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Chronicles of the Empire Book #2.5
Enemy Mine
It was a priority-two alert for beautiful Commander Cashel Khaleize: a contract put out on the life of Xiao Zhong. Professionally, Xiao was the Captain she reported to. Personally, he was man she desired. But as female Guild Assassin Mekise Tollenga closes in, Xiao wonders if even Cashel can be trusted with his safety. And with a tenuous bond between them, Cashel wonders how far she’s willing to go to earn that trust.
91 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 3, 2012
2 people are currently reading
105 people want to read
About the author
Marcella Burnard
11 books138 followersMarcella Burnard graduated from Cornish College of the Arts with a degree in acting. She writes science fiction romance for Berkley Sensation. Her first book, Enemy Within won the Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice award for Best Futuristic of 2010. The second book in the series, Enemy Games, released on May 3, 2011. An erotica novella, Enemy Mine, set in the same world as the novels was released as an e-special edition by Berkley in April 2012. Emissary, a sword and sorcery short story released in the two volume Thunder on the Battlefield Anthology in the second half of 2013. Nightmare Ink, an Urban Fantasy novel from Intermix available April 15, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
April 19, 2012
Wow! Marcella Burnard put some steam in this little sci-fi romance. Naughty, naughty!
Captain Xiao Zhong has ways of making beautiful Commander Cashel Khaleize talk. They've been attracted to each other since she was assigned to his command a year ago. Xiao discovers encrypted messages leaving his ship and creatively interrogates Cashel.
Cashel is more than she seems. She has been assigned to protect Xiao, and a transmission states an assassin is en route. When Cashel reaches Xiao's home he uses the opportunity to push Cashiel's boundaries, question her purpose, and explore their attraction.
Both characters stay true to their roles. Xiao knows she is something potentially dangerous to his crew, and doesn't make any foolish moves in the name of lust. Cashiel wasn't made into a wimpy vulnerable woman overcome by sexy moves. The two of them together were combustible and still smart.
This is a hot,short,fast-paced story and I liked it...alot! I admit I forgot some of the world-building from the first book (struggles from an empire, defections to what should be the enemy but is not the enemy, and some nasty insect-looking aliens, the violent Chekydran, that get off on their blood) so I was a little confused but it was easy to enjoy the sexual tension/romance between Xiao and Cashel. It's noted there is some light BDSM in this steamy novella. This means there's bondage, spanking, and one moment of naughty foreplay. If you want to give this author this is a good read.
Grade - B+
Captain Xiao Zhong has ways of making beautiful Commander Cashel Khaleize talk. They've been attracted to each other since she was assigned to his command a year ago. Xiao discovers encrypted messages leaving his ship and creatively interrogates Cashel.
Cashel is more than she seems. She has been assigned to protect Xiao, and a transmission states an assassin is en route. When Cashel reaches Xiao's home he uses the opportunity to push Cashiel's boundaries, question her purpose, and explore their attraction.
Both characters stay true to their roles. Xiao knows she is something potentially dangerous to his crew, and doesn't make any foolish moves in the name of lust. Cashiel wasn't made into a wimpy vulnerable woman overcome by sexy moves. The two of them together were combustible and still smart.
This is a hot,short,fast-paced story and I liked it...alot! I admit I forgot some of the world-building from the first book (struggles from an empire, defections to what should be the enemy but is not the enemy, and some nasty insect-looking aliens, the violent Chekydran, that get off on their blood) so I was a little confused but it was easy to enjoy the sexual tension/romance between Xiao and Cashel. It's noted there is some light BDSM in this steamy novella. This means there's bondage, spanking, and one moment of naughty foreplay. If you want to give this author this is a good read.
Grade - B+
August 16, 2014
I remember enjoying Marcella Burnard's first book in this universe, but I couldn't remember what the story was about or why I liked it; just that it had a good blend of romance and sci-fi.
Looking back at my review for the first book, Enemy Within, I see that I was confused by what was going on. If I look at the plot for this short story, I sort of get that same feeling. The author very briefly mentioned different governments and/or organizations, and I had no idea who mattered, who were the good guys, the bad guys, the random guys that had no allegiance. In short, I do not understand this universe. At all.
