A review by ellelainey
Hold My Reins by TJ Nichols

emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

  Hold My Reins, by T.J. Nichols 
★★★★★ 


 175 Pages 
 3rd person, dual character POV 
 Themes: grief, hurt/comfort, assassin, small town, monster romance, dating app 
Triggers: grief, recent off-page death of mother, slavery/captivity 


 ~ 


 Hold My Reins was a really good, interesting monster romance. With a dual hurt/comfort, a lot of romance and a little bit of mystery, there was plenty to keep me hooked on the story. 


 This is part of a shared universe series, but I haven't read any of the other books and this one read perfectly well as a standalone. It was a definite Urban Fantasy, with a human town that had a portal to a monster town, meaning there were often equal blends of humans and monsters in a single town. This made the story really interesting, because in some cases it was impossible to tell the human apart from the monster. 


 The theme of this series is a dating app called Monster Match. This is Season 2, but I've never read any of the other books in either season 1 or 2. I'll admit, the dating app concept was only briefly, barely explored in the story and there was little world-building to expand upon the basic concepts of the app and a human town with a portal to a monster world. However, I'm so used to Nichols' writing and fantasy worlds that it actually felt very reminiscent of their Fae novel, Liminality, or even the Mytho series. In that way, it felt comfortable and familiar. 


 I really loved both the main characters, which is a feat that doesn't often happen. But I'm so used to loving T.J. Nichols' world-building and character crafting that it's no surprise this one was no different. 
 Rox has been adrift for the last six months, flitting from place to place, never settling in anywhere. His mother died recently and left him feeling emotionally untethered and lost. He's come to town for a new job and on his first night he signs up for Monster Match for a hook-up. He gets matched with Lynck, who is a kelpie with a dark past, but while he's desperate for a deeper relationship, he's afraid of opening up about his past for fear of the consequences. 
 Together, they have a lot of baggage to deal with, but I loved how that was explored throughout the story. It was a short read, but it had absolutely everything it needed to make it a compelling one. The emotional connection was there, the flirty beginning leading to deeper feelings, and I really loved how they communicated as a couple. Often, when one MC is a different species or whatever, the other MC drifts along and secretly researches; here, Rox was open with his curiosity and Lynck was willing to help Rox get to know him, to understand his kelpie nature. They talked, they communicated well and there was none of that awkward misunderstanding trope to deal with. 


 There weren't many secondary characters – there really wasn't much time/space to fit them, honestly – but Thurston was a really good friend and roommate to Lynck. He was super interesting and I'd definitely read his story, if T.J. Nichols decided to write more in this world. 


 Overall, this story had everything I wanted – strong characters, a well paced plot, a great blend of action, romance, suspense and angst, with a dual hurt/comfort that didn't get overly angsty. This is definitely one that I'd read again. 


 ~ 


 Favourite Quote 


 “If he met up with a monster by the lake, was he going to end up in one of the true crime documentaries his mother loved?” 


 “If he’d known his ideal boyfriend was a monster, he wouldn’t have wasted six months driving around aimlessly. Except he’d needed that time to find himself because the man he’d been six months ago hadn’t known who he was or what he wanted. 
He rolled up onto his toes and kissed Lynck, then brushed his nose against his for good measure. 
“What was that for?” Lynck gazed at him. 
“For being you.” For letting him be him.”