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Garrison Earth #1
Captured
She’s everything I shouldn’t want. I capture her anyway.
What humans hail an invasion we call Garrison Earth: a mission to save our species from extinction. But while my warriors will soon have the stomachs of their new mates swell with daughters, I know this planet holds nothing for me.
Until a fierce, red-haired female points her gun with her eyes blazing fire, and I know I have found my mate. A bullet and a tranquilizer pad later, I carry her in my arms.
Against my better judgment.
But who argues fate?
With a mission at the brink of failure, I have no time to wait around until Eden is willing to bond. I took her freedom. Might have taken her family. Taking her body is my obligation.
I am a male without conscience. Incapable of love. No one has ever pierced my cold heart.
No one ever will.
Not even her.
Captured is the first book in this interconnected romance series, following the Vetusian invasion and how it changes Earth over the course of two decades. If you enjoy strong women, devoted aliens, fated mates, and hard-earned happily ever after’s with no cliffhangers, you’ll love Garrison Earth.
Author Note: The entire Garrison Earth series touches on subjects such as captivity, drug abuse, forced prostitution, loss of loved ones, human trafficking, rough handling, and violence. Any reader uncomfortable with the harsh realities of an alien invasion should please consider before purchase.
What humans hail an invasion we call Garrison Earth: a mission to save our species from extinction. But while my warriors will soon have the stomachs of their new mates swell with daughters, I know this planet holds nothing for me.
Until a fierce, red-haired female points her gun with her eyes blazing fire, and I know I have found my mate. A bullet and a tranquilizer pad later, I carry her in my arms.
Against my better judgment.
But who argues fate?
With a mission at the brink of failure, I have no time to wait around until Eden is willing to bond. I took her freedom. Might have taken her family. Taking her body is my obligation.
I am a male without conscience. Incapable of love. No one has ever pierced my cold heart.
No one ever will.
Not even her.
Captured is the first book in this interconnected romance series, following the Vetusian invasion and how it changes Earth over the course of two decades. If you enjoy strong women, devoted aliens, fated mates, and hard-earned happily ever after’s with no cliffhangers, you’ll love Garrison Earth.
Author Note: The entire Garrison Earth series touches on subjects such as captivity, drug abuse, forced prostitution, loss of loved ones, human trafficking, rough handling, and violence. Any reader uncomfortable with the harsh realities of an alien invasion should please consider before purchase.
326 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 27, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 329 reviews
September 5, 2021
.
Eden the fishwife and Torrin the Alien henpecked hubby.
I just can't bring myself to finish this one.
DNF at around 2/3 in.
The Vetusians made a pact with someone in charge on Earth... who? I dunno.
This deal was for them to protect Earth from some scarier Aliens in exchange for Earth to give them a whole lot of women to make babies with. But Earth reneges.
So the Vetusians decide to just take over Earth and round up the women themselves.
It's a fated mate story, so the Vetusians set up a database to help the happy couples find eachother after the women have been processed and sorted. But apparently the whole fated thing is more ephemeral than in other books. 'Cause Eden doesn't seem to feel it at any point of the story.
What happens to all the other people who aren't marriage aged and female? Well I guess they are all in camps somewhere.
The Vetusians are distantly related to us because they are from some colonists who left Earth at some point in the distant past. They have since become a huge super power in the Galaxy, saving worlds from the same evil Aliens mentioned above. So what year is it?? Cause there is nothing futuristic about the humans in the story. No interesting tech. Nothing.
The story is empty of world building
So the Vetusians are super short and hairy and ugly as sin... HA, just kidding. They are a foot taller than humans with hot bodies and glowing eyes. You know... the usual. Oh yeah, and really big schlongs too of course.
Eden is supposedly a nurse with a lot of compassion and loves babies. But for the first half of the book she is a crazy angry nutbar. I wanted her to be using her brains to outwit the Aliens, but she was just annoying.
Once she pulls her head out of her ass, she marries Torin and then the story shifts gears. Now she enters her madonna phase. The Vetusians have been reproducing by using eggs (I guess they saved them somehow before their women died??? I dunno) and mechanical uteruses. They have their last 'batch' about to be 'harvested' but they all have physical defects (long story...). So Eden will help save them all and well...
Anyways. Eden was annoying and didn't even feel real. Her character was just all over the place.
And Torin's character was annoyingly all over the place too. He starts out as a General, all 'in charge' and commanding. But by the time he's married to Eden he came across as a henpecked husband and I started to picture him as Darwin from 'Bewitched'.
There were some pretty heavy handed clues that the super obvious villain is going to cause trouble towards the end to the story.
Then I'm sure either Torrin or Eden will be almost killed.
Then they will declare their undying love... yadda yadda yadda.
Meh.
Eden the fishwife and Torrin the Alien henpecked hubby.
I just can't bring myself to finish this one.
DNF at around 2/3 in.
The Vetusians made a pact with someone in charge on Earth... who? I dunno.
This deal was for them to protect Earth from some scarier Aliens in exchange for Earth to give them a whole lot of women to make babies with. But Earth reneges.
So the Vetusians decide to just take over Earth and round up the women themselves.
It's a fated mate story, so the Vetusians set up a database to help the happy couples find eachother after the women have been processed and sorted. But apparently the whole fated thing is more ephemeral than in other books. 'Cause Eden doesn't seem to feel it at any point of the story.
What happens to all the other people who aren't marriage aged and female? Well I guess they are all in camps somewhere.
The Vetusians are distantly related to us because they are from some colonists who left Earth at some point in the distant past. They have since become a huge super power in the Galaxy, saving worlds from the same evil Aliens mentioned above. So what year is it?? Cause there is nothing futuristic about the humans in the story. No interesting tech. Nothing.
The story is empty of world building
So the Vetusians are super short and hairy and ugly as sin... HA, just kidding. They are a foot taller than humans with hot bodies and glowing eyes. You know... the usual. Oh yeah, and really big schlongs too of course.
Eden is supposedly a nurse with a lot of compassion and loves babies. But for the first half of the book she is a crazy angry nutbar. I wanted her to be using her brains to outwit the Aliens, but she was just annoying.
Once she pulls her head out of her ass, she marries Torin and then the story shifts gears. Now she enters her madonna phase. The Vetusians have been reproducing by using eggs (I guess they saved them somehow before their women died??? I dunno) and mechanical uteruses. They have their last 'batch' about to be 'harvested' but they all have physical defects (long story...). So Eden will help save them all and well...
Anyways. Eden was annoying and didn't even feel real. Her character was just all over the place.
And Torin's character was annoyingly all over the place too. He starts out as a General, all 'in charge' and commanding. But by the time he's married to Eden he came across as a henpecked husband and I started to picture him as Darwin from 'Bewitched'.
There were some pretty heavy handed clues that the super obvious villain is going to cause trouble towards the end to the story.
Then I'm sure either Torrin or Eden will be almost killed.
Then they will declare their undying love... yadda yadda yadda.
Meh.
April 29, 2020
This is a really good story.
So many alien abduction books but in this one the heroine really has a hard time accepting her situation and fights tooth and nail.
There is no insta love here. They do feel a connection of sorts, the Hero more than the heroine.
It's a good balance of enemies to lovers without cruelty.
There are huge cultural differences which make understanding of each other and expectations in their relationship difficult.
There is a teaser for the next book which is the doctor who we meet in this book and learn a bit about him but there is also lots of potential for more.
No intimate scenes other than the Hero and heroine.
No cheating.
No other woman or man drama.
HEA.
So many alien abduction books but in this one the heroine really has a hard time accepting her situation and fights tooth and nail.
