5 out of 5 stars
E-book. Kindle Unlimited. 2nd edition. 256 pages. Published December 12th 2019 (first published December 12th 2017)
Blurb:
Smart men never dabble with demons. I never claimed to be smart, but at least I’m powerful enough to control them. When I bound Havoc to me nearly three hundred years ago, I never realized how difficult he’d make my life, although “accidentally” lighting him on fire every now and then does bring a smile to my face.
Havoc is handsome, mysterious, and somehow my closest companion, even if we don’t always get along. He’s more interested in bedding attractive women than protecting my life, which defeats the main reason a mage like me would have a demon. I even had to fight off swordsmen alone once because he was too busy betting on who’d survive.
When fifteen people are found dead with messages from a long-extinct cult, Havoc and I are forced to face our past and sort through our differences. We start to realize that there’s something more to this relationship, something that has kept us by each other’s sides for so long. Maybe it took three hundred years to finally understand my feelings for Havoc and realize that I can’t imagine being with anyone but him. Havoc and I will do everything we can to stop the evil that is threatening the lives of the people I care about. Or destroy everything—we haven’t quite figured that out yet.
Happy Endings is a 73k word novel that has an immensely powerful mage, a shapeshifting demon with a strong libido, a dark mage that just won’t stay dead, a spray bottle put to unusual uses, armor that is most definitely not made of dragon skin, blackmail involving an unfortunate slow-mo video, a detective being pursued by a determined minotaur, unprofessional use of illusions, and an epic walk into battle.
*Revised and edited.
Likes:
- Havoc and Miles, together and separately.
- The magic and world building.
- The side characters.
- The humor.
- Hooked me fast.
- Looking forward to the next book.
- Good romantic and non-romantic plot balance.
Dislikes:
- Worried the story will get dark in the next book.
- Havoc’s womanizing.
I’d had this book downloaded from Kindle Unlimited for a while, but didn’t get to it until after I read A Villain for Christmas, also by Alice Winters, and absolutely loved it. So I knew I had to read this series next. And I have no regrets.
I love Winters’ writing style. It’s full of humor and snark that are actually funny. Or maybe I just relate to grumpy, sarcastic introverts. Either way, this book was a joy to read and I finished it in a flash. (Though not in one sitting like A Villain for Christmas)
I was a little worried that Havoc’s womanizing would add a lot of angst to the story. I expected that Miles would have a thing for Havoc (he did), but Miles was used to Havoc sleeping with every beautiful woman around. Which made it all the more impactful that Havoc stopped chasing women when Miles got hurt.
The way Miles and Havoc transitioned to lovers was both believable and felt natural. They still bickered and bantered with each other, but there was so much affection. They’d always had some respect, but the way they ended up, the feelings that developed, was quite a transition. And the gift Miles gave to Havoc at the end? So much love in such a little thing.
The balance between the romantic and non-romantic plots was well done. Both were fully fleshed out and given enough time and page space. The non-romantic plot was interesting, and I love the world the story was set in. It was unique and populated by a whole bunch of interesting characters.
I love a book with good side characters, and this book had a lot of great people in it. The forest spirit, Badrick, was probably my favorite. I hope he and the others are in the next book as well.
I am so used to mm romance series where every book focuses on a different couple, that it surprises me when a series is focused on the same people. Miles’s story is far from over, even though the book does have a nice ending. But it’s only the beginning. I’m actually a little worried that the next book will get dark. There were hints of dark in this book, especially when Miles and Havoc referenced their pasts. But for some reason, it feel like the next book could be full of pain and angst, which I don’t want. For all the death and blood in this book, it was low angst and fun. I’m hoping that the next book will be the same.
Love is Love Reviews 