Reviewed by chymerra on
This is a Romeo and Juliet type love story coupled with some good old-fashioned science fiction and fantasy elements mixed in. The only way that it differs from Romeo and Juliet is that Comron and Vaush do not die a star cross lovers death. They come close a few times but they don’t die.
Comron and his father, Crausin, have one of the most complex and, dare I say, disgusting relationships in the books that I have read in the past few years. They telepathic, which was fascinating, especially something major was revealed to Vaush from Comron towards the end of the story. They didn’t use their telepathy to always talk to each other. Crausin used it to take over while Comron is having sex. So, a telepathic threesome. They also shared their women in the physical sense too. A father/son threesome….gag. I should add that Crausin is the Grand Duke of the planet Nethic and Comron is the Crown Prince. So yeah….lol.
Vaush is the youngest daughter of Larrs Bastionli, the Duke of Tir-Laros and Comron and Crausin’s mortal enemy. She is a woman who loves nothing more than to stay out of her father’s path and do what she loves….helping others less fortunate than her.
Vaush and Comron’s paths cross when the transport that she is on (that is also carrying members a delegation that is selling security technology and the investors interested in it.) is attacked by a terrorist. A bomb explodes, causing the transport to crash. Vaush is largely uninjured (we do find out why later on in the book) but Comron is gravely injured. Vaush finds him in the wreckage, discovers who he is and decides to save him (remember, their planets are mortal enemies and they are honor bound to kill each other). Comron returns the favor after a panther attacks Vaush in the jungle.
While they are trekking towards the east coast, and hopefully rescue, Vaush and Comron fall in love and do the dirty. They vow to keep seeing each other, on the down low, after they are rescued.
Once they are rescued, a huge secret about Vaush comes to light. She is the legal heir of the Emperor’s throne. The Emperor took her mother as his first wife, much to the dismay of his ex-wife and their children. When her mother got pregnant, she disappeared and was assumed to have died….this child along with her. Which wasn’t the case. Her transport was waylaid by Larrs Bastionli, her mother severely injured but kept alive to deliver Vaush and then was either killed or died after her birth. Larrs kept Vaush and raised her as his own child but with it always in the back of his head that one day, when she old enough, that she will become the Empress and Tir-Laros will have the backing of the Empress.
Only, it didn’t quite turn out that way. There is murder and mayhem once her secret is leaked. The only true ally that Vaush has is Comron but even that is questioned when huge secrets from his past are revealed to her.
I never thought that I would ever say this in a science fiction/fantasy but the sex scenes are insanely good. Each sex scene was better than the next. I loved it!!
The ending of the book threw me for a loop and made me question Comron and his loyalty to Vaush. There were other instances that made me go “Eh” but when I read what I read at the end, I went “Ooooooo….no he didn’t!!” I am actually going to buy the 2nd book because I want to know what happens next.
**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**
Reading updates
- Started reading
- 2 December, 2016: Finished reading
- 2 December, 2016: Reviewed