This second book did not pull me in like the first book did. The characters felt a little less interesting but I couldn’t really put my finger on the reason why. They are the same as they were before but seemed just a little duller, which could be because they are changing. The action seemed a bit more subdued than it had been in the first book even though we had some new aliens show up. It still had it’s moments that kept me wanting to know more. Some of the problem may have been that the narrator, while okay, does not add a lot vocally.
Dr. Sophie Winston and her team, along with the military personnel they have acquired continue to survive in the Biosphere. The Organics continue to empty the Oceans and every other body of water. The temperatures are continuing to rise and the last surviving humans on the outside are being herded into farms. Dr. Emmanuel Rodriguez has developed a weapon that may help to turn the tide on the Organics.
Sophie and Sgt. Overton is not getting along as well as they could and he is starting to chafe under her command. Overton wants to take on the aliens and make a rescue attempt which might result in finding more of his men. Sophie would prefer to be cautious and not draw attention. Just as things seem to hit rock bottom they get some news that makes them all feel a little better about the future.
I have to admit that this was not one of my favorite reads even though I love Nick Smith and pretty much everything he has written. I would recommend this if you have read the first book because it does advance the story and you cannot miss that.
Like all the previous books in the series this was a great read that left me wanting more. I loved the characters from the moment I met them and was totally invested in their lives entirely. The new world that we get to explore is very interesting with some of the most diverse people so far. I was into the book from the opening sequence with our future heroine in her natural habitat.
Rylee Hale is a paralegal in Florida and a friend of Zoe, the Zoe who disappeared without a word or trace. Though she does not know it things are about to get very weird for her. Rylee is being watched from the AMI by two alien males who want her help in dissolving their accidental bond. Drace and Lucian are Denarins, two males who bond in order to join with a single female. The pairings are usually between an Alpha and a Beta, they are both Alphas and find themselves in an embarrassing situation that could earn them ridicule.
They were told that a Pure One could break their bond with just a touch and so pay a large sum to bring Rylee to the station. When she touches them what happens is the opposite, they seem to be bound closer together. What ensues next is a quest to find an artifact which can severe their bond. But do they really want that?
Though all the books can be read as a standalone I think that the best way to do this is read the them in order. These are some very colorful, very hot and very sexy alien males who are devoted to their chosen females. The females are not what you would expect and make you like them because they have the type of personalities that make them great friends. Highly recommend this !!
I have been in love with this series since reading Claimed after getting it because it was free. The stories always make me feel like I am a part of what is going on. The introduction of each new couple brings something a little different to the mix while still allowing you to keep up with those who came before. The planets as well as the inhabitants are so imaginative and strange that they keep you coming back to see what will happen next.
Stavros Rii was in charge of the HKR building in Asheville and stayed on Earth after the declaration of war against the Kindred because two people, a Kindred warrior and his bride were not allowed back onto the Mother ship by Councilor Terex. Stavros has not and does not plan to claim a bride but feels that the war is stupid. He has left the remote cabin where they have been staying because he has a feeling that someone on the mother ship is trying to contact him. He just wants to get to the HKR and find out what is needed of him.
Charlotte ‘Charlie’ Sayers had been a detective with the Asheville PD when war was declared on the Kindred. She is more than happy to sign up with the special force that is formed to kick the big aliens off the planet or lock them up as war criminals. She has had a special hatred of the Kindred ever since tragedy struck her family because of the draft. After getting off work she spots and starts to follow Stavros hoping to take him into custody. What follows is more than she bargained for and brings into question her feelings against the Kindred.
Stavros and Charlie are definitely one of the hotter couples to grace the pages, maybe because they are both hurt and need each other so badly. I cannot help but feel that everyone should give this series a read because you are either going to love it or hate it. While there is always a level of sameness involved the characters are always great and the story entertaining. You just have to get started.
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
“Why can I feel her? Is it just because I’ve never let a female drink from me before? He didn’t know. He only knew that Charlotte Sayers was different and special somehow. And judging from the horrified look she’d given him as she backed into the fresher, she was also scared to death right now. Even if she wasn’t, she was still completely off limits and out of his reach. That didn’t stop him from wanting her. With a low groan, he threw an arm across his eyes. What have I done? Oh Gods, what have I done and how can I ever undo it? *”
I am always happy to enter the world of the Kindred because it is one that will usually take me on an intergalactic adventure with romance and danger. Have you you ever read a book that you loved, with characters you care about so much you could not stand the thought of something bad happening to them? I was not disappointed in any way by this one. The characters continue to be rich and approachable, the world building continues to fascinate and hold me. The stories are a bit predictable but that is not necessarily a bad thing at all, it just means that they have be written even better to compensate for that fact. In the case of these stories they are written perfectly and make me keep coming back for more.