There is no insta love here. They do feel a connection of sorts, the Hero more than the heroine.
It's a good balance of enemies to lovers without cruelty.
There are huge cultural differences which make understanding of each other and expectations in their relationship difficult.
There is a teaser for the next book which is the doctor who we meet in this book and learn a bit about him but there is also lots of potential for more.
No intimate scenes other than the Hero and heroine.
No cheating.
No other woman or man drama.
HEA.
May 7, 2020
4 stars.
In short: I loved it. The plot and characters were unique and well rounded. The heroine was fucking kick ass awesome and the hero was a sexy alpha but kind and respectful PLUS A VIRGIN. The world building and character development were AMAZING. Its everything that makes paranormal/syfy romance so much better than contemporary adult. Alien men just do it better. Convince me im wrong.
So why not 5 stars instead of 4? The heroine and hero are at odds with each other for most of the book and the heroine constantly reminds the hero that she will never love him. They get into another huge fight near the 90% mark that ruins the ending for me. Because at this point, the ending and their reunion are rushed with you wanting more time with the couple just... happy and normal.
Safety: Safe with exception
-Hero is a virgin
-Heroine had previous experience
-No OW/OM drama
-No cheating
-Slight separation
-Push and pull to the extreme. The heroine completely denies the connection between herself and the hero and causes alot of drama. Hero thinks he doesnt have the capacity to love because he was born dysfunctional.
-Theres a scene where the H coerces the h to have sex with him and its his first time ever having sex with a live woman (only ever experienced bots) and he takes the heroine very roughly and she doesnt enjoy it or have an orgasm from it. This causes the heroine to not participate or enjoy their sexual interactions for awhile until she starts to catch feelings. Some could read this as rape, but the h does give verbal consent.
----> Real quick: Yes, the heroine does push away alot but not in an annoying way. She stands up for herself and wants to be respected by her mate.
-The hero only has eyes for the heroine.
In short: I loved it. The plot and characters were unique and well rounded. The heroine was fucking kick ass awesome and the hero was a sexy alpha but kind and respectful PLUS A VIRGIN. The world building and character development were AMAZING. Its everything that makes paranormal/syfy romance so much better than contemporary adult. Alien men just do it better. Convince me im wrong.
So why not 5 stars instead of 4? The heroine and hero are at odds with each other for most of the book and the heroine constantly reminds the hero that she will never love him. They get into another huge fight near the 90% mark that ruins the ending for me. Because at this point, the ending and their reunion are rushed with you wanting more time with the couple just... happy and normal.
Safety: Safe with exception
-Hero is a virgin
-Heroine had previous experience
-No OW/OM drama
-No cheating
-Slight separation
-Push and pull to the extreme. The heroine completely denies the connection between herself and the hero and causes alot of drama. Hero thinks he doesnt have the capacity to love because he was born dysfunctional.
-Theres a scene where the H coerces the h to have sex with him and its his first time ever having sex with a live woman (only ever experienced bots) and he takes the heroine very roughly and she doesnt enjoy it or have an orgasm from it. This causes the heroine to not participate or enjoy their sexual interactions for awhile until she starts to catch feelings. Some could read this as rape, but the h does give verbal consent.
----> Real quick: Yes, the heroine does push away alot but not in an annoying way. She stands up for herself and wants to be respected by her mate.
-The hero only has eyes for the heroine.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 25, 2023
If Earth were invaded by aliens, and I saw a human propaganda saying to assimilate peacefully because there’s no going back, I’d be giving them major side eye. Sure, they’re right, but STILL.
MAIN CHARACTER NAMES
Eden | Torin da taigh L’naghal
FEATURES
∘ alien-human romance
∘ alien invasion / apocalypse
∘ enemies to lovers
∘ fated mates
∘ royalty / leader
REVIEW
I was absolutely invested in this story for the first half. Torin was an absolute shithead with equally problematic beliefs, and I was curious to see how he would redeem himself to Edin because boy, did he have a lot to make up for.
For the most part, he did—as much as aliens conquering a planet can.
At around 65%, I wanted to DNF, but I’d already invested so much time that I couldn’t. There’s no particular reasoning; my brain just turned off.
The ending was…fine. It had all the excitement a sci-fi romance usually has. My lackluster reaction is my own fault because I knew I shouldn’t have kept going.
I really enjoyed the enemies to lovers and fated mates aspect. They despised each other but were tethered by their Gaia Link. Their mutual respect and work put into the relationship was well-earned. I also adored them as parents.
Although I’ll bid this series ado here, I’d like to commend V.K. Ludwig’s talent and skill. The plot may not have been for me, but the writing absolutely was.
OW/OM DRAMA none
CHEATING none
THIRD ACT BREAKUP yes —
ENDING HEA — some plotlines/issues are left open to explore in future books
POV dual / first person
SPICE LEVEL 4 / 5
RATING 2 / 5
MAIN CHARACTER NAMES
Eden | Torin da taigh L’naghal
FEATURES
∘ alien-human romance
∘ alien invasion / apocalypse
∘ enemies to lovers
∘ fated mates
∘ royalty / leader
REVIEW
I was absolutely invested in this story for the first half. Torin was an absolute shithead with equally problematic beliefs, and I was curious to see how he would redeem himself to Edin because boy, did he have a lot to make up for.
For the most part, he did—as much as aliens conquering a planet can.
At around 65%, I wanted to DNF, but I’d already invested so much time that I couldn’t. There’s no particular reasoning; my brain just turned off.
The ending was…fine. It had all the excitement a sci-fi romance usually has. My lackluster reaction is my own fault because I knew I shouldn’t have kept going.
I really enjoyed the enemies to lovers and fated mates aspect. They despised each other but were tethered by their Gaia Link. Their mutual respect and work put into the relationship was well-earned. I also adored them as parents.
Although I’ll bid this series ado here, I’d like to commend V.K. Ludwig’s talent and skill. The plot may not have been for me, but the writing absolutely was.
OW/OM DRAMA none
CHEATING none
THIRD ACT BREAKUP yes —
ENDING HEA — some plotlines/issues are left open to explore in future books
POV dual / first person
SPICE LEVEL 4 / 5
RATING 2 / 5
May 29, 2021
I thought I had left a review back when I read this book, but I obviously only left 5 well deserved stars. This is the first in the Garrison Earth series, about the invasion of earth by a warrior species hell bend on securing females to breed with to save themselves from extinction. It’s well written and thought provoking, pulling no punches as to what the possibles consequences could be should we ever face this dilemma. Don’t think this is going to be a touchy-feely type of story, as it’s more a story of love finding a way through the harsh brutal reality of the invasion.
Read
October 14, 2021DNF @ 54%
This was an enemies to lovers, alien, fated mate romance. I have decided to put this one down. MAN, I was LOVING this book at the beginning! I adored the enemies part of this book, even though they were fated mates, they despised one another. But I just did not see the slow flow of them changing from enemies to lovers. Like all of a sudden, they loved each other. I did not see the steps before that point on-page at all. Super disappointing, unfortunately :(
This was an enemies to lovers, alien, fated mate romance. I have decided to put this one down. MAN, I was LOVING this book at the beginning! I adored the enemies part of this book, even though they were fated mates, they despised one another. But I just did not see the slow flow of them changing from enemies to lovers. Like all of a sudden, they loved each other. I did not see the steps before that point on-page at all. Super disappointing, unfortunately :(
September 26, 2020
THIS STARTED OFF ROCKY FOR ME. AS ORIGINAL AS THE STORY WAS, THE FEMALE LEAD HAD ME WONDERING IF I SHOULD JUST GIVE IT UP. I love a good strong heroine, but not one who is a borderline bitch and just almost intolerable. The dystopian alien concept here was interesting, it could have been much better executed, but the plot itself kept me engaged.
