Review: Brilliant and Memorable
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 16, 2014
Kari Gregg has come up with one hell of a premise—a world where a genetic mutation has rendered all but .1% of the population highly aggressive. That .1% are called anomalies, essentially people who have lost the ability to assert themselves. In this new existence, they are like bleeding seals in a sea of sharks: the more aggressive predators are instinctively drawn to them, and they have no choice but to seek out protectors, praying that protection will not come at too high a price.It is really brilliant, memorable. I love what she does with it here, though her idea could definitely sustain a much more fully developed story, or even series--I would have liked more world-building, more intrigue, more on the politics. Most of that stuff is pretty rushed here--laid out rather than explored. Leaving Connor essentially trapped in his boss’ building, Gregg can restrict the story to focus only on Connor and the two men who vie for him: how he must come to terms with his new status and personality, the ways he tries to hang on to the man he used to be and his confusion and loss when the world refuses him permission to do that, the different ways he needs both David and Emmet. It makes for very compelling stuff, but limited in scope.Gregg seems to be making a specialty of depicting intensely submissive characters (this book has a lot of similarities to I, Omega) and she is awfully good at it. I’ve definitely not found anyone out there writing books quite like this. She’s an excellent writer, and creates intense, believable characters. My main complaint is that the book is short, only 139 pages. As I said above, her premise could sustain a far more involved, full-length novel. I definitely hope she is considering a longer sequel.  But despite these problems, this is still one of the most thought-provoking, intense, and erotic M/M reads you will find.Very strongly recommend.