A Taste of Gold and Iron

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Of course, peace and relief were a luxury that not even princes could easily afford for more than a moment or two: Princess Eyne’s birth was followed by days of celebration—for the court, for the people of the capital and the rest of the kingdom, for the hundreds of kahyalar who served throughout the palace and the government with loyalty and devotion. Except for Melek, who I glomed onto because çe was nonbinary and acespec, the rest of the kahyalar are forgettable. Kadou had denied it—of course he had, the thought was horrifying to him—but Siranos had escalated, had seized Kadou’s arm hard enough to bruise … It was only Melek, so firm and calm that çe hadn’t even needed to raise çir voice, who had finally convinced Siranos to back down and leave. The slow-burn romance between them is beautifully done and adds a thrilling element to the story that readers will savor.

He’d been tugged along by the will of the gods and his own fear for his whole life, and here they were, two ships on a dark cloudy night whose only point of reference was each other. The action is moderately entertaining, what with the repeated attempted murdering and kidnapping, however, the actual mystery itself is unsatisfying. Otherwise, the plot was cleverly written and intriguing, and while I didn’t always understand what was going on or what people were talking about, I understood one thing; that this is a story about devotion, tenderness, and forgiveness.

Siranos’s family had been devastated two generations ago by the machinations of a jealous second son, and he had no reason to believe that Kadou would behave any differently. Being prince often felt like he was seated on the back of a ferocious wild horse that could bite or trample anyone around him who didn’t have a horse of their own. Tasha Suri A Taste of Gold and Iron is a slow-burn romance flush with sexy, complicated relationships, founded on the ethics of duty and love. But before he’d been able to answer her, Zeliha had declared that it was high time they all got out of the palace for a day and thought about literally anything besides kingdom-running. I might give it another try someday when I'm feeling a bit more patient, but the plot isn't pulling me in at all, the writing is not quite there, and worst of all, these characters are wholly and painfully unlovable.

In truth, this book is just one more forgettable gay romance in the sea of forgettable gay romances that make up the Tor frontlist. It was barely wide enough for two horses to pass each other, and in some places their riders would have had to dismount to do it.

The Turkish, Greek/Mediterranean, and French influences are obvious and welcome, but, again, it felt like window dressing instead of worldbuilding. Also, the well-crafted counterfeit coin conspiracy plot fit amazingly within this book’s heavily detailed and intricate fantasy world. In fact, the romance between Prince Kadou and bodyguard Evemer is one of only a few thingsI genuinely enjoyed. It seemed Her Majesty decidedly agreed, and moreover felt that it was up to her to hurry things along. Then a hunting party goes terribly awry, and Kadou finds himself under suspicion of attempted murder.

A sweet, pacy and gleefully self-aware queer fantasy romance romp, complete with AO3 content tag bingo and a seasoning of economic malpractice. I'm delighted to be announcing the newest addition to the Chantiverse books, a standalone novel featuring a brand new cast of characters for you to fall in love with!

A sweeping fantasy romance inspired by the Ottoman Empire, A Taste of Gold and Iron by Alexandra Rowland is perfect for fans of A Marvellous Light and The Goblin Emperor. It was better out here, away from the palace and the court—easier to pretend they were both still children or adolescents, just the prince and the crown princess, with very few concerns beyond tutors and scholars harrying them at every moment, kahyalar fluttering nervously around them while Zeliha announced some new adventure and dragged Kadou along after her. I’m going to do bullet points for a few of my criticisms, just to hit the main things that bothered me.

And then, “Look, watch how the nice lady makes them,” and the smiling stranger sitting at the anvil in front of Mama picked up a flat, blank circle of gold with tongs from a plate near the fire beside her, placed it between two mysterious pieces of iron on the anvil, and struck it with a hammer, a loud, clear clang that made him jump. The counterfeit had to be mostly gold, because the rest of the signature had seemed mostly the same as usual—the smooth flow of warm, thick cream poured from a pitcher, the flash of sunshine on nearly still water. If he had only glanced at it lying on the table, perhaps amongst genuine altınlar, he wouldn’t have taken any notice of it. I know a dozen kahyalar who would happily die for you, Tadek had murmured to him, as if that were at all what Kadou wanted. Tasha Suri, author of The Jasmine Throne A Taste of Gold and Iron is a slow-burn romance flush with sexy, complicated relationships, founded on the ethics of duty and love.Kadou handed Wing’s reins off to one of his kahyalar and ducked his head to clear the hanging drape of the pavilion’s walls, which had been pulled back and tied off to the corner posts to let the breeze flow through. They have a degree in world literature, mythology, and folklore, and all their work is supervised by their feline quality control manager. Authors, if you are a member of the Goodreads Author Program, you can edit information about your own books.