TORIN comes from a crop of harvested alien babies who are labelled as 'defects'. From that crop, only he and Zavis survived the darkness that pushed most to commit suicide. Torin believes himself incapable of love or being loved, and despite having sex with droids, he's a virgin when it comes to organic flesh. I rather liked Torin's character. His thought process was interesting because it showed him to be aloof, confused and distant in the beginning before becoming warm, human-like and capable of love. It's understandable the doubts he has since he never had role models or parents to love him or show him how to care for someone else. Meeting his fated mate throws him the perfect challenge and it's amazing to see him fight and gradually accept it with open arms. His devotion for Eden was unquestionable, especially when a powerful male like him is willing to put himself in a weaker position just to please his mate or to the the right thing.
EDEN was a challenge for me. Personal preference, maybe. She was a bitch. I won't lie. She and I will never be friends if we met like she had with Torin. Given, she had EVERY RIGHT to hate Torin and treat him like scum and be a bitch. Eden treats all the Vetusians as enemies, and it's no wonder because they invaded Earth, and we all know invasions equates to multiple deaths. Eden's meeting with Torin was less than amiable, he practically manhandled and kidnapped her while she shot him in the thigh. Knowing they were fated and then there's his proposal for her to bear his child...what's a woman to do for her freedom? Eden fights her attraction to her but FRANKLY I felt more from Torin than I did Eden. Her love for Torin, or HOW SHE FELL FOR HIM was very unconvincing. It's like...how did the woman turn 360 degree from hating him to loving him? Yes, the author did include her being sympathetic and empathetic towards Torin's upbringing and this helped to thaw the ice.
OVERALL I just couldn't fully enjoy this because the heroine rubbed me the wrong way in the beginning. I draw a line when the heroine just borders on bitchy, I can't stand it. I do hope to read Zavis's story. He seems like an interesting fellow who screams trouble.
TORIN comes from a crop of harvested alien babies who are labelled as 'defects'. From that crop, only he and Zavis survived the darkness that pushed most to commit suicide. Torin believes himself incapable of love or being loved, and despite having sex with droids, he's a virgin when it comes to organic flesh. I rather liked Torin's character. His thought process was interesting because it showed him to be aloof, confused and distant in the beginning before becoming warm, human-like and capable of love. It's understandable the doubts he has since he never had role models or parents to love him or show him how to care for someone else. Meeting his fated mate throws him the perfect challenge and it's amazing to see him fight and gradually accept it with open arms. His devotion for Eden was unquestionable, especially when a powerful male like him is willing to put himself in a weaker position just to please his mate or to the the right thing.
EDEN was a challenge for me. Personal preference, maybe. She was a bitch. I won't lie. She and I will never be friends if we met like she had with Torin. Given, she had EVERY RIGHT to hate Torin and treat him like scum and be a bitch. Eden treats all the Vetusians as enemies, and it's no wonder because they invaded Earth, and we all know invasions equates to multiple deaths. Eden's meeting with Torin was less than amiable, he practically manhandled and kidnapped her while she shot him in the thigh. Knowing they were fated and then there's his proposal for her to bear his child...what's a woman to do for her freedom? Eden fights her attraction to her but FRANKLY I felt more from Torin than I did Eden. Her love for Torin, or HOW SHE FELL FOR HIM was very unconvincing. It's like...how did the woman turn 360 degree from hating him to loving him? Yes, the author did include her being sympathetic and empathetic towards Torin's upbringing and this helped to thaw the ice.
OVERALL I just couldn't fully enjoy this because the heroine rubbed me the wrong way in the beginning. I draw a line when the heroine just borders on bitchy, I can't stand it. I do hope to read Zavis's story. He seems like an interesting fellow who screams trouble.
February 28, 2020
The Reluctant 💘Lover🐺🍆⛲💪
ADULT Alpha 👽Alien Male Sci-fi Romance💕
You Can Never Really Go Back Home.
Commander Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 a Vetusian, is the leader of the Garrison mission to 🌎Earth to obtain human women to save their race.
It has been a fight to the finish. He has lost over a million men in the takeover.
By repelling the Jal'zar from 🌎Earth, the Vetusians were supposed to receive one thousand human women of breeding age per year from the human governments. Instead, they got none, so they decided to TAKE.
Eden💃💋 is a human woman trained as a nurse who was evading the Vetusians when Commander Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 captured her while she was raiding an abandoned pharmacy for medical supplies.
As soon as Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 touches Eden💃💋, he knows he is lost to her💕, but he feels he doesn't deserve a human mate, when he is such a cold hearted bad a@@.
Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 tries to have her sent away but she still ends up on his ship🚀. He captures Eden💃💋 again when she escapes her room! He finally accepts his fate as her mate💘 when her DNA is matched to his!
ARC Provided by Booksprout🌱
I also got this ebook with KU.
I didn't much like the character of Eden💃💋. Instead of trying to make the best of what she thought was an intolerable situation, she acted like a spoiled child and physically fought with Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 repeatedly. She refuses to have a civil conversation with him, so how can he even know or make sure her needs are being met?
Eden's bad attitude👺 got old really fast, before I was even one third of the way through the book! She was disagreeable and unlikable. It does get better, but for me, it was too late for her character.
Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 finds she is his fated mate, or he would probably have nothing to do with her.
This is a great story about Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 and his life as a Commander and Warden, and totally different than the many other fated mate romances💕 I have read,. It's very 👍good if you can just get past the halfway mark of the book.
ADULT Alpha 👽Alien Male Sci-fi Romance💕
You Can Never Really Go Back Home.
Commander Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 a Vetusian, is the leader of the Garrison mission to 🌎Earth to obtain human women to save their race.
It has been a fight to the finish. He has lost over a million men in the takeover.
By repelling the Jal'zar from 🌎Earth, the Vetusians were supposed to receive one thousand human women of breeding age per year from the human governments. Instead, they got none, so they decided to TAKE.
Eden💃💋 is a human woman trained as a nurse who was evading the Vetusians when Commander Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 captured her while she was raiding an abandoned pharmacy for medical supplies.
As soon as Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 touches Eden💃💋, he knows he is lost to her💕, but he feels he doesn't deserve a human mate, when he is such a cold hearted bad a@@.
Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 tries to have her sent away but she still ends up on his ship🚀. He captures Eden💃💋 again when she escapes her room! He finally accepts his fate as her mate💘 when her DNA is matched to his!
ARC Provided by Booksprout🌱
I also got this ebook with KU.
I didn't much like the character of Eden💃💋. Instead of trying to make the best of what she thought was an intolerable situation, she acted like a spoiled child and physically fought with Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 repeatedly. She refuses to have a civil conversation with him, so how can he even know or make sure her needs are being met?
Eden's bad attitude👺 got old really fast, before I was even one third of the way through the book! She was disagreeable and unlikable. It does get better, but for me, it was too late for her character.
Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 finds she is his fated mate, or he would probably have nothing to do with her.
This is a great story about Torin🐺🍆⛲💪 and his life as a Commander and Warden, and totally different than the many other fated mate romances💕 I have read,. It's very 👍good if you can just get past the halfway mark of the book.
June 9, 2024
3.5 "Welcome To Earth, Alien Hotties" Stars
Well this was fun!
I haven't read too many alien romances. Not for any particular reason, there's just A LOT of books out there and for whatever reason, this is just one of the subgenres of romance that gets put on the backburner for me. What brought me to this one in the midst of all the dark and regency romances I've been reading???