So, if you give this book a try, just know it is difficult to understand all the stuff going on the universe. That's not a problem with this short story, because the universe stuff makes up so little of the plot. This is a romance. At least 90% of the book is seduction and sex. The cover should have cued me into that, but I still expected more action and plot than seduction and sex. I wanted more plot than that, but I still really enjoyed this. I think it's because I see that this is the type of sci-fi romance author that I can love. I just need to wrap my mind around the world building.
Even though this wasn't what I expected, I enjoyed it. I would have given it for stars except for a few things.
1. SPOILER! The head of the Big Bad Assassin's Guild is afraid of water? Seriously? That's what takes her down? This one little fact weakened the enemy so much that I didn't feel like she was a threat at all, and the fact that the main character thought she was, made me question how good an assassin SHE was.
2. I'm totally blushing as I'm writing this, but toward the end, there's some spanking and some neural device thingy that, to me, comes out of nowhere. It didn't seem to fit with the characters. At least, not the characters I had in my head, so it really pulled me out of the story. I guess it felt forced?
Anyway, if you like really hot sci-fi romance with a decent, but very little plot, this book should work well for you. I enjoyed it enough that I'm going to read the next book in the series.
(Okay. I've already read the first chapter of the next book. I am soooo confused! I might have to write down every person, agency, government, etc. and make some kind of flow chart to get it straight in my head. Maybe it's just me not understanding all of this?)
Looking back at my review for the first book, Enemy Within, I see that I was confused by what was going on. If I look at the plot for this short story, I sort of get that same feeling. The author very briefly mentioned different governments and/or organizations, and I had no idea who mattered, who were the good guys, the bad guys, the random guys that had no allegiance. In short, I do not understand this universe. At all.
So, if you give this book a try, just know it is difficult to understand all the stuff going on the universe. That's not a problem with this short story, because the universe stuff makes up so little of the plot. This is a romance. At least 90% of the book is seduction and sex. The cover should have cued me into that, but I still expected more action and plot than seduction and sex. I wanted more plot than that, but I still really enjoyed this. I think it's because I see that this is the type of sci-fi romance author that I can love. I just need to wrap my mind around the world building.
Even though this wasn't what I expected, I enjoyed it. I would have given it for stars except for a few things.
1. SPOILER! The head of the Big Bad Assassin's Guild is afraid of water? Seriously? That's what takes her down? This one little fact weakened the enemy so much that I didn't feel like she was a threat at all, and the fact that the main character thought she was, made me question how good an assassin SHE was.
2. I'm totally blushing as I'm writing this, but toward the end, there's some spanking and some neural device thingy that, to me, comes out of nowhere. It didn't seem to fit with the characters. At least, not the characters I had in my head, so it really pulled me out of the story. I guess it felt forced?
Anyway, if you like really hot sci-fi romance with a decent, but very little plot, this book should work well for you. I enjoyed it enough that I'm going to read the next book in the series.
(Okay. I've already read the first chapter of the next book. I am soooo confused! I might have to write down every person, agency, government, etc. and make some kind of flow chart to get it straight in my head. Maybe it's just me not understanding all of this?)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 21, 2014
This one was a disappointment for me after the spectacular first 2 books (Enemy Within and Enemy Games). I really don't care for using sex/seduction/foreplay as a weapon/punishment. Cashel is a fairly well developed character considering the length. More background on Xiao would have been nice. Just okay for me.
July 22, 2018
Too much of a side rump for me.
April 17, 2012
Another short story (had to get SOME reading done at the airport on the way home from the RT Convention!). Again, I rate these a little differently than novels because I have to consider that it is a lot tougher to develop a character or an HEA for a new couple in a short story than in a novella - so I consider that in my rating.
