Review - A Suitable Stray (For an Outguard and an Assistant) by R. Cooper
A Suitable Stray (For an Outguard and an Assistant)"
by R. Cooper
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Volume 4 of The Suitable 'Verse
Posted in Book Reviews on January 7, 2026
Tiiran is technically just an assistant, but with no Keepers around, he does his best to keep the Great Library running under the latest king, who doesn’t seem to know the library exists. The other assistants look up to him, even though Tiiran has a short temper and a tendency to snarl at the nobles who come to the library. Tiiran’s sharp tongue and half-fae parentage keep even most of the brave outguards away, except for Orin. The big man seems to enjoy verbally sparring with Tiiran, as well as chiding the young man to take better care of himself. One of the other assistants, the beautiful Nikoly, seems to be trying to take care of Tiiran, but it can’t mean anything. What could Nikoly, or even Orin for that matter, see in Tiiran.
This fourth book set in the fantasy Suitable ‘Verse is effectively a prequel for the first, A Suitable Consort. The background to this story is the events that led up to the king Arden featured in “A Suitable Consort” taking the throne. However, the focus is on different characters, so you can safely read the books in any order without really missing anything.
The story is told entirely from Tiiran’s point of view. In contemporary terms, Tiiran is almost certainly neurodivergent, probably high-functioning autistic. He has an almost-obsessive view of the Great Library and its place in the kingdom, but he isn’t able to pick up on social cues and has no filter. Tiiran is oblivious to the flirting both Orin and Nikoly are engaging in until the two men make their feelings known plainly. The young man is a very engaging and colorful character, who goes through a lot over the course of the book.
Outguards have featured in most of the stories in this series. They’re usually portrayed as fearsome, fair-minded warriors, much like the chivalrous knights of old. They roam the country, observing the state of things in the areas controlled by the noble houses and reporting back to the Great Library. Orin fits the established picture we have of outguards, although he is clearly more academically minded that the others we’ve met.
It’s fairly obvious from Tiiran’s observations of Nikoly why he is fascinated by the exotic young assistant. Of course, such is the nature of these stories that Tiiran simply can’t imagine Nikoly really being interested in him. Even Tiiran seems to know on some level that there’s more to Nikoly than there appears. It feels likely from the outset that Tiiran might end up with both Orin and Nikoly, but the nature that relationship will take isn’t clear for quite some time.
“A Suitable Stray” is available from Smashwords or visit Bookstop.org to buy a paperback from your local independent bookseller.