Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.

Start by marking “To Target the Heart (Spellster #2)” as Want to Read:

Other editions

Enlarge cover

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Open Preview

To Target the Heart

(Spellster #2)

Aldrea Alien (Goodreads Author)

4.23 · Rating details · 40 ratings · 14 reviews

How can he win with the odds stacked against him?

Prince Hamish has no interest in fulfilling his duty of marrying. Not to a woman, at least. That doesn’t stop his mother, Queen Fiona, from presenting him with every eligible noblewoman that enters their castle. He’s certain it’ll be no different with the representative of the Udynea Empire.
So when they do arrive, Hamish is ...more

Get A Copy

Kindle Edition, 598 pages

Published April 15th 2020

More Details... Edit Details

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Reader Q&A

To ask other readers questions about To Target the Heart, please sign up.

Be the first to ask a question about To Target the Heart

Lists with This Book

A Vigil in the Mourning by Hailey Turner

April 2020 MM Releases

94 books — 185 voters

The Reluctant Witch by Kristen S. Walker

SPFBO 6 - LGBTQIA+ Books

30 books — 3 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

Showing 1-30

Average rating 4.23 ·

Rating details

· 40 ratings · 14 reviews

More filters

Sort order

Start your review of To Target the Heart (Spellster #2)

Apr 15, 2020 Joyfully Jay rated it it was amazing

Shelves: sue

A Joyfully Jay review.

5 stars

This well-paced fantasy is engaging and entertaining from page one. Hamish and Darshan are wonderfully rendered characters and really the strong point of the book. Both men are fully developed and vibrantly relatable. Hamish especially tugs at the heartstrings. His loneliness is painful to read and he’s been forced to live half a life, which I found heartbreaking. I found it impossible not to champion their love story and, despite the fact they only know one anothe ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Feb 19, 2020 Dan rated it really liked it

A follow up to In Pain and Blood, To Target the Heart takes place in the same fantasy world of spellsters, elves, and dwarves but has little to do with its predecessor. It shares no characters or plot threats, so it isn’t necessary to read In Pain and Blood first.
I feel about this book much the same way I felt about the first Spellster book. I liked the writing, I enjoyed the characters, I do not understand the insistence on having such intense homophobia in a fantasy setting, and I found the se A follow up to In Pain and Blood, To Target the Heart takes place in the same fantasy world of spellsters, elves, and dwarves but has little to do with its predecessor. It shares no characters or plot threats, so it isn’t necessary to read In Pain and Blood first.
I feel about this book much the same way I felt about the first Spellster book. I liked the writing, I enjoyed the characters, I do not understand the insistence on having such intense homophobia in a fantasy setting, and I found the sex scenes too frequent.
Hamish and Darshan are great characters (despite Hamish’s phonetically Scottish accent). I really liked them, the way they interacted with each other and the other characters (especially Hamish’s niece and nephews), and how they navigated their foray into a new kind of relationship. They explored each other’s cultures openly and discussed the harder points of cultural differences, like slavery and religion.
The plot of the book held together relatively well, although with how badly Darshan screwed up his mission as a trade negotiator, I’m desperate to see how things play out when he arrives back at the palace in Udynea. I don’t know if we’ll get that answer since the books in the series seem to have little to do with each other so far.
I think I would have enjoyed this book much more thoroughly if almost all the plot hadn’t hinged on Hamish’s mother’s rabid and unique homophobia. While most everyone else in Tirglas takes the relationship between Hamish and Darshan in stride, Queen Fiona remains viciously homophobic to the end. I couldn’t tell how the author intended her to come across (a mother protecting a son who’d previously been raped as a young teen, a despotic control freak, a grandmother in deep and erratic mourning, an abusive religious fanatic, or some kind of bloodthirsty madwoman), but the overall result confused and discomforted me.
Fiona stood out as an antagonist for the sake of having an antagonist. Her insistence on Hamish’s marriage could have been done in a lot of ways that didn’t make her so rampantly and irrationally hateful. In a fantasy world with heightened political states, racial tension, and magic, conflict can come from anywhere and I understood that the author drew on a historical setting, but I would have liked the edges smoothed, or things explained and resolved better. If the target audience is queer people, I don’t think we need to read more vicious portrayals of people who hate us and never change.
No topic should be off-limits to an author. I’ve tackled homophobia in my own work. However, there’s writing about homophobia and then there’s writing a mother who has all her son’s known lovers murdered in cold blood.
That being said, I found this installment of the Spellster series well-written and interesting with strong characters who played well off each other and their setting. I’d like to see more from the author, however, if homophobia continues to be a major plot point in the series, I think I’ll have to set the books aside for reasons that have more to do with living under a president actively working to repeal LGBTQIA rights than with the author’s quality.
...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Jan 29, 2020 R rated it it was amazing

Shelves: m-m, homophobia, series, paranormal

Hamish is a prince. Because of his preference for men, his mother, the queen, keeps him under her thumb. The only outlet he has is hunting.

