Saviors: Duty and Sacrifice 1 (NeRdyWYRM’s Review)

Title: Saviors: Duty and Sacrifice 1 (The God Jars Saga #1)
Author: Devon Vesper
Publisher: Magelight Press
Release Date: September 19, 2017
Genre(s): Fantasy / Paranormal
Page Count: 204 pages
Reviewed by: NeRdyWYRM
Heat Level: 1.5 flames out of 5
Rating: 4 stars out of 5
Blurb:

Trust is more terrifying than any weapon.

Valis’ father wants to sacrifice him to the evil God, Qos. His uncle wants to use him as a magical battery and sex slave. All Valis wants is to live in peace, without fear of constant abuse. When he escapes his father’s sacrificial knife and runs away, he lands in the camp of his two saviors, Kerac and Darolen, holy Aesriphos warriors powerful enough to put his family in their place.

But trusting anyone could be fatal, and the warriors ask the impossible: to sell his father’s farmstead and abandon his old life to join their monastery.

They’re his only hope and when he learns to trust them, they’re the father figures he always wanted, but Valis isn’t sure he’s strong enough to put aside his fear and start over.

The God Jars Saga is a nine book slow burn medieval M/M fantasy romance.

Okay, I’m Intrigued

I’m going to come right out and say this: the heat was almost non-existent in this one. I’m cutting it some slack because the blurb comes right out and says that it’s a nine installment slow-burn. Okie-dokey then. So on to the next thing. The plot, so far, is also a little slow. This first book is more about relationship building and self-discovery on the part of V- … Valis? Crap. Read too many books this week. Yeah, that’s it. Valis.

This poor kid was raised by his father, a practitioner of black magic and follower of some jacked up god named Qos, and his mother, who offered him as much love as she could under the yoke of some pretty powerful (mostly) off-page abuse. His creepy uncle was constantly perving on him and tried to get his hands and more on Valis after some rather poetically just events in the beginning of the book left Valis alone and nominally unprotected.

Enter the Aesriphos Darolen and Kerac, uber-hot, badass warrior-priests and kindness personified. Think magical Knights Templar with unimpeachable morals and big hearts. Their purpose is apparently to weed out these followers of Qos wherever they find them, so running into Valis as he was running from his father was providential. The rest of the Aesriphos’ mission, if there is more to it, is as yet unclear. What follows is basically a road trip across a continent to take Valis for testing and training at the city/monastery the Aesriphos call home.

In the meantime, Valis is on a journey of self-discovery. He must learn what kindness is, how to trust when it’s warranted, and how to treat people as if they aren’t all out to abuse him. Returning kindness and trust, hell, trusting in kindness is a helluva mindfuck for Valis. It’s a vicariously harrowing experience.

I enjoyed the world-building, what we got to see of it so far. The book doesn’t go into any great detail about places per se, but you get a decent idea of what the Aesriphos are like and how much of a departure it is for Valis, whose life has been anything but easy so far. The medieval flavor allows some relationship building between the partnered Aesriphos and Valis that would probably be skeevy in our day and age but makes perfect sense here from a “Mother Earth” kind of perspective only with fathers instead. Everything is very earthy … down-to-earth-y? LOL. Read it; you’ll see what I mean.

I’m intrigued because I’m kind of getting a glimpse of a widespread horizon in the landscape of what’s to come, though there’s nothing concrete to point at and say, “Hey! There’s going to be some of [this and that] … coming up.” I can feel the threads of the plot and storyline being woven and can’t wait to see what the tapestry starts shaping up to be.

I do know that Valis is in for some trials and tribulations and he’s likely meant for some great things along the way. My guess is that he’s unique and needed for a purpose, even though right now it’s not clear that he’s anything special and it likely won’t be right away. Between the mark he’s borne since infancy, put there by his father, and where his heart lies, I think it’s going to be interesting to find out what exactly Valis is in for.

Just call it gut instinct and lots of fantasy reads in my lifetime speaking to me. Plus, he’s got backup now in the form of some super-hot, crazy powerful, really nice, Aesriphos adoptive fathers. It might be too slow-going for some, but I highly recommend it anyway. Exercise some patience people! I think it will be worth it. I’m liking the way this series is shaping up and y’all can count me in on the next one!

This review is cross-posted at Goodreads. Other reviews by NeRdyWYRM can be read here.