A Tested Love by Kayla Jameth

Title: A Tested Love (Spartan Love Book 2)
Author: Kayla Jameth
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Cover Artist: Catt Ford
Genre: historical
Length: 324 pages
Formats Epub, Mobi, PDF, print

Lured by seductive promises, Andreas risked his life to be with Theron, only to find himself betrayed. Abandoned and alone, Andreas resigns all hope of seeing his fierce warrior again and resumes his life as a helot.

All too aware of the harsh punishment Sparta demands of men who love other men, Theron reluctantly surrenders Andreas in hopes of keeping him safe. The warrior returns to Sparta to embrace his destiny in place of the helot he has grown to see as a man, not just a slave. Cold but honorable duty will be his new lover.

Duty proves to be a jealous lover when Sparta demands the final test of Theron’s loyalty. Sent to kill Andreas, Theron must find a way to come to terms with his burning desire for his handsome helot before their forbidden love destroys them both.

My biggest problem with this book is the long wait for Book 3!

You definitely want to start with A Spartan Love (reviewed here), as the story goes in sequence, and coming in at this point is going to leave you confused. But Book 1 is a great read.

So many of the awful fears Andreas and Theron had in Book 1 come true here. Andreas’ trust was hard won to start with, and Theron’s situation has done nothing but gnaw away at what remains. Neither man knows how to avoid Andreas’ death or Theron’s disobedience, this is one place where having it all flat can’t happen. Finding a way around Theron’s duty to Sparta requires them to think the unthinkable, and do the equally unthinkable. By the end of the book, these two have traveled much farther than the mere miles to a far-flung city.

The reader has to be willing to sink into the ancient mindset and remember the lack of communication across distance. What we could solve in minutes simply isn’t that easy for them, any more than most of us would fare well in a sword fight.

We do get a hint of Coridan’s fate, which was a relief, since I’d been worrying about him since the disaster in Book 1. Doubt arises about an ally, and one big threat resolves and brings lots more trouble in its wake. Apollo and a few of his fellow Olympians take a hand in meddling with everyone’s lives, which gives me a feeling there’s going to be some big payoffs due in Book 3.

The sense of history is equally strong here, and layered with the tatters of a relationship that isn’t supposed to exist. I did feel that some aspects of their dilemma stretched out a little longer than necessary, complicated by their unwillingness to talk, but talking at all isn’t part of their daily lives. Andreas has no confidante besides Ictis the ferret (Who is just as cute here as before!). Theron’s still working on not trying to solve everything by himself, and backslides sometimes.

These two are definitely tested, but they’re stronger together than they are apart. Now to wait for the climax of the story arc! 4.5 marbles