#Review #Sonsored I wanted to share a Paranormal Romance with you called Lantern: MM Paranormal Romance (Danubian Book 1) by Charlie Godwyne (Author) which I received a PDF copy of the book from Voracious Reviews and the Author in exchange for this review. Inside this post are my affiliate links. If you click on the links and make a purchase I will make a small percentage off the items you purchase.
In the year 2448, the world is in the throes of a dark age. Warlords and warrior kings have arisen to bring peace to various areas. Wren is a mage studying at a hidden monastery and he has been asked to come to an area control by a warrior king to take over a shrine where the mystic who was manning it has died. Wren comes to this isolated shrine and begins to establish himself with the gods of the seven lanterns. He comes home one day to find a large man at the shrine, a man who is delighted that Wren does not who he is. The two become close and Wren realizes the shrine is to keep him safe and to maintain the peace in the area.
Wren has been called upon by his old mentor to take over as the keeper of the seven lanterns and travels for days to reach the cabin in the Alpine woods. It is there he encounters the ghost of the former keeper and his dog who sit by the grave and waits. Lonely and unsure of what to do Wren cleans the area and undertakes to be the keeper despite the loneliness of the abode. One day Uli shows up and Wren is deeply affected by the man. This is their story that is so sweet and wonderful as Wren and Uli discover that they were meant to be.
Wren was found as a child, his mentor saved him from being sold into slavery. At times the book seems like a love story you will not want to put down. At times the historical parts of the book became tedious or boring. Be prepared as some of the names are hard to pronounce. Also this is part of a series and no, I haven’t decided if I will read other books in the series or not.
About the book:
In the black night, I alone uphold the shrine of the seven lantern gods.
In the year 2448, Central Europe, after centuries of decline, has bottomed out into a brutal Dark Age. Warlords now rule the lands, fighting and dying to shelter their regions from near-constant invasions.
Hidden through secrecy, camouflage, and a touch of magic lies a monastery deep in the Alps where Wren of Helvetica has been training as an initiate mage for more than half his life. His quiet routine is overthrown when he receives a message from the woman who rescued him from being sold into slavery as a child. Ingeborg herself is a wandering mage but has found a warlord sponsor and is now his court magician.
In the mountains dividing this warrior king’s land in half lies a solitary shrine where seven lanterns burn to the gods of an older world. The elderly mystic who manned the shrine has died; whether by murder or natural causes, no one knows. For the sake of appeasing these gods and protecting the peace of the region, Wren has been summoned to take this man’s place.
Settling into a new life that is much more dangerous and lonely than he’s used to, Wren takes up protection of the lanterns and tries to reestablish contact with the supernatural forces therein. One day he comes back from foraging to find a large man—Uli—filling the shrine, a man with humor in his eyes when Wren admits to not knowing who he is.
The two fall together and become not only fast friends but lovers. Within the power magnified by their love, seven lanterns tell Wren about Uli’s secret. As Wren begins to connect to the deep roots of the mountain shrine and the gods of earth and sky that watch over this gentle, sacred place, he finds himself taking his heart in hand and giving it to a brutal warrior.
Though society dictates they cannot belong to each other, Uli is determined that Wren be his.
By the light of the seven lanterns in a dark night with whirling stars, they hide away in each other and create a precious love that lights the world and gives them strength.
Lantern is a 56,000-word MM standalone romance containing magical realism, mystic mages, and dark age warriors. It contains no cheating and a guaranteed happily-ever-after.
The Danubian Series contains standalone MM love stories of the Danube River region, past and future, featuring the magic of this world and deeply spiritual men who find home in each other.
Meet the Author: Charlie Godwyne
About the author
Charlie Godwyne lives in Vienna and loves to walk at Augarten and shop at book binderies. A translator by trade, Charlie loves to take train trips around Europe and hopes to one day learn how to play the banjo.
Sign up for Charlie’s release-only newsletter and get a free short story from Equinox, in which Gabriel, Florian, and Solomon take a dip in the Danube.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