Mei-Li Hastings is the daughter of Senator Hastings and has been dreaming of a Kindred who scares her because of the way he looks. She tells this to her father who goes and demands that his daughter not be claimed even though she is registered like all the eligible females on Earth, he wants special privileges.
Six is a Dark Kindred who has been Enhanced as is the way of the inhabitants of the planet on which he lives. Six is disturbed by the dreams partly because he does not understand what is going on. When he told, he does not plan on claiming her because it is something the Dark Kindred do not ever do, but he is ordered to do so by One. This claiming sets in motion things that will bring darkness to both the Earth and the Kindred.
This is another great story that takes us to the other side of the galaxy and back with some very hot scenes. I think that this is a great series and I look forward to the next entry. I highly recommend this series and this book.
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
“A strange, strong feeling came over her, prickling the skin on her arms and raising the short hairs at the back of her neck. Somehow she knew that if he left her, she could never love anyone else. She was his—Six had taken a piece of her soul and welded it permanently to his. Without him, she would never be whole again. Never”
These first chapters have just wet my appetite for more. Once you meet Grab and Leah you know they are perfect for each other, now they just need to figure it out. Take a look and find yourself hooked on their story. Love the Alien Mate Index!
This second book in the Alien Mate Index is just as great as the first book. Having met the big blue guy in the first book you knew it was going to be an interesting ride when he got off on his own. The characters continue to be fun and interesting as they take you along on their various missions.The story while centering around a couple still manages to give you more than just their drama by incorporating various subplots that keeps things from getting stale. The language is perfect because you know they cannot be speaking English all the time but the phrases are so right that you really don’t care. The main thing is that the backgrounds of the characters and that of each new race that is introduced gives you more depth and insight into what and who they all are.
Gravex N’gol is a murderer and escaped convict but he also a protector of females who would give his life to protect theirs. When he is given the task of going to Earth and making sure that Zoe’s friends are alright and to give them a message from her, he is more than happy to do it. While checking on them he becomes enamored with Leah, who is living in a bad situation but embodies everything Grav finds attractive. When he sees her being abused it is more than he can stand so he goes to her rescue and so starts an adventure he had not planned on.
Leah lost her friend Zoe under mysterious circumstances that had her and Charlotte using every avenue possible to find her. When they found nothing she lost her friend Charlotte as well when she moved away to grieve her loss alone. Leah marries her boyfriend who promptly moves her away from her family where he can do what he wishes without interference. When he goes to far one night Leah is surprised to be rescued by a stranger who just appears in her home. This stranger delivers news that her friend is alive and well, he is also willing to take her to her. She leaves because it is the best course though she cannot see what will happen as she travels so far from home.
I love Evangeline Anderson and the imagination that can deliver such great aliens and worlds so strange you cannot help but be pulled into them. This has everything you could hope for when traveling the galaxy, evil computer programs bent on domination, alien females with murder on their minds, palace intrigue, and much more. I totally recommend this to anyone who loves sexy aliens who can stoke a fire like nobody else. I would love my own if it were possible.
** Listening is an experience that everyone should have in regard to their favorite books and authors. I enjoyed this just as much or maybe even more than the first time I read it for myself, the only slight drawback is William Martin who sounds a bit the same when doing the male alien voices. They come off a little monotone, though I know its an inner dialogue that does not mean it has to be so bland. He does however do well when it is a conversation between the characters. As for the female half, Mackenzie Cartwright brings life and light to all the characters, including the male ones. Still very recommended by me.
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Let me tell you, if you’ve never run flat out for your life with an Imperial Guard thrown over your shoulder, well, I don’t recommend it. There are easier ways to get your cardio in.
I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review.
I was not pulled into this story as evidenced by the fact that it took me almost a month to read it. Regardless of that I was still interested enough to keep coming back to read more of what was happening. The characters never fully jelled for me though I found myself rooting for them none the less. They seemed a little superficial without any real character traits you could grab onto that would make you really like or hate them, they were just the good guys or the bad guys. There are some grammatical, spelling, and word usage errors which can be distracting.
