Narrated by Cornell Collins
Kasia Bacon’s When I First Saw Red is a sexy fantasy/fated-mates romance between a rough-and-ready soldier and a high-class courtesan, and although it’s the second book in her Soldiers and Mercenaries series, it stands alone and I had no trouble understanding the story without having read or listened to book one.
Lázhien, a big, gruff drill-master in the Imperial Forces, is not normally one to frequent brothels, but this particular Freeday night, he’s bored, lonely and just wants to get out of the barracks. With most of his garrison heading off to the Cocks and Hens’ shag-all-you-can bargain night, he decides he might as well go along, if only to kick back and have a few drinks. He doesn’t plan on doing any more than that, until he lays eyes on the most beautiful man he’s ever seen, lean and long-limbed with luminous skin and a cascade of the reddest hair Lázhien has ever seen. The bolt of attraction that hits him stops him in his tracks and he can’t stop staring – until the man shoots him a condescending look and pointedly turns away, slamming the door to his room behind him. Lust-drunk and angry at being so cursorily dismissed, Lázhien offers the brothel owner an exorbitant fee for one night with him.
Ōkkanȏ Kyatto is Tii Matâshi or Two-Soul, so-called because he shares his body with a lust demon, in this case an Incubus. The author explains, in a short forward, that the relationship between host and demon is harmonious as long as the demon’s urges are tended to, and that in rare circumstances Tii Matâshi can develop a special bond with their soulmate who, provided they accept the bond, will become their sole life companion. Ōkkanȏ – which means “Scarlet” – is quite happy with the life he lives as the finest whore in the city; his demon is taken care of, he earns plenty of money and is free to live as he chooses. But one glimpse of that common, human soldier, “as big and strong as an ox and likely just as witless” is enough to complicate his life enormously – and not just because he can’t forget the man’s powerful arms and broad shoulders and rough-hewn masculine features. One glimpse was enough for Ōkkanȏ’s demon to recognise its soulmate – and while Ōkkanȏ has no desire to be tied to anyone, ever, his Incubus wants to “jump his big bones with a vehemence that knocked the wind out of me.”
He can see only one way out. Once the bonding process has begun (through sex) the partners are able to accept or reject the bond. To accept it, they have to spend the next fourteen days together; to reject it, they must stay apart. Which, for Ōkkanȏ, will not be as easy as it sounds, as he will be unable to satisfy the sexual appetite of his demon until the process is complete, which could have serious physical consequences for him. But he’s willing to risk it. He decides he and the big soldier with spend one night together and then separate for good.
That’s the set up for this novella-length story (it’s around four-and-a-half hours in audio), in which the plot is basically Ōkkanȏ attempting to stay away from Lázhien for as long as it takes to break the bond, but their being pulled back together just in time to re-start the bonding process all over again.
The world-building is excellent and I liked the premise, but the execution just didn’t work for me. The story takes a long time to get going, and when it does, there’s a lot of telling rather than showing and it feels as though the two leads are apart for well over half of the story – and even when they are together they spend the time mostly in their own heads rather than talking to each other. I wanted more chemistry, a lot more relationship development and stronger characterisations; we barely scratch the surface of both characters and I got the sense there was a lot more that could have been explored. For example, hints are given about past tragedy (Lázhien lost a wife and child – information that is dropped in completely out of the blue) and that Ōkkanȏ isn’t as happy with his life as a high-class courtesan as he tries to convince himself he is – but these are glossed over and not fully developed.
Cornell Collins is an experienced and skilled narrator, and someone I know I can rely on to deliver an enjoyable performance. His vocal characterisations for the two leads are a good fit, Ōkkanȏ’s posh accent, higher pitch and light drawl a good contrast to Lázhien‘s deeper, gravelly notes and gruff manner – and he expertly conveys the hidden vulnerabilities each of them works so hard to hide. There aren’t many secondary characters in the book, but the few there are are clearly differentiated; the one we encounter most often is brothel owner (and Ōkkanȏ’s friend) Ranélle and she’s nicely portrayed as a kind of sympathetic mother figure who isn’t above giving Ōkkanȏ a kick up the arse when he needs it.
Despite the accomplished performance however, I can’t say that When I First Saw Red worked all that well for me. I wanted more from the story and characterisation, more of the leads together and more of a romance – but there are plenty of 4 and 5 star reviews on Amazon and Goodreads that disagree with me.
Caz
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