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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
Things I liked:
- Brute’s character was the absolute sweetest. I wanted to give him a hug from the first second!
- It was so sweet to watch him make friends, and see that people valued him.
Things I didn’t like:
- I was expecting so much from this that it fell a bit short, but I still loved it.
- The end
escape and resolution dragged a bit. I was disappointed that we didn’t get more details on how things ended up for them in the future.
dark
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Brute is an interesting take on the ugly and oversized trope. Brute is seven feet tall, broad as a barn, and ugly as sin but he has a heart of gold that demands he do good in the world. After rescuing a prince from his own clumsiness, Brute loses a hand and his livelihood because of it. Luckily, said prince is not completely awful and offers Brute a specific job in the palace. So off Brute departs to his new life, leaving everything he knows behind.
He encounters quite a few problems relating to his appearance and upbringing, as for one, Brute can’t read and is quite scary to behold. Despite this Brute manages to make friends quickly after proving that looks aren’t everything.
Brute’s new job is to watch after one single prisoner night after night and report to the other guards when the prisoner, Gray, says anything in his sleep. An apparently Herculean task that has sent many men away from their post; until Brute arrives that is. Gray, abused and malnourished, has a gift of seeing future deaths, but only when he dreams.
The setting is interesting, a standard fantasy world where magic supposedly exists, however we don’t really see much magic at all. I would have liked for some more magic to be scattered throughout the story, especially with the love interest being branded as a witch. Seeing the future is one thing, but Gray’s healing abilities felt thrown in for the sake of the plot down the line.
Writing Quality:6/10 nothing special, but certainly not awful
Pacing:6/10 moves along quickly but not breakneck
Plot development:5/10 could've used a little more material, maybe some court intriuge
Characters: 7/10 I liked Brute, he's an interesting fella
Enjoyability: 6/10
Ease of Reading: 8/10
Ending: 6/10 clunky, but at least everything was wrapped up
He encounters quite a few problems relating to his appearance and upbringing, as for one, Brute can’t read and is quite scary to behold. Despite this Brute manages to make friends quickly after proving that looks aren’t everything.
Brute’s new job is to watch after one single prisoner night after night and report to the other guards when the prisoner, Gray, says anything in his sleep. An apparently Herculean task that has sent many men away from their post; until Brute arrives that is. Gray, abused and malnourished, has a gift of seeing future deaths, but only when he dreams.
The setting is interesting, a standard fantasy world where magic supposedly exists, however we don’t really see much magic at all. I would have liked for some more magic to be scattered throughout the story, especially with the love interest being branded as a witch. Seeing the future is one thing, but Gray’s healing abilities felt thrown in for the sake of the plot down the line.
Writing Quality:6/10 nothing special, but certainly not awful
Pacing:6/10 moves along quickly but not breakneck
Plot development:5/10 could've used a little more material, maybe some court intriuge
Characters: 7/10 I liked Brute, he's an interesting fella
Enjoyability: 6/10
Ease of Reading: 8/10
Ending: 6/10 clunky, but at least everything was wrapped up
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Sexual content, Suicide, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
this book took me a long time to finish as i think the middle part dragged a bit but i did like the relationship that was established between our two main characters. i got kinda annoyed with the explanation for why gray was punished sooo harshly and it definitely didn’t feel justified and then all do the sudden ooh look at that the king had a change of heart ! like why could that have not happened before it just felt like a cop-out of a resolution.
Just an incredible and hurtful story. When I first got this, I thought it would be another predictable story about forced proximity and imprisonment, but ohh I was wrong. Brute is unique, different, perfect. You can feel the emotions like you were there, experiencing them. Youl feel the MCs pain, you cry with the injustice they are going trough.
Although it was more Brute story than the relationship itself, the romance was there and it was strong. There is no smexy scenes, they were all skipped, but I didn't missed them.
K.C. Kelly, like always, did an amazing job with the voices and the narration. He could gather Brute's essence, but it was no match for his performance as Gray who stutterer so bad.
Although it was more Brute story than the relationship itself, the romance was there and it was strong. There is no smexy scenes, they were all skipped, but I didn't missed them.
K.C. Kelly, like always, did an amazing job with the voices and the narration. He could gather Brute's essence, but it was no match for his performance as Gray who stutterer so bad.
adventurous
dark
emotional
slow-paced
I enjoyed this! Good writing and interesting characters. It was exciting to have a fantasy novel that didn't star a Charming, Roguish Thief nor an Exasperated, Do-Gooder Tagalong. Even though much of the book is just Brute kind of hanging around the palace and getting to see and know everything, it wasn't boring. The book had a satisfying conclusion. Nice job.