David Carpenter and Alana Ramirez are ex-Marines who have gone into the smuggling business since being separated from service. They have managed to make a fairly nice living off of their illegal activities though both are honorable people who have had no other choice. Now David has taken a job from Windcorp, a shady corporation operating on the planet Prospect, for a job he has not been briefed on. When things start to go wrong even before they set foot planet side he should have known that this would not end well.
In order to save the galaxy David must find a way to get around the lies, deceit, and villainy which surrounds him to save his home and himself.
Overall this was not a disappointment it just did not really ring the bell for me. I love science fiction and the planet was really the most interesting thing for me, with instances where the characters did something really great. Though it did not pull me in that does not mean it will not work better for someone else.
Abducted Part 1: Through the Looking Glass
(Alien Mate Index .5)
by Evangeline Anderson
I was pulled into this story right from the beginning. I was happy to see what this new series is going to be like and it looks like another fun trip through space. The characters start out strong and continue to build in the short span of the story. The language is perfect and conveys everything from the emotions to the locale in vivid detail.
Zoe McKinley is living a normal boring life with a mundane job and a boss from hell, but things are about to change. Sarden sees Zoe on the Alien Mate Index (AMI), a type of interstellar mail order brides. He purchases her, which she has no idea about, and has her transported to the space station. Zoe is informed she will never go home and is being traded to some other alien. She will do whatever it takes to get back home. Sarden has plans to keep that from happening.
This was the perfect length to whet my appetite for the new series. I like Zoe, I like Sarden, I even like A.L., this is going to be a fun group. Definitely recommend.
This grabbed me and made me lose sleep over the past few days because I did not want to put it down. Jack McDevitt is a master of creating a world with people you cannot help but admire and situations that are tense and filled with anticipation.
I love this series along with all it’s permutations because each is a little different but essentially the same. In space you cannot know what to expect and this brings the idea home in a solid manner. The science is sometimes accurate and sometimes theorizing but always interesting. I had wanted to be an astronaut and when I read these books I can at least feel like I made it out there.
Read these books for the sheer joy of flying off into the black and being entertained.
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
“Truth, beaten down, may well rise again. But there’s a reason it gets beaten down. Usually we don’t like it very much.”
― Jack McDevitt, Odyssey
While I have loved riding with the Academy for years now, this was not my favorite adventure to date. This is a prequel which is about Priscilla ‘Hutch’ Hutchins and her first adventure after getting her pilots license and a job. It also is about the development of the Academy as an institution and the Wheel as the space port it needed to become in the future. These were the events that made her who she would later become, but it was not an easy read. The writing is fantastic as always and the characters are well developed and feel like friends more than just words on a page. The galaxy is vivid and I can see the relics left behind in my minds eye with no problem. It just did not have the same feel to it that I am used to having.
Priscilla’s training flight is not as uneventful as most usually are and she and Jake find themselves in the middle of a rescue. The rescue has to occur because of a radical who has placed a bomb on another ship which has blown up. There is a movement that feels the death of every life form on a planet in order to terraform is not acceptable and this is their way of protesting.
The theme throughout is about these individuals who are willing to do anything, including kill in order to save life on a far away planet while sacrificing human life. Priscilla makes a few flights but nothing very note worthy happens. I;m glad I read it because it is part of the story, but I just cannot totally recommend it except to those who have read the previous books.
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
When finally they got through, the first thing Priscilla saw was Josh, floating a foot or two above the deck, his wrist tied to a frame. They tried to revive him, although Priscilla thought it was probably a cruel thing to do. If they succeeded, he would only feel that he had to go through it again.
I have seen all of the movie versions of this book and this is the first time I have read/listened to it. I enjoyed it as a kid watching it and I totally enjoyed this original reading. The story is totally a product of its time with phrasing that would not be used today to describe members of other ethnic groups and the way they viewed the world was so different. But the thought that in 1895 anyone could imagine not only a time machine but be looking to the future.
We meet the Eloi and Morlocks in the year 8271. The more human looking of the two have become nothing more than cattle to those who reside under the surface.
If you have only seen versions of this in cinematic form you will appreciate getting a feel of what was intended.
"I have enough time to rest, but I don't have a minute to waste". Come and catch me with your wise words and we will have some fun with our words of wisdom.
Abducted Part 1: Through the Looking Glass
Bookgirl 