Brute (2nd Ed)

What drew me to this book was the description of the title character, definitely not the typical MC in a M/M romance. Frankly a lot of MCs sound pretty generic: basically young and handsome. Not so in this book and that intrigued me. I'm happy to say that I wasn't disappointed. Brute quickly became a character I cared about and his story drew me in. The other characters were similarly interesting and unpredictable. What is the secret of the mysterious prisoner that Brute ends up being responsible for guarding? Why did the prince choose Brute to be his guard? And will Brute be able to make a new life for himself at the palace? Secondary characters are well developed and add to the story. The writing is fluid and easily allows you to immerse yourself in the story. Highly recommended!

The beginning of this tale was emotionally hard to read. Hadn't I seen so many reviews in love with this book, I might had stopped somewhere in the first few chapters. Brute has a hard life. Lonely, shunned, poor, and with no prospects of his life ever improving. Until one day when a prince comes his way.

I liked the section of the book spent in the Brown Tower the best. It was quiet magic to see Gray the Prisoner and Brute the Guard connect.

A good medieval-ish fantasy tale, where Brute's kind hearted spirit is the centre of the story.

I loved it, Brute is a sweet & romantic story.

This is one of the first books that I have brought from this site, but it surpasses any completed lgbt books I have read to date. The characters are so real and believable and I don't necessarily like romance, but it's a sweet type of romance that makes you grin from ear to ear. Yes I caught a few spelling errors, but never anything major, but the book itself is nicely written. If I ever feel unmotivated to write, this is the book I would read because the writing is phenomenal and the world the author built was amazing.
I think it's one of those books everyone can enjoy, unless you're heartless and you don't like gentle giants, then maybe this one isn't for you.

I enjoy reading well written fantasy so when I heard about 'Brute' by Kim Fielding, an author I already like, it was a no-brainer for me to want to read it. I'm always a little in awe of the worlds that writers create and I think, in my opinion, because fantasy can, literally, be anything at all, I get a lot of pleasure from reading that genre. This book struck me as being so much more than what I expected and instead it became a story of hope, of strength, of inner courage, of honor, and of love, the kind of love that sees a person for who they are and not what they look like.
Brute is a giant of a man at seven and a half feet tall and weighing over three hundred pounds. He has no family, no friends, and his whole life the villagers have treated him like he was a freak. He has no skills except of basic manual labor and even though he can perform the job of three men, he is not respected for that or treated well. When Brute rescues the prince from certain death, almost dies himself, and, in fact, loses his left hand, Prince Aldfrid asks him to come to the kingdom and he will find a job for Brute and a better place to live. Brute heals and heads to the kingdom to discover what in the world he could possibly do for a prince. He arrives and discovers that he's being given a nice apartment, good food, new clothes, boots, and a monthly income and all he has to do is watch over a shackled prisoner, Gray, and if the prisoner calls out in his sleep, Brute is to report what is said.
Gray is naked in a dank cell, held down by chains at both wrists and around his neck, he's blind as he has lost his eyes, and he suffers from a terrible stutter. In the days that follow, Brute shows Gray more simple kindness than anyone has before, giving him a quilt off Brute's bed, adding some of the meat from his meals to the bland mush that Gray receives, and talking to him like a human being. Brute isn't afraid to be there even when he discovers that the people's names and cause of death that Gray spews during his nightmares does, in fact, come true unless there is intervention. But for Brute, this is his job, his responsibility, and he isn't nearly as dense as people think he is. Slowly, he and Gray become friends, and Brute even tells Gray his birth name, Aric, which is much better than Brute, but that is what the villagers always called him.
Gray reached up and cupped his cheek in one hand. \"Dont t-tell you my heart beats for you? Don't tell you my s-soul sings for you? Don't tell you that you're hope to me, l-life to me, the c-center of my fucking universe?\"
Aric tried to get a response out, but his treacherous tongue now refused to work at all.
\"I love you, idiot,\" Gray said.
\"But…I'm…\"
\"Don't you d-dare say you're ugly, or stupid, or w-worthless. Don't you dare! Y-you're a giant because an ordinary man's body is t-too small for what you are.\"
I fell hard for Aric. I really liked Gray, too, but Aric was the one I really loved. He very much was the epitome of the gentle giant and truly had no understanding of his own worth as a human being. It was beautiful to watch as Aric cared for Gray and as they fell in love. The author took it farther than that, though, and ended the book on a note of hope and redemption. I loved the book. I just loved it.
NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews