A space princess on the run and a notorious outlaw soldier become unlikely allies in this imaginative, sexy space opera adventure—the first in an exciting science fiction trilogy.

In the far distant future, the universe is officially ruled by the Royal Consortium, but the High Councillors, the heads of the three High Houses, wield the true power. As the fifth of six children, Ada von Hasenberg has no authority; her only value to her High House is as a pawn in a political marriage. When her father arranges for her to wed a noble from House Rockhurst, a man she neither wants nor loves, Ada seizes control of her own destiny. The spirited princess flees before the betrothal ceremony and disappears among the stars.

Ada eluded her father’s forces for two years, but now her luck has run out. To ensure she cannot escape again, the fiery princess is thrown into a prison cell with Marcus Loch. Known as the Devil of Fornax Zero, Loch is rumored to have killed his entire chain of command during the Fornax Rebellion, and the Consortium wants his head.

When the ship returning them to Earth is attacked by a battle cruiser from rival House Rockhurst, Ada realizes that if her jilted fiancé captures her, she’ll become a political prisoner and a liability to her House. Her only hope is to strike a deal with the dangerous fugitive: a fortune if he helps her escape.

But when you make a deal with an irresistibly attractive Devil, you may lose more than you bargained for . . .

I read those sci-fi romance one right after the other and decided to do a joint review.

I loved the sci-fi element, the world building was elaborate and intriguing, there was lots of court politics and drama and backstabbing. MCs had grweat chemistry and I absolutely bought their HEA but overall I felt the romance took a backseat to the suspense/adventure plot.

Loch is big silent hero, Ada is a strong independent heroine and they started as adversaries if not outright enemies but had to work together and initial lust between them gradually turned into a hard-earned trust and true intimacy. I appreciate how they were equal in many way despite how their different background and social position. They helped each other, rescued each other.

Loch had the best qualities of an alpha hero - loyal, protective but also respecting his partner and openly admiring her strength.

Ada is no damsel in distress waiting to be saved. She is very much her own saviour. Both were guarding their hearts and falling in love and opening up to each other was a pleasure to read.

This is a fun and exciting story, full of twists and turns, fast-paced, unpredictable.

There were great supporting characters, a lovely second romance plot. It provided a great set up fo rth next book.

I can recommend it to fans of sci-fi and romance readers who don't mind the love story coming second to the suspense for most of the book.

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Bianca von Hasenberg did her duty for High House von Hasenberg and ended up trapped in a terrible marriage. When her husband dies unexpectedly and leaves her a happy widow, she vows never to marry again. Instead, she uses her connections to save other young women. Information is power and Bianca has a network that would be the envy of the ’verse—if anyone knew about it. Bianca von Hasenberg did her duty for High House von Hasenberg and ended up trapped in a terrible marriage. When her husband dies unexpectedly and leaves her a happy widow, she vows never to marry again. Instead, she uses her connections to save other young women. Information is power and Bianca has a network that would be the envy of the ’verse—if anyone knew about it.

After an attack, Bianca’s oldest brother, the House von Hasenberg heir, disappears from Earth without a trace. Determined to find him, Bianca leaves against orders. When she refuses to return, her father sends Ian Bishop, the director of House von Hasenberg security, to haul her home like a recalcitrant child.

Bianca leads Ian on a merry chase across the universe, but when their paths finally collide, she persuades him that they would be far more successful at finding her brother if they worked together. She will do anything to save her sibling, even if it means spending time alone on a small ship with the handsome, infuriating man who once broke her heart.

As clues lead them deep into rival House Rockhurst territory, Bianca must decide if she can trust Ian with the one piece of information that could destroy her completely. . .

Book 1 made me super excited for Bianca's story and it indeed started great but just like with Ada's story, the romance plot lost track somewhere around the middle and the suspense/adventure took too much center stage for my liking. It's sort of enemies to lovers romance, again slow burn like the previous book in the series and while not as developed as I wanted it to be, I believed in the romance and their HEA.

On the good side, Bianca reminded me of Nalini Singh's psy characters but more human. My heart broke for her and the secret she had to keep from everyone and at the same time I was in absolute awe of her strength and resilience (very much like Ian when he allowed himself to admit it).

They had a complicated history between them - he rejected her once and her pride didn't let her seek his attentions again. At the same time his position as head of security for her family added further stress to their interactions. He felt responsible for keeping her safe but she hated that he saw her (only) as a damsel in distress. They bonded over their mission to save her brother and the walls they had built up around their hearts started crumbling down. I loved how their relationship showed a lot care for each other and also mutual respect for the abilities of the other person.

The suspense/adventure plot was brilliant and enjoyed it a lot. It was fast-paced, the tension was even higher than in book 1. We got deeper into the Houses politics, and I enjoyed the focus on the issues of trust - how to earn one's trust, how to keep it, a promise is a promise, a sense of duty and not letting down the people who trust and rely on you.

Sadly, I was disappointed by the ending. It felt rushed and left too many plot lines unresolved. I hope we will get our answers in the next book (about the third sister) but I still was completely satisfied with the ending here. 

