I'm afraid I'm DNFing.

I really like the idea of a plant-based magic system, but it wasn't enough for me to continue.

The characters sound much younger than their age. The dialogue sounds a lot more modern than I was expecting from a high-fantasy. And the plot lost all the interest for me when we know who the assassin of the royal family is.

I really wanted to like this one, but sadly, it wasn't for me.

A delightful tale with great fairytale/high fantasy vibes, it features a unique magic system that I thoroughly enjoyed. If you're looking for a quick, magical read in the realm of m/m romance, check out this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

I always really enjoy Molly Ringle’s stand-alone fantasies, and I really liked Sage and King. It follows Zaya, who becomes king unexpectedly after the death of his older sister and her family, and Col, a Sage charged with instructing Zaya in magic. There wasn’t a lot of worldbuilding in this book; it mostly focused on the family and other relationship dynamics of Zaya and Col, as well as the two men’s romance. I really liked the way the characters interacted with one another, and I thought the resolution was very satisfying. 3.5/5

This was a great novella. I love Ringle's imagination and the worlds they create. I read Lava Red Feather Blue (another of their books) back in January and loved it, and Sage & King was just as good.

Ringle writes wonderfully imagined characters and fleshed out worlds whilst also managing to fit them into a version of an existing story that you are familiar with.

I also absolutely adore Col and Zaya. They are both cinnamon roll sweethearts and tbh I would love a longer book or a sequel for these two, and their world.

I also really loved the plant magic aspect and how, where possible, Ringle has tried to match the existing properties of plants to the magical properties in the book.
We also had some spicy scenes which I am always here for.

Basically if you love soft queer romance and fantasy then you need to read this immediately.

CW - death, murder, mentions of rape

I have a definite bias towards mm fantasy and this fit the bill well. The characters were easy to love.

Per the author, this story was inspired by Merthur from BBC’s Merlin, so as someone who’s been a fan of the show for years I had to pick this up. It was a quick, enjoyable read that definitely made me want to check out more by Molly Ringle, because her writing is fantastic. I loved both Zaya and Col as narrators, and watching them fall in love was **chef’s kiss**. My favorite element of the entire book was by far the plant-based magic system, which was really unique and woven masterfully into the story for our heroes and villains alike. My only complaint: I wish this book was longer! There was definitely enough material to make it a full-length novel, or even a series…or maybe that’s just me wishing for more Zaya/Col adventures. All in all I really liked it, and would definitely recommend it for anyone looking for a short but sweet M/M Fantasy Romance!

Sage and King was a wonderful short book! Not every author can write a shorter novel that doesn't make the reader feel like it was rushed or parts were missing. But the author delivered. And as a matter of fact the book perfectly introduced the character and world. This fantastic and magical world had me captivated from the very beginning.
Full review to come on my YouTube channel.

Although this book is short, it’s was incredibly slow to start. I really forced myself to stick with it, and I’m kind of glad I did. The book’s adventure, romance and subtle hints back to Merlin/ Arthur inspiration kept me reading

I liked how the story loosely followed a well used plot line, but still felt relatively fresh, and original.

With the limited time in the book, the characters were well fleshed out as well so definitely a bonus.

I want to like it more but that uphill battle at the beginning just didn’t make me love the book

This short novel was slow to start but I'm so glad I stuck with it! The book was filled with adventure, magic and romance: while it does still have traces of the original Merthur inspiration, I am glad it showed its own character and that the progression of the story felt fresh and thoroughly enjoyable. Despite its length I thought that both the exploration of our MCs and their relationship was very well flashed out and I had a capital time reading it!

After really enjoying Molly Ringle's Lava Red Feather Blue , I was really excited to read this one. And I liked it a lot too! It was fast-paced, both main characters were likeable, and their relationship was really sweet. (It was also a bit more explicit than Lava Red Feather Blue, so that was a nice surprise lol)

Zaya showed some development as a character while he learned about magic, and his growing feelings for Col were really adorable - same with Col's chapters, changing his initial dislike for the new king to love. This was a nice strangers to lovers dynamic, and Ringle used their interactions to give us more information about the world and the magical system.

The whole magic with plants thing was the most interesting to me - I think it was crafted really well, and I could see the details the author put in it quite clearly. Despite that, the religious system wasn't as clear, in my opinion, shown more as an opposite to the magic, with vague connections to the political system. I feel like the world as a whole could've been developed a bit better, but since the book is short, and focused on the romance, it's forgivable.

But well, Sage and King was good, and once again Ringle created a magical world that I want to read more of. Zaya and Col are super cute together, and I wish we could read more of them in the future! (3.5 stars)

I didn't like this one as much as I liked Lava Red, Feather Blue. I thought this one was lacking something. Still a good story and would definitely recommend for queer fantasy lovers, but I wanted a little more.

