Review: Rock and a Hard Place: An MM Alien Science Fiction Romance (The Little Ships #2) by J Evermore

Rating: 4🌈

The finale novel to the wonderful Head Above Water, I found I enjoyed reading this but it wasn’t as well rounded a story as its predecessor. There’s so much that the author was trying to fit into this book and more importantly, more details about alien cultures and their world biology that was unknown to the series, but hugely influential to a major character.

That’s usually interesting and a great way to explore new facets of a known main character’s storyline. Here it’s Sohven and Jace’s dynamic, not recovered from the past events of their spaceship crash. That’s the drama Evermore uses to thread the layers of an intense, unsettled romantic inter-species relationship onto that of bringing it to Sohven’s interdicted planet, further stretching its boundaries.

For me, the author turns a predatory Sohven who fled his planet into a completely new character. One who doesn’t fit the same frame as the one we’re familiar with. From over protective to removing himself from the protective nature he’s exhibited , and both lacking communication in the relationship.

Jace, who’s apart from Sohven for much of the book, is taking part of trails, is still his own man. The most interesting part of the story, along with several side characters, like Vovu.

That ending was climactic and everything I’d expect from the author and series. However, there’s Vovu and they ended up as a dangling storyline I’d have loved to see resolved here or in a side story. They deserve it.

I expect Little Ships is a two book series and I loved the first novel better than its finale. However, it’s great to see a HFN in any series, and Sohven and Jace certainly got theirs. A definite win.

Great cover again

The Little Ships (2 books):

Head Above Water #1

Rock and a Hard Place #2

Buy link

Rock and a Hard Place: An MM Alien Science Fiction Romance (The Little Ships)

Blurb

Surviving a crash landing on an uncharted planet was supposed to be the hard part.
No one told me the real challenge would be the aftermath.

I have most of my memories back, I’m about to start my first mission since Sohven and I were rescued from Sannaveh-8B, and my crewmates aren’t half bad. Nothing to complain about, right?

Too bad nothing good ever comes easy. Since we’ve returned to our ship, Sohven’s been overprotective, paranoid, and on edge. No matter how well I carry out my duties, he just can’t seem to trust me to take care of myself, and I’m getting tired of being treated like a freak blow to the head means I’m incompetent.

Sohven’s solution seems simple. He wants to double-down on our commitment and make things permanent. He wants us to become mates—officially. That means a trip back to Lohnyal, a closed planet with a culture few outsiders ever experience. The trouble is, seven years is a long absence—long enough to leave Sohven on the outside looking in, too.

We do our best to respect his family and follow their customs, but when we land in his eyrie, we’re stepping into more than a straightforward mating ceremony. When Sohven’s family gets him back, they don’t want to let him go. It’s going to take all of my ingenuity to make sure we find a way off his planet. This time, he’s the one who needs to be rescued, and I intend to deliver.

Rock and a Hard Place is meant to be read after Head Above Water, the first book in Jace and Sohven’s story

Publication date: May 28, 2024
Language: English
Print length: 292 pages

Review: The Sheriff of Shard Hills: An M/M Alien-Human Sci-Fi Romance by Jenn Burke

Rating: 4.5🌈

Jenn Burke is an auto read/buy author for me so I needed to read this novella I hadn’t gotten to before.

Varuna Das, half human half Dimeti, and Major Kerrick StarCourser, human UTS officer, have had an ongoing relationship whenever Kerrick’s path leads him back to Varuna’s space station. Now Varuna is transferring off, ready for a new life and a new job planet side as Sheriff of Shard Hills.

Surprisingly, a bruised Kerrick arrives from his last mission just as Varuna is shipping out, and somehow a companion is acquired.

Kerrick is seen through Varuna’s eyes, famous soldier for his war exploits, fabulous makeup and popularity. Yet he’s a layered figure with his own personality and surprises.

Varuna or Run as Kerrick refers to him, has had a tough life, rising up to the stage he’s in now. Half the species the humans have been warring, a lifetime of racism and hate on his path.

There’s a terrific town and population, great Sheriff’s Office and its staff, as well as a dramatic storyline with a surprising twist or two.

This is one of those books that I wished would have been longer or had a sequel to. I found everything about this engaging and fascinating.

Highly recommended.