Brute is about Brute, a guy who's really big and treated like an idiot by everyone. His parents died when he was young, and no one's ever even thought to teach him how to read. He does manual labour, he's underpaid for it, and overcharged for food and lodging. His life isn't going anywhere it seems, yet he works hard and doesn't complain. Then, one day, he gets injured while saving a prince and can no longer do the work he did before. The prince, being a decent guy, offers him a job to thank him.
Brute is supposed to look after a special prisoner. And yes, that's where the romance part comes in.
Now, while I agree that the prisoner is important, what with his dreams to future deaths and the bond he and Brute develop, the book is mostly about Brute as an individual. I mean, when we meet him, he has no prospects, very little skills and nothing to his name. He also doesn't think much of himself. With his new job, which pays a lot better, he can finally work to improve his life. And that's what he does. He works hard to become someone he can be proud of.
And he's such a good person. He's kind to everyone, accepts everything life throws at him and is unbelievably honest, helpful and genuine. He wins the reader over very quickly so that, when things start to go well for him, you're glad. It's amazing to see him want things for himself and become confident and decisive.
One might say he's a little too good to be true and, I hate to agree, but that's kind of not untrue. His perfection and niceness can be a bit... much.
I still love him and I'm really proud of him and, honestly, the four stars are mostly just because the book seemed to goes on a little longer than it needed to, but the 'too nice' thing needed to be said. This is still a great book and I definitely it. And Rattlesnake. Be sure to check out both.
Brute is supposed to look after a special prisoner. And yes, that's where the romance part comes in.
Now, while I agree that the prisoner is important, what with his dreams to future deaths and the bond he and Brute develop, the book is mostly about Brute as an individual. I mean, when we meet him, he has no prospects, very little skills and nothing to his name. He also doesn't think much of himself. With his new job, which pays a lot better, he can finally work to improve his life. And that's what he does. He works hard to become someone he can be proud of.
And he's such a good person. He's kind to everyone, accepts everything life throws at him and is unbelievably honest, helpful and genuine. He wins the reader over very quickly so that, when things start to go well for him, you're glad. It's amazing to see him want things for himself and become confident and decisive.
One might say he's a little too good to be true and, I hate to agree, but that's kind of not untrue. His perfection and niceness can be a bit... much.
I still love him and I'm really proud of him and, honestly, the four stars are mostly just because the book seemed to goes on a little longer than it needed to, but the 'too nice' thing needed to be said. This is still a great book and I definitely it. And Rattlesnake. Be sure to check out both.
4 Stars!
Gentle (or not so gentle) giants is a top favorite trope, and this really embodies it to the max!
As per the blurb, Brute has had it rough and lonely, and the pain and longing he suffers for no reason other than being different is terribly heartbreaking. Despite the cruel treatment by everyone he knows, Brute remains a steadfast honorable guy who does the right thing every single time with never any ulterior motives and never with any bitterness or hate in his heart.
It’s fortuitous then that Brute saves one of the princes of the realm, suffering a great handicap in doing so. However, Brute is offered a place in the kingdom as a reward should he want to venture there and sadly, he has nothing to lose but to just try a new avenue of life as keeper of a condemned man.
One can easily imagine what happens. Brute’s pure and kind soul takes very good care of Gray, and of course, they fall in love. Just when you think it’s not possible for these two to have a happy ending, Brute figures out a way to escape, and the win and redemption of both was just so very lovely.
I’m happy I finally read this MM classic, and if you haven’t yet, don’t delay! You won’t regret it!
Gentle (or not so gentle) giants is a top favorite trope, and this really embodies it to the max!
As per the blurb, Brute has had it rough and lonely, and the pain and longing he suffers for no reason other than being different is terribly heartbreaking. Despite the cruel treatment by everyone he knows, Brute remains a steadfast honorable guy who does the right thing every single time with never any ulterior motives and never with any bitterness or hate in his heart.
It’s fortuitous then that Brute saves one of the princes of the realm, suffering a great handicap in doing so. However, Brute is offered a place in the kingdom as a reward should he want to venture there and sadly, he has nothing to lose but to just try a new avenue of life as keeper of a condemned man.
One can easily imagine what happens. Brute’s pure and kind soul takes very good care of Gray, and of course, they fall in love. Just when you think it’s not possible for these two to have a happy ending, Brute figures out a way to escape, and the win and redemption of both was just so very lovely.
I’m happy I finally read this MM classic, and if you haven’t yet, don’t delay! You won’t regret it!