I always enjoy Ringle’s writing! She has a magical way of sucking me in! This was a beautiful story and I connected to the characters right away! Can’t wait to see what she has up her sleeve next!

A delightfully queer tale of magic and the importance of opening yourself up to new experiences. I’ve read several of Ringle’s other m/m romances, and she has a way of writing about magic, budding love, and conflict that I just absolutely love. This story is Merlin-inspired, and now I really want to watch the show! Another wonderful story by Ringle - possibly my favorite by her, now that I think of it!

—“He had a job that would forever consume his life, and that job didn’t have anything to do with Col’s blue eyes or the flowers that bloomed at his touch.”—

Sage and King is the story of Zaya, whose older siblings are unexpectedly killed, leaving the throne and role of King to him. As tradition goes, every new monarch makes a journey to visit the sages of Heartwood for a month long session. Zaya discovers that the sages are actually magicians who can weld nature magic— a secret long kept in a kingdom where magic is forbidden. He is paired with the powerful sage Col, to learn all the history of magic and its value to the kingdom. Col is occupied with the knowledge that the murder of Zaya’s siblings was actually the work of Zaya’s older brother who was believed to be dead. Between Col’s guilt of that knowledge and Zaya’s learned opposition to magic a new kind of feeling sparks between them.

I enjoyed this one! It was pretty short, more like a long novella, and written beautifully. I thought the amount of world building and set up of the magic Ringle was able to do in such a short space was very impressive. I wish the book was longer since it did seem slightly rushed after the climax and I honestly would have liked to see more development of the relationship too. It was a very easy fantasy to read with a lot of unique elements! I’ve heard this is loosely based on BBC’s Merlin which makes sense, and I think people who enjoy the show will love this! If you are looking for a short LGBTQ+ fantasy, this one is for you!

3.8/5

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I read this book in two sittings (and only because I had to sleep). I haven't read very many LGBTQ+ romances before, especially ones that also fit into the fantasy genre.

First off, the fantasy world was amazing. I haven't encountered a world with a magic system quite like it before. In the world of Sage and King, sages secretly use plants and the natural world to create magical effects on themselves, others, and other things. Though the king, Zaya, doesn't know about magic, he finds himself in a position where he not only has to learn about it, but must decide whether to continue its illegality. Then he meets the sage that will become his councillor, Col, and a potential relationship blossoms.

I enjoyed the romance more than I expected, and I'm so happy that I did. It had great pacing and matched very well with the overarching plot of murder and assassination attempts. The representation didn't stop there either, though I won't go on so I spoil nothing, and it was refreshing to read about a fantasy world where anyone can love anyone and the only problem is whether you can find a way of producing an heir. Which is really only a problem for one person.

I thoroughly enjoyed Sage and King and I recommend that anyone above the age of 18 check it out. It will give you all the feels of romance, danger, and forbidden love.

This is a charming MM romance featuring the always enjoyable royalty and magical teacher trope.

This is a quick novella and follows Zaya as he is thrust into Kingship after the untimely murder of his two older siblings. As part of his training before formerly assuming the throne, he is taken to Heartwood. Unbeknownst to him until he gets there, Heartwood is home to the magicians of the land and they are formally trained as sages. This is a shock as magic is banned in Zaya's kingdom due. Assigned to convince him that magic isn't evil is the young and powerful Col, who is one of the strongest magical people ever.

Overall, this was really good! For such a short book, I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of world-building present. Molly Ringle says it is lightly inspired by the BBC show Merlin and the popular pairing of Merlin and Arthur and while this is not an Arthurian retelling, you can feel the influence. I also really liked the magic present in this story. It was atypical of a lot of magic I've read about and it was a pleasure to read. I thought Zaya and Col were a great pairing as well. Their relationship was explored well and it got quite steamy a few times. A great read and an enjoyable time!

**I received an eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Big thanks to NetGalley and the publisher!

This book does everything it should and more - a romantic intertwining of a King his Sage along with the themes of magic, betrayals, societal expectations and family relationships.

This book is steamy without being overly explicit, romantic without being too cheesy and has enough tension to drive the plot forward.

I would recommend this if you like quick M/M romantic fantasy reads!

I so enjoyed this zippy little fantasy romance. Molly Ringle did a fantastic job of balancing the romantic plot with the fantasy plot. I also really appreciated both the efficiency of the world building, and the fresh simplicity of the magic system.
Of course, the true heart of the story is the tender love story between Zaya and Col. The author openly admits that their dynamic is inspired by the popular fan ship “Merthur” from BBC’s Merlin and fans of the show will be delighted by the parallels that can be drawn. But I certainly think this has an audience and an appeal beyond people who want to read Merthur fanfiction. While the story is a bit too short to have much heft or to leave me with anything to chew on, I will remember how romantic it was and how much fun I had reading it!

This book had such a wonderfully crafted world and really great characters and there was great queer rep. I really enjoyed the romance in the book and zaya and cols relationship development