Adam grew up listening to his grandfather’s stories of a magical place in Scotland called Craigmar. Now that his grandfather has passed on, Adam is looking for a way to feel connected to him again, so he goes in search of the place that has grown to epic proportions in his mind. But Adam should have paid more attention to his grandfather’s stories because they were full of fairies, and fairies don’t always play nice. Discover the magic and danger of Craigmar with Adam in S.T. Gibson’s Savage Blooms.
[Note: While I am reviewing this novel independently and honestly, it should be noted that it has been provided to me by Redhook for the purpose of this review. Warning: My review of Savage Blooms contains some spoilers!]
A magical Scottish adventure in S.T. Gibson’s novel
Adam has been feeling a little lost since his grandfather passed away. Then his mother gave him a letter she found that his grandfather had written to someone named Arabella Kirkfoyle on the Craigmar estate in Scotland. Adam was astounded. His grandfather had filled his childhood with fantastic tales about a magical place called Craigmar, but Adam had never been sure any of it was real. Now that he had this letter, he decided to go looking for his grandfather’s tales.
Along with his friend Nicola, Adam travels all over Scotland in search of Craigmar. Just when Adam is getting close to throwing in the towel, they stumble across a tiny village where the bartender knows of Craigmar and the owner, Eileen Kirkfoyle. But when Adam mentions Arabella, the bartender shuts down. It looks like one more dead end, but surprisingly, the guy at the end of the bar overheard the conversation. He approaches Adam and Eileen and tells them that he knows of Craigmar and the Kirkfoyles. In fact, he’s the groundskeeper for Craigmar and offers to take them there right now. Adam is all about adventure and happily goes along, and wherever Adam goes, Nicola goes.
When the two get to Craigmar, they meet Eileen, the eccentric lord of Craigmar. She claims to have no knowledge of Adam’s grandfather but makes an enticing offer. Adam and Nicola can stay at Craigmar and search through all of her family’s extensive records, trying to find him. Nicola is apprehensive about staying, but then the weather conspires to keep them there as a gentle rain turns wild and washes out the road while they’re talking to Eileen. Looks like they’re stuck at Craigmar.
Adam sees only a peculiar, lonely woman offering him help. But Nicola remembers the fairy tales that his grandfather shared and is worried that something more is happening. Either way, these four characters are now locked in together, exploring their wildest desires and needs, all while danger is looming around them. But is the bigger danger outside or is it already in the house?
Everyone wants something in Savage Blooms
In Savage Blooms, the characters need to be careful because everyone wants something, but it’s not always obvious what they want. And some of them don’t even know what they want. Adam is looking for a connection to his grandfather and for adventure. Nicola wants Adam, but more than that, she wants to feel truly loved. As the main characters,
Adam and Nicola’s desires are more obvious for us readers to figure out. But Eileen obviously wants something too. We aren’t quite sure at first what she wants, but she desperately needs Adam to get it; that much is clear.
Finley is the biggest mystery at first because he is the only character who doesn’t seem to want something. As the story goes on, you realize that Finley does, in fact, want something; the problem is that he doesn’t actually know what he wants. So instead, he fills his unnamed desire with other things: Eileen, Nicola, control, and Adam. But none of these things is actually what he wants, so he is never quite satisfied. Finley is actually the most interesting character because he is the most puzzling. Of all the people at Craigmar, he seems to simultaneously be the most out of place and the most trapped. By the end of Savage Blooms, he still hasn’t figured out what he wants, but this is just the start of the series, so he still has time.
Savage Blooms is more of a release than a story
There is a plot to Savage Blooms. But I honestly felt like it was more of a collection of sexual encounters loosely held together with a thin storyline. The majority of the book is the characters having sex, thinking about having sex, watching each other in sexual situations, or satisfying themselves. The characters are basically just walking hormones. They are perpetually horny, and they want everyone. Occasionally, Gibson tries to create emotional bonds among the characters, but they all seem to have ties to one another. It is the messiest, most deviant example of polyamory that I’ve ever seen.
It wasn’t unpleasant to read, but it wasn’t exactly interesting either. The constant partner swapping, combined with jealousy and confusion, just made it feel like messy porn. There’s also an attempt at BDSM, but it’s also messy. Finley isn’t really a Dom and Eileen isn’t really a sub, but they play at it in a way that just makes their encounters feel dirty instead of truly exciting. Still, I’m sure there are plenty of people out there who will find the scenes in Savage Blooms very titillating. Like I said, it wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t particularly good either. This is just the start of Gibson’s Scottish trilogy, so there’s always a chance that things could get better. And if nothing else, it’s something to fall asleep to.
Rating: 6/10
Savage Blooms is now available to purchase at your retailer of choice.
Learn more about the book at the official website for the title.
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