I'm not usually a big fan of the futuristic space stories, but this is one of the few series of that type that I make an exception for (it almost has a Battelstar Galactica or original Star Trek type of feel to it - and yes, I'm dating myself!). Marcella Burnard writes a great book and this series appeals to me - in fact, it is fast becoming on my favorites (I prefer to have more than 2 books to base that on, so I'll withhold a final decision on that until after the next full length novel comes out). This short story is a little under 70 pages (68 pages I think it was) , but for some reason, this one really sucked me in. There was a good story and pretty strong character development...and a fair amount of sex/sexual tension/sexual lead ins throughout the story (pretty good considering it was a short!). The story really felt longer than it was - which to me is a mark of a really well-written short story. I didn't go quite to the 5 star level with this one but I will happily give it 4 1/2 stars. For some reason this story stuck with me after I finished it and I have to say it was HOT! In fact, I'll take the Captain home with me any day! While I would have loved to see a longer version of this story, a full length version wasn't necessary to connect with the characters or to follow and believe their HEA. I was fully invested in the story and the back story for the heroine (who had the most problems to overcome) was very well presented and gave me a clear understanding of who and what she is - as well as who and what she was...and wanted to be. There was very little back story on the Captain and that is the only reason this fell short of a 5 star review for me. While I really loved the character the Captain was portrayed as, there was no deeper understanding of him (although he may not have had significant issues to deal with). If you are not a follower of the series, this is a nice read, but it doesn't really provide enough data on the world or the situation for a "newbie" to get invested in the series. If you are a follower of the series and enjoy a HOT story, you have got to read this just for the enjoyment of it. Highly recommended.
I'm not usually a big fan of the futuristic space stories, but this is one of the few series of that type that I make an exception for (it almost has a Battelstar Galactica or original Star Trek type of feel to it - and yes, I'm dating myself!). Marcella Burnard writes a great book and this series appeals to me - in fact, it is fast becoming on my favorites (I prefer to have more than 2 books to base that on, so I'll withhold a final decision on that until after the next full length novel comes out). This short story is a little under 70 pages (68 pages I think it was) , but for some reason, this one really sucked me in. There was a good story and pretty strong character development...and a fair amount of sex/sexual tension/sexual lead ins throughout the story (pretty good considering it was a short!). The story really felt longer than it was - which to me is a mark of a really well-written short story. I didn't go quite to the 5 star level with this one but I will happily give it 4 1/2 stars. For some reason this story stuck with me after I finished it and I have to say it was HOT! In fact, I'll take the Captain home with me any day! While I would have loved to see a longer version of this story, a full length version wasn't necessary to connect with the characters or to follow and believe their HEA. I was fully invested in the story and the back story for the heroine (who had the most problems to overcome) was very well presented and gave me a clear understanding of who and what she is - as well as who and what she was...and wanted to be. There was very little back story on the Captain and that is the only reason this fell short of a 5 star review for me. While I really loved the character the Captain was portrayed as, there was no deeper understanding of him (although he may not have had significant issues to deal with). If you are not a follower of the series, this is a nice read, but it doesn't really provide enough data on the world or the situation for a "newbie" to get invested in the series. If you are a follower of the series and enjoy a HOT story, you have got to read this just for the enjoyment of it. Highly recommended.
July 27, 2014
I really enjoyed Enemy Within and, unlike some others, felt that Enemy Games was even better as the action was, without a doubt, more riveting and compelling and dragged me along at the speed of light behind it with a big ball of 'awww' in my throat.
Enemy Mine... Where was the story? The character development? Yes, it was a short story but it doesn't feel like it was written by the same author! Because, that author wouldn't run a story that goes Heroine warns Hero that assassin is after him. Hero goes "Okay, let's have sex". "Let's have lots of semi D&S sex". As... snort... interrogation because you won't tell me who sent you to protect me. Assassin threat? Nah, you threat that I will seduce. Not because you, like, want to choke me out or anything, but because you won't tell me who made you my bodyguard. Guess you'll have to guard your body... from me.
Don't get me wrong - as an extended love scene the story was just fine. Sexy even. But, Enemy Within and Enemy Games were good sci-fi romance, heavy on the sci-fi and story. Enemy Mine could have been ANY romance genre - there was almost no sci-fi elements besides introduction of a new kind of animal and mention of a type of sci-fi bomb. The remainder could have taken place in modern day Hawaii (because the setting is real purty) or 1800s Hawaii or... anywhere.