Darshan is a envoy from another country, also a prince, with the same preference for men.
Darshan’s country is much more open to his lifestyle. He doesn’t understand the rigidity of the people in Hamish’s home. Darshan is vibrant, outspoken, beautiful, a spellster, and very interested in Hamish.

Great book, excellent characters. Very complex storyline. Magic of ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Jun 24, 2020 The Quille and Lampe rated it really liked it

Shelves: action, comfort-books, keeper, mmromance, paranormally-normal, reviews

What I Think: First, I simply adore world-building. I’m a fantasy, magic, and paranormal addict through and through, so without further ado (and crossing all crossable limbs that I’ll be unbiased) Ladies, Gentlemen and those of you yet to make up their mind, I bid you welcome to Mullhind where the Queen is desperately trying to marry off her 37-year-old son who seems to be a confirmed bachelor. Only for him to be sent a different gender from the mother’s latest schemes. The Queen is mad for whic What I Think: First, I simply adore world-building. I’m a fantasy, magic, and paranormal addict through and through, so without further ado (and crossing all crossable limbs that I’ll be unbiased) Ladies, Gentlemen and those of you yet to make up their mind, I bid you welcome to Mullhind where the Queen is desperately trying to marry off her 37-year-old son who seems to be a confirmed bachelor. Only for him to be sent a different gender from the mother’s latest schemes. The Queen is mad for which I’m glad but Prince Hamish is disturbed which does not stop the meet-cute from being as sweet as Darshan. Then, the Authoress just dropped a serious size difference that ensures that this tale currently has my utmost attention. Hamish is a hulking, fiery-haired, fierce man of the land, while Darshan could pass for an elf. The Queen’s firstborn, Gordon, heir to the throne and Hamish’s older brother though is enjoying this too much and I’m on his side all the way. Women’s lib definitely gets glorious mentions. An entire ship crew of only women? All my childhood fantasies of piracy came tumbling back with that one. Darshan’s home might be luxurious and magical but I think he’s falling in love with its rugged, more natural beauty and I can’t wait to see how he develops away from home. Or how he copes with his instant crush on Hamish as a fantastic, merry chase begins. But, of course, there will always be haters and the Queen’s mistreatment of Hamish is making me clench my teeth. Goddess save us from Royal Idiots including Hamish who bears it all so admirably, partly due to the guilt he’s been made to bear and the punishments that have been imposed on him. There’s this line from the Lion King that kept rolling around my head, especially during the times when the Queen is being a hater. ‘I can see what’s happening… But they don’t have a clue.’ If I can predict the future, I hereby predict she’s about to have a fight on her hands, which I intend to gleefully enjoy. Oh goddess, can you imagine almost dying in your own home because you have to hide your sexual preference? The most painful part of this tale is that Mish doesn’t even know how amazing a man he is. Darshan will have to fight for his freedom, then prove the man’s worth to him. But Darshan is my boy right now and I know he can do this even though he’s got a mountainous job ahead of him. It’s actually a pleasant surprise that he’s more caring and intuitive than his upbringing would allow. He’s sweet though laced with the perfect kind of magical danger and background that makes him a worthy adversary to the Queen. Yet, the Queen has more trouble in her hands, a gay grandson, more magical talent in her home than she would ever want and it sets me cackling with glee again. If Hamish is a rustic, ruddy teddy bear, Gordon is an act of God and would do a better job of ruling than his mum which irritates the hell out of me (the part that believes women should naturally be good at things like leading and still being able to love. I know, biased, but I’m working on it. Promise). She has embarrassed, humiliated and demeaned Hamish for so long that he finally couldn’t take it anymore and fright beat in my chest for fear of what he would do when he reached his breaking point. And when he reacted, my heart stuttered, so shocked that I couldn’t even cry, seeing something so close to my own reaction to anxiety and panic attacks. I had to take a break and breathe real deep for a while but when I came back to the tale, I was mad and ready to hurt something. If Gordon hadn’t shown more reason to love him, or Dar hadn’t earned even more of my trust, I might have run away from this tale. But I had to stand by Dar as he went into the battle of his life, for what body can survive without its heart? Not even a royal magician can live like that. The most delightful part was knowing things the queen did not know that would make her never sleep again. Ha! Evil cackle ensued again. At this point, I couldn’t put the book down anymore. How anyone can still be as optimistic as this group of people baffles me and I’m pacing my room restlessly as I wait for Civil War to break out. But the tenderness between Dar and Mish, as frail as finely spun silk and as dazzling as the sun makes the erotic moments even more significant as it leads us to the depths of these two men, showing that there is so much more to them than meets the eyes. And like all good things, it left me hungry for more (I have mentioned I’m greedy but only for sweet things, I assure you). The 3d image Mme. Aldrea gives to each of her characters are the hallmarks of a true puppeteer!