Buy link

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.com › Sheriff…The Sheriff of Shard Hills: An M/M Alien-Human Sci-Fi Romance

Blurb

Space station cop Varuna Das is different. He’s half-human, half-dimeti, and the mix of DNA has had some interesting consequences…like a tail he does his best to keep hidden. Well into middle age, he’s used to being treated badly because of his looks, and as much as he hates it, he understands it. Humans and dimeti just finished a twenty-year war, after all.

What he doesn’t understand is why Major Kerrick StarCourser, a young, beautiful war hero, keeps coming back to him for no-strings sexy fun. Or why Kerrick’s suddenly shown up, bruised and battered, just as Varuna transfers to Shard Hills, a small town on a nearby planet, to take over as sheriff. Kerrick doesn’t show any sign of leaving this time, settling into Varuna’s new home and cooking up a storm. It’s as though he was never a special forces officer.

Confused as he is, Varuna loves having Kerrick there. His life in Shard Hills is shaping up to provide everything he’s ever wanted: a home, a purpose, a family. But when Varuna’s dark past catches up to him, will Kerrick’s heroic integrity let him forgive and forget…and stay?

The Sheriff of Shard Hills is a 30,000 word novella with a middle-aged, half-alien cop who doesn’t see his own value, a young, fem war hero who does, and a happily ever after. Once the shooting stops, of course.

Publisher: Jenn Burke (January 31, 2023)
Publication date: January 31, 2023
Language: English

Review: Head Above Water (The Little Ships Book 1) by J. Evermore

Rating: 4.5🌈

A science fiction romance novel that’s got the best plot twist and elements that keeps it exciting and filled with suspenseful moments, Head Above Water is the first novel I read by this author and I’m definitely excited about the already published sequel.

Evermore’s world building is excellent, the way in which the story plot, the characters and the mystery is all set from the beginning is exciting and extremely well executed.

Told from one man’s point of view, a man who has a head injury that’s caused amnesia, a crashed spaceship, and a alien there with him, one who he has no idea whether that being is friendly or not. From that planet or not.

From this frightening moment it’s a matter of following him through that world, his thoughts and an evolving relationship with the being he’s paired up with as they tackle this world together.

While the story twist isn’t exactly unexpected, it’s still terrific. And the epilogue does a great turn in taking the reader and tale backwards to how it all started.

Loved this. Recommending it and heading to the sequel.

The Little Ships (2 books):

Head Above Water #1

Rock and a Hard Place #2

Buy link

Head Above Water (The Little Ships)

Blurb

No memories.
No rescue.
Just one determined alien.

When I wake up bloody and bruised beneath the lurid glow of emergency lighting, I know I’m in trouble, and that’s before I realize I don’t even remember my name.

I only have a minute to catch my breath before I learn the worst part…I’m not alone.

The monster that overtakes me from the shadows of my crashed spaceship is the stuff of nightmares, and he’s decided he’s going to help me whether I want him to or not.

We’ll need to work together to survive—and hopefully, return home, wherever that may be for both of us. With no common language outside of hand gestures and sketches in the dirt, communicating is a challenge, but the attraction that binds us ignites faster than a forest fire. I may not find my memory in this alien jungle, but I just might discover my heart.

Head Above Water is a slow burn standalone MM (male/male) romance.

Publication date: August 15, 2023
Language: English
Print length: 226 pages

Review: Phase Shift (Chaos Station Book 5) by Jenn Burke and Kelly Jensen

Rating: 5🌈

Phase Shift brings the epic saga of the crew of the Chaos, specifically that of the damaged super soldier Zander Anatolius and his partner, Felix Ingesson. Felix, former prisoner of war, engineer and co-owner of the Chaos, carries his own trauma from the war inside, mentally and emotionally, and on his body.

After all Felix and Zander have been through, along with the rest of the crew of the Chaos, it’s far from over as Project Dreamweaver, the failed AEF super soldier experiment that continues to haunt Zan, rises up to threaten them all again.

Characters Qek, Elias and Ness who are such a fantastic, integral part of this series and as Felix’s found family, are here in their own emotional roles. The Guardians, an enigmatic race that’s a guiding force for the known species introduced here, seem more relatable by the dramatic impact brought on by the circumstances as created by the authors and wrought by the human race’s need for more.

As we know, the emotional, damaged and highly complex nature of the men involved and the very nature of the themes involved in the series makes finalizing all the threads and storylines a complicated process.

