Title: Flax’s Pursuit
Series: AURA Series, Book 2
Author: Angel Martinez and Bellora Quinn
Genre: Urban Fantasy, M/M Romance
Sensuality Rating: Erotic
Source: review copy provided by publisher
Published: June 16, 2015 by Pride Publishing
Quinn and Valerian have come through the trials of facing an undead lich queen and the perils of falling in love. Now they work to restore AURA to its previous strength and efficiency while navigating their new life with each other. Fortunately, they’re not in this alone.
Kai Hiltas has taken over as the head of the research department at AURA and has become everyone’s favourite workaholic, everyone except his lover Tenzin, who has had enough of his late nights and broken promises. As Kai tries to salvage his relationship, he finds a teacher for Quinn, who also happens to be one of Valerian’s new officers, Flax Wolfheart, a sexy elf with trouble written all over him.
Flax has motives beyond simply teaching Quinn to control his magic. He’s trying to recover from his own losses and failures, but he has a plan. The two newest elvish crossovers, Ash and Sage, are sizzling hot and might even like him. With them as backup as he tracks a deadly stone mage and figures out how to teach Quinn, Flax sees his chance to impress Val and snag a place by his captain’s side. On the hunt for both danger and redemption, Flax’s pursuit leads him ultimately down trails he never expected.
Reviewed by: Crissy
In A Nutshell: It’s a really good urban fantasy, but as far as romance goes, this one is lacking.
Why I Read This Book: I liked book one (my review) and I was hoping for some additional relationship building for Quinn and Val.
What I Liked: As far as UF and world building, this story is wonderful. The underlying mystery—the unknown rock man—is a good addition. That kept me interested in the story. More to the point, I was more interested in that part of the story than the relationships. This world fascinates me each time I step foot into it. This time we got a little more in depth in the magic side of things. We finally get to see Quinn really use his magic and watch it grow. I enjoyed that.
What I Also Liked: I absolutely loved the Kai and Tenzi drama. That is part of the book that I was most enthralled with. We met both guys in the first book, though they took a backseat to everything else happening within that story. The way their conflict and resolution unfolds makes me want them to have a story of their own instead of in the midst of someone else’s. Out of the three relationships in this book, Kai and Tenzi are definitely my favorite.
While I adore Tenzi and Kai, this story was not theirs, it was Flax’s. On a personal level I enjoyed him. His growth throughout is very steady and a great addition to the book. He wants what he can’t have, throws a fit because he can’t have it, schemes to get it. Then in the end, he finds what is really out there for him. It ends up being really sweet.
What I Didn’t Like: As much as I liked Tenzi and Kai, and on a different level Flax, I find it difficult to even classify this book as a romance. To me, because of the title, this is Flax’s story. His relationship with the new elves should have been front and center. And while there was some presence, I was as surprised as Flax in the end when he realized that the elves had feelings for him. There’s not really any relationship building. There’s sex, obsession with another man, and then this ménage that could be so emotionally engaging, but isn’t.
In My Opinion: If you’re looking for urban fantasy, you can’t go wrong with this one, but as for the focus of this book, Flax’s relationship could use some help.
Crissy’s Rating:
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