Verdict? A keeper of a comfort tale to remind you that while love can start as a surprise and in the midst of despair, it can blaze bright enough to rival the sun. ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Oct 12, 2020 Freida Kilmari rated it it was amazing

A beautiful story with heartbreaking truths and fantastical adventures.

This book blew my mind. I'll admit, I wasn't expecting much. I don't know the author, it only had a single review on Amazon, and I got it for free as part of a group promo I was in. But boy was a sucked in hook, line, and sinker.

This book has some meat to it. 😉 Hahaha (oh, I crack myself up). But seriously, this book is LONG. It took me three solid days of reading to get through, so there is a lot to this. You're getting so A beautiful story with heartbreaking truths and fantastical adventures.

This book blew my mind. I'll admit, I wasn't expecting much. I don't know the author, it only had a single review on Amazon, and I got it for free as part of a group promo I was in. But boy was a sucked in hook, line, and sinker.

This book has some meat to it. 😉 Hahaha (oh, I crack myself up). But seriously, this book is LONG. It took me three solid days of reading to get through, so there is a lot to this. You're getting some real story, not like those romances that are really short and over before you can blink. I do like those, but I don't end up loving them. This is full of detail.

This book follows two main characters whose POV we jump between: Prince Hamish and Prince Darshan. Prince Hamish is from a Scotland-inspired land that are pretty strict with their expectations, particularly surrounding marriage and children. So when Prince Hamish came out as gay when he was a teenager, things did not go so well. His mother forbid him to leave the castle's town and outlying villages and kept him trapped. Now, 37, he is still trapped by those same rules. That is, until a foreign ambassador comes to town looking for a trade agreement. Prince Darshan is from an Asian-inspired country where things are more flexible in terms of sexuality. When he realises the situation Prince Hamish is in, he tries to help. But when things heat up between the two of them, things get tricky. Neither of them were expecting to fall in love, but neither was expecting the battle they'd have to fight to keep that love.

This books has so much to it: magic, in-depth characters, a love story that will go down in this year's top 10 for sure, sexuality-based mental health issues, brilliant world building, and a healthy dash of steam thrown in. Seriously, this is everything I love about fantasy romance in one book. I get to swoon over the damaged alpha and charming foreigner, I get to really think about what it would be like being gay in a world where that is illegal, and I get the fantastical adventure of another world.

This book was also well-written for an indie author. A few errors here and there, but overall, it was done well. I also loved the accents and dialogue development, which has clearly been thought about and practised by the author, because that's often hard to pull off this well.

I did, however, not notice that book two doesn't release until July next year. Next year? Goddamn it! That wait is gunna kill me. Not really a cliffhanger, but there are some unresolved matters that I want to see concluded. 🙂 ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

May 16, 2020 R.B. rated it it was amazing

Shelves: romance, paranormal, magic, m-m, lgbt, fantasy, arc, 2020

I wanted to read this because I've read multiple fanfics in different fandoms with the same premise, depending on the level of seriousness the lover was often a servant or arrived disguised as a princess. (view spoiler) I usually enjoy those.

English is not my first language so I often have problems with books that includes unusual words, I had to reread a few lines but it wasn't too difficult an I still understood well a I wanted to read this because I've read multiple fanfics in different fandoms with the same premise, depending on the level of seriousness the lover was often a servant or arrived disguised as a princess. (view spoiler) I usually enjoy those.

English is not my first language so I often have problems with books that includes unusual words, I had to reread a few lines but it wasn't too difficult an I still understood well after I realized it was intentional. I know enough Latin to recognize some of the foreign words, I wonder if the others were also based on real languages. It was fun to see real cultural traditions blended with fantasy, and the author did a great job in writing their religious and historical myths (I kinda want a full version of the Eternal Flame one).

One thing that surprised me was the complete disregard of common practices and assumptions typical of our world, the only thing recognizable was the homophobia, it took me a while to take in their physical appearances and cultures but it was an interesting journey.

This book in short: Two princes both trying not to jump the handsome foreigner because it would be bad for politics, but they don't really try too hard which leads to complications.

Technically this does have explicit sex scenes but not frequently and not very detailed either, so I don't know if I should consider it erotic. The scenes are also talked over in such a way that made me lose sight of what they were supposed to be doing.

I got so much into it I forgot to sleep, I should probably lose the habit of reading in the evening. I kept telling myself "Just one more chapter" then suddenly it was 4am and I was too exhausted to continue. (view spoiler)

I wasn't entirely satisfied with where the story left off, but it looks like there will be a sequel.