But in this action packed, grab your tissues, heart pounding finale, Burke and Jensen bring their couple and series to a resounding satisfying conclusion. And then gives the reader a fabulous honeymoon short story to go along with it at the end.

There’s a few things that I wanted a tiny bit more exploration but this universe is so vast, the potential for more stories so full that it’s never really going to be enough. At least for this reader.

But for now, I’m happy. Especially after that gift of a short story where I even got to see my favorite aliens, the Resonance, one more.

So satisfying and this one is a series and book that’s definitely on my recommendation list. Happy reading!

Series – read them in the order below:

Chaos Station 1
Lonely Shore 2
Skip Trace 3
Inversion Point 4
Phase Shift 5 – series finale

Buy link:

Phase Shift (Chaos Station Book 5)

Blurb

Zander and Felix’s relationship has always pushed boundaries—personal and professional alike—but their love and commitment is stronger than ever. So strong that Zander’s ready to ask commitment-shy Felix the question of a lifetime when he’s interrupted. The Chaos is being hacked, and crucial, top secret information about the project that created Zander—and his fellow super soldiers—has been leaked.

Neither man could have expected the enormity of what’s discovered at the end of the data trail: an entire colony of super soldiers run by the very doctor who changed Zander’s life forever. And now she needs them both—Zander to train her new crop of soldiers, and Felix’s new crystalline arm to stabilize their body chemistry.

With help from the unlikeliest of allies, Zander, Felix and the Chaos crew must destroy the project and all its ill-gotten information. But when the team is split up and Felix is MIA after a dangerous run, galactic disaster is a very real possibility…and Zander may have missed his chance to ask for forever.

Publisher: Ghost Ship Books; 2nd edition (August 27, 2024)
Publication date: August 27, 2024
Language: English
Print length: 352 pages

Review: Inversion Point (Chaos Station Book 4) by Jenn Burke and Kelly Jensen

Rating: 4.5🌈

Inversion Point is the penultimate book In this five story series and it’s one exciting, compelling story, perfect to lead us up to the series finale.

It’s so much more about the men’s lives and their pasts, especially the deep trauma that Felix endured as a stin prisoner of war, one that has left an indelible legacy on him with his physical, mental and emotional scars. It’s also about Zander new life, his own guilt over Felix and inability to help him heal, and the intergalactic interest his return has brought himself and the crew of the Chaos.

However the authors, Burke and Jensen, paint on both a broad and intimate narrative canvas. They introduced a mystery species that arrived in the shared space that might upset the tentative peace recently achieved. That’s a huge storyline that’s got a myriad of other plot lines attached to it, suspenseful ones and some full of action sequences and dramatic moments.

That’s the wider scope of the story. But then again there’s the intense emotional component that’s always been the heart of the series, the relationship between Zander and Felix. Here the stress and tension between them and others is at an all time high. Old boyfriends reappear in important roles, old enemies also return to make the worst memories of Felix’s life return, and the stress of their relationship with everything that’s happening becomes overwhelming.

It’s a white knuckle story, at every aspect, on every level, featuring every detail and character’s deepest traumas.

The end is absolutely satisfying.

Still has the irritating Fix, Fixer, Flick. Felix usage for Felix but the rest of the story is stunning. Highly recommended. Now onto the finale!

Series – read them in the order below:

Chaos Station 1
Lonely Shore 2
Skip Trace 3
Inversion Point 4
Phase Shift 5 – series finale

Buy link:

Inversion Point (Chaos Station Book 4)

Blurb

Zander and Felix’s relationship has been to the brink and back: the Human-Stin War, imprisonment and an actual death/resurrection. Zander’s death, to be specific, and the experience has left him…changed. The mysterious race known as the Guardians chose to revive him and appointed him as their emissary. A high honor, but he could do without the group of would-be cultists following him around the galaxy.

When a recently discovered species destroys a stin probe, Zander’s new role soon commands all of his time and focus. The human ambassador—Felix’s ex-lover, much to Zander’s annoyance—pulls them into strategy talks aimed at preserving galactic peace. Soon everyone is relying on Zander’s Guardian tech to telepathically communicate with the strange aliens.

Only Felix seems concerned with the strain piling up on Zander, but he has his own resolve tested when the very stin that imprisoned him show up to a summit. Zander and Felix will both have to find a way to face their doubts and preserve their love—while preventing another galaxy-wide war.

