Genre: Fantasy, Paranormal, Contemporary, Romance
LGBTQ+ Category: Bi, Gay, Lesbian, Poly, Pansexual, Somewhat Gender Fluid (but not identifying explicitly as such)
Reviewer: Rari
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About The Book
Belonging can sometimes be Hell.
Jin is 17, pansexual, blue-haired, half-Korean and a lifelong outsider. His modus operandi, after years of neglect and chaos is never belong, never attach, because both just bring pain. What he doesn’t know, and mustn’t, is if he does ever belong, his lust demon father will take him to Hell forever the day he turns 18.
But when he moves to the remote Scottish town of Hammer Falls, where he shouldn’t fit in at all, he finds being supernatural and queer aren’t quite the barriers to belonging he’d hoped. As his lust demon blood begins to show and he grows ever closer to gorgeous, part-angel demonstalker Nate, how long can Jin continue to convince himself he doesn’t belong and isn’t getting attached?
Lust & Other Demons is the first in a trilogy containing hot demon hunters, a snarky, prickly half lust demon, werebears, angst, messy love and steamy, high-heat romantic scenes. Books 2 and 3 also contain male-only multiples as part of a key relationship.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: The Hammer Falls series started life as a Shadowhunters-Teen-Wolf-Twilight mashup fanfic before evolving into entirely its own thing. None of it has been previously published anywhere and where fanfic similarities remain, I promise they’re necessary to the plot. The themes of good and evil are deeply explored and this trilogy isn’t recommended for people likely to be offended by speculative views about religion.
Hammer Falls series: WINNER of the 2023 Paranormal Romance Guild’s Reviewers Choice Awards for LGBTQ+ Fantasy Romance Mystery Series
The Review
This book kept me up till 3 am, and I’m not generally a fan of young adult books or too much spice in books, especially in YA.
Jin Harding is half Korean and queer, but more importantly, he’s a wyrdling, a half demon. What he doesn’t know is that his father is one of the Lords of Hell, and he will take Jin there with him if Jin finds belonging anywhere by the time he reaches eighteen. To prevent that from happening, Jin’s mother and Phineas, a wyrdling sorceror who she turns to for help, make Jin feel unloved and neglected, causing Jin to have trust issues and a belief that belonging and love are pain and should be avoided at all costs.
A few months before his eighteenth birthday, Jin comes to the town of Hammer Falls, where Phineas is finishing his high school. In the town, he comes across demonstalkers and wearbears, and even without realising it, he finds himself belonging. But when his father comes calling, can his new friends keep him safe, or has Jin condemned everyone he cares for?
I really liked Jin. He has insecurities and trust issues, but he is determined not to let any of that come in the way of his life or his happiness. He pretends well to be unabashedly himself, so that everyone will see his facade and never the scared child inside. Yet there is a vulnerability in him – which he shows without meaning to – as well as loyalty to his friends and a selflessness that he doesn’t even realise he has.
Most of the book is about Jin’s budding relationship and romance with Nate, a demonstalker who’s half angel. There are a lot of steamy scenes between the two, but underneath it all, there is always the threat looming over Jin which he’s not even aware of.
If you love YA, urban fantasy, queer characters and a little spice, you will enjoy this book.
The Reviewer
Rari is an author and editor writing under the name of Niranjan K. She is an avid reader of all things fantasy, and loves to discourse at length about her favourite books as well as shows. This blog is the space where she will be sharing her views and insights of the books, shows and movies that she likes.