A Taste of Gold and Iron

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And,” Zeliha said, her tone shifting, “I haven’t gotten to talk to you about what happened at the kahyalar’s party when you went for the Visit. You were very naughty, I heard.” Alexandra Rowland is the author of eight fantasy books, including A Taste of Gold and Iron, A Conspiracy Of Truths, and Some by Virtue Fall, as well as a four-time Hugo... Read more The end of the book, like the last 30%, was kind of a disaster. It made little to no sense. A lot of it was taken up by dithering about feelings (unsupported) and not talking. And then there’s also the question of why, given how EXCEEDINGLY VALUABLE the magical power of being a human lie-detector is, and given that apparently some people just have this skill, why on earth does the country (a) not have at least one such person on permanent retainer within the legal system or indeed (b) have a history of marrying them into noble/royal lines for the useful genetics, and why is the one such character (whom I love!) who appears in the plot just randomly working for some sketchy unreliable assholes instead of living like a goddamn queen? (I love her, though; presumably someone asked Rowland this very question at some point during the editing process, since they lampshade the “she doesn’t do retainers” thing, but that just doesn’t cut it - if this is a power that some people actually have, the judicial system would *definitely* be built around finding and retaining them, probably from childhood.

If you’ve been searching for a queer fantasy romance, look no further than A Taste of Gold and Iron. Not only is there a great balance between characters and magic, but also perfect for fans of body guard and royalty romance!”— Utopia State of Mind This slow-burn romantic fantasy with a heavy dose of political intrigue is rich in world-building and emotional angst.... A queernormative fantasy world."— Buzzfeed

I’m going to do bullet points for a few of my criticisms, just to hit the main things that bothered me.

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. This also ruined action scenes - what should have been a tense fight scene got dragged into some distant-feeling academic process of fighting forms. He’d replied in a little whisper so the strangers couldn’t hear him, “Nine, eight, six.” She had smiled as bright as new-minted coin and kissed his cheek and told him to keep his altın safe and not to put it in his mouth. There were times when Kadou acted and only later realized, in a flash of crushing humiliation just like this one, how his actions might look from the outside. It had rather been at the top of his mind lately due to the troubles with Eyne’s body-father, the way he stalked around Kadou, scrutinizing him so closely, glaring at him, making it clear with every glance that he believed that Kadou was up to something. This is a bit of worldbuilding thrown in to facilitate a SPECTACULAR piece of romantic tropeyness, but it has repercussions that leave you thinking “but…?!?”

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If you’re approaching it with full fanfic brain engaged, viewing the plot as essentially a framing device for the romance and basically sitting with your mouth open waiting to be fed delicious tropes, you will probably adore this: this baby can contain SO MUCH yearning and pining and intimacy, so many “oh my god, there was only one bed!” type moments and sacrifice and fealty and snuggling and all that good stuff. And I THOUGHT that was the mindset I was reading with, but apparently I was wrong, because while I enjoyed it a lot in the moment, when I reached the end I found myself disappointed that Rowland didn’t care more about the plotty stuff, or about consistent characterisation. A Taste of Gold and Iron" is a queer fantasy romance that follows a shy price named Kadou and his reluctant bodyguard Evemer.

Kadou is the Prince of Arasht, and after a situation occures in which he barely escapes being sent off to the countryside by his sister the Sultan, he's assigned a new bodyguard. Evemer has recently graduated with top marks. He's the perfect no-nonsense and stoic guard. This book is a bit of a mixed bag, and I find myself in a state of ambivalence. On one hand, it had many of the elements that typically draw me into a story, but on the other hand, it didn't quite capture my heart. It's safe to say that I was, in a way, captivated by it, especially as I raced through the last part with a determined fervor. However, the initial section of the book was a bit sluggish in its development. Thanks to Dumbledore11214, I learned that the author wrote a 10K-word epilogue, what spring does with the cherry trees. It's on AO3, and you can read it here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/414.... Intrigue and betrayals abound as Kadou not only carries out his mission in an effort to save the kingdom, but also journeys within himself to discover a purpose and courage. A Taste of Gold and Iron is set in an atmosphere where gender-fluidity is not only accepted, but is an unremarkable part of everyday life. It is both a gripping mystery and an exploration of human nature as the characters grow and change.”— Affaire de Coeur Queer fantasies will forever hold a special place in my heart. I grew up reading all the big YA fantasies and was disappointed every single time I didn’t see myself represented in the stories. Now that I am an adult, I prefer to read about people my own age, and it fills me with so much joy to see novels like A Taste of Gold and Iron being published. This book has everything that I love about stories. Sometimes a book can feel like it was written for you, and I felt that every single time I sat down to return to this astonishing world.I’m getting paid as we speak,” she said with a grin, slouching down into her chair and crossing her arms. “I’m getting paid in chaos.” Okay, I am going to be serious now. The ending was good. But it seemed rushed to me. The author wrote a big book, teased us with such a foreplay like environmental, blessed us with an epic romance. Compared to all of these, the ending was rather underwhelming. They didn't even go all the way...physically I mean (cough cough). So, yeah, this lovely couple deserved a better ending. Hell! I deserved to a cuter ending. I thought we would get to see lots of romantic scenes once the political situation was put to rest. But we got nothing. Absolutely nothing. I'm disappointed. I really hope that the author will write a sequel. The Goblin Emperor meets "Magnificent Century" in Alexandra Rowland's A Taste of Gold and Iron, where a queer central romance unfolds in a fantasy world reminiscent of the Ottoman Empire. Kadou, the shy prince of Arasht, finds himself at odds with one of the most powerful ambassadors at court—the body-father of the queen's new child—in an altercation which results in his humiliation.