Publisher: Ghost Ship Books; 2nd edition (August 13, 2024)
Publication date: August 13, 2024
Language: English
Print length: 308 pages

Review: Skip Trace (Chaos Station Book 3) by Jenn Burke and Kelly Jensen

Rating: 4.5🌈

Skip Trace had several hurdles to overcome just by being the book that followed Lonely Shore, a novel that was full of huge emotional storylines, momentous moments, and blockbuster payoffs in terms of narrative development and character development.

Skip Trace picks up after Lonely Shore’s events , which saw the return of Zander Anatolius and the highly emotional reunion that is still unsettled between Zan and Felix.

Felix/Fix/Flick (this constantly changing name is a frustrating element here) is a man of numerous talents and untold problems. He has never dealt with the time he spent as a POW in a stin prison, the torture he endured and the long term effects that it’s had on him, like his mangled hand. And he hasn’t had time to process emotionally the impact that Zander return, his physical condition and abuse suffered has had on his mental health too.

The authors do a great job of writing a man who is mentally, physically, and emotionally under siege. The stress is unbearable, he’s not communicating with Zan or Elias or any of his friends/crew of the Chaos and he’s breaking down.

Zan, who is dealing with his own mental and physical issues, has some of the same challenges in that his own life is far more problematic and complicated. As written, he’s not a type of person who seeks understanding, or in terms of Felix, doesn’t understand the scope of his breakdown because there’s been a severe lack of communication.

The narrative has this complicated challenging relationship that’s trying to sustain itself amid a tangled galactic conflict between species and the world governing body still trying to hide its experiments on the soldiers.

Skip Trace starts off a with establishing the events of the last book and then dives right into the emotional state of Felix and Zan, and the crew as it tries to accomplish the missions and hold onto both men and their ship.

I enjoy how tough and realistic this story is about the effects of trauma and the need for healing and help. That time isn’t enough to overcome the horrors that war has inflicted upon the world and individual. Felix the Fixer isn’t fixed. But he realizes that he needs help. And to communicate.

Burke and Jensen don’t forget about the other aspects of their series arc as new characters and development are added to come together in another absolutely satisfying, dramatic climatic ending.

It’s not perfect. As I mentioned earlier, the ongoing usage of multiple names for the same character is frustrating and often irritating. While I understand that each is chosen to separate a different section of his life and where someone might stand in his life by what they call him, having to deal with a series of names for Felix in just a paragraph is annoying. It’s book three. By now this aspect of his story could have been explored and put away.

Two more books to go and a whole new adventure has just begun.

Can’t wait and I’m definitely recommending this for all lovers of science fiction adventures and romance. Read them in the order they are written.

Series – read them in the order below:

Chaos Station 1
Lonely Shore 2
Skip Trace 3
Inversion Point 4
Phase Shift 5 – series finale

Buy link

Skip Trace (Chaos Station Book 3)

Blurb

Zander Anatolius has been revived from the fatal effects of the super-soldier program, but now he has to face his estranged family and tell a story few would believe. With his lover and the crew of the Chaos at his side, Zander returns home to a media frenzy, threats from the military and pressure to join the family business.

Felix Ingesson still struggles with the horror of believing Zander dead. And no matter how strong their emotional connection is, Felix feels out of place in the glittery world of Zander’s rich family. His lover would be better off without a broken, low-class ship’s engineer holding him back.

When the crew receives word that another of Zander’s former teammates needs rescue, Felix travels with the Chaos…setting Zander free. But when Zander is arrested for treason, the men realize they need each other as much as ever—not only to survive, but to make their lives worth living.

Publisher: Ghost Ship Books; 2nd edition (July 30, 2024)
Publication date: July 30, 2024
Language: English
Print length: 319 pages

Review: Cosmic Soul: A MM Sci-fi Romance (Cosmic Romance 2) by Mars Quinn

Rating: 4.5🌈

I was intrigued by the theme of the book when Mars Quinn introduced the characters and concept at the end of the first story. That a human ghost had traveled, somehow, to the stars and stumbled upon a strange planet and being able to see him? Fascinating as a certain other well-known character would say.

Cosmic Soul: A MM Sci-fi Romance (Cosmic Romance 2) by Mars Quinn turns out to be a beautifully executed and thoughtfully written novel, one that engaged me far deeper than even the first well done story had.