I've read some of this author's work under a different penname that I thoroughly enjoyed and, unfortunately, that penname doesn't have too many titles available under it. So in the pursuit of exploring more of her work, I chose to read this one.
This wasn't nearly as good as some of her most current work, but I don't know where this fits in her timeline of writing novels. If this was one of her first ones, then she did very well and it would only make sense that it's not quite as good as some of her other stuff. However, apparently she has SEVERAL pennames she writes under for various genres, so it makes it difficult to narrow it down to what was her first book produced. For whatever reason, this is the ONLY other penname that she has disclosed on her social media platform.
Which I'm not gonna lie, seems a bit silly considering the amount of people who ask for her other pennames! Essentially, she could be making more money, but I guess she doesn't care? Maybe she's not as proud of her other work?? Maybe it's for privacy purposes? IDK, but I digress.
Anyway so this book is about an alien invasion. These aliens have secretly been contracted by Earth's leaders to defend against a different, more aggressively brutal, alien species from attacking Earth. In exchange for their protection, apparently Earth's leaders had promised them females to breed with, as all of their females had died. But Earth didn't make good on their promise and their species, the Vetusians, are dying out so they decide to take matters into their own hands by taking over Earth and integrating the two species together. According to the story, Humans and Vetusians come from a common ancestor that once lived on Earth. Half of them took to the skies, while the rest of them remained on Earth. It is because of this common ancestor that allows for them to be sexually and reproductively compatible. Not only that, though, but it also has hidden genes within their DNA that perfectly MATCHES one Human and one Vetusian together as fated mates. That of course is the very thing that draws Torin, a Vetusian Warden (leader), to Eden, a human woman, who is trying to remain hidden after their invasion. This is their story of how they came to love one another and form a lasting bond and family.
FINALLY, it's time for my commentary. You have no idea how hard it is for me to give a basic break down of a story without inserting my feelings while doing so!
So in the beginning, Eden (FMC) drove me up the walls, completely bonkers! You know how much you love to spend time with that one chick that is rude, bitchy beyond belief, thinks she's a badass, and is defiant nonstop even to the detriment of her own well being so she can prove a point to everyone else? Remember how much you LOVE to be around her all the time?
Yeah, me neither! So why is it that authors think that we want to spend time in that kind of character's head?! I seriously almost DNF'ed early on because I couldn't stomach her as the FMC. As the story progressed, though, she got more tolerable, but it didn't feel like growth of her character throughout the story that accounted for this change. She just randomly, all of a sudden, became a different character.
There were also a lot of plot holes and things that just didn't make sense. Things that seemed important were barely brushed on like which Earth leaders agreed on the contract with the Vetusians? How did we become aware of and linked to extraterrestrial life? How long has this contract been in place? How did a common ancestor so early on in Earth's history manage to explore space, and how was this knowledge subsequently lost and all traces of it vanished? What was the disease that killed all the Vetusian women? Why just the women and not the men too? Also, why were you only able to create MALE babies and NOT FEMALE babies through the aide of Vetusian technology? What's the timeline for all of this because the MMC, Torin, who doesn't seem that old, was apart of the first crop of male babies "harvested", yet the stratim custom is referenced as a long time Vetusian tradition that cannot be altered. Also, did you wait for every single woman to die before you started to try to help the species because that's how it sounds. If the women were sick and compromised, wouldn't that mean that egg collection from them would be difficult? And if you didn't know they were guaranteed to die, how or why did you have MILLIONS of their eggs harvested so you could create these babies through the harvest? I know, I know,
But believe it or not, I could go on with even more questions... I just won't because neither you nor I want me to!
Soo.... as much as I love fated mates, I don't think the way it's explained in this story would work. If everyone only has one match, that was created because of the common ancestor, who's to say that their match wasn't born early on in the human race and has already died? The maths just didn't seem to be mathin' for this concept to logistically work, but I think it was a cute concept, nonetheless.
Also, a main plot point that causes the third act breakup in this story is that the heroine finds out that her adopted son and the child she is pregnant with will be taken from her at the age of 4 and never returned. I found this to be so illogical as a legit problem. Like, ok, so you normally categorize then train the children accordingly at the age of 4.... you mean like school??? So why would it be absolutely necessary for them to live away from their parents rather than them just head off every day to learn about the field they've been assigned to and then return to their family at the end of the day? If there was a reason that this wasn't ideal, it was never explored and the lack of that combined with the insistence that it HAD to be done just came off as silly and underdeveloped conflict.
With ALL of that said, it was a pretty decent story. The steam is off the charts, and worth reading for that alone. So if you can get through the first 25% or so without DNF'ing because of the bitchy (that I think is supposed to come off as impressively badass???) heroine, then I think anyone can enjoy it. It would probably make a good palette cleanser for anyone like me that's been stuck reading the same thing over and over and over again, so certainly worth giving a go!
Well this was fun!
I haven't read too many alien romances. Not for any particular reason, there's just A LOT of books out there and for whatever reason, this is just one of the subgenres of romance that gets put on the backburner for me. What brought me to this one in the midst of all the dark and regency romances I've been reading???
I've read some of this author's work under a different penname that I thoroughly enjoyed and, unfortunately, that penname doesn't have too many titles available under it. So in the pursuit of exploring more of her work, I chose to read this one.
This wasn't nearly as good as some of her most current work, but I don't know where this fits in her timeline of writing novels. If this was one of her first ones, then she did very well and it would only make sense that it's not quite as good as some of her other stuff. However, apparently she has SEVERAL pennames she writes under for various genres, so it makes it difficult to narrow it down to what was her first book produced. For whatever reason, this is the ONLY other penname that she has disclosed on her social media platform.
Which I'm not gonna lie, seems a bit silly considering the amount of people who ask for her other pennames! Essentially, she could be making more money, but I guess she doesn't care? Maybe she's not as proud of her other work?? Maybe it's for privacy purposes? IDK, but I digress.
Anyway so this book is about an alien invasion. These aliens have secretly been contracted by Earth's leaders to defend against a different, more aggressively brutal, alien species from attacking Earth. In exchange for their protection, apparently Earth's leaders had promised them females to breed with, as all of their females had died. But Earth didn't make good on their promise and their species, the Vetusians, are dying out so they decide to take matters into their own hands by taking over Earth and integrating the two species together. According to the story, Humans and Vetusians come from a common ancestor that once lived on Earth. Half of them took to the skies, while the rest of them remained on Earth. It is because of this common ancestor that allows for them to be sexually and reproductively compatible. Not only that, though, but it also has hidden genes within their DNA that perfectly MATCHES one Human and one Vetusian together as fated mates. That of course is the very thing that draws Torin, a Vetusian Warden (leader), to Eden, a human woman, who is trying to remain hidden after their invasion. This is their story of how they came to love one another and form a lasting bond and family.
FINALLY, it's time for my commentary. You have no idea how hard it is for me to give a basic break down of a story without inserting my feelings while doing so!
So in the beginning, Eden (FMC) drove me up the walls, completely bonkers! You know how much you love to spend time with that one chick that is rude, bitchy beyond belief, thinks she's a badass, and is defiant nonstop even to the detriment of her own well being so she can prove a point to everyone else? Remember how much you LOVE to be around her all the time?
Yeah, me neither! So why is it that authors think that we want to spend time in that kind of character's head?! I seriously almost DNF'ed early on because I couldn't stomach her as the FMC. As the story progressed, though, she got more tolerable, but it didn't feel like growth of her character throughout the story that accounted for this change. She just randomly, all of a sudden, became a different character.