Blurb

Once upon a time a boy from a noble family fell in love with a girl from the gutter. It went as badly as you’d expect.

Seventeen years later, Susan Lazarus is a renowned detective, and Templeton Lane is a jewel thief. She’s tried to arrest him, and she’s tried to shoot him. They’ve never tried to talk.

Then Templeton is accused of a vicious double murder. Now there’s a manhunt out for him, the ports are watched, and even his best friends have turned their backs. If he can’t clear his name, he’ll hang.

There’s only one person in England who might help Templeton now...assuming she doesn’t want to kill him herself.

Review 

This is a queer m/f (heroine is bisexual) historical which is still relatively rare occurrence in romance. Unlike the first book in the series which didn't quite work for me, this one hit all my sweet spots and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's a second chance romance, friends-to-enemies-to-lovers (again) with a strong mystery/suspense plot.

I loved both Susan and Templeton but she is outstanding. I liked she was unremarkable in appearanc and used that to her advantage to succeed in a male-dominated field. She was OK with her looks but to him was beautiful, perfect inside and outside. I loved how much he valued her strength and determination. 

Templeton was very much the kind of romance hero I like, he was big and strong but also aware how his size could be intimidating to women. He was a true gentle giant who wanted to do everything to please Susan and make her happy.

There is a light femdom element in their relationship, the desire to make your partner feel good, to serve, to be there for them. It started with both of them discussing and overcoming the mistakes they both made with respect to each other in the past. It was not so much about forgiveness but rather about accepting the past and moving one, appreciating the present and looking forward to a future together.

The story had a strong presence of found family (and a terrible bio one) which was glorious and supportive and everything one can wish for in a family/close circle of friends. 

The road towards HEA was not without obstacles but the ending was just perfect and felt right for both Susan (who was very anti-marriage) and for Templeton (who was pro marriage but more importantly, he was pro whatever made Susan happy). I liked that the end gave them the possibility for happiness with or without official marriage.

The book works as standalone though I would recommend reading at least An Unnatural Vice (where we meet Susan for the first time). 

‘Beard With Me’ is the origin story of Billy Winston and Scarlet St. Claire (aka Claire McClure) and is just the beginning of their epic love story.

No one is better at surviving than Scarlet St. Claire and making the best out of circumstances beyond her control is Scarlet’s specialty. In an apocalyptic situation, she’d be the last person on earth, hermitting like a pro, singing along to her CD Walkman, and dancing like no one is watching.

Scarlet is clever, Scarlet is careful, and Scarlet is smart . . . except when it comes to Billy Winston.

No one is better at fighting than Billy Winston and raging against his circumstances—because nothing is beyond his control—is Billy’s specialty. In an apocalyptic situation, he’d be the first person on earth to lead others to safety, overcome catastrophe, or die trying.

Billy is fearless, Billy is disciplined, and Billy is honorable . . . except when it comes to Scarlet St. Claire.

Review

It’s the start of Claire (here Scarlet) and Billy’s epic love story. This takes us back in time when they were teenagers and their love did not have a happy ending then. 

I loved it, even though I had some issues with it. It’s moving, angsty, with the final 10% being particularly intense and making me cry the whole time I was reading them. 

It’s told from dual POV and paints a very dark picture of their teen years - we see them both working hard on making the best of a very difficult situation. All that happens in this book explains who they have become as adults.

I loved seeing more of Cletus too and his own growth and change. Billy was amazing despite the mistakes he made. It was all done following a deep desire to care for everyone, to help, to support, to keep the people he loved safe from harm. 

Claire is really young here, only 14 years of age. She has been through so much in life already and that’s has made her distrustful and cautious. I liked her voice and I felt deeply for everything she was going through. 

As regards the romance, it was all about the magic of first love - the confusion,the thrill and anticipation coupled with doubts and trepidation at facing something for the first time. I liked how they worked out through their feelings for each other, starting for distrust, going through friendship and care to love and desire to be together.

At the same time despite it being kisses only and there was nothing graphic, I was disturbed by the way others sexualised Scarlet and the very descriptions of her desires/reactions made me uncomfortable. It’s likely a me thing but it was there and I didn’t like it. I was particularly bothered by Ben’s behaviour though I believe I was meant to feel that way about him and I am not hopeful about his actions towards Scarlet in the future. 

Another thing that bothered me and I want to draw specific attention to it is the author’s casual attitude towards CWs expressed in the beginning of the book. I have been a fan of Penny Reid’s since she published her first book but I can’t overlook how dismissive she was about CWs. This book deals with some very heavy subject matter and I believe readers deserve information about that before starting the book. I will list my CWs in the end of my review. 

This is somewhat spoilerish but it's important for me to mention it: the pregnancy and miscarriage plot didn’t quite work for me. It felt just a plot device and didn’t fit seamlessly in the story.

The ending was very emotionally heavy, not only because the MCs don’t get together but rather because we leave them when their lives are in complete shambles. I love the insight this story gives into why the Winston brothers and their sister end up the way they are when we met them in their own books. 

CW: child abuse, cutting, violence, severe beating, accidental pregnancy and miscarriage, parental neglect, underage drinking