Quinn continues to enlarge this universe by adding to the knowledge of the Drakcol Empire culture,its martial history, and the sentient Crystal that now drives all their lives and decisions. The Drakcol believe in 4 soul types: warriors, seekers, spiritual, and creators, testing their people to see into what type they fall. This aspect of Drakcol society plays deeply into the various characters dynamics here. That determines much of their lives as some types are valued higher than others simply because of their history.

In Cosmic Soul, Quinn with these characters, there’s glimpses of almost hidden gifts and other aspects of Drakcol society that are reflective of human life. Quinn uses, per the author’s notes, deeply personal knowledge to describe parts of Zoltikvoxfyn/Fyn (one of Kal’s brothers) personality. It’s a condition that’s had an enormous impact on his and his family’s lives. It’s realistically portrayed as something Fyn has been dealing with , similar to human depression.

It’s through Zoltikvoxfyn/Fyn that the human ghostly traveler, Caleb Smith, is able to find someone able to see and hear him. Turns out that Fyn, a name Caleb gives to Zoltikvoxfyn, can see spirits or ghosts, a highly unusual gift among his people.

From this incredible beginning, in Fyn’s room among rare flora, a deeply layered and detailed narrative is created. These characters will become so dear and remarkable, as well as the tumultuous, often painful journey they must endure in order for them to find their own unique form of love and a mate bond.

The author brings back all the great characters from Cosmic Husband, including them in important roles here, both as family and friends, as Fyn and Caleb seek their way through this difficult period. There’s a subtle development with the Crystal, the two races, the uneasy populace that’s seeing additional narrative growth in the series arc plotting that’s highly fascinating. I can’t wait to see where Quinn goes with this.

Book to book, the characters and storylines are gathering depth and strength in terms of new great characters and world building.

It’s got humor too. So yes, this is a great read and must series. Read them in the order they are written.

Cover Artist: Etheric Designs

Cosmic Romance:

Cosmic Husband #1

Cosmic Soul #2

Buy Link

Cosmic Soul: A MM Sci-fi Romance (Cosmic Romance 2)

Blurb

So I may be dead, but my afterlife isn’t.

Caleb

After years of wandering the stars, I’ve finally met someone who can see me—the handsome and serious Prince Zoltilvoxfyn. I know I should pass on, but I feel something, like physically feel something, when I’m with him. That hasn’t happened since I was alive, and I can’t help but wonder, why now?

Zoltilvoxfyn

I’m trying to help the human soul, who shouldn’t even be here, leave the mortal plane, but he is resolved to remain. The longer Caleb lingers, the more danger he is in, yet the more I want him to stay by my side. It’s like he belongs here, but that isn’t possible.

This is a spicy stand-alone MM romance in the Cosmic Romance series. It is a sci-fi paranormal romance with a sunshine ghost, a serious alien, overprotective brothers, and a happily ever after. This book is for adult audiences only and has explicit content. Content warning inside.

Publication date: October 7, 2024
Language: English
Print length: 408 pages

Review: Lonely Shore (Chaos Station Book 2) by Jenn Burke and Kelly Jensen

Rating: 4.75🌈

The journey of Felix Ingesson, his broken ex super soldier partner , Zander Anatolius, and the rest of the crew of the ship, Chaos, continues in the fantastic novel, Lonely Shore.

The novel picks up after the events of Chaos Station, Zander has become a part of the crew but the effects of the alien stinn poisoning are increasingly felt throughout his system and he’s functional less and less as himself.

This heartbreaking story thread is viewed by multiple sources as the story is told by multiple points of view, not just the main couple. The crew members are a space going found family of mixed species and peoples that are still coming together for the reader. So it’s equally important to feel Zander’s breakdown by each one’s perspective, not just Felix’s.

For Felix, Zander know it will be shattering. And he will be correct. So it’s evasive maneuvering as far as communication goes between them for much of this story when it comes to the reality of Zander’s situation.

The authors weave an impending sense of disaster in this story even as they are building a romance and multiple relationships between the characters within the ship’s crew.

Agrius Cartel , a criminal organization that’s been pursuing the crew because of various reasons, steps up its efforts to bring them down, it’s set against the personal drama of the fight for Zander’s survival.

