A butler that becomes a lot more to a young lord in need. While Jeeves is willing to do anything for his young charge, Barny realizes that he wants more from Jeeves than a stand in for intimacy, he wants all the feelings that go with it as well.
From the The Butler's Vessel blurb:
It's embarrassing. His eyes are so dark I feel as if I fall into them forever. I think he knows. I think he knows everything.
He is calm, confident, capable. And I want him to take charge of me.
But he calls me master, because I'm about to come of age and become Earl Rocester. A vessel with a title how absurd. But there is no one else to take it.
My parents tried to raise me as an earl, not a vessel, and I understand why. But it has made me a freak.
I'm not graceful. I'm not witty or demure.
I'm clumsy and brash and bold. Prone to making an utter fool of myself. I'm too much and nobody wants that.
It means the only offers of marriage I'll receive are from men willing to overlook my flaws for the sake of my title.
And that was before the incident.
I got far too drunk and lost my purity. My magic was freed.
My butler hid the evidence with dark magic, but now I need regular intimacy with a mage to empty me before everyone discovers my shameful secret.
It is a good thing my butler is so obliging.
SNik's review:
Sixth in series (Duty & Magic), best if read in order to understand the universe build. Paranormal. Quick read. Dual POV.
Barny will someday be an earl, and he has to decide whether it would be best being alone all his life, or marrying a mage to empty his magic and chancing the possibility of being used just for that and his title. Relying on his butler Jeeves for almost everything, Barny doesn’t expect to also need Jeeves to hide Barny in dark magic after he is unexpectedly tapped, nor that Jeeves will have to help empty Barny of magic, by having sex of course.
The story from mostly Barny’s POV is one of yearning, loneliness and innocence, and when we do get Jeeves’ POV, there are some outside forces that Jeeves is involved with and he is dedicated to protecting Barny from. As Jeeves has served Barny, he has grown to care for him, and Barny’s reliance and attraction to Jeeves is bound up in his knowledge that Jeeves will always protect him. A little more time spent with Barney and Jeeves would have made the story more complete, as they have a slightly unknown future, but at least they are together.
Jacquie's Review:
Another great shorter read in this series. This one features characters from The Prince's Vessel, so I'd recommend reading this first.
Loved Barny and Jeeves together. They certainly had chemistry. I would have loved a little more time with them together as a couple. The ending is very open, more a HFN than HEA, so maybe we'll see them again soon.
This shorter read adds in another element to this series - the people that Jeeves are working for. I'm really interested to see where that goes.
The Butler's Vessel is currently available as an e-book and paperback and can be read as part of your Kindle Unlimited Subscription
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