There were also a lot of plot holes and things that just didn't make sense. Things that seemed important were barely brushed on like which Earth leaders agreed on the contract with the Vetusians? How did we become aware of and linked to extraterrestrial life? How long has this contract been in place? How did a common ancestor so early on in Earth's history manage to explore space, and how was this knowledge subsequently lost and all traces of it vanished? What was the disease that killed all the Vetusian women? Why just the women and not the men too? Also, why were you only able to create MALE babies and NOT FEMALE babies through the aide of Vetusian technology? What's the timeline for all of this because the MMC, Torin, who doesn't seem that old, was apart of the first crop of male babies "harvested", yet the stratim custom is referenced as a long time Vetusian tradition that cannot be altered. Also, did you wait for every single woman to die before you started to try to help the species because that's how it sounds. If the women were sick and compromised, wouldn't that mean that egg collection from them would be difficult? And if you didn't know they were guaranteed to die, how or why did you have MILLIONS of their eggs harvested so you could create these babies through the harvest? I know, I know,
But believe it or not, I could go on with even more questions... I just won't because neither you nor I want me to!
Soo.... as much as I love fated mates, I don't think the way it's explained in this story would work. If everyone only has one match, that was created because of the common ancestor, who's to say that their match wasn't born early on in the human race and has already died? The maths just didn't seem to be mathin' for this concept to logistically work, but I think it was a cute concept, nonetheless.
Also, a main plot point that causes the third act breakup in this story is that the heroine finds out that her adopted son and the child she is pregnant with will be taken from her at the age of 4 and never returned. I found this to be so illogical as a legit problem. Like, ok, so you normally categorize then train the children accordingly at the age of 4.... you mean like school??? So why would it be absolutely necessary for them to live away from their parents rather than them just head off every day to learn about the field they've been assigned to and then return to their family at the end of the day? If there was a reason that this wasn't ideal, it was never explored and the lack of that combined with the insistence that it HAD to be done just came off as silly and underdeveloped conflict.
With ALL of that said, it was a pretty decent story. The steam is off the charts, and worth reading for that alone. So if you can get through the first 25% or so without DNF'ing because of the bitchy (that I think is supposed to come off as impressively badass???) heroine, then I think anyone can enjoy it. It would probably make a good palette cleanser for anyone like me that's been stuck reading the same thing over and over and over again, so certainly worth giving a go!
October 24, 2021
3.5 stars
A surprisingly good addition to that weird genre of alien romance. (Why do I read it, if I think it’s weird? I wish I knew!😂)
There is a lot of dross out there, but here we have some actual depth in the characterisation and some interesting issues that arise from the circumstances the invading aliens have found themselves in back home.
Once or twice I noticed a word missing or an awkward turn of phrase, but the writing was good enough for me to not mind. If there were plot-holes or unexplained facts, they didn’t worry me overmuch. Still wish I knew what happened to all the male adults the aliens captured when they separated families…
The alien hero develops nicely from standard garden variety alpha alien a-hole into a caring and loving guy. Most importantly, the author tries to show that both sides need to learn to adapt and change for them to create a new future. Our FMC may be completely and sometimes violently opposed to the invasion snd its aims, and she makes many valid points that actually affect alien policy, but she realises that it’s a done deal, and the humans have to make the best of it.
Not saying it is EVER right to invade and cause the deaths of a million or more, but when did that ever stop humans from doing that to each other???
The book is steamy but not crass, and I do plan on reading more from this author when I am looking for a bit of escapist fun with a more serious undertone
A surprisingly good addition to that weird genre of alien romance. (Why do I read it, if I think it’s weird? I wish I knew!😂)
There is a lot of dross out there, but here we have some actual depth in the characterisation and some interesting issues that arise from the circumstances the invading aliens have found themselves in back home.
Once or twice I noticed a word missing or an awkward turn of phrase, but the writing was good enough for me to not mind. If there were plot-holes or unexplained facts, they didn’t worry me overmuch. Still wish I knew what happened to all the male adults the aliens captured when they separated families…
The alien hero develops nicely from standard garden variety alpha alien a-hole into a caring and loving guy. Most importantly, the author tries to show that both sides need to learn to adapt and change for them to create a new future. Our FMC may be completely and sometimes violently opposed to the invasion snd its aims, and she makes many valid points that actually affect alien policy, but she realises that it’s a done deal, and the humans have to make the best of it.
Not saying it is EVER right to invade and cause the deaths of a million or more, but when did that ever stop humans from doing that to each other???
The book is steamy but not crass, and I do plan on reading more from this author when I am looking for a bit of escapist fun with a more serious undertone
August 9, 2022
Good writing, tough plot for romance. He's alien leader who conquered earth, she's human and doesn't buy into them being fated mates. She was a nurse who fought hard to avoid being his mate, struggled to believe in him. Rightly so as his people are monstrous. I liked it but it's a tough read, didn't believe in their HEA, think there will be more sadness for them.
August 23, 2020
I’m still not sure how I feel about this story. It was good but something was missing. The narration was good. Also, I did get the next book.
July 1, 2024
39% is as far as I could go
How did the author managed to make me hate the heroine when she literally has all the reasons to hate the hero? HOW?!
When she got the recovering addicted fired I lost all sympathy for her...
And if in a book about aliens invading Earth and collecting females to match them up to be impregnated makes me side with the invaders, then I'm sorry, but you're doing something wrong.
It wasn't angsty, or smutty, or complex, or fun, or even original.
I kept thinking about Arrival at the beginning (not because the covers are basically the same) but because there was this helpless, disorientating start the made me desperate to know what was going on. But it lost all that and became a weirdly comical? Pick a tone and stick to it.
I've enjoyed this author before, so I know she can do better. Very disappointing.
How did the author managed to make me hate the heroine when she literally has all the reasons to hate the hero? HOW?!
When she got the recovering addicted fired I lost all sympathy for her...
And if in a book about aliens invading Earth and collecting females to match them up to be impregnated makes me side with the invaders, then I'm sorry, but you're doing something wrong.
It wasn't angsty, or smutty, or complex, or fun, or even original.
I kept thinking about Arrival at the beginning (not because the covers are basically the same) but because there was this helpless, disorientating start the made me desperate to know what was going on. But it lost all that and became a weirdly comical? Pick a tone and stick to it.
I've enjoyed this author before, so I know she can do better. Very disappointing.
Read
September 10, 2024Founds this book in KU. This is a new author for me, and the cover looked interesting and the blurb was intriguing. So, of course, I got it.
3% into the book and I discovered the h is an ED nurse, now, this is the reason why I could not continue to read the book. There is a scene in which one of the aliens is mortally wounded and asking for help with his last breath. She completely ignores it and moves on without a care in the world. As a nurse, I cannot fathom this scene. I know is fantasy, but I have been there and there is no way a nurse will just walk away.
I cannot give this book a star rating because I DNF. I have heard good things about this series and I was looking forward to reading it.
Maybe in the future. Or never.
3% into the book and I discovered the h is an ED nurse, now, this is the reason why I could not continue to read the book. There is a scene in which one of the aliens is mortally wounded and asking for help with his last breath. She completely ignores it and moves on without a care in the world. As a nurse, I cannot fathom this scene. I know is fantasy, but I have been there and there is no way a nurse will just walk away.
I cannot give this book a star rating because I DNF. I have heard good things about this series and I was looking forward to reading it.
Maybe in the future. Or never.
May 26, 2020
This book wasn’t perfect.
I liked it. It was very entertaining.
Finally a good plot, a believable romance and interesting characters.
After all the disappointments lately, this wasn’t among them.
The world building lacked.
I liked it. It was very entertaining.
Finally a good plot, a believable romance and interesting characters.