Did I cry? Oh yes I did. Get a box of tissues ready. The authors pulled my emotional strings here and I was exhausted from the first to the last paragraph. Extremely satisfying to be honest, but wrung out.

And very ready for the next book to see where the crew and adventure takes them.

A great read and totally engaging book. One I highly recommend, but read the series in the order they are written.

Series – read them in the order below:

Chaos Station 1
Lonely Shore 2

Skip Trace 3
Inversion Point 4
Phase Shift 5 – series finale

Buy link:

Lonely Shore (Chaos Station Book 2)

Blurb

All they can do is live day to day…

Felix Ingesson has returned to his duties as the Chaos’s engineer with Zander Anatolius, his ex-boyfriend-turned-broken-super-soldier, at his side. Hope means something again. But there’s nothing Felix can do to battle the alien poison flowing through Zander’s veins, or his imminent mental decline. With each passing day, the side effects of Zander’s experimental training are becoming more difficult to ignore.

When the ruthless Agrius Cartel seeks their revenge—including an ambush and an attempt to kidnap the Chaos’s crew—Zander is pushed over the edge. He can no longer hide his symptoms, nor does he want to. But hurting Felix when he’s not in control of himself is Zander’s worst nightmare—when it nearly happens, he agrees to seek help. Even if that means trusting the unknown.

As Zander places his life in alien hands, Felix appoints himself his lover’s keeper. And though he tries to be strong, he can’t ignore the fact that he might lose Zander…forever this time.

Publisher: Ghost Ship Books; 2nd edition (July 23, 2024)
Publication date: July 23, 2024
Language: English
Print length: 318 pages

Science Fiction Romance

Science Fiction Adventure

Review: Chaos Station (Chaos Station Book 1) by Jenn Burke and Kelly Jensen

Rating: 4.5🌈

I’m absolutely hooked by this universe. A science fiction epic romance adventure, originally published in 2013, authors Jenn Burke and Kelly Jensen have released this marvelous series again, starting with their first novel written together, Chaos.

I missed this first time around so I’m so excited to read this series and book now. The tale of the journey of the crew of the space ship Chaos, specifically two men who have a long way ahead of them before they can find their happy ending, gets a remarkable launch here.

Told from several perspectives of the crew and found family involved in this epic science fiction adventure, it begins with a mission.

The universe the authors introduce us to is an intergalactic postwar one, which is still slowly rebuilding from the devastating impact of a war that saw millions of lives and stations lost. That cost is seen on a smaller darker scale through the wounded, damaged characters that are Felix Ingession, the ship’s engineer, and Major Zander Anatolius, a covert operative during the war against the alien stin. But they aren’t the only ones who have been affected. And the ship’s crew reflects the fascinating multi species universe of this series and found family.

Zander and Felix were long time friends, both growing up and at the Academy. But the war separates them just as romantic feelings became known. It’s nine years when they dramatically meet again as the story begins.

Burke and Jensen’s story is compelling and action packed. Terrific characters and dialogue, with vividly detailed scenes and astonishing wonderful world building. It’s full of criminal organizations filling the void that the war created, malfunctioning experimental super soldiers, POW torture ( both sides), and a war that might start again. All threaded through with the relationships , romantic and otherwise, of the crew of the Chaos.

That of Zander and Felix aka Flick will be long and torturous. This is the beginning of their reunion and they’ve each been through so much personally that just a hug is a tremendous thing.

The books are all available so I’m thrilled to read them together without any waiting for a release date.

I’m happy to recommend Chaos Station (Chaos Station Book 1) by Jenn Burke and Kelly Jensen and I’m on to Lonely Shore next!

Series – read them in the order below:

Chaos Station 1

Lonely Shore 2
Skip Trace 3
Inversion Point 4
Phase Shift 5 – series finale

Buy link:

Chaos Station

Blurb

“You’re not real. Felix Ingesson is dead.”

The war with the alien stin is over, but Felix Ingesson has given up on seeing his lover, Zander Anatolius, ever again. Zander’s military file is sealed tighter than an airlock. A former prisoner of war, Felix is attempting a much quieter life keeping his ship, the Chaos, aloft. He almost succeeds, until Zander walks on board and insists that Felix isn’t real.

