This is a great book with a lousy title. Well, not lousy precisely but it does give the wrong impression of the book. This is an action based science fiction romance written by one of my favorite authors. Its got space pirates [both good and bad], psychics with varied gifts, a death cult with the fast track on destroying the universe, and an outstanding cast of characters [again, both good and bad.]
The hero is Pyr, captain of the spaceship Raptor, widely known as a ruthless pirate, and as he [and we] find out in the first chapter, dying. A suitably alpha male he has things to accomplish before that happens, specifically he needs to track down a missing crew member. He doesnt have time to look for a Healer but rushes to capture one when he stumbles across her.
The heroine is Roxanne, a uniquely gifted Physician and Healer. She trained hard to become a Physician with all the medical knowledge of the United Systems at her fingertips but she was born a Healer a gift from her Koltiri mother. Healers use their own psychic powers to heal but those powers are limited by the personal stamina of the Healer. As both Physician and Healer, Roxanne is called away from her ship to help fight the Sagouran plague which seems incurable and is burning its way through whole planetary populations .
Hes determined to find the missing crew member, shes determined to find a cure for the Sagouran plague. The hero and heroine come together while fighting their backgrounds, the bond and each other.
Is there sex? Sure but not detailed and a lot of it is mental maneuvering before sealing what the author calls a shalsae bond which ties the bonded together soul to soul. Even more there is love in many forms between Roxanne and Pyr and their crewmates and kin.
Is there action? Lots! Theres the destroying the pirate base and rescuing the missing crew member; closely followed by the whole save the universe gig.
Id say if you like Sharon Lee and Steve Miller Liaden books, or Linnea Sinclairs books youll find this a satisfying read.
Sadly this a stand-alone novel. However she has written another futuristic SF novel called Dark Stranger in the Vampire Primes series [or the Vampire Book Club series, depends where you look]. There is also a short story related to Dark Stranger called By Sun and Candlelight [currently only available as an ebook].
The hero is Pyr, captain of the spaceship Raptor, widely known as a ruthless pirate, and as he [and we] find out in the first chapter, dying. A suitably alpha male he has things to accomplish before that happens, specifically he needs to track down a missing crew member. He doesnt have time to look for a Healer but rushes to capture one when he stumbles across her.
The heroine is Roxanne, a uniquely gifted Physician and Healer. She trained hard to become a Physician with all the medical knowledge of the United Systems at her fingertips but she was born a Healer a gift from her Koltiri mother. Healers use their own psychic powers to heal but those powers are limited by the personal stamina of the Healer. As both Physician and Healer, Roxanne is called away from her ship to help fight the Sagouran plague which seems incurable and is burning its way through whole planetary populations .
Hes determined to find the missing crew member, shes determined to find a cure for the Sagouran plague. The hero and heroine come together while fighting their backgrounds, the bond and each other.
Is there sex? Sure but not detailed and a lot of it is mental maneuvering before sealing what the author calls a shalsae bond which ties the bonded together soul to soul. Even more there is love in many forms between Roxanne and Pyr and their crewmates and kin.
Is there action? Lots! Theres the destroying the pirate base and rescuing the missing crew member; closely followed by the whole save the universe gig.
Id say if you like Sharon Lee and Steve Miller Liaden books, or Linnea Sinclairs books youll find this a satisfying read.
Sadly this a stand-alone novel. However she has written another futuristic SF novel called Dark Stranger in the Vampire Primes series [or the Vampire Book Club series, depends where you look]. There is also a short story related to Dark Stranger called By Sun and Candlelight [currently only available as an ebook].
I admit it. I like space pirates. I like rogue psychics. I love derring-do in space, spaceships flashing across galaxies to
save the Federation, or whatever--United Systems in this case. I think it was her first, a time travel story with SyFy
background that she could probably write decent space opera. So I was inclined to be pleased with this book when I finally
got around to reading it. And it provides a satifying amount of what I really like in escapist fiction.
Some people will say it starts slow and awkward. Susan did an excellent job of laying out the plot of this book and then
executing it. And her characteration was very well done. Also it probably could have used a stronger editorial hand when
dealing with the psychic cavorting, but there's some real moments of mischievous humor in this book.
save the Federation, or whatever--United Systems in this case. I think it was her first, a time travel story with SyFy
background that she could probably write decent space opera. So I was inclined to be pleased with this book when I finally
got around to reading it. And it provides a satifying amount of what I really like in escapist fiction.
Some people will say it starts slow and awkward. Susan did an excellent job of laying out the plot of this book and then
executing it. And her characteration was very well done. Also it probably could have used a stronger editorial hand when
dealing with the psychic cavorting, but there's some real moments of mischievous humor in this book.
