The Blarmling Dilemma (Hearts in Orbit, #1)

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The Blarmling Dilemma
S.C. Mitchell
Hearts in Orbit, book one
ebook, 242 pages
Published December 2nd 2014 by Soul Mate Publishing
Read for Free with Kindle's Lending Library
Read for Free with Kindle Unlimited
- or just buy it because it's awesome!

“They’re not animals. They’re people!”

Phoebe Callista’s pleas fall on deaf ears and she’s forced to rescue two helpless Blarmlings from certain death. Fleeing across a backwater sector of the galaxy, with Galactic Marshals in hot pursuit, Phoebe falls into the hands of a handsome but determined bounty hunter.

Rigel Antares has captured wanted criminals throughout the galaxy rim, but he’s never come across anything like Phoebe Callista. The gorgeous blonde is playing the innocent, and something deep inside wants to believe her, but Rigel has problems of his own—a ship that’s falling apart and an unscrupulous Galactic Marshal looking for any excuse to send him back to the prison planets of the Theiler System.

An intergalactic circus, vicious space pirates, and a planet full of backtechers cross their paths as two hearts go into orbit to save a pair of adorable Blarmlings.

Hearts in Orbit — Volume 1: THE BLARMLING DILEMMA is a science fiction romance set in the far-flung space traveling future, and sets a new course across the galaxy that leads to love and adventure.

Yes, yes, and oh yes! This is a book with such sweetness and so many unexpected turns that I could not put it down after picking it up when it became obvious that my then current read wasn't giving me what I needed. This sure as hell did!

Recently employed by United Research & Technologies, Phoebe is a biomechanic at the research facility where plans are in motion to breed two Blarmlings in hopes of giving the population a new pet source now that cats and dogs have nearly become extinct. When the pair fail to produce satisfying results, they are slated for execution and dissection. In response of which, soft hearted Phoebe has no choice but to free the two-Lart and Oolo-and see them safely home to the planet of Blarm.

It's a plan that lands her a bounty that Rigel desperately needs in order to keep his ancient ship from falling apart.

Born of a thief who was tried and sentenced to the prison planets, Rigel may be called a spacer but he's lived by the law all of his life despite the stigma of his upbringing. When he was released at the age of fifteen, he joined the circus and earned enough credits to buy himself a ship, soon finding his way into a bounty hunting career.

And that brings us to the beginning of BD as it kicks off in the heat of a starship battle between the two. When Rigel first meets Phoebe, he's in awe of her. Leaving me to be in awe of him.

I loved Rigel's personality. Here's a guy with images of a blonde hair, green eyed beauty in his mind, with memories of her panty drawer riding the edges, and his first fantasy is simply of her holding him while he sleeps. Romantics out there, prepare to swoon. This guy's a keeper.

[ SPOILERS ]

Locked up on Rigel's ship, Phoebe takes the opportunity to debug his mainframe while he searches her ship for the specimens she's been charged with stealing. Never does he find them, until they reveal themselves while trying to get Phoebe free. And surprise, surprise- turns out, Rigel spent a year on Blarm when his ship crashed there and left him stranded. In that time he learned their language and grew to love and respect their species. Had he known the truth of Phoebe's crime, he would have let her go.

Rigel and Phoebe find love rather quickly, and then the true adventure begins.

A corrupt marshal puts most of the heat on the duo, having had Rigel in his sights for years and guilty of stealing many a bounties from our hero. Then they fall into the clutches of space pirates only to emerge as saviors to a community of backtechers. It's here where the author had a good time twisting into the story characters inspired by the notorious Robin Hood with names like Ryan Loxley, Mirin, and Tucker Frye.

With time running out as Lart (yes, Lart) is due to give birth to five babies very soon, Phoebe is reluctantly forced to turn herself in. The sacrifice gets Rigel the necessary credits to fix his ship and see the Blarmlings safely home.

From there, Rigel and Phoebe spend six months apart. She, on Theiler 5, serving her sentence and bonding with Rigel's mother. Meanwhile, Rigel aids the Blarmlings in having them declared a people, therefore ending the threat of a future pet status and ensuring their quality in the eyes of the rest of the galaxy. This, in turn, earns Rigel the status as Blarmling Ambassador and with it, diplomatic immunity from all crimes. For him, and his immediate family. A happy ending for his mother and, by Blarmling law, for his wife.

