Sarah Glenn Marsh
Alcove Press
28 April 2026
352
eBook - EPUB
LGBT Fantasy
ARC via NetGalley
When he isn’t training as a Warden to become half the hero his father was, Griff Sayer is in the business of breaking hearts all across the town of Mayfair. His ex-best-friend, Mal Pryce, meanwhile, is in business with whatever or whoever puts good money in his hands. Now in their mid-20s, Griff and Mal have only exchanged scathing looks and carefully barbed jabs since the fight that sent them their separate ways years ago. But all that begins to change when an attack Mal plotted for his shady boss leaves Griff near death and their childhood friend Alys is his savior, forcing them back into each other’s orbit.
Livid at his boss, Mal makes a deal to earn his freedom and Griff’s safety. He has just four weeks to retrieve an ancient treasure from Rotrose Mire, a remote swamp known for its ghostly and beastly dangers, the same treasure Alys’s beloved father Rhun had been searching for when he disappeared for good. Armed with a map and a broken blade of Rhun’s, Mal sets off—with Alys and a reluctant Griff in tow.
Yet the explosive tension between the two men—along with the dangers of the mire pressing in around them—make for a more difficult journey than any of them could have anticipated. As Griff and Mal peel back their tough facades, and shared feelings heat up in unexpected ways as they learn to trust again, they also realize that someone—or something—seems to be following their path. Someone who doesn’t want them to succeed, no friend to their parents’ old enemies, but also no friend to would-be heroes…
Our Rogue Fates sounded like a book that would be right up my alley, and it was okay, but it didn't quite live up to my expectations. I am not sure I would have compared it to The Lord of the Rings in the promo, as the story is not really similar in any way, so that puts you in the wrong mindset from the start. The premise of two former friends coming together for a quest and discovering their true feelings for each other is a good one. However, it was hard to care about the characters when we saw nothing of the events that led to the current rift; we were only told continuously that they used to be friends but now hate each other. I think their reconciliation would have had more impact if we'd been privy to their earlier relationship and its meltdown. The story as a whole felt very repetitive too: in one chapter they'd be attacked by a foe and someone would be injured and nearly die, then in the next chapter that person would recover, talk about their feelings a bit, and then... repeat. As soon as a new danger appeared, I began to intuit how it would play out, and I found myself starting to skim-read through the second half of the book. The finale too, felt rather anti-climatic, as the villain was defeated so easily yet I still had questions on several points. All that said, though, I didn't hate this book despite these issues. It still had its moments, and those who enjoy MM fantasy at the spicier end of the scale will definitely find something to enjoy within these pages. I think managing expectations is the key here. Don't pick up this book expecting intricate, epic fantasy because of the promotional tags. It's much lighter fantasy, with minimal world building, but features an opposites-attract pairing (more than real enemies to lovers) with a slow-burn start followed by spicier content. I am giving it 3 stars as a middle-of-the-road score.
I received this book as a free eBook ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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