SUSAN: BOOK REVIEW - "Lover At Last" by J.R. Ward

SUMMARY:
Qhuinn, son of no one, is used to being on his own. Disavowed from his bloodline, shunned by the aristocracy, he has finally found an identity as one of the most brutal fighters in the war against the Lessening Society. But his life is not complete. Even as the prospect of having a family of his own seems to be within reach, he is empty on the inside, his heart given to another....

Blay, after years of unrequited love, has moved on from his feelings for Qhuinn. And it’s about time: The male has found his perfect match in a Chosen female, and they are going to have a young—just as Qhuinn has always wanted for himself. It’s hard to see the new couple together, but building your life around a pipe dream is just a heartbreak waiting to happen. As he’s learned firsthand.

Fate seems to have taken these vampire soldiers in different directions... but as the battle over the race’s throne intensifies, and new players on the scene in Caldwell create mortal danger for the Brotherhood, Qhuinn finally learns the true definition of courage, and two hearts who are meant to be together... finally become one.

REVIEW:
I asked Goodreads readers, fans of the Black Dagger Brotherhood series, and most especially fans of Qhuay (Qhuinn & Blay) for their thoughts on the book.  They were allowed 5 words each.  Here's what they had to say:

For me...

I am a fan’ish of the BDB series. I’ve liked the books in varying degrees throughout. I’ve also hated and been massively irritated by parts of the books as well. 

None of that matters when it comes to Qhuinn and Blay. I’m not sure what it is that reduces grown women into squee’ing fangirls. It’s not like the friends-to-lovers, miscommunication-ridden angst, soul mates storyline is new. It’s just that there’s something really really special about them. And that is evident in the number of present-day M/M readers who say they stumbled into the genre because of “Qhuay” (*raises hand as a member of the masses*)

“Lover at Last” is highly anticipated not only for the story, but because it brings M/M into the mainstream, and it will expose the love of 2 men to many, many readers who never would have chosen to consume such a storyline. The implications are HUGE. That alone should probably earn it 5 stars.

Now the book itself is…ok. 

Ward, as she usually does, sprinkles the time and pages amongst tons of characters and the shared-wealth probably reaches out to a wider variety of readers. For me, I thought most of it was a snoozefest.

Trez’s story – snooze
Xcor’s story – snooze
Layla’s story – still an idiot, and snooze
Assail’s story – kinda interesting, but mostly a snooze

But really…ALL THAT MATTERS…

The ONLY thing I REALLY REALLY WANTED (and quite frankly didn’t get enough of) was QHUINN AND BLAY! (<-yes, “welcome to the club”, “what? You think you’re special”, “duh…like the millions of the rest of us”)

I won’t even attempt to apologize for my bias, but the Qhuay chapters were OUTSTANDING. Sexy, heartbreaking, HOT, loving, CARING, beautiful, intense…you get the full gamut with them…and even ONE word would have been worth it…so I’m thankful for what we did get in this book of our beloveds. 


”You’ve always had me…and my heart. My soul. EVERYTHING.” 

“Because I was, and I remain, utterly and completely and totally…in love with you.” 

And GOOD LAWD…that Epilogue…the epilogue to top ALL EPILOGUES! 

IN A NUTSHELL:
I am so satisfied. And if I took all the Qhuinn & Blay parts out of each book and made 1 book from those...we'd have the perfect M/M romance novel!