ARC Review: Colina de Lavanda by August Li

Blurb :

A Story from the Warmest Wishes: Dreamspinner Press 2018 Advent Calendar

Lord protector of whores, thieves, sorcerers, and deviants.

Owning a parcel of land the railroad needs to cross means Edward gets to run the border town around the station as he sees fit. What starts as a place to indulge his varied appetites becomes a haven to society’s castoffs, and if Edward encourages legends about its founder to flourish, well, he’s not so much a liar as a man who wants to protect all the cultures living in peace. Being mayor means folks might ignore his vices, but they also expect him to fix what goes wrong.

When a crushing heat wave and drought threaten not only the town’s diverse holiday celebrations but its very existence, Edward must turn to the one man he’d rather french kiss a timber rattler than face—the icily elegant Cantonese mage Edward walked out on but never stopped loving.

Christelle's rating :

I’m not particularly fond of short stories, nor of paranormal and magic, so I wasn’t expecting much but, against all odds, this short Holiday second-chance romance surprised me, hooked me and entertained me a great deal, considering the length.

Colina de Lavanda, a small town where whores, thieves, sorcerers, and deviants are accepted, is threatened by an unusual heat wave and the spread among its inhabitants of a strange potion. Edward, its mysterious founder and mayor, is adamant about having Christmas celebrations not ruined and feels he has no other choice but to ask for the help of Shu, a Cantonese mage, his former lover he left but can’t forget.

It’s packed with mystery, magic, a captivating plot, a bit of steam and a swooning ending, all this happening during the Holiday season. For such a short story, it’s very enticing and entertaining. I was surprisingly and happily delighted. 

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ARC of “Colina de Lavanda” was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

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