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chaotix_kitty's review against another edition
4.0
It was a really great read. I ordered the second book before I finished this one. I wanted a little more background on the planets, the aliens, and it's history but that could just be me and my brain needing to fill in those blanks. But overall I didn't want to put it down.
themargherita_s's review against another edition
3.0
I knew the general premise of the story when I went into it, but it didn't exactly go in the direction I wanted it to.
kittym0nster's review against another edition
4.0
Yes if:
You want a story where both cultures are respected & acknowledged to be different by both parties.
No if:
You don't like darker romances with high stakes, including discussions of sexual assault
You want a story where both cultures are respected & acknowledged to be different by both parties.
No if:
You don't like darker romances with high stakes, including discussions of sexual assault
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
gluegunninn's review against another edition
2.0
One of my favorite microtropes in alien romance is misunderstandings due to an ignorance of their cultural differences. This book was chock-full of that, but done so so poorly. If you're going to start with the humans being fearful of aliens due to decades of rape by a specific alien race, why make the fmc's first time with the mmc dubcon and then excuse it because they're fated mates and the mmc is ignorant to their cultural differences? All the while trying to claim that consent is a big thing in the mmc's culture?? Big nope. I'm a dark romance lover, but this was just weird, especially because the only things dark about this book were rape and gore. Also, it was infuriating that a glossary/pronunciation guide was included in the beginning, but other foreign words or phrases were used in the book that weren't listed in the glossary nor explained in the moment used in the book. And I still can't figure out what color means what on the alien's plates except for black. I would have loved for that to be included in the glossary or if the mmc would have explained in the chapters from his pov. Only reason I gave this 2⭐ and not 1 was because I did like the fmc, but not enough to redeem the book as a whole.
elmcharm's review
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
elly_young's review against another edition
2.0
DNF'D
I couldn't get over the units of time not being explained, the m/c is 7 rotations but how long is a rotation?? In what I read (and in the notes at the beginning) I didn't get to find out how many rotations = 1 earth year. M/c is clearly adult but referring to her as just 6 in the first chapters then 7 a bit later on and women being taken off for breeding at 5 rotations really threw me and it was difficult in places for me to envision them as the adults I know they are. Then there was a solar, is that an hour? A day? I have no idea. I wish I could have finished it as the story seemed really promising.
I couldn't get over the units of time not being explained, the m/c is 7 rotations but how long is a rotation?? In what I read (and in the notes at the beginning) I didn't get to find out how many rotations = 1 earth year. M/c is clearly adult but referring to her as just 6 in the first chapters then 7 a bit later on and women being taken off for breeding at 5 rotations really threw me and it was difficult in places for me to envision them as the adults I know they are. Then there was a solar, is that an hour? A day? I have no idea. I wish I could have finished it as the story seemed really promising.
jurnee_reads's review against another edition
3.0
I have some complicated feelings for this book.
The first full sex scene was… written well for what I think it was trying to portray. It didn’t feel like a spicy scene meant to be sexy and hot and turn the reader on, it felt more like… a delve into the mind of the ml. It’s written very well except for one phrase, but it wasn’t intimate sexually or romantically… just mentally. It felt feral. Like beasts coming together to satisfy nature’s desires rather than their own… but it seems to have opened each of them up to each other in a way.
Since the beginning of the story I did not like the ml, but he started to change my mind at around 50%. Clearly there are communication issues but more so it’s the ignorance he has about his mate’s people. And he was too distracted by his own dick to really delve into the reason for all the things that confused him… that and his pride got in the way. Thankfully he does see the light and come to understand how heinous own actions were and does what he can to make up for it even if he doesn’t really forgive himself for not knowing the truth. But he shouldn’t forgive himself, he shouldn’t feel better just because he’s trying to fix things. He should feel bad for what his ignorance and neglect as a leader caused. This change that he starts, changing how the humans are viewed and treated, and how all of that works… that’s what I found the most interesting.
This story doesn’t read to me as a true romance. The characters didn’t feel romantically attracted to each other, mostly just sexually and there were hints at a mental connection. The story itself is deeper than just romance, and coming to that conclusion made this book more enjoyable because I wasn’t looking for romance anymore, I was looking for a darker and deeper sci-fi story. I can enjoy the sci-fi parts of this book the most, learning about technology and traditions of different aliens and such, that’s what was fun.
The first full sex scene was… written well for what I think it was trying to portray. It didn’t feel like a spicy scene meant to be sexy and hot and turn the reader on, it felt more like… a delve into the mind of the ml. It’s written very well except for one phrase, but it wasn’t intimate sexually or romantically… just mentally. It felt feral. Like beasts coming together to satisfy nature’s desires rather than their own… but it seems to have opened each of them up to each other in a way.
Since the beginning of the story I did not like the ml, but he started to change my mind at around 50%. Clearly there are communication issues but more so it’s the ignorance he has about his mate’s people. And he was too distracted by his own dick to really delve into the reason for all the things that confused him… that and his pride got in the way. Thankfully he does see the light and come to understand how heinous own actions were and does what he can to make up for it even if he doesn’t really forgive himself for not knowing the truth. But he shouldn’t forgive himself, he shouldn’t feel better just because he’s trying to fix things. He should feel bad for what his ignorance and neglect as a leader caused. This change that he starts, changing how the humans are viewed and treated, and how all of that works… that’s what I found the most interesting.
This story doesn’t read to me as a true romance. The characters didn’t feel romantically attracted to each other, mostly just sexually and there were hints at a mental connection. The story itself is deeper than just romance, and coming to that conclusion made this book more enjoyable because I wasn’t looking for romance anymore, I was looking for a darker and deeper sci-fi story. I can enjoy the sci-fi parts of this book the most, learning about technology and traditions of different aliens and such, that’s what was fun.
fi293's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0