A review by aebennettwrites
Donum - The Gift by Maxime Jaz

5.0

Not going to lie... I've been waiting for this book ever since I saw the cover reveal on Twitter. I'm interested in Ancient history and enjoy historical fiction set during that era. This book does not disappoint. The story begins when Commander Marius is gifted a slave during a party at a countryside estate. The slave, Kyle, is clearly terrified as he accompanies Marius to Rome. Throughout the book, both characters grow -- and grow fond of each other, eventually falling in love. Jaz does a great job at keeping readers invested in the characters, even if you sometimes loathe them. Marius is a flawed main character, though he does learn lessons by the end of the book. I really enjoyed reading about how the two fall in love and I'm looking forward to see how the trilogy progresses. Warning: This story gets dark, so please pay attention to Jaz's content warnings. (Disclaimer: I received an ARC copy of this book from the author.)