Amaranth & Ash (e-book) by Jessica Freely

Sorry for how long this review is. Here's the short version: I enjoyed this book, although some missing quality, I'm not sure what, kept me from absolutely loving it. I found the romance to be sweet (by which I don't mean "lacking in sex" - there is much of that in this book, particularly in the latter half) and well done. The world-building is rich when it comes to the caste system but seems to be somewhat fuzzy in other areas.

The word count for this book is 67,886, which came out to 175 pages on my Nook.

Synopsis:

The setting is sometime in the future (I think), on another planet. A caste system determines how and where people live. Chel are the underclass. They live off of the scraps left by the other castes, are viewed as not having souls, and do dangerous and/or dirty jobs that often land them an early grave. Pel are the laboring caste. They have it better than chel, but they don't get the luxuries that the Elai do. They work hard and are only ever treated by regular doctors. Elai are the highest caste. They are treated by vasai. Vasai are sort of outside the caste system. Vasai are intersex (have both male and female genitalia) and can use their souls to heal others, but only if those others have souls. It is popularly believed that, even if a vasai and a chel were to meet each other, the vasai would be unable to heal the chel, because chel don't have souls.

Amaranth is a vasai who wants, for once, to be able to heal people who actually need healing. He (Amaranth prefers male pronouns) is convinced that the Elai he treats only really come see him because they like having sex with vasai - it's believed that vasai can't heal without sexual contact. Amaranth's dissatisfaction with his life prompts him to wander outside of the mostly Elai area, where he brushes against a soul in agony. Searching for this person who actually needs his help, Amaranth finds Ash, a chel. Ash, recently raped and badly beaten, would not have survived without help. Amaranth takes him home and begins to heal him, proving that the Elai have lied about chel not having souls, and about vasai needing sexual contact in order to heal. Amaranth healed Ash through touch alone, and he felt his soul.

Initially, Ash is suspicious of Amaranth's motives for helping him, but he gradually realizes how lonely Amaranth is. Amaranth and Ash become closer, but Amaranth can't keep Ash a secret forever. Amaranth's beliefs have already put him at odds with other vasai. If others discover that he has fallen in love with a chel, his reputation may be damaged beyond repair.

Review:

This book sat in my wishlist for months because 1) it's kind of expensive and 2) I had some feelings of trepidation over how the author would handle the intersexed characters. In the end, I'm glad I bought and read it.

A posting update: political marriage, an intersex character, and more

As usual, I'm behind on my posting. I'm seriously considering starting review posts that consist of nothing but bulleted lists of things that worked and didn't work for me. This is how I sometimes put together my notes on what I'd like to write, prior to writing full paragraphs, but I've never quite been comfortable with the idea of making those lists my review. It'd probably make it easier for me to finish my posts, though, and maybe easier to read as well.

So, what's currently in the posting lineup?

• Dawn of the Arcana (manga, vol. 1) story and art by Rei Toma - Two warring countries attempt to make peace through marriage. It's an uneasy peace, though, and Princess Nakaba and Prince Caesar's marriage has a rocky start, to say the least. I'm not sure, at this point, whether I like or dislike Caesar. Toma tries to make him a sympathetic character, but he did one thing in this volume that was, for me, a big, fat mark against him. I'm currently rooting more for Nakaba to end up with Loki, her servant, although I don't seriously think they'll become a couple in the end.
• Amaranth & Ash (e-book) by Jessica Freely - I bought this because it had one aspect that was different from anything I had ever read before - it's a romance where one of the main characters is intersex (has both male and female genitalia). Loose Id charges too much for its e-books ($6.99 for something under 200 pages, with several editing errors?), but this was still an enjoyable book. I only wish it were part of a series. I would have preferred a sequel to the "4 years later" epilogue.

I'm also a little over halfway through Julia Quinn's Romancing Mr. Bridgerton, which I have wanted to read since finishing When He Was Wicked. So far, it has lived up to my expectations - hurray for truly shy heroines who blossom as the story progresses! I think Amanda McCabe's The Shy Duchess was my last attempt at satisfying my "shy heroine" craving, and that one turned out not to be what I was looking for.

As far as streaming anime goes, I'm nearly finished with Uraboku (if the anime gets licensed and released on DVD in the U.S., its title will probably be The Betrayal Knows My Name, so as to match the manga) and Chi's Sweet Home: Chi's New Address. I'm happy I decided to watch both of these shows at the same time, because they really balance each other out. Uraboku drips with angst, while Chi's Sweet Home: Chi's New Address is so cute and sweet that, if it were possible to get a cavity in one's brain, I would have brain cavities by now.

I hope to be writing more about physical things (DVDs and paper books, as opposed to e-books and streaming shows), because I need to offload some things and make room on my shelves. We'll see how that goes.