Thomas and Orin Shy and modest, Thomas keeps to himself and resists the new alpha’s attempts to seduce him. He’s promised to stay pure, except Orin pursues him relentlessly. It’s wrong and foolish to give in—Orin will only use him and cast him aside—but day by day, the temptation grows until it becomes torturous. _
Ursus and Stephen An alpha is forbidden from lying with another alpha. If his abominable desires were known, Ursus would surely be cast out from the Royal Guard amidst a scandal. But whatever he does, he can’t smother his passion for Stephen. It grows until he’s not the master of his thoughts and body. And what if Stephen feels the same? — The following novellas feature side characters from the main duet: Hedonist: King’s Heat and Hedonist: King’s Mate. Both novellas stand on their own, with a HEA for every featured couple. Both explore specific kinks and fetishes.
Queer fiction author Roe Horvat was born in the former Czechoslovakia. Equipped with a dark sense of sarcasm and a penchant for Czech beer, Roe traveled Europe and finally settled in Sweden. He came out as transgender in 2017 and has been fabulous since. He loves Jane Austen, Douglas Adams, bad action movies, stand-up comedy, pale ale, and daiquiri, with equal passion. When not hiding in the studio doing graphics, he can be found trolling cafés in Gothenburg, writing, and people-watching.
Thomas and Orin - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Ok, so I actually forgot about Thomas and Orin till I read this 😅. But in only so many pages I fell in love with them!! Orin originally had a reputation of being kinda stuck up but the way he literally went on his knees for Thomas 😭😭. They are so sweet, both certainly treasures.
Ursus and Stephen - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Totally did not forget about these two. I felt so bad for them!! The fact that they had to hide themselves 😭. But all that matters now is that they’re happy and finally free to love 😊, aghhh they’re also so sweet. I can’t express how much I like reading these little stories. Everyone has their own happy ending. 😭✋
I am only rating the first story. I prefer not to read menages, sharing and orgies, so I deliberately skipped the last one.
This series isn't my favorite by this author, but I DID like Orin and Thomas. Orin is a sweet man and it was fun to watch libertine Thomas grovel and fall head over heels for him.
These shorts were a bit of a disappointment. The kinks in the first story were overdone and the forbidden love of the second story didn’t get the attention it deserved.
Tags: omegaverse, mpreg. Story 1 - virgin MC, "rake" MC deciding to be monogamous for his love. Story 2 - alpha / alpha, forbidden pairing, large family. Part of the series. Story 1 can be standalone, Story 2 is best read after Hedonist - the first two books.
I adore this series so much. It is just so joyfully, wonderfully emotionally horny. Angst to the minimum. If you enjoyed Hedonist I would definitely recommend these follow up stories.
Wonderful and filthy short stories. I especially loved Ursus and Stephen novella. I hoped for their story from the moment those two first appeared in King's Heat. It was everything I wanted and more: emotional and hot 🔥 Orin and Thomas were a pleasant surprise. Totally different and equally touching and steamy. I love different types of love and relationships represented in this series and hope Roe is not done with this world
My biggest issue with the book is the lack of proofreading. There’s not a lot of mistakes, but as someone who usually doesn’t notice, it took me out of the story each time.
My second issue is that I want more! I’ve loved this universe and hope that Roe continues to give us stories in this world he’s created.
I was excited to get to these two stories. With Orin and Thomas, once Orin slowed down and exhibited patience he found something much more precious than a one time fling. With Ursus and Stephen it was interesting to see the growth of their relationship, as well as the King prior to the first book. Great stories, I’m sad to leave this world.
Loved these stories❤️ It’s an omega/omega pairing and an alpha/alpha pairing ❤️ It’s just so sweet❤️❤️ and in the end they all get their HEA❤️ 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
A well deserved 5 stars, now added to my "favorites" pile. This is the second spin off from the Hedonist books, but it can be read as standalone. It contains two stories.
The first one, my favorite, is about an alpha and omega. The alpha is part of the King's Guard, known for being sort of a fuckboy who doesn't settle down, so not the best reputation there. The omega, who recently started working as a stable boy, becomes attracted to the alpha and viceversa, but the problem is that he's his only family hope to get money to survive, so he needs to remain a virgin to be sold in marriage. The universe is not the kindest to omegas, but one thing I really appreciate is how centered around their desires it is, with the possibility of joining the King's collared boys, which is a system where omegas remain in the palace and choose to mate, have sex, or get pregnant as they wish.
