CabeX (A Project Enterprise Story) by Pauline Baird Jones – Review

Tags

aliens, favorite series, Pauline Baird Jones, robots, scifi, scifi romance, series, space opera

Review of CabeX

CabeX was human, then became robot and is now back to human again.  Savlf was trapped for who knows how long in an evil spider’s web.  Both led lives of isolation from other flesh and blood humans.  These are characters who used to be human who went through physical and emotional trauma are now fully human again.  But they are having a hard time with it. 

So, let’s put them together on a mission to save another ship in another galaxy where they may or may not be able to communicate with home or the other ship.  If that won’t get them to work through becoming human again, I don’t know what will. 

Fans of the Project Enterprise series will appreciate learning more about CabeX and Savlf (Lost Valyr) and their hopefully happy ending.  Who am I kidding?  You know how this goes.  Of course it is going to be happy!  The question is, can they rescue Boomer (Cosmic Boom) and his shipmates while getting to that happy point?

CabeX is an all-alien story.  By alien, I mean non-Earthlings.  With no characters that hail from Earth, there is a noticeable lack of the pop culture references I have come to adore from this series.  Which means there is less humor.  But this void is filled with more intenseness from CabeX and Savlf.  There is nothing like looking at the galaxy through the eyes of aliens to help us appreciate our humanity.

Thanks to the author who provided a copy of her book.  My review is my honest opinion.

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About CabeX by Pauline Baird Jones

CabeX transformed into a human to save the galaxy. But when he falls for a woman who could betray him, can he also save his human heart?

Savlf escaped the spider’s web but can she elude a past she doesn’t remember? Can she prove to the CabeX—and herself—that she can be trusted?

While they search the distant part of the Garradian galaxy for a lost ship, they discover their biggest challenge might be navigating their feelings for each other.

If they can survive that long.

Can love—swirling between two people who have no concept of its power—break through minds and take over hearts? Or are they so broken that loving and being loved is beyond their grasp?

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Dark Class (Class 5, #5) by Michelle Diener – Review

Tags

5 stars, AI ship, alien abduction, aliens, Book Review, human interaction with aliens, romance, scifi, scifi romance, spaceships

Review of Dark Class

Book 5 in the Class 5 series stays true to form.  An ordinary woman from earth, going up against the bad guys of the galaxy with an AI and an attractive, sympathetic, elf-like alien to help her. 

Like her predecessors, Ellie has no extraordinary military, physics or astronaut training.  So, when she wakes up, alone, at a strange moon station she is way out of her league.  Make that way out of her solar system. 

Ellie puts the pieces together with the help of the disembodied voice.  The AI, Paxe, talks to her through communication systems and robots.  Paxe helps her survive and clues her in that the Grih may be her saviors.  When the Grih arrive, she thinks she is saved – but it is not going to be that easy. 

Renn, the Grih captain has been chasing a Tecran ship for weeks.  Lately, Tecrans have become the local villains, but are supposed to be surrendering and working on becoming better citizens.  But the Tecran captain knows that there is incriminating evidence at the moon base. 

Dark Class is a minute-by-minute, tense showdown between opposing sides with survival on the line for everybody.  The dangers of the moon, alien technology, and beings fighting for their lives makes this a page-turning action-packed story.  Fans of the Class 5 series will not want to miss this one.  But reading entire series is not necessary.  Dark Class stands well on its own.  Also, a new kind of AI is introduced….maybe leading to more stories.  That would be awesome.

Thanks to the author who provided a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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About Dark Matters by Michelle Diener

Waking up alone . . . Ellie Masters comes out of a coma to find herself the only inhabitant of an eerily empty moon station. She’s not on Earth any more, she’s not even in the right solar system. So when someone reaches out to her, tells her he’s her friend, she’s happy to believe it. The alternative is to be stuck alone with an enemy.

The hunt of his career . . . Grih Battle Center captain, Renn Sorvihn, has been chasing a rogue Tecran ship for over a month, convinced its captain is simply trying to delay his inevitable surrender and punishment. But when Renn follows the Tecran ship into an uncharted sector, and realises the Tecran have been working their way to a secret moon base for weeks, he suddenly understands things are most definitely not as they seem.

Caught in the crossfire . . . When the Tecran arrive, with the Grih hot on their heels, Ellie finds herself the catalyst for heightened danger to everyone. The Tecran see her as evidence of their military’s crimes, the Grih see her as a massive diplomatic complication, and her presence brings the whole confrontation up several thousand notches.

But Ellie isn’t alone, and her new friend has ways to help her. Time to outclass them all . . .

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Hunt the Stars (Starlight’s Shadow, #1) by Jessie Mihalik – Review

Tags

5 stars, Book Review, Jessie Mihalik, mystery, pets, romance, scifi, scifi romance, series

Review of Hunt the Stars

Hunt the Stars takes place in a post war setting where former enemies team up to find something that has been stolen.  Torran is the Valoff former general who hires human Tavi (Octavia) and her team because it was humans that stole something from him. 

It is pretty obvious from the beginning that Tavi and Torran are meant for each other.  But as enemies, neither is likely to jump right into anything.  That’s okay.  Pressure to find the prize and the time it takes to do so will force them to be in close proximity. 

The Valoffs have some scary psychic abilities.  Telekinetic, telepathic, energy healing, empathic.  Think about how those abilities could be used against an enemy and you will understand why Tavi and her crew are very apprehensive about teaming up with the Valoffs.  Many of them experienced the Valoffs close up in war.  But the money is soooo good, they can’t refuse.  And Torran has sworn that Tavi’s team will not be in danger from them. 

The humans only powers are that they are just good at what they do.  Tavi is a motivator, Kee is the techno-geek.  Eli is the protector.  Add a Scotty (engineer Anja) and a finder (Lexi) and you have a well-rounded and skilled team.

Tavi’s and Torren’s past is doled out throughout the story as their history becomes necessary to the plot.  While the rest of the characters must also have a past, I can only assume we will learn more about them in future books.

The story goes from straightforward retrieval to complex high-level conspiracy.  So, in the beginning, when you wonder why Tavi and her team were recruited for a relatively uncomplicated recovery operation, rest assured, all will be explained.

The last chapter of the book is all about setting you up for the next book in the series.  When you get to that point, you will be pleased that there is another adventure coming.

Sci-fi romance lovers – this book is for you.  Hunt the Stars is almost 100% pure non-stop adventure.  Romance is secondary, but enriches the story.  The combination is compelling and addictive.  I loved this one!

Through Netgalley, the publisher provided a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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About Hunt the Stars by Jessie Mihalik

Octavia Zarola would do anything to keep her tiny, close-knit bounty hunting crew together—even if it means accepting a job from Torran Fletcher, a ruthless former general and her sworn enemy. When Torran offers her enough credits to not only keep her crew afloat but also hire someone to fix her ship, Tavi knows that she can’t refuse—no matter how much she’d like to.

With so much money on the line, Torran and his crew insist on joining the hunt. Tavi reluctantly agrees because while the handsome, stoic leader pushes all of her buttons—for both anger and desire—she’s endured worse, and the massive bonus payment he’s promised for a completed job is reason enough to shut up and deal.

But when they uncover a deeper plot that threatens the delicate peace between humans and Valoffs, Tavi suspects that Torran has been using her as the impetus for a new war. With the fate of her crew balanced on a knife’s edge, Tavi must decide where her loyalties lie—with the quiet Valoff who’s been lying to her, or with the human leaders who left her squad to die on the battlefield. And this time, she’s put her heart on the line.

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