Sadly disappointed. Maybe if I hadn't read the other two books first I would have thought it was fine, but compared to Enemy Within and Enemy Games it was sadly disappointing. I wish she hadn't wasted the hero (and the heroine) on this short format, but had instead given them a whole book to make us care about them.
Enemy Mine... Where was the story? The character development? Yes, it was a short story but it doesn't feel like it was written by the same author! Because, that author wouldn't run a story that goes Heroine warns Hero that assassin is after him. Hero goes "Okay, let's have sex". "Let's have lots of semi D&S sex". As... snort... interrogation because you won't tell me who sent you to protect me. Assassin threat? Nah, you threat that I will seduce. Not because you, like, want to choke me out or anything, but because you won't tell me who made you my bodyguard. Guess you'll have to guard your body... from me.
Don't get me wrong - as an extended love scene the story was just fine. Sexy even. But, Enemy Within and Enemy Games were good sci-fi romance, heavy on the sci-fi and story. Enemy Mine could have been ANY romance genre - there was almost no sci-fi elements besides introduction of a new kind of animal and mention of a type of sci-fi bomb. The remainder could have taken place in modern day Hawaii (because the setting is real purty) or 1800s Hawaii or... anywhere.
Sadly disappointed. Maybe if I hadn't read the other two books first I would have thought it was fine, but compared to Enemy Within and Enemy Games it was sadly disappointing. I wish she hadn't wasted the hero (and the heroine) on this short format, but had instead given them a whole book to make us care about them.
April 29, 2012
This is a delightfully hot story.
Cashel and Xiao are great characters and I enjoyed the developing romance between them. For a novella the character development and the romance were very well worked out and believable. I sometimes felt neither of them took the treat of the assassin serious though, but with the sizzling hot sexual tension between them I couldn't blame them too much.
There's a slight BDSM element to this story that I very much enjoyed, but that's light enough to not scare away readers who are not into BDSM.
I do wish this story had been a little longer. I finished it much too soon and wouldn't have minded if the tension between Xiao and Cashel had been drawn out a bit longer. But I feel that way about every good story, so don't mind me ;-)
Cashel and Xiao are great characters and I enjoyed the developing romance between them. For a novella the character development and the romance were very well worked out and believable. I sometimes felt neither of them took the treat of the assassin serious though, but with the sizzling hot sexual tension between them I couldn't blame them too much.
There's a slight BDSM element to this story that I very much enjoyed, but that's light enough to not scare away readers who are not into BDSM.
I do wish this story had been a little longer. I finished it much too soon and wouldn't have minded if the tension between Xiao and Cashel had been drawn out a bit longer. But I feel that way about every good story, so don't mind me ;-)
June 7, 2012
I won't add to the story line as some other reviewers have done. But I want to say that I have read the other two books in this series and, although this is a novella, I liked it more than the others. I felt she developed her characters extremely well in a short time. I even wasn't put off by the sex in it and normally I prefer more action, less sex in my books. I do wish there had been more to the scenes when the assassin arrived. I am not a real big fan of sci-fi/fantasy where people and places are not 'real' to me, so that is why I gave it 4 stars - it just isn't my area of interest. As another reviewer said somewhere, I wish we could give 'half' grades. I would give this a 4 1/2.
December 17, 2012
I liked Marcella Burnard's first Enemy novel; a mixture of scifi, romance and political intrigue and I kind of jumped over book two to read Enemy Mine. What a hot, kinky little read plus it had the bonus of feeling very 'complete' for a novella, always a plus! I think Enemy Games is in my near future.
July 30, 2016
Not for me. Short boring bondage erotic lacking in a story with dull characters I cared nothing about. It may appeal to some but I was out as soon as the hero cuffed the heroine to seduce/interrogate her and they had lots of sex while she was being held against her will but really she didn't mind cause she liked it.
June 1, 2014
Enemy Mine is science fiction spiced with some sex and an evil assassin. I think I like this one better than the second book, but not as much as Enemy Within. Reading the preceding books is not essential to reading Enemy Mine.
April 28, 2013
This one made me a little uncomfortable, in the is this fetishy or just...?
July 29, 2012
This book was definitely different from the first two but very interesting.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews