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If you haven’t read it yet, Humans Don’t Have Horns is available at KU, audio, and more.
The Plot
Evangeline lives with a past she can’t remember. When slavers attack Declan, the archmage feared for his ability to kill with a blink, protects and follows her through a portal. That single decision leaves them stranded in the demon realm, where Declan’s lost powers, Evangeline’s fractured past, and the realm’s monsters become a shared threat. Surviving this world forces them into brutal closeness, and the attraction between them becomes harder to ignore.
My Breakdown
This Book Gave Me:
✨ A heroine shaped by trauma and missing memories
🔥 A morally gray, hyper-controlled MMC
🌑 High stakes
🧩 High fantasy and political intrigue
I read this due to a rec from . Kira, you saved me from the longest DNFs streak, so thank you!
This story leans hard into sexual trauma recovery. I wrote in the past about how SA survivors are missing from the romantasy sphere. Read here. So I was very happy to read the way Mands delved into the subject of agency and choice.
I was not surprised to find out she is an indie author. And to me, that explains the courage to deal with sexual trauma. At this point, it seems trad are just waiting for indie to do the creative weird thing, proving it has an audience, and then signing them in. Read more about that trend here.
But this book was great for many more reasons. Declan is the perfect morally gray cinnamon roll.
I’ve told you once before that there are many ways to enjoy a woman, Evangeline. When you no longer want my body, I will still want you. When wrinkles line your face, when your hair turns grey, you will still be beautiful in my eyes. I will still enjoy your mind, your soul, your spirit. It is your essence I crave more than anything.
The romance is intense, not just because of the spice level, but because both characters carry deep wounds, and their attraction exists alongside trauma and struggle over power balances.
Also, I know slow burn is the current buzzword, but I love it when I actually get to read about the tenderness and sweetness between lovers, not just the angst leading up to it. And this book les you enjoy the romance in length. Mands created a beautiful romance with conflict that kept the tension through the “kissing’ parts.
I loved the world-building, as well. It was rich and very well developed. Five realms with different magic systems. It was a lot, but Mands managed to make it not overwhelming. The stakes were high with a lot of near-death experiences. This is one of those romances where the emotional stakes and the world’s brutality sit side by side.
I am currently reading the third book, Blood Song, in this series, Warriors of the Five Realms. I’m only at 60% so I don’t want to jinx it, but so far it is my favorite. Would it become the next review? We’ll find out next Friday 🙂
A personal note,
Publishing indie books takes a lot of time and resources. The ugly truth is that book sales at current rates rarely cover the cost of quality book production.
Your paid subscriptions help me fund immaculate editing, cover art, audiobook production, and everything that allows The Crown of Blood and Magic trilogy to exist outside my brain.
With my paid subscribers (and street team), I share my entire development process of Book Two in The Crown of Blood and Magic trilogy: writing updates, spoilers, and the messy, honest progress that doesn’t make it into public posts.