I really liked the conflict here, which plays along an experienced and inexperienced dynamic, with the omega succumbing to his desires and with the alpha restraining his own in respect. Their story was hot and I loved their progression. I am not someone who is into insta-lust or a fast development between a couple where lust is the drive, but Roe Horvat always has his way of making me enjoy that a lot. Their ending was adorable, although I have to say I wish their story was longer, it would work as a good whole book.
The second story is about an alpha/alpha pairing, who get involved with another, omega/omega. I admit that a/a isn't my type of couple in omegaverse, but the added element of the omegas to their relationship was amazing. I loved how both couples remain friends first and foremost, but still have sex together for their needs and desires, while reserving romantic feelings for their pair. The foursome was hot as well, wish there was more of that. I was glad they found a happy ending.
Tags: (can miss some, heads up that I don't tag everything) -POV: first person -Content warnings: none -Elements: -Kinks: -Sexual act(s): -Dynamic:
This is another very enjoyable installment in the Hedonist world. We've heard from the MCs in other books, but in this one, we get the full backstories. Parts of it overlap with other events from other books, from the perspective of the MCs, and parts are totally new.
In story one, Thomas is an innocent young omega who has not entered his first heat. He loves to read and train horses. His sole surviving parent has made him promise to stay pure, so he can receive a dowry payment that would help him younger brothers and father to survive. For Thomas, that was an easy promise until he met Orin, an alpha in the King's Guard. Orin has enjoyed the company of many omegas, but no one has ever caught his eye like Thomas. Love flows freely around the palace, but for some reason Thomas refuses him, although they are clearly attracted to each other. Can they communicate better and find a way to make a life together?
Ursus has a secret. As an older alpha King's Guard, he is expected to serve the needs of the omegas in the court. He does this well and enjoys it, but in his heart he knows that he truly is more attracted to other alphas. Since it is forbidden in the land, he would be dismissed from service and his own family would ostracize him. He can't take the chance to approach any other alpha until younger Stephen joins the ranks. They both tentatively share lustful glances and short conversations, but neither is willing to make the first move with stakes so high. Can these two find their way together when the odds are so much against them?
These two stories fit perfectly with all of the others in the Hedonist world. They are omegaverse at its most passionate. Of course, romance, love, and HEAs are guaranteed.
This anthology contains the story of two couples - Thomas & Orin, and Ursus & Stephen in that order. I enjoyed the former but didn't particularly enjoy the second one.
Thomas & Orin - This story is an alpha/omega pairing and it was hot as hell. This story was a delicious and smut-filled delight and I ate it up. Thomas is a virgin and that dynamic between him and Orin was enjoyable as hell. I really enjoyed this story and I couldn't read it fast enough.
Ursus & Stephen - Ursus and Stephen are an alpha/alpha pairing and on paper, that should have been very interesting. It isn't hard to make forbidden love sexy and tantalizing but Ursus and Stephen just don't have the chemistry to pull it off. This story doesn't make any effort to develop their relationship or elaborate on the stakes against them, which makes their relationship very bland when that is the last thing it should have been.
In short, the first story is an almost five-star read while the latter is a two-star read at most making this anthology a rather mixed bag.
I loved the first Hedonist book, and so this companion story was a must-read, featuring supporting characters we met in the first tale. I thoroughly enjoyed the focus on the 3 couples which was both romantic and steamy. In these Hedonist stories, Row Horvat has created an immeasurably unique and erotic Omegaverse world, redolent with the sensuality of an alternative harem. Totally involving storytelling.
First story: Bumbling royal guard Orin terrifies Thomas, the timid new stable boy, with his crude advances. Works hard to redeem himself.
Second story is about Ursus's and Stephen's forbidden alpha love, their understanding with royal companion Ky, and how they settle down with the family they thought they'd never have.
Not sure how I managed to read all of the Hedonist books in the spring and miss this. I loved both of these short stories. Wish Mr Horvath would publish several more anthologies set in this universe.