After all the disappointments lately, this wasn’t among them.
The world building lacked.
November 4, 2022
DNF - got to about 40% before I just couldn’t take it anymore. The MMC was an insecure manipulative a**hole with no compassion. The FMC was an emotional train wreck, which I actually thought was very believable. Being isolated with no sense of time after losing everything and having only ominous hints of what her future holds will do that to a person. The fact that a doctor couldn’t understand a trauma response and the general theme was “you need to get over it” was infuriating.
I get the enemies to lovers storyline, and often enjoy it. But this felt a lot more like rapist to lover, which is just too far for me.
I get the enemies to lovers storyline, and often enjoy it. But this felt a lot more like rapist to lover, which is just too far for me.
April 6, 2023
For a supposed alien romance this was very pedestrian. The FMC and MMC start out as bad@sses but turn into an old married couple within 100 pages. The potential for a good story was there, but for some reason the author decided to turn this into a cotemporary romance with sci-fi elements a third of the way in. I guess it's not a bad story, but it's not what it was being marketed as "alien invasion romance where the FMC and MMC struggle to overcome their differences".
I also don't like how the aliens in this book were telling the FMC she should be grateful to be captured, and this isn't posed as an issue. Like, ok, that's a choice.
I also don't like how the aliens in this book were telling the FMC she should be grateful to be captured, and this isn't posed as an issue. Like, ok, that's a choice.
November 3, 2020
The storyline was good but something was missing in it for me, and I'm not sure what it was. Maybe passion? Whatever it was, it took me way longer to finish than it normally would for a book like this.
I will say that I really did like the character growth in both the heroine and hero of this story. I thought the author did a good job with that.
I will say that I really did like the character growth in both the heroine and hero of this story. I thought the author did a good job with that.
September 25, 2024
It's alright to send your child off to be a toddler warlord as long as that D is good.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 12, 2021
A wonderful HEA I wasn't expecting
This is a really intriguing romance. It is hot then cold, then warm then frigid. But the story never becomes stagnant, which I thought was amazing. The MFC is incredibly strong and resilient. I really enjoyed her fight and the fact that she didn't just fall head over heals for Torrin. I was very moved the although they might have been fated, their love took work and nurturing . I definitely recommend this book and this author.
This is a really intriguing romance. It is hot then cold, then warm then frigid. But the story never becomes stagnant, which I thought was amazing. The MFC is incredibly strong and resilient. I really enjoyed her fight and the fact that she didn't just fall head over heals for Torrin. I was very moved the although they might have been fated, their love took work and nurturing . I definitely recommend this book and this author.
February 22, 2024
Back on my alien bullshit.
This was a rollercoaster and I kind of liked it? SO much happened but it definitely did a great job with setting the scene for the series.
And honesty, after seeing the number of negative reviews about the MC being a bitch, I'm inclined to like it even more because I, too, would be a bitch amidst an alien invasion 🤷🏻♀️
This was a rollercoaster and I kind of liked it? SO much happened but it definitely did a great job with setting the scene for the series.
And honesty, after seeing the number of negative reviews about the MC being a bitch, I'm inclined to like it even more because I, too, would be a bitch amidst an alien invasion 🤷🏻♀️
Want to read
March 26, 2020🎁 FREE on Amazon today (3/26/2020)! 🎁
June 14, 2022
This book had so much depth and development and emotion! Not your usual, cheap, alien romance.
There’s a Mars Needs Women theme here and a touch of fated mates, but it’s also a slow burn romance and an enemies to lovers development.
The aliens haven’t had females for decades. Most of the adults were test tube babies, harvested and raised in batches. The aliens made a secret pact with earths government to defend us from a species that was looking to invade Earth, in exchange for 1,000 human women per year, taken from the poor and sick so that their lot in life would only be improved and the women would be more open to mating with an alien who would be devoted to her in exchange for her carrying his child. But after defending earth for three years and losing many of their forces in the battle, our government never once gave them any women. So, in desperation, they took over earth. Of course, no one but the top government knew aliens existed or that we betrayed our agreement. All humanity knew was that aliens were invading and taking women, so of course there was resistance and fear.
The aliens have a way of reading a persons genome and finding their perfect mate. It’s more than physical too—it’s emotional, spiritual, fated. Since they developed this, they no longer have a word for divorce, since no mated pair has ever wanted to leave their mate. Humans and the aliens hold a shared ancestry, so the matching works across the species.
The aliens are here on earth to stay, so once the invasion is complete, they work to improve earth. They don’t want to rule us, but instead they want to merge our two societies. Though no one on earth knows this during the invasion, so like I said, fear and chaos abounds.
The FMC is running and fleeing, but she’s soon captured by our MMC who is one of the supreme commanders. He feels drawn to her, but because he believes himself to be defective and too dangerous, he ignores the feeling and hands her off to an intake center for her to be processed and matched with a mate for breeding. Thankfully we learn pretty early on that rape is abhorrent to them, but the women don’t know that, so yeah, more fear. After several unusual circumstances cause his path to cross with hers and discovering that she still hasn’t been matched to a mate yet, he finally caves to his yearning for her and has the test run, only to discover that they are a match (okay, we saw that coming). She is incredibly resistant to everything the aliens are trying to do, and understandably so! Most women see that resistance is futile pretty quick and go with their mates. You have to stay with them for 6 months to give the mating a chance, and the aliens bank on the belief that after six months the couples will fall for each other and want to remain. But our girl is vehemently against it to the point that she’s locked up in their comfortable equivalent of a medical ward.
When the MMC discovers that she’s his mate, he gets her to make a deal with him so that she’ll come stay with him. So they begin living together. And that’s where the story really picks up. There’s a lot that they go through while living together. Her being stubbornly resistant and him fearing his dark side and swearing that he’s incapable of love or even having much of a conscience (a byproduct of something in his past that caused his whole birthing batch turn be either murderous or suicidal). The story of them coming together is so sweet and so emotional. This story could have wrapped up much sooner with a typical plot device where someone attacks her and he saves her and they realize how in love they really are. But this story doesn’t do that. It continues their development and their journey far more than I was expecting. And I loved every bit of it! There’s romance, passion, anger, fear, friendship, politics, heartbreak, love, and such incredible sex. Seriously, really, really good sex. LOL.
If you like alien romances with more plot and development than the usual fair, then I highly recommend this.
Minor trigger warning: Their first sex together is a bit forced. She agrees to it after bargaining for something else, so it’s not really “forced”. She basically just lays there and takes it, but at this point in the story he is horrible at seeing and understanding how others feel, so he’s kinda rough with her and fucks her while she’s totally dry. It’s only later that he learns that he hurt her and he’s devastated. Well, at first he doesn’t believe her, but she makes him believe her in one of my favorite scenes/quotes of the whole book. I laughed out loud! It was great. It was also rather poignant.
There’s a Mars Needs Women theme here and a touch of fated mates, but it’s also a slow burn romance and an enemies to lovers development.
The aliens haven’t had females for decades. Most of the adults were test tube babies, harvested and raised in batches. The aliens made a secret pact with earths government to defend us from a species that was looking to invade Earth, in exchange for 1,000 human women per year, taken from the poor and sick so that their lot in life would only be improved and the women would be more open to mating with an alien who would be devoted to her in exchange for her carrying his child. But after defending earth for three years and losing many of their forces in the battle, our government never once gave them any women. So, in desperation, they took over earth. Of course, no one but the top government knew aliens existed or that we betrayed our agreement. All humanity knew was that aliens were invading and taking women, so of course there was resistance and fear.
