LGBT fantasy

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Lenni Reviews: “May I Have a Taste?” Vol. 3, by Amidamuku

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Now that Mei, a Progenitor Vampire, appears on the scene, Yamadera wishes to use her. When he blurts out his desire to become a vampire, he foolishly makes a contract with her.

After the deal is struck, this volume gets a little silly as Sayo tries to find a way to save Yamadera, blundering into getting a job as a host. And there are a few flashbacks to Yamdera as a child with some implications as to how he became such a manipulative bastard with a suicidal desire for power. Just aa taste, so I’m sure it’ll be explored more down the road. I like where this is going so far! 4 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Forest of the Rabbits” Vol. 2, by ENJO

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is rated 18+

Childhood friends Shunta and Tamaki are testing the waters by being in a relationship for a year. But due to trauma, Tamaki cannot abide being intimate and is struggling with his feelings.

I didn’t like how pushy Shunta was being but thankfully, he meets Takumi, who at least gets Shunta to have an actual conversation with Tamaki. But here’s where I think the need for more smut undercuts the characters. Tamaki does level with Shunta about his feeling about sex but instead of letting that information sit between them and with the audience, Shunta uses it as a way to test being intimate with Tamaki, undoing the tiny bit of growth he had about being pushy; disrespecting Tamaki’s boundaries. It made him a lot less likeable in my eyes. 3 out of 5.

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“Sanctuary” is on Sale!!

In honor of Pride Month, I decided to put “Sanctuary” on sale until June 30th! Here’s the blurb:

“After the Waking when magick and witches were revealed to the world, Makayla has made it her personal mission to help young witches who have no place to go. She thought she’d found the perfect house but an old, malevolent force is trying to keep her away.”

It’s a clean lesbian romance! Click the link above to grab this for $2.99!

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Lenni Reviews: “May I Have a Taste?” Vol. 2, by Amidamuku

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Minoru is gravely injured trying to save Yamadera after he risks his life trying to become a vampire. An older vampire, Mire, comes to assist Minoru.

I like that the world is expanding. I don’t like Yamadera, so spending time with any other character is a net positive. We do get some backstory for Mine, another new vampire, Itachi, and introduce Mei, who reminds me of Kiku from Call of the Night. I’m glad what seemed to be a predatory version of Ko annoying Minoru, who just wants to live his life, is shaping into something more. 3.9 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Forest of the Rabbits” Vol. 1, by ENJO

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is rated 18+

Shunta and Tamaki were childhood friends who reconnect in high school. While Shunta realized his attraction to his friend early on, Tamaki’s tumultuous upbringing has him clinging to traditional expectations. But Shunta doesn’t want to waste any more time before fulfilling his dream of dating Tamaki.

This is rough since it starts with them as young kids, and Tamaki is clearly not only neglected by his mother, but he’s also exposed to things a child shouldn’t because his mother is a sex worker. We are pro-sex work in this house, but not with your child in the next room or watching your clients as they go in and out of the home. That’s a dark cloud lurking behind this budding romance, making it hard to enjoy Shunta being a goofy simp for his crush. I almost don’t want them to get together until Tamaki has had a few months of intense therapy to deal with his clear trauma. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Champion of the Rose” Vol. 1, by Cat Aquino & Dominique Duran

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Princess Rosa’s brother tragically dies, making her hair to the throne of the Empire of Sagrada. As the largest kingdom in the Known World, Rosa looks forward to serving her people and the Dying God they all worship but instead, her father holds a tournament where the prize is her hand in marriage. Desperate to become queen and make real change, she enlists Rey as her champion. Rey is a swordsman from one of the kingdom’s colonies and only wants to earn enough money to return to his native lands.

It’s interesting that Rosa is a mixed-race princess of a kingdom fueled by colonizing others. She has to come to terms with what her kingdom has done to people who look just like her. She may have been relatively sheltered as a princess, but that doesn’t stop the whispers and judgment. Rey is a transman and a fucking badass, who literally and figuratively is infected by the evils done by those who’ve conquered his people. The combat is fantastically done. It’s ruthless and dark. It reminds me of Centuria, making this a damn good dark fantasy. 4.5 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “May I Have a Taste?” Vol 1. by Amidamuku

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review and is for mature readers only.

Minoru Sato is a 40-year-old virgin salaryman who was turned into a vampire. His coworker, Yamadera, finds out Minoru’s secret and wants to be a vampire, too.

If this didn’t end on a cliffhanger, I’m not sure I would want to continue, since this is the second comic I’ve read in a row where the dynamic makes me uncomfortable. Yamadera is really creepy. He’s not like Ko from Call of the Night, who had this innocent charm. Yamadera is clearly not someone who should have any power, let alone be a vampire. He’s a manipulative twatwaffle who will use Minoru to get what he wants and Minoru doesn’t deserve that. 1.7 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “A Vampire in the Bathhouse” by Niko Izuki

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

When Luka, a vampire, visits a bathhouse to recover from a hangover, he falls in love with the place. Now that it’s Luka’s regular spot, Sakura, the eldest son running the place, has his life turned upside down with supernatural shenanigans.

This is a fun comedy that features my favorite character type of “positive, good-natured, hard worker” in Sakura. The art style looks like it could handle some more serious supernatural elements, but overall, this stays light-hearted. There are the typical comedic tropes and some suggestive nudity (it is set in a bathhouse after all), but there is no smut. If you’re in the market for some goofy fun with a smattering of mostly naked pretty men, this is amusing. 3.7 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “23:45” by Ohana

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Iku has been in Tokyo for 2 months and is content with his otaku lifestyle. The most excitement he is forced to deal with is his ability to see ghosts. One in particular, Mimori, follows him home. As they grow closer, Iku knows Mimori will have to eventually move on.

This was cute. It’s a little slow, and I didn’t feel like I got to know these people as deeply as I’d like to, but this felt like a nice setup for a climax later. Iku is smitten pretty quickly, and when you think it’s going to be bittersweet, things get very… Convenient is a good word for it. Not bad, but nothing really new here. It’s not smutty as sex is implied, not graphic. 3 out of 5.

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Lenni Reviews: “Eternal Covenant” Vol. 1, by Haejin

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*This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.

Ian Glauchester was abandoned by his parents and cursed with magic powers. Raised by Cardinal Brixton, Ian is now a decorated knight of the Knights Templar, keeping his powers a secret. That is, until he meets Jack, who has similar abilities.

This is an interesting start, setting up a lot of lore, a taste of a magic system, and some deep conspiracy. The art and pacing are very Webtoon, and let’s be real, these are paced and generally presented in a different way from something meant to be read all at once in a book or published in a magazine. Not as a detriment, it’s just designed to keep you scrolling, which doesn’t always translate fully to turning pages. Everything Is Fine is a good example, using the act of scrolling in the art (a great series). It still caught my interest, I’ll be there for volume 2. 3 out of 5.

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