A review by porterotica
The Orchid and the Lion by Gabriel Hargrave

5.0

This debut novel is FULL of stuff I love - found family, spicy enemies-to-lovers banter, positive representations of sex work, a cast of unique and memorable characters that span the spectrum of gender and sexuality, TONS OF DELICIOUS, CONSENSUAL KINK!!! There's also political intrigue that takes place on a futuristic space colony, whose citizens are just trying to live free of a rise in puritanical government ideologies. What I also enjoyed is how my feelings about characters changed throughout the story, since humans are COMPLICATED and sometimes make BAD DECISIONS, even if they are truly good at heart; there are many characters introduced during this story but not one of them ever feels two-dimensional or throwaway, even if they have very little time on the page.

I'm very excited to see where this series goes!