The aliens have a way of reading a persons genome and finding their perfect mate. It’s more than physical too—it’s emotional, spiritual, fated. Since they developed this, they no longer have a word for divorce, since no mated pair has ever wanted to leave their mate. Humans and the aliens hold a shared ancestry, so the matching works across the species.
The aliens are here on earth to stay, so once the invasion is complete, they work to improve earth. They don’t want to rule us, but instead they want to merge our two societies. Though no one on earth knows this during the invasion, so like I said, fear and chaos abounds.
The FMC is running and fleeing, but she’s soon captured by our MMC who is one of the supreme commanders. He feels drawn to her, but because he believes himself to be defective and too dangerous, he ignores the feeling and hands her off to an intake center for her to be processed and matched with a mate for breeding. Thankfully we learn pretty early on that rape is abhorrent to them, but the women don’t know that, so yeah, more fear. After several unusual circumstances cause his path to cross with hers and discovering that she still hasn’t been matched to a mate yet, he finally caves to his yearning for her and has the test run, only to discover that they are a match (okay, we saw that coming). She is incredibly resistant to everything the aliens are trying to do, and understandably so! Most women see that resistance is futile pretty quick and go with their mates. You have to stay with them for 6 months to give the mating a chance, and the aliens bank on the belief that after six months the couples will fall for each other and want to remain. But our girl is vehemently against it to the point that she’s locked up in their comfortable equivalent of a medical ward.
When the MMC discovers that she’s his mate, he gets her to make a deal with him so that she’ll come stay with him. So they begin living together. And that’s where the story really picks up. There’s a lot that they go through while living together. Her being stubbornly resistant and him fearing his dark side and swearing that he’s incapable of love or even having much of a conscience (a byproduct of something in his past that caused his whole birthing batch turn be either murderous or suicidal). The story of them coming together is so sweet and so emotional. This story could have wrapped up much sooner with a typical plot device where someone attacks her and he saves her and they realize how in love they really are. But this story doesn’t do that. It continues their development and their journey far more than I was expecting. And I loved every bit of it! There’s romance, passion, anger, fear, friendship, politics, heartbreak, love, and such incredible sex. Seriously, really, really good sex. LOL.
If you like alien romances with more plot and development than the usual fair, then I highly recommend this.
Minor trigger warning: Their first sex together is a bit forced. She agrees to it after bargaining for something else, so it’s not really “forced”. She basically just lays there and takes it, but at this point in the story he is horrible at seeing and understanding how others feel, so he’s kinda rough with her and fucks her while she’s totally dry. It’s only later that he learns that he hurt her and he’s devastated. Well, at first he doesn’t believe her, but she makes him believe her in one of my favorite scenes/quotes of the whole book. I laughed out loud! It was great. It was also rather poignant.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 3, 2022
Had an ad for some other alien romance that I clicked on on a whim, which led me to the spin-off series of this series, which led me to this book.
I'll start by saying that I am a grown woman who definitely enjoys the steamy scenes, but I just don't ever read adult romance novels. I'm still pretty firmly set in my world of YA and NA, but I've always liked the idea of some alien lovin' and decided to give this one a whirl (it was free with Kindle Unlimited, so why not).
This was somehow engrossing even though I hated Eden for 90% of it and there was a severe lack of worldbuilding. (There are a few races and planets/other ships mentioned but we don't really see any of it and we're really never given much information to really care about any of it.) I'm also generally put-off by the introduction of children into a romance (as in, the characters having kids), but wasn't expecting it to be SUCH a prominent part of this book's plot, which is why I went ahead with reading it. There's a lot of baby stuff. Not specifically just the main couple producing one, but lab-grown babies and adoptions and other stuff that took over.
There's also some pretty problematic stuff going on here. Alien takeover notwithstanding, Torin and Eden's deal is practically blackmail, and even though Torin is generally more likeable than Eden, it does kind of start with him acknowledging that, while he was the one who outlawed r*pe, he could probably still do it without consequence because of his position. But he's not gonna. So there's that.
Eden is also a fucking lunatic. Sure, most would not go into this alien takeover with an attitude of, "Oh yeah, sure, set me up with one of these alien dudes so I can start popping out babies," and would have a similar attitude to her in the beginning (fighting it), but then she just forces herself to be against anything and everything even when she knows her feelings have changed. Then around 80% of the way through the book, she's physically, verbally, and emotionally abusive all at once, and we're supposed to just ignore that because she was upset about learning something? Not how that works. She sucks. Everything about her is unlikeable even if we're being told she's so strong and great. The asshole was a neonatal nurse and has the gall to say something shitty about the Vetusian babies that are born in the lab, like, "How can we expect better when they're raised in plastic bags?" Something like that. You'd think someone in her field would be more open to different methods of babies being born, but no, she's a piece of shit.
Torin shows a lot of growth through the book but some of it seems artificial, as he goes from this detached "I don't know what love is because I had no family" attitude to incredibly doting and gushy practically overnight. Soft bois are always welcome, but in the context of the story, it was abrupt and not expressed well.
Plot-wise, I was expecting some interstellar stuff to be going on, but most of the book takes place on a ship that's just hovering on Earth, and then in a newly-built habitat (cottage) also on Earth. There's some newish tech that the Vetusians bring to the table, but there's never really a time period indicated, except for one woman in a scene saying her son went to Afghanistan and died after 9/11, so it's def not far in the future. Most of the focus is babies and Eden knowing how things work in Vetusian culture and then being shocked about it a month later like she wasn't already fucking told about it.
Like I said, this was somehow engrossing, I guess because I was hoping to see something major happen, or because I kept thinking we'd see more world-building. And I guess because it was such an easy read without much description or depth to the narrative. But there are definitely some problematic aspects to it, and the main character sucks. I might try the next one because I liked Melek, but I dunno, probably not. I have a lot of other books on my TBR, and I think I'd rather just read short fanfiction about characters I actually like if I'm in the mood for some raunchy scenes.
I'll start by saying that I am a grown woman who definitely enjoys the steamy scenes, but I just don't ever read adult romance novels. I'm still pretty firmly set in my world of YA and NA, but I've always liked the idea of some alien lovin' and decided to give this one a whirl (it was free with Kindle Unlimited, so why not).
This was somehow engrossing even though I hated Eden for 90% of it and there was a severe lack of worldbuilding. (There are a few races and planets/other ships mentioned but we don't really see any of it and we're really never given much information to really care about any of it.) I'm also generally put-off by the introduction of children into a romance (as in, the characters having kids), but wasn't expecting it to be SUCH a prominent part of this book's plot, which is why I went ahead with reading it. There's a lot of baby stuff. Not specifically just the main couple producing one, but lab-grown babies and adoptions and other stuff that took over.
There's also some pretty problematic stuff going on here. Alien takeover notwithstanding, Torin and Eden's deal is practically blackmail, and even though Torin is generally more likeable than Eden, it does kind of start with him acknowledging that, while he was the one who outlawed r*pe, he could probably still do it without consequence because of his position. But he's not gonna. So there's that.
Eden is also a fucking lunatic. Sure, most would not go into this alien takeover with an attitude of, "Oh yeah, sure, set me up with one of these alien dudes so I can start popping out babies," and would have a similar attitude to her in the beginning (fighting it), but then she just forces herself to be against anything and everything even when she knows her feelings have changed. Then around 80% of the way through the book, she's physically, verbally, and emotionally abusive all at once, and we're supposed to just ignore that because she was upset about learning something? Not how that works. She sucks. Everything about her is unlikeable even if we're being told she's so strong and great. The asshole was a neonatal nurse and has the gall to say something shitty about the Vetusian babies that are born in the lab, like, "How can we expect better when they're raised in plastic bags?" Something like that. You'd think someone in her field would be more open to different methods of babies being born, but no, she's a piece of shit.