The book was provided for free by the author in exchange for an honest review via the MMRG Don’t Buy My Love Program. ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Apr 15, 2020 Alicia rated it it was amazing

This was a great addition to the Spellster world! I read the first book in the series a few years ago and really enjoyed it. Although this is the second book in the series, you don't need to read the first one to understand what's happening since it takes place in a different country with different characters (although I would still highly recommend it). It was great to see other parts of the world, and I'm really looking forward to seeing Udynea in the next book!

One of my favorite things about ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Apr 24, 2020 CCReadsBooks rated it really liked it

I love the imagination of this book. Rich landscapes and diverse characters are a strong point. The MC are wonderful. You can practically feel their attraction jump off the page. The mother however, well you can feel her too but she’s awful. The story is great. I felt fully immersed in this world. I am definitely going back to read book 1 and will continue the series

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Apr 23, 2020 Belinda Zamora rated it really liked it

Epic fantasy with a dash of romance

A wonderfully compelling plot with multidimensional characters that drew me in and kept me thoroughly engaged.
A horrific villain of a mother, political intrigue, action and adventure.
I loved that the characters were complete opposites and worked together to develop their relationship.

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Jan 15, 2021 N rated it really liked it

This book is definitely an improvement over the first one in terms of plot and pacing. And I'm really looking forward to the next one. Darshan's homeland sounds awesome. Not the slavery part but everything else. ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Apr 15, 2020 Rebekah rated it it was amazing

I have enjoyed reading this book and getting drawn into the world. As Hamish gains experience from being around Darshan. There are some hurdles for them to overcome.

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Feb 02, 2020 CdnBookLover rated it it was ok

Shelves: sold-deleted-gone

This is a mildly-interesting story but, just as things were starting to heat up a bit, the story ended with an invitation to download further chapters. I downloaded this “book” from Prolific Works and, if there had been any indication that it wasn’t a complete work, I wouldn’t have bothered to download it.

flag Like · see review

Jul 04, 2020 David rated it liked it

Had a nice beginning and sort of the middle but at the 75% mark, I started to lose interest and started to skim to the end. I thought it was way too long. Dialogue and subplots dragged on and the ending wasn't satisfying. ...more

flag Like · see review

May 15, 2020 Misty added it

Shelves: 2020-publ, fantasy-alternate-universe, lgbtq-mm, dnf

*DNF*
(69%)

flag Like · see review

Caitlin rated it liked it
May 07, 2020

Tera rated it it was amazing
Dec 02, 2020

Michael rated it liked it
Apr 27, 2020

N rated it really liked it
Apr 27, 2020

Justin rated it it was amazing
Jun 08, 2020

Dot_Jinx rated it it was amazing
Dec 24, 2020

Leif Morgan rated it it was amazing
Jan 17, 2021

Ren Sylvan rated it it was amazing
Jul 20, 2020

Josie rated it really liked it
Jul 31, 2020

Thomas Kabel rated it it was amazing
Apr 24, 2020

Mark Dow rated it it was amazing
Jun 14, 2020

Tashyka rated it it was amazing
Apr 15, 2020

Lestatt rated it it was amazing
May 05, 2020

Rebekah Niewand rated it really liked it
May 16, 2020

Nikki rated it it was amazing
Jul 30, 2020

Cindy rated it really liked it
Jun 25, 2020

« previous 1 2 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Be the first to start one »

Recommend It | Stats | Recent Status Updates

Readers also enjoyed

See similar books…

Genres

Romance > M M Romance

4 users

Fantasy

3 users

Fantasy > Magic

2 users

M M Romance > M M Fantasy

2 users

Fantasy > Paranormal

2 users

See top shelves…

About Aldrea Alien

Aldrea Alien

128 followers

Mother. Animal lover. Vampire. Fangirl.

Aldrea Alien is a multi-award-winning, USA Today Bestselling, bisexual and genderfluid author from New Zealand. She writes fantasy romance of varying heat levels and sexualities.

She grew up on a small farm out the back blocks of a place known as Wainuiomata alongside a menagerie of animals, who are all convinced they're just as human as the next person (espe ...more

Other books in the series

Spellster (3 books)

Books by Aldrea Alien

More…

News & Interviews

6 Great Books Hitting Shelves This Week

Need another excuse to treat yourself to a new book this week? We've got you covered with the buzziest new releases of the day. To create our...

Trivia About To Target the Hea...

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

Quotes from To Target the Heart

“Preference," Hamish grumbled. "I've never liked that word. It always comes with the intonation that another option is still viable.” — 1 likes

“You ever wonder what our lives could've been like if we were nae like this?"
Darshan frowned. "You mean if I was not myself? Or if you did not have to keep an integral piece of you secret from the wider world? Which one are you trying to ask?” — 1 likes

More quotes…