A retired, broken super soldier, Zander is reeling from the aftereffects of his experimental training and wants nothing more than to disappear and wait for insanity to claim him. Then he sees footage of a friend and ally—a super soldier like him—murdering an entire security squad with her bare hands and a cold, dead look in her eyes. He never expected to find Felix, the man he’d thought dead for years, on the ship he hired to track her down.

Working with Felix to rescue his teammate is a dream come true…and a nightmare. Zander has no exit strategy that will leave Felix unscathed—or his own heart unbroken.

Publisher: Ghost Ship Books; 2nd edition (July 23, 2024)
Publication date: July 23, 2024
Language: English
Print length: 351 pages

Review: Cosmic Husband (Cosmic Romances Book 1) by Mars Quinn

Rating: 4.25🌈

The “I was abducted by aliens “ trope isn’t one I normally read but the reviews for this were good and the author is new to me.

Science fiction can be a tricky subject, especially where the world building and species is concerned. I read other books where the aliens just resemble funny colored humans living in their own humanistic world instead of actually describing what a truly alien world or species might be like.

It does depend upon a specific author’s take on scify but it comes down to the theme. I’ll admit I really enjoyed Mars Quinn’s quirky perspective on this element.

It’s a fated mates science fiction romance, the first book in a new series. So Quinn’s story has to lay out not just the characters, and their respective histories, but establish the series foundation with various worlds, different species, and the entire Crystal religion that sparks young Kalvoxrencol “Kal” on his journey through space to find his fated mate.

That would be Seth, nigh to starved, recently dumped, with his emotional rescue cat, Lucy. The background the author has created for Seth’s adolescence has continued emotional ramifications for his adult life. He has had anxiety or panic attacks since he was young, and a controlling ex left him with further issues and emotional damage. All of this is slowly revealed through the process of his being abducted, then having to deal with this event and communicating with his new companion and those on the ship.

Kal, the alien who was determined to take his fated mate away from Earth and back home, also undergoes his own transformation. Turns out he’s young, prone to mistakes, the younger of all his siblings, and the more the reader and Seth learns about Kal, the more we like and connect with him. Alien, scaled, winged even but with behaviors that make him relatable. Are some of his early misadventures a tad too “human” in this regard? Sure but by this point as a reader, you’ve already made a decision about whether you are invested in this book and characters’ journey or not.

I was and enjoyed how the author was drawing comparisons with the stages of rebelling adolescence, no matter what the species.

This was absolutely true with respect to the character of Ensign Wyn (who I’m sure belongs on Below Decks) who became a good friend of Seth’s. His ongoing experiences, especially with drinking constantly made me laugh out loud. I need his book. Please.

So many special characters that Quinn crafted and made memorable, including NAID, the AI program that gained intelligence and became a being. I really hope that we see more of her. Quinn made sure there’s different species and different worlds that are seen and visited, as well as languages and religions. I appreciate that.

That romance was a very interesting one, built of respect, communication, commitment, and consent. That was upmost importance here so any intimacy didn’t really come until around 75 percent of the book was finished. They had literally covered a lot of space by then and Seth had the choice of returning to Earth.

Of the many siblings, only one other is mated so we get a scene that certainly leads us into the next book and sibling to get their story. It sounds fascinating and I can’t wait. Totally different.

I’m recommending this , it’s quirky, the characters are well done, easy to understand, and invest in their lives. I really enjoyed their journey to HEA. I’m still laughing about Wyn.

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Cosmic Husband: A Spicy MM Sci-Fi Romance (Cosmic Romances Book 1)

Blurb:

My cat and I have been abducted by aliens…

Seth

One second I’m walking to work, and the next I’m on a spaceship. I have no idea what’s going on, but this scaled alien claims I’m his mate. That’s not going to happen. I have until we reach his planet to accept or reject him. If I don’t want him, I can go back to Earth. But six months is a long time when the alien Kal is determined to woo me.

Kalvoxrencol

The Crystal sent me to the far reaches of the universe for my soulmate, and now that I have him, I will not surrender him. I will do whatever I can to win his love and keep him by my side, where he belongs. I will not let anything from my past or his keep us apart.

This is a standalone sci-fi romance with a socially anxious human, his protective winged alien mate, a black cat companion, a slow burn with a spicy payoff, and a guaranteed HEA. This is an MM romance with explicit content intended for adult readers only. Some of the trigger warnings include: panic attacks, anxiety, swearing, and adult content (Full list inside).

• Publication date: June 3, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 435 pages

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