It's a light-hearted read carried by an easy romance, the perfect mix of humor and action, and cuddly bear-like Blarmlings. Upon finishing it, I immediately returned it to the Lending Library and purchased my very own copy for the collection. It's truly a must have.

5 out of 5 stars. And kudos to the cover artist for the beautiful, complimenting image.

Book two, Pirates of the Dark Nebula, has a possible release in June and will feature Phoebe’s sister, Luna, and an under cover galactic marshal named Rik Mazer.

Katrina's Seduction

Katrina's Seduction
Tina Fine
ebook, 50 pages
Published October 23rd 2009 by Tina Fine
ISBN 2940000723333
Amazon freebie

When Katrina Mitchell shows up on Johnny Mueller's doorstep in LA, she harbors far more secrets than Johnny could ever imagine. Johnny's new tenant has the same first name as a woman from his past, and a body that feels familiar, but he chalks the similarities up to coincidence. After all, she has a very different face than his Katrina. They can't be the same person-right?

Three years ago, Katrina survived a train crash that took her memory and left her face horribly disfigured. Numerous surgeries and uplifting mental therapy sessions later, she's got a new look and a drive to discover her past. With the aid of her therapist/one-time-lover, Blaine, Katrina hops a plane to LA in search of the man that stars in her erotic dreams. The same man who left her for another woman-his wife.

Although the blurb revolves around Katrina and Johnny, the story itself is more focused on she and Blaine, and the hot, dirty sex they share. After she reunites with Johnny, the plot gets somewhat abandoned as Kat realizes there are things more important than the past and all the questions she came in search of stay unanswered. And I wanted those answers! 4 out of 5 stars.

Sex Stalker

Sex Stalker
Darren G. Burton
Kindle Edition
Published August 23rd 2010
ASIN B0040JHR8K
Amazon freebie

Ryan's life is dull and boring. That is, until the mysterious M comes along. Ryan's life goes from mundane to exciting when a secret admirer starts leaving messages on his car and sending him lewd emails. She calls him for phone sex with the promise of meeting in the flesh.

Will Ryan finally meet the mysterious M and discover her true identity? And what promiscuous acts does she have in store for him when they do meet?

I was there. This was there. The price was free. And that's the story of how I came to read this book.

Caught in the rut of his mundane life, Ryan's world becomes a tangle of excitement when he begins to receive simple but lascivious messages from a secret admirer. When the mysterious M ups the ante with phone sex calls, things get even more interesting.

I admit it. I'm a giggler when it comes to reading phone sex. And it certainly doesn't help when neither of the participants are very good at it. Of course, that may be a question of personal taste but I don't know. Shouldn't it be... artistic?

The language is crude and to the point with a number of indelicate metaphors. The identity of M never does get revealed, although I'm thinking 'Man' might be a fitting shocker. But, for only $1.99 you can learn the true identity in the sequel. For now, I'm going to remain blissfully unaware. 2 out of 5 stars.

Darren G. Burton has been a writer and photographer for more than 25 years. He has written numerous full length works of fiction and non-fiction. In addition to his books, he has had many articles and short stories published in major publications.

Apocrypha Sequence: Deviance

Apocrypha Sequence: Deviance
Shane Jiraiya Cummings
Kindle Edition
Published January 18th 2011
ASIN B004JU0ZJS

Apocrypha Sequence: Deviance explores the darkness within the human heart. Set foot inside the morgue at Stratton Memorial Hospital, a place where the scales of life and death have tipped in the wrong direction, and wander the city beyond, where fantasies of sex, drugs, and violence can become frighteningly real. Redemption may be found under a scalpel, in an alley, or sometimes, by embracing the darkest corner of the soul.

The Apocrypha Sequence is a series of dark fantasy collections with interwoven themes and interconnected stories from Shane Jiraiya Cummings, Australia's master of the macabre. Also in the Apocrypha Sequence: Divinity, Inferno, and Insanity.