Torin shows a lot of growth through the book but some of it seems artificial, as he goes from this detached "I don't know what love is because I had no family" attitude to incredibly doting and gushy practically overnight. Soft bois are always welcome, but in the context of the story, it was abrupt and not expressed well.
Plot-wise, I was expecting some interstellar stuff to be going on, but most of the book takes place on a ship that's just hovering on Earth, and then in a newly-built habitat (cottage) also on Earth. There's some newish tech that the Vetusians bring to the table, but there's never really a time period indicated, except for one woman in a scene saying her son went to Afghanistan and died after 9/11, so it's def not far in the future. Most of the focus is babies and Eden knowing how things work in Vetusian culture and then being shocked about it a month later like she wasn't already fucking told about it.
Like I said, this was somehow engrossing, I guess because I was hoping to see something major happen, or because I kept thinking we'd see more world-building. And I guess because it was such an easy read without much description or depth to the narrative. But there are definitely some problematic aspects to it, and the main character sucks. I might try the next one because I liked Melek, but I dunno, probably not. I have a lot of other books on my TBR, and I think I'd rather just read short fanfiction about characters I actually like if I'm in the mood for some raunchy scenes.
Shelved as 'did-not-finish'
July 14, 2024DNF @ 50%
Strong start. A darker take on the “mars needs women” plotline (alien invasion, captivity, coerced consent), which is not a deal breaker for me. Unfortunately the characters started to act inconsistently (e.g. the MMC went from tortured/dark to being described as cocky) and the mood was too domesticated after some dark scenes, so I had to call time.
I did find the general premise and world building interesting though, and I’ve really enjoyed the author’s Alphas of Nasila series and the Vandalar Concubine series, so I will move onto the next book and hope this is just an outlier!
Strong start. A darker take on the “mars needs women” plotline (alien invasion, captivity, coerced consent), which is not a deal breaker for me. Unfortunately the characters started to act inconsistently (e.g. the MMC went from tortured/dark to being described as cocky) and the mood was too domesticated after some dark scenes, so I had to call time.
I did find the general premise and world building interesting though, and I’ve really enjoyed the author’s Alphas of Nasila series and the Vandalar Concubine series, so I will move onto the next book and hope this is just an outlier!
February 28, 2020
I struggled with my rating for this story, there are parts of the book that’s a strong 4 star and parts of it that are closer to a 2 star. While both characters are strong and at times very unyielding in the end they did get it together and form a great team.
I understand Eden’s desire to not become a captive of a species that has taken over earth. Totally get her fighting tooth and nail for her freedom, however after a bit her continued fight was the only thing we got to deal with at the beginning of the book. When she finally decided to become the very reluctant mate of Torin we were again subjected to her never ending fight with him, which made the beginning of their relationship a warzone. Again I do understand that she does not want to be his mate however the alternative would not be better for her. Shortening both of her fight for freedom would have left more time to really give us the nuances of their budding relationship and keep the pacing moving along.
There are glimpses of both of them trying to fight their reluctant desire for each other, which was a nice build to the tension. Then we would spiral back again into an angst fest after a while the continued angst just made the book a bit of a drag.
When Torin finally drops his guard and lets her in we get to understand him more and see what transpired in his past that has now made him think he was unworthy of having a mate.
Once they started working together their chemistry really picked up. As a unit they were able to change some very cruel practices that had caused harm to Torin and was now creating havoc on the tenuous peace the two planets were trying to create. One would think that a specie that could take over another planet in the fashion that they did would have a bit more enlightened political system and they wouldn’t have the same type of slimy politicians in power as we at times seem to have.
For me the beginning of the book had moments that I really enjoyed and a lot of it was just a frustrating angst fest, it wasn’t until we were at the middle of the book that we could see Eden and Torin as two lost souls trying to make the best of a situation that started out very badly.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I understand Eden’s desire to not become a captive of a species that has taken over earth. Totally get her fighting tooth and nail for her freedom, however after a bit her continued fight was the only thing we got to deal with at the beginning of the book. When she finally decided to become the very reluctant mate of Torin we were again subjected to her never ending fight with him, which made the beginning of their relationship a warzone. Again I do understand that she does not want to be his mate however the alternative would not be better for her. Shortening both of her fight for freedom would have left more time to really give us the nuances of their budding relationship and keep the pacing moving along.
There are glimpses of both of them trying to fight their reluctant desire for each other, which was a nice build to the tension. Then we would spiral back again into an angst fest after a while the continued angst just made the book a bit of a drag.
When Torin finally drops his guard and lets her in we get to understand him more and see what transpired in his past that has now made him think he was unworthy of having a mate.
Once they started working together their chemistry really picked up. As a unit they were able to change some very cruel practices that had caused harm to Torin and was now creating havoc on the tenuous peace the two planets were trying to create. One would think that a specie that could take over another planet in the fashion that they did would have a bit more enlightened political system and they wouldn’t have the same type of slimy politicians in power as we at times seem to have.
For me the beginning of the book had moments that I really enjoyed and a lot of it was just a frustrating angst fest, it wasn’t until we were at the middle of the book that we could see Eden and Torin as two lost souls trying to make the best of a situation that started out very badly.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
April 22, 2021
(I quit this book about halfway through.) This book is science fiction/romance. However, honestly, neither the science fiction nor the romance was all that good. There were elements of the world-building that didn't make sense, like the aliens being able to cure cancer but not do anything about the gender of the babies they are engineering or the single-gender society which seems to have no homosexuality whatsoever. There wasn't a lot of sexual tension between the characters for the first half, and by the time it showed up, the story had moved on to babies. While there were things I didn't like, I definitely found some of the characters interesting. However, with the heavy focus on babies and the potential for a lot of angst in future books, I just couldn't get excited about reading anymore. It definitely isn't bad, but it is also definitely not my thing.
June 16, 2021
I really didn't like Eden so angry and aggressive such an unlikeable character. Ok I understand she is scared aliens invading earth i get it. But they clearly explain to her they mean her no harm why they need her.. and ok maybe a female wouldn't be happy But she didn't spend any time trying to talk to them.... and a nurse... laughable. No nurse and no dr would let another being suffer and just watch them die, even if there was no hope for them. I would've shot her when she was caught and saved the poor commander the misery of finding out they were mates.
March 25, 2024
Not quite 2 & 1/2 stars. While the book was alright, it had some flow issues & too many plot holes. I really had a hard time with the FMC, her attitude was really hard to stomach at times & how she treated the MMC just because he is an alien it seemed. I realize the whole save the alien race by having their babies can make a girl have some issues with said aliens, but sheesh, she was the one that made the bargain & she was treated like a princess anyway. He was actually very nice to her, not the monster she thought he was or could be. Overall, I wouldn’t want to read more in the series.
December 30, 2022
I love this author. I love the premise of this series. I love the writing style.
But this was just not for me at all.
I'm going to go ahead and say that I think anyone that loves scifi romance and urban fantasy should give this a go, but for me, both characters were just flat, their relationship dull, etc.
And I have no interest in reading the next in this series, which upsets me because I've loved everything else. I may try coming back to the series at another point in time, but for now, I'm good.
3/5 stars.
But this was just not for me at all.
I'm going to go ahead and say that I think anyone that loves scifi romance and urban fantasy should give this a go, but for me, both characters were just flat, their relationship dull, etc.
And I have no interest in reading the next in this series, which upsets me because I've loved everything else. I may try coming back to the series at another point in time, but for now, I'm good.
3/5 stars.
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