Book Review: ‘Apparently, Sir Cameron Needs To Die’ by Greer Stothers
Apparently, I need to die? Not really, but the concept of finding a main character of a novel with the same name as you becomes a lot harder when you have a less common name like I do. In comes Apparently, Sir Cameron Needs to Die by author Greer Stothers. The name alone was enough to intrigue me into checking it out. Reading through this fantasy novel, I quickly found it to be hilarious, very witty, sexy, filled with plenty of twists, and, most importantly, very gay.
[Warning: mild spoilers below]
Apparently, Sir Cameron Needs To Die: the story
Apparently, Sir Cameron Needs to Die follows the story of Sir Cameron, a less-than-chivalrous knight who purposefully likes to show up late to battles to miss out on all the fighting. The premise follows Cameron as a knight of the realm in a long-standing battle with an evil wizard known as the Mad Sorcerer, who, at the start of the novel, sets off the overarching story by aiming to kill God. Both Cameron and the mad sorcerer Merulo end up being important characters together in the book.
The story kicks off when we find out through Glenda the elf (Cameron’s best friend) that he is set to be sacrificed to fulfill a prophecy that would stop Merulo from killing God and bringing an end to magic across the land of Larnia. Of course, Cameron doesn’t want to die. Who would? So before she can sacrifice him, he knocks her out and goes to the one place he might find salvation from being sacrificed, straight into the fortress of the enemy, the Mad Sorcerer Merulo.
This is where the story takes its very gay turn. It becomes a somewhat enemies-to-lovers scenario as Cameron explains to Merulo that it would be in his best interest to keep him alive so the prophecy cannot be fulfilled and Cameron can live a normal and hopefully long life. There are many fun elements between the pair as they explore their new found predicament. There’s plenty of twists and turns within the book, with some of the best being saved for the end. I won’t spoil, but the novel takes on a different genre of book in the latter chapters.
The main characters of this LGBTQ+ fantasy novel are brilliantly written
Being a main character, Cameron is very interesting; he is, in effect, a coward, but he is earnest and hilarious. In this fantasy world, he’s considered very attractive and muscular and also just so happens to be gay. I adore when a fantasy novel can allow LGBTQ+ themes, for which this has plenty. Outside of Glenda and her elf prejudice for societal norms, the book remains very open for all sorts of discussions and elements with different characters.
A big part of Apparently, Sir Cameron Needs to Die is about finding your place and your person whilst still feeling so different. We find out early on that Cameron is very promiscuous and gets aroused easily when under torture or being held against his will. This sets up some hilarious situations between him and Merulo. A lot of Cameron’s power seems to come from his sexual nature, as he believes seduction and the promise of sex seem to be the best way to break through to someone. I wish this was explored a little more deeply about why this is the case, but for the premise of an enemies-to-lovers relationship, it works greatly. I haven’t read too many enemies-to-lovers-style relationships within books, but this one has been the best so far for me.
Compared to Cameron, Merulo is an arrogant, self-absorbed, skinny, and rather older sorcerer who just likes to be left alone as he uncovers the secrets to killing God. Merulo is a deep and complex character within the book. I enjoyed seeing him slowly soften over time but also be very unsure of his emotions and how to deal with someone genuinely liking him. Cameron and his boyish charm, wit, and good looks seem to be the real deal and provide a really fun back and forth between the pair as we see if they end up falling for each other.
The other main point of view in Apparently, Sir Cameron Needs to Die belongs to that of Glenda, the elf who is now no longer Cameron’s best friend and would very much like to see him dead. As a side note, one thing I adore about this book is the absurdly long chapter titles, which really get you into the character’s head before the chapter begins. They are silly and definitely much too long, but they work so well. Glenda spends a lot of the book trying to hunt Cameron down so she can return to her peaceful life as an elf, being higher and mightier than everyone else. In this fantasy world of Larnia, elves are far more conservative in their views, which we see throughout the book, especially when it comes to gay people.
One interesting aspect of Glenda that I like that the book deals with is that the character is coming off a drug known as Passionweed that allows her to feel things more passionately and powerfully. That may explain why she put up with Cameron as a friend for so long. With her going through withdrawals throughout the book, it also explains why she has such a vendetta from the fact she was knocked out by her former friend.
This vendetta takes Glenda across the kingdom and has her interact with some characters who aim to alter her views on many issues. Greer Stothers manages to fill this book with so many different aspects of real life, such as dealing with addiction and translating it into the fantasy genre. This helps the reader connect with the characters even more than normal.
Greer Stothers brings a new and fresh take to their version of a fantasy novel
Apparently, Sir Cameron Needs to Die is author Greer Stothers‘ first, and they do a wonderful job bringing across their own unique voice through their writing. The book is hilarious, with many wacky things happening throughout it that may seem stupid but just work so well. Stothers also does a wonderful job with the fantasy world itself, bringing fresh new ideas to aspects of this novel. While it has typical fantasy elements of elves, dragons, knights, and unicorns, there are interesting ways these characters and creatures interact with the world.
As I mentioned, the book takes a brilliant turn towards the end, which gets teased throughout, and it answers so many questions. My one issue with the book is that the ending ends up being so interesting that you want to immediately know more. Maybe another chapter or two could have helped?
But I understand this novel is much more about Cameron and Merulo and their enemies-to-lovers story, and we get that throughout. They are a couple you will root for and laugh with and get angry over, and Stothers writes them both so well.
My rating for this book: 8/10
Overall, Apparently, Sir Cameron Needs to Die is an absolute must-read if you like fantasy and LGBTQ+ themes in your books. It being Greer Stothers’ first novel is nothing short of amazing, and the characters they give us in this book are all beautifully written and complex. Aside from needing a little more in-depth detail about them and a few more chapters to do with the ending, I have nothing but positive things to say about this book. I can’t recommend it enough, and not just because the main character has my name.
It’s important to keep getting to read such beautifully gay books and stories like this. Especially within fantasy, where the more popular ones make it so being gay is frowned upon or they mainly focus on straight characters in romantasy. Apparently, Sir Cameron Needs to Die is just such a breath of fresh air, and I hope it becomes a gay fantasy classic in years to come.
Also check out: Review: How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying by Django Wexler