Hear No Evil - Blaine awakes in bed, inside a hospital, where an explosion has left him deaf. He hears nothing-- not a word muttered by the nurses nor the doctor --nothing but the screams of a woman in agony.

Simple story of an unexplained phenomenon. Too rushed to build up any suspense so by the time it ended the only reaction you're left with is to turn the page and move on.

The Cutting Room - Dr Parrish attempts to train Gary to perform an autopsy procedure but the female body provided lures Gary to act on desires all her own.

Creepy and erotic. I actually liked this one. =)

Interlude, With Lavender - While awaiting the light, the scent of lavender gives a recently deceased man memories of his wife and children.

Not a fan of this one. Wasn't much of a fan of the movie Ghost either.

Dark Heart Alley - Sixteen year old Miri must aid to bring balance back to Execution Street, where darkness has prevailed and murder reigns.

Bleh.

Wrack - In an apocalyptic time, a man chooses revenge as a means to survive as the world falls to an incurable disease.

This last, very short addition gave the book a strong ending. The religious tie in, backed by the main character being the poor excuse for a human being that he was, cinched it. Dark souls committing hellish acts are a treat for my morbid imagination. Overall, 3 out of 5 stars.

Shane Jiraiya Cummings lives in Perth, Western Australia. He has been acknowledged as "one of Australia's leading voices in dark fantasy", had more than sixty short stories published in Australia, USA, and Europe, and his work has been translated in Spanish, French, and Polish. Shane has won two Ditmar Awards, and he has been nominated for more than twenty other major awards including Spain's Premios Ignotus.

Shane is an Active Member of the Horror Writers Association and former Vice President of the Australian Horror Writers Association. When he is not writing, Shane is an editor and journalist by day and sword fighting instructor by night.

Run, Wolf: Nightfall Wolf Clans, #1

Run, Wolf
Keith Melton
Nightfall Wolf Clans, book one
Genre: Dark Urban Fantasy
ebook
Published August 25th 2009 by Samhain Publishing
ISBN 9781605046532

Leah Kendrick is guilty of only one crime: loving her human mate, Tom, enough to give him the gift of The Bite. The Pack council is merciless, and the punishment swift. In an instant everything she’s ever known is ripped away, and they’re turned out into the long winter with nothing. No money, no car, and no protection from a variety of creatures who’d like nothing more than to take down a lone wolf.

Friendless and broke, they form a daring plan to take back what’s theirs and chase safety north. But the Pack has other ideas. And with time running out it’s about to call their bluff.

If memory serves, this was my first shifter written by a man. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Martin slammed his staff down on the floor with a loud crack. The raven feathers swung back and forth. His face made it clear I was less than dog shit to him now. “You are outcast,” he said. “You are Cain. Wander the earth alone, and may the snow never melt from your fur. Go into the darkness knowing you are dead to your family forever.”

This was an exceptionally well written book. That said, it was the premise that didn't appeal to me. Leah has done the unthinkable by changing her human lover into a wolf. Now, they must answer to the pack and judgment is to be passed. Banishment is decided and all that Leah owns is defaulted to the pack.

Pissed off, she and Tom lose their freaking minds and decide to rob the pack. Yes, rob the pack. They're pulling a heist on of their banks from which they walk away with about a thousand dollars. So yeah... It's quick. It's a bit odd for a wolf tale. But, it is an HEA. So... again, yeah. 3 out of 5 stars.

Keith Melton was born in Arizona, but has careened around the country from Oregon to Alaska to Rhode Island. He’s landed back in Oregon, where he lives with his writer wife, daughter and son, and a demon possessed cat. An escapee from the bowels of the corporate world’s lower dungeons, he now writes urban fantasy in the tower of a castle that normal people, including licensed health professionals, assure him is completely imaginary.

aMuse Me

A Muse Me
S.L. Carpenter
Kindle Edition
Published April 4th 2006 by Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
ASIN B000R93D8A

He lost his inspiration but found his muse in the Caribbean-in the arms of a woman.

It's a slow death for a writer when the only key getting used on his keyboard is "Delete".

His writer's block is firmly in place like a wall. All there is to do is bang his head against it.

