StarJumper's Bride
J.A. ClarkeFantasy romance
Available from Lionhearted Publishing
ISBN: 1-57343-066-8
March 2005
| Cassie Gordon was on the Araminy bound to Treaine when it was attacked. The men and wounded were murdered, and the women taken as captives. For weeks, she and the other women were in a drug-induced state, used as slave-labor for mining. And while the other women were often raped, Cassie escaped the fate, for a while. She comes out of the haze to find herself blindfolded on the flesh auction block. She's bought by a man who assures her she's safe, but until she finds herself back on Treaine, she can't believe it. Even if he does seem trustworthy and caring.
Sebastien Asteril knows Cassie is telling the truth. The Araminy was reported destroyed, all passengers dead, weeks ago. But part of her story is strange. A Mogton warlord bidding on her and the addictive drug, shlil dust, the slaves mined. He doesn't understand how they are connected until she says her captors called her sis-ka'la, which is a powerful ingredient in the shlil dust. StarJumper's Bride is a pretty good sci-fi romance. I probably enjoyed the characterization the most. Sebastien was the epitome of a rakishly laid back hero, and a very good balance for Cassie, who was usually serious and understandably uptight after her ordeal. But Cassie wasn't a bad uptight, especially since Sebastien was able to loosen her up with his ever-present good humor. Besides being really sexy, Sebastien was just plain good. Were he real, he'd be the guy everyone got along with. Cassie was also a pretty good heroine. She reacted the way anyone would in various situations without giving into stupidity or becoming too emotional, thought she never once seemed unemotional or rigid. I really liked her when she and Sebastien finally got through their initial period of standoffishness. Of course, once that happened, you can imagine the sensual romps that went on, Sebastien being who he was. The mystery and action surrounding the Mogton/shilil dust plot would often disappear for a while during certain points, usually to focus attention on the romance, only to pop up later to surprise the characters. While it wasn't a driving focus of the story, it added conflict to an otherwise straight-forward story. The romance was that driving force, and I found it really enjoyable. The writing and pace of the story just made StarJumper's Bride easy to read and likeable.
Overall rating:
Reviewer: Tara Black |
