Blurb: Orc Mountain needs a midwife. And this devious, deadly orc is determined to find one…
In a world of recently warring orcs and men, Gwyn Garrett is a lord’s daughter on a mission — to escape her lord father, dump her cheating betrothed, and pursue her true calling as a plant-obsessed midwife.
Until the night her brand-new house is invaded by an orc. A tall, taunting, treacherous monster, with sharp teeth, vicious claws, and gleaming black eyes. And worst of all, a blatant, brutal mission of his own…
He’s come to court her.
Claim her.
Compromise her.
But Gwyn is far too clever to fall for this sneaky orc’s schemes — right? Even if he moves like a graceful god, if his voice is sweet syrup in her ears. If his low, mocking laugh sparks something hot and reckless, deep in her soul…
It’s hunger, it’s home, it’s everything Gwyn never knew she needed — but in its wake, there’s only devastation. Defeat. And the realization that she’s forever linked with this horrible orc, and his horrible plans…
And with the war. The fates of hundreds of women like her. And the truth that Orc Mountain desperately needs her, and maybe this proud, lonely orc does too…
Review: I have been waiting and waiting for Joarr's book. I could tell from the moment we were introduced to him that he needed a woman in his life and could Fenn have picked a better mate for him than the brilliant, independent, plant-obsessed Gwyn? No. Absolutely not. These two are, in my opinion, the best suited pair of all Fenn's couples.
I loved this book (and especially loved that it is her longest book yet). It's hard to explain exactly what made this book stand out so much in an entire series of amazing books, but I think The Midwife and the Orc may be my favorite book yet. All her books are sexy, romantic, angsty, and captivating, but this book struck a different sort of chord. It was just so... beautiful. So emotional, even heart-wrenching at times. The focus on Gwyn's mental health, the lack of focus on copious amounts of cum and rough sex (there's still lots of sex but it's less kinky and more romantic) made it next-level spectacular.
Joarr and Gwyn are both such troubled characters and their individual journeys (as well as the consistent plot of the fight against the humans) created a whirlwind of emotions in me. Typical of a Finley Fenn book, there is a lot of arguing, betrayal, and mistrust between the hero and heroine. Joarr is struggling to find his place in Orc Mountain at the moment, having lost his place among the Skai but not being welcomed into the Bautul clan yet. Gwyn struggles with self-harm (on page) and the difficulties associated with her work and the culture differences between humans. Her mental health also suffers as a result of a lifetime of being used by the men in her life and seeing the horrors that can result when women's right to reproductive health isn't respected. But watching them work through these individuals issues together and separately was so emotional and beautiful.
I also love that Fenn's books always give us glimpses of characters from previous books and this one was no different. We do see many of the previous couples, but I especially enjoyed that much of the secondary focus was on Stella and Silfast from the novella. They are such an interesting duo and getting a glimpse into their life post-novella was really fabulous. And is it weird that I'm glad that these characters aren't living "happily ever after in perfect harmony"? Fenn brings real-life troubles to the characters even after their HEAs that make them that much more real in my eyes. In this book Stella and Silfast struggle with the difficulty of her pregnancy and how it wears on her body, mind, and soul which, though saddening at times, ended up bringing them closer together.
I think this book holds a special place in my heart because I'm 8 months pregnant at the moment and reading about a heroine so passionate about women, their bodily autonomy, their mental health, and their reproductive health just touched a chord in me. Note: This book also touches on the subject of abortions pretty hard (no abortions on page, but as the heroine is a midwife they are talked about frequently in regard to her work and in regard to the humans forcing them on women who have relations with orcs).
Long story short: less of a focus on cum, more of a focus on MAKING ME FEEL ALL THE FEELINGS. As always, highly recommended for monster romance lovers.
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