Wed to the Orc Warrior
(Orc Wed, #1)
Penny McMara
Publisher: Self-published
Publication date: June 4, 2026
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Rating:
To save my sister, I’ll marry a monster.
The orc mercenaries were meant to die. When Khal Drazha’s-son, their scarred, lethal leader, returns to claim his prize, a bride of noble blood, I know only one thing: my frail half-sister cannot be the one sacrificed.
I’m the bastard daughter no one wants, but I have street cunning, and a plan: I’ll deceive this golden-eyed orc warrior, taking my sister’s place at the altar and in his bed. If I can endure the wedding night, I can find a way to betray him. I can escape into the wilds beyond my father’s walls.
Now, we’re locked in a chamber together. I’m braced for the worst. But the warrior I’ve deceived believes I chose him…and he’s here to rescue me. He intends to bond us, soul and flesh, for a lifetime.
I came here prepared to survive a monster, but this green-skinned mercenary wants peace for his people, a peace he won’t win, because he’s married the wrong daughter.
My lies are about to tear his life apart. The bond we’ve forged in the dark might just shatter my heart first.
My thoughts…
I don’t know why, but I’ve been on a monster romance kick lately. They can be hit or miss, and thankfully, this one was a total hit!
Rowena is the bastard daughter to the baron. His lineage has a magical bloodline, but there have been no magic wielders for generations. However, that hasn’t stop the baron from spreading his seed in the pleasure district and yanking any bastard child from their home to test them for magic, and based off of the way we find Rowena, the tests are not overly humane. Which is probably why Rowena is known to try to run away from the keep and find safety. Unfortunately for her, her last attempt was another fail and she finds herself quickly married to an Orc in some sort of ruse of an alliance. The orcs think they are getting the princess, and Rowena thinks she’s trading one abusive prison for another. However, everything she knows about orcs is wrong, and her new husband unknowingly is the first person to show her true kindness outside of her sister.
This story is in Rowena’s POV, so we are there as she goes from one captor to the next, and then soon starts to unravel that she’s not actually in danger with the orcs. Her husband is kind and attentive, and cares about her well-being; a concept she’s not used to. Seeing Rowena go from this mentality of freeze and flee, to being comfortable was a gradual transition. As the reader gets used to the orcs and understands their personalities and bonds, Rowena also starts to see them as not just Khal’s friends, but also as her own. The pacing of the whole relationship dynamics was done perfectly. I usually have a hard time with quick moving timelines where people just “fall into place” immediately, but this story allows you to grow into the situation with Rowena. Heck, at some of their banter, I found myself smiling and snorting because I had felt like I had a bond with these characters and was part of the inside jokes.
With that said, there was one thing that bothered me about the book… and that was the ending. Without going into too much detail, I felt like the ending was a bit abrupt. It wasn’t a cliff-hanger, which leads me to believe the next book in the series will feature new characters. So, the fact that this book sort of just ends after the climatic part is over, left me wishing for more closure for these two characters. Another thing that threw me off was that Khal randomly calls Rowena “Rue” towards the end of the book. “Rue” is a nickname her sister gave her, not the name she goes by. Plus, “Rue” wouldn’t be my first thought if we are shortening a name. It would have made more sense if he randomly called her “Ro”. So the fact that he randomly used a nickname given to her by a person he’s never met just felt random and out of place for his character.
I’m curious to know where this series goes next. Will it feature a new orc as they find romance? Will we continue the story-line of a half-human orc warrior and his sorceress wife? Regardless of what the next book holds, I plan on keeping my eyes peeled for it. I really enjoyed the author’s writing style, and her storytelling. I felt for the characters and was invested in each one of them. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.
