Genre: Fantasy, Crime Investigation, Gay Romance
LGBTQ+ Category: Gay, MM, MMM
Reviewer: Scott
Get It On Amazon | A Triad in Three Acts
About The Book
The guide mentioned puddles, but I envisioned lakes, deep treacherous lakes, and I was drowning.
One turn has passed, another Solstice is just around the corner, and having an illicit affair with not one but two lovers—smith Ianys and shunned forester Taruif—is taking its toll on truth seeker Kelnaht.
A stripling has gone missing from the tribe, and heavy rainfall hides all traces of his whereabouts. With days creeping by without a lead, it’s hard to keep the tribe’s spirits up, more so when Kelnaht’s own future depends on the elders. Taruif has been shunned for almost twenty turns, but now that a possible forester’s apprentice is coming of age, the elders consider reducing his sentence. Taruif could be set free.
In gaining one lover, Kelnaht may lose another. Ianys seems to be pulling away from them both. He doesn’t want to hinder Taruif’s happiness while an old promise keeps Ianys from loving Kelnaht openly. But Taruif needs Kelnaht and Ianys’ support more than ever. If they lose faith in each other, the puddles in their paths will swallow them all.
The Review
I’ll be reviewing each of the three parts of this collection as stand-alones – they’re available as individual novellas, and also in this three-story omnibus. I’ll let Blaine give you the overall series description (which I shorthand as CSI Elftown):
Kelnaht, Taruif, and Ianys are meant to be together, but old promises and the decree of the elders prevent them from claiming each other openly at Solstice. Kelnaht can investigate murder and foul play, but he can’t see how he can keep both his lovers without breaking the rules. But if he believes in the guide’s words and trusts his faith in Ma’terra, they will find a way to clear the fog and puddles from their paths.
Now on to the review.
When we last saw Kelnaht and his two loves, the Truth Seeker had just solved a murder, but he was still no closer to solving his issues with both men, one of whom he wasn’t supposed to speak to, and the other who had left him for a woman and now had a young daughter. Still, he took one small step, starting to see the Forester, Taruif, in secret.
In this second tale, a new case arises – a missing teenager. Kelnaht once again springs into action, tracing the boy’s path and interviewing suspects to figure out who abducted him and why.
In the meantime, a plan is in the works to end Taruif’s shunning ahead of schedule, which would allow Kel and the Forester to be open about their relationship. Ianys completes the trio, but because of a promise he made long ago to the now deceased mother of his only child, he too must meet them in secret.
There’s a joy in the three men when they are together that is part of why this book shines. This is my first “triad (or throuple), and it made me look at things in a whole new way. Don’t get me wrong – relationship with one person is work enough, and I can’t imagine myself dealing with two. But I can see how it could, with the right people and the right chemistry.
It’s lovely to watch them come together (pun intended LOL), and painful to see all the things that still keep them apart, or at least in secret.
Lost and Found builds nicely on the first story, and by the end we get some welcome news. A well-constructed, thoroughly enjoyable tale.
The Reviewer
Scott is the founder of Queer Sci Fi, and a fantasy and sci fi writer in his own right, with more than 30 published short stories, novellas and novels to his credit, including two trilogies.