Having read some of Ashen's previous works, I went into The Crown and the Collar with some expectations. Ashen does not disappoint. However, The Crown aHaving read some of Ashen's previous works, I went into The Crown and the Collar with some expectations. Ashen does not disappoint. However, The Crown and the Collar is a touch different, which is deliciously wonderful.
The story has some of the usual trappings (tropes) of the MM Romance world, but Ashen takes them and turns them on their head. Delightful twists on tired old tropes.
In Crown and Collar, we see the Royal Prince love affair trope turned sideways with the use of polyamory, and just the faintest hint of D/s with the claiming of a consort, and the collaring of the chosen. It's brilliantly done, with some more than steamy scenes.
Not only do you get a delicious romance tale, but we also get a bit of suspense and mystery, as all things are not as they seem within the castle walls.
Dominic Ashen brings Dungeons and Dragons to life. All of his works inspire grand scenes of fantasy that reminded me of many evenings around a card table being left to the demise of a dungeon master. Ashen is that master - yet the end result is a satisfied party of adventurers.