Rate this book

In His Command (2013)

by Rie Warren(Favorite Author)

3.59 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

1455575151 (ISBN13: 9781455575152)

languge

English

genre

Romance

publisher

Forever Yours

series

Don’t Tell

review 1: I really liked the premise – dystopian setting, and (unusually) M/M romance. While I’ve read quite a bit of M/M, I haven’t read anything M/M with this type of world building. While I liked the romance and the buildup, I did feel the story was a bit jumbled and sometimes had trouble following the story. There was also the added challenge of creating a stable romance in a world where homosexuals are killed. If someone was looking for something a little different, I would recommend this with reservation.
review 2: I received this ARC from NetGalley.First, a little personal background...this is not a book I would have ever expected to pick up. While I read plenty of erotica (because it's everywhere you turn right now and it provides a mindless diversion when... more I need one) and I have nothing at all against homosexual characters (Mercedes Lackey's Vanyel is one of my all time favorite characters EVER), I just never would have thought to pick up a M/M romance. I mean, I'm not the intended audience, right? But I caught an interview with an erotica author on EW Radio where they were discussing the growing M/M trend and how the majority of its readers are women, which was soon followed by this invitation from NetGalley, so I figured, why not? I'll read practically anything once. Even while reading, I was debating whether or not I'd ever admit to it. But I gotta tell you, this book was so good, I decided I couldn't live with myself if I didn't.Here's the thing--most erotica is pretty mediocre. Predictable plots (and I use the word "plot" loosely), two-dimensional characters, crude language (whether it suits the characters or not); they tend to be more about the sex scenes (to varying degrees of success) and the connecting tissue is generally as thin as Kleenex. But Rie Warren has managed to compose a story that's genuinely compelling while also containing a pretty hot romance. Taking place a little over 50 years in the future, thanks to weather-based terrestrial changes and a world wide plague, the human population has been decimated. Consequently, "The Company" has taken over control of the world and concentrated the remaining population, those who weren't sure where to turn in the turmoil, in a few enclaves, with re-population as their primary directive. This means that homosexuality is punishable by death, couples are paired for the purposes of selective breeding, and "Proving Ceremonies" are commonplace, where teens' first sexual experiences are observed and monitored by a group of government officials. There are also groups of "Nomads"--those who weren't interested in living by company rules and preferred to make it on their own. Obviously, this general theme has been visited ad nauseum in the YA market recently, but there was something fresh about approaching it from an adult perspective, with its expansion of the logical progression of adult relationships that YA stops short of.Commander Caspar Cannon decided to join the Company army because it provides exemption from the breeding requirements and has been successfully hiding his romantic inclinations for a decade. When a rebellion hits, he's given the assignment to escort an important company executive to the Outpost, a safehouse a few weeks' travel away. However, the CEO turns out to be the hunk he just met at the local underground sex club, so now he has to wonder if the man is just a mole while spending the next few weeks alone with him. While that's a pretty typical romance set-up, Warren manages to make the journey, with its revelations of internal conspiracies and outlying communities of rebels who want to live freely, complex and richly detailed with just as much weight as the romantic aspects. I can't say there was anything particularly surprising, but it was solid storytelling and was head and shoulders above the majority of its genre siblings.An excerpt for the next book was included at the end, and because I was genuinely interested in the continuing characters, I immediately checked to find out when it would be available. I'm pretty crushed that it won't be until next April. The main character is female, and while she is involved in a relationship with another woman, it looks like the primary romantic interest will be male. I'm impressed that Warren isn't sticking with a single theme, and I'm really looking forward to the next volume. less

Download links for: In His Command

Advertising