GENRE: Adventure Romance

MAIN PAIRING/S: F/F

HEAT LEVEL: Low. Implied only.

​‘The Fletcher’ is K. Aten’s debut novel and, bearing that in mind, does a rather good job of engaging the reader and constructing strong characters. You can certainly see the evolution and development of her storytelling skill since then, though.

As a lesbian born in the mid 80s, I went through my entire teenage life alongside Xena: Warrior Princess and, of course, this was where I first learned of Amazons, the legendary women at the heart of Aten’s book. Though Amazons, historically, were likely Scythian and not Greek, I’m drawn to anything that has such an intriguing backdrop as the Ancient Greek world and Amazonian women.


I noticed many similarities with Xena at times, however, as nearly all the details featured in the classic episode “Hooves & Harlots” cropped up in The Fletcher. From the centaur conflict and eventual birth of a hybrid child, to the challenge to the queen’s power, fights with chobos, or the use of an overhead gesture as a sign of peace. There’s still plenty here to show off Aten’s imagination and it’s not necessarily a negative to see so much content mirror the first (and I believe, best and most iconic) appearance of the amazons on Xena, but I found my internal monologue about the overt parallels distracting -- particularly in the first half of the novel.

The book features some fun and adventurous moments, including (and please read this as though you’re Cary Elwes in Men in Tights) an archery contest! There's a touch of magic in Kyri's athletic feats, hinting at a larger fantasy arc that I imagine Aten picks up in Book 2. She's done well to create a platform for the rest of the series. Not at all easy to do!

Our main character, Kyri, goes through some very sweet personal growth, building a new family and realising a host of new things about herself. At times, her reasons for avoiding her romantic interest seemed a little unconvincing, but she herself realises this eventually too, which is great to see. It was also so great to see a sweet story unfold without any overly graphic scenes, as such stories seem to be few and far between.

The story does lack a strong through-line though, in that there’s no real external conflict. Kyri wants to be an Amazon and that’s the crux of the story: passing the tests and assimilating into the culture. I myself have struggled to learn to balance internal and external conflict in my writing and I know from reading Waking the Dreamer that Aten has already made huge leaps in this area. I imagine I can learn lots from her--as a writer--as I continue to read her books, which are released with impressive frequency.

Despite this lack of conflict, there was enough happening in The Fletcher to keep me interested and engaged. I’m actually so terrible at following up on a series and the fact I want to read the next one tells me there’s a certain something in this story that’s got me hooked.

Sliding out of the Austin, it’s dark red paint smeared with mud and snow, May tugged her coat tighter around her middle and frowned at the other vehicle, a beat-up old truck, then turned her frown to the house and the person there. She had been leaning against the door for all the world as though waiting for May to arrive, and was now straightening, stepping forward, large-boned but lanky, trousers tucked into sturdy, dirty boots.

‘Are you the new doctor?’ Astonishingly blue eyes stared out from under a hat at May and she realised with a start that it was a woman. A woman with a rather striking face, straight dark brows, high cheekbones.

May had to search for her voice. ‘Yes,’ she said, feeling interest and curiosity curling inside her belly. ‘I didn’t realise there was going to be anyone here to meet me.’

The woman – because she was definitely female, despite the men’s clothing, trousers and a thick sheepskin-lined jacket – shook her head at May.

“I’m not a welcoming party.’ The eyes blinked, squeezed together, then opened again, and May caught herself thinking they looked tired, and shadowed, burdened. She held her coat tighter and pressed a surreptitious hand against her heart. She cleared her throat instead and searched for her best professional voice.

‘So how can I help you then?’ she asked, allowing a smile. ‘Since you seem to have very lucky timing?’ The wind blew ice into her ears and she shrugged down deeper into her coat.

The woman caught her movement and winced. ‘You’ll want to get warm and you’re probably tired, Jack said you were coming up from Dunedin today…’

‘Jack?’ May didn’t know any Jack. The woman’s voice was nice though, sort of low-pitched and…almost musical.
​
‘Works at the feedstore.’ She shifted on her feet as though impatient, then took a step forward. ‘Look, I know you’ve only just arrived, but I need your help.’ ​

Reviewed by Rebecca.

GENRE: Historical Romance

RATING: Four stars

PAIRING: F/F

REVIEW

Jae is one of those writers that I kept hearing about, especially given how active she has been, working to become a fairly prolific writer in the world of "lesfic" by producing a huge number of books as well as being an editor for YLVA. As such, I thought it was time I finally read something of hers. I must admit to not having been a huge fan of Radclyffe despite all of the hype surrounding her (and that's a shaky limb to stand on, really, because it almost seems blasphemous to not love everything Radclyffe writes), but with Jae, I can certainly see why her work is so popular. (As a side note... it's not that I don't appreciate Rad's work, but I don't personally feel the need to read any more of her books after having read two of them. Everyone has their preferences, right?)

Backwards to Oregon is a well-researched historical fiction, though the research was focused on geography more so than the history of the era. Don't get me wrong, the historical context is handled well, but if you're looking for the level of social and political depth you might find in a Sarah Waters novel, this isn't what you'll find here. That said, the aspects of this world Jae has engaged with makes it all quite convincing. Her depth about the nature of Oregon Trail itself and how people had to navigate the various challenges along the trail makes it quite an immersive novel.

It's great to read books with characters who aren't strictly 'binary' lesbians, with Luke existing somewhere undefined on the gender spectrum and Nora perhaps being (though labels aren't ever applied - which is AWESOME) bisexual, or at least very fluid in her understanding of her own body and desires. Luke is not established as being entirely trans, but nor is she strictly 'female' in her gender identity, preferring to live her life within the safety and comfort that being a man offered her at that time in America's colonial history.

Luke and Nora are enjoyable characters overall. Both of them experience a very clear line of personal growth, questioning their own perceptions and choices in the face of various types of adversity. At times, though, I found aspects of their personal transformations a little bit forced. This was especially true towards the end where Nora's insecurities started to feel unreasonable to me given what had already taken place, and given Luke's HUGE leap in sharing her true sex with some of the people around her. But take that with a grain of salt, given that I picked this book up for the genre elements (I love historical fiction) as well as the Twelfth Night-esque story line of Luke's hidden sexual identity, rather than for the angsty romance. Reader expectations and interests are impossible to cater for, as every reader is so different. If you liked Lise MacTague's trilogy, think of this book as having a similar story-line, swapping the sci-fi elements for old Western nostalgia. That's a good thing, by the way.

This is the ultimate in 'slow burn' genre romance, and that's probably exactly what many readers want. For me personally, some aspects were too slow. It felt, at times, like every part of the journey to Oregon was "the hardest" or "the worst" part of the journey. I also skipped a few pages due to reading what felt like extensive and repetitive detail about how the wagons were moved up and down steep hills and across bodies of water. I love descriptions of nature, but the repetition of some sections felt unnecessary and I didn't think it added much to the story in the last thirty percent of the book. This was a minor point overall, and didn't detract much from my enjoyment.

This was, overall, a well-executed story that kept me coming back to my Kindle when I should have been getting some work done or maybe even been, you know, parenting my children. There are a lot of writers I want to discover, a lot of stories I want to read, so it's definitely a huge compliment to the author that I'm interested to read some more of what Jae has published.

You can purchase an e-copy here.