What to do? A change of scenery might help-say a week in the tropics. If nothing else, it will warm his idle fingers and ease his worried mind. A getaway for the mind and soul.

Reservations made, Eugune flies to Aruba in search of answers to his problems. What he finds is more than a couple of fruit drinks with umbrellas in them. On the white sandy beaches, wrapped in almost nothing but a tan is someone who sparks his imagination and ignites his creative flow. He finds his Muse!

Warning, this title contains the following: hot explicit sex told in graphic language.

It had been a good long while since reading the blurb for this story that when I finally dug in I'd completely forgotten the premise. I do this alot actually, but in this case when the 'What is this crap?' comment sprang aloud from my lips as I read the opening pages it was quite comical for a number of reasons.

So yeah, Eugene's writing is in total suckage territory. From there, things just take a ridiculous turn. It's a guy's fantasy through and through as he gets ravaged by a sex crazed woman aboard an airplane on his way to Aruba. -Oh wait! It's a story within a story again. *smacks forehead*

After that, I was on my guard.

The male ego is in excess in this book. All of those stupid lines, crude remarks, and sexual innuendos that men think are just freaking awesome (while I personally find them repulsive) actually *work* on the leading lady.

Thing is, and I hate the pun, this book is very amusing. Even though I felt like I was continuously shaking my head, I was laughing all the while. It's a fun read, and for that alone I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

“Okay, now I have to remind you that this is a date. It by no means is a sex date. So you keep your cool, be a gentleman and show some respect.” Eugene paused. “But if we do get some pussy I want an ‘A’ in the effort department.” He stepped out of the shower and looked back down on his cock. “Remember what we talked about.”

My name is S.L. Carpenter and I'm a writer and an artist, a husband and a father, a slave to the wife and an inspiration to other people I don't know. I call California home and have been here my whole life. I know...poor me.

I've been writing my special brand of insane little stories for many years, but it's only been in the last decade that I've managed to persuade folks to publish them. I expanded my backlist to include single titles, anthologies and several books co-written with my writing partner (and webmistress) Sahara Kelly. My most recent books are available at Samhain Publishing, where I'm also proud to be Art Director.

Auctioning Charity

Auctioning Charity
Reese Gabriel
ebook, 146 pages
Published June 3rd 2009 by Ellora's Cave
ISBN 9781419922329

Corporate vice president Charity Bradford is up for auction. It's all for a good cause and a huge bid from CEO Roger Morvan brings down the house and buys him dinner with the curvaceous, feisty blonde. But he wants the secretly submissive Charity in his bed.

The very dominant Roger has to figure out how to parlay this opportunity into much more than a dinner date. Nothing less than Charity—naked, bound and begging—will satisfy this Dom's hunger.

"Beware," he said, amused, "of the sort of man you ask to have you."

This baby opened up with a rather good start. There's an extra oomph in it for me when a guy writes a guy's perspective. Hell, a guy's view point is always more interesting, not to forget provocative, to me than a female's. I really don't care how women think.

Of all the BDSM books I've read, some are hardcore while others are very soft. This one had just the right balance for me. Roger isn't all take. He gives plenty and enjoys the hostile banter Charity provides. With very little doubt I'm beginning to take the mind that although woman write much better romance, men have the potential of writing way better sex.

I fancied Roger's mindplay. His fantasies, while not incredibly descriptive, were spontaneous, light, and, of course, dirty. He's a great Dom. I most enjoyed his bafflement and caution as he comes to realize that his desire to bring out Charity's submissive nature/fantasies weighs against his desire just to have her. A Dom that's possibly already in love with the woman he wishes to claim really does make for a thrilling romantic read. 4 out of 5 stars.

Reese Gabriel is a born romantic with a taste for the edgier side of love. Having traveled the world and sampled many of the finer things, Reese now enjoys the greater simplicities—barefoot walks by the ocean, kisses under moonlight and whispers of passion in the darkness with that one special person.

Preferring to remain behind the scenes, cherished by a precious few, Reese hopes to awaken in the lives of many the possibilities of true love through stories of far off places and enchanted lives.

For the sake of love and hope and imagination, these stories are told. May they be enjoyed as much in the reading of them as in the writing.