatic, or exciting, and exactly the right length. Satisfying, never dragging- this is how the entire book worked. The interactions between the characters were so heartfelt that I would find myself reading a page, then immediately reading it over again. For pages and pages. I raced toward the end of the book, it was so exciting, but I didn’t want to finish it, either.

After I did finish it, I was kind of in a slump. I didn’t want to be anywhere except in that book. I picked up several other books and tried reading them, but nothing (even books that have been highly praised) would measure up to the spectacularness of this story. This is a very unusual state for me, as I read all the time, from one book to the next. I thought I might be ruined, it was so good. And maybe I am. I always hold other books up to this one, and I’ve found very few that measure up. ( )

Very nice storyline! I enjoy her style of writing! ( )