Ami's Hoard

3.5 stars

Impractical follows two couple ... Terrell who believes in practicality, who thinks that marriage should be for convenience rather than love, because he is busy with study and work, thus having a husband who can take care of his estate will be perfect for him. So when his father arranged a marriage with Edlin Crandall Courtright, Terrell thinks he finds the right match While Kirian, his best friend, refuses to settle for practicality, he wants to marry for love (just like his parents). But then his professor forces him to marry the icy Evelyn Thiering, because they both need support for Literary Tour, Kirian who has been smitten with Evelyn for quite a while plans to thaw Evelyn and makes the lord like Kirian for who he is.

Apparently, I still have few Megan Derr titles on my virtual TBR that I have not read yet :). Time to take one out of the shelf. I love Megan Derr's world. I love that in her stories, men can marry each other like it's something to do everyday, without anyone batting an eye. It's an acceptable practice, so I don't have to deal with homophobic actions along the way.

I thought this one was adorable. I must say though, that Kirian and Evelyn's story was better for me. Maybe because both men seem to have totally different characteristics. Kirian is fiery, passionate, and often loses his temper. Evelyn is cold and detached and never loses his temper. It's opposites attract, yo! I also thought that this couple is the one better learning from one another. Kirian calms down with Evelyn but Evelyn learns to show his passion more outward too. I loved their romance.

Terrell and Edlin, on the other hand, is a little imbalanced. I mean, yes, Terrell learns that practicality doesn't always win over one heart's content. That he realizes he falls in love after all, with his charming husband. However, Edlin is already a more developed character, in a sense that I didn't see him matured or progressed into someone better when the story ended. So unlike Kirian and Evelyn who are both progressing in their marriage, in Terrell and Edlin's case, it is only Terrell that does so. Not that I thought Edlin was a bad character; but he is basically the 'same' man from the moment he is introduced to readers. Does that make sense??

I have to dodge my star rating for one HUGE issue though. The use of the words practical, impractical, and their versions. I know that Megan Derr is trying to point that characteristics from both Terrell and Kirian. However, reading over 100+ occurrences(!) of those words were driving me insane!! It was repetitive and annoying! Those two words were more present in Terrell and Edlin's chapter, which probably also made me like Kirian and Evelyn's story better.