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The Heat #2
Solar Heat
If she saves his life, he’ll be her enemy forever.
When intersolar mining boss Derrek Archer rescues a beautiful stranger named Azsla from her emergency sleeping pod, the desire between them flares to dangerous heights.
Azsla, a member of the ruling elite, has powers that can save Derrek’s planet from an approaching asteroid, but if she reveals those powers, he’ll learn that she’s not only a spy, but also a slave mistress capable of controlling him and destroying everything he holds dear.
Mastering the hot-blooded miner seems impossible as sexual conquest becomes a battle neither of them can win.
If they and the planet are to survive, they’ll have to rely on one another, trust one another, because love may not be enough.
When intersolar mining boss Derrek Archer rescues a beautiful stranger named Azsla from her emergency sleeping pod, the desire between them flares to dangerous heights.
Azsla, a member of the ruling elite, has powers that can save Derrek’s planet from an approaching asteroid, but if she reveals those powers, he’ll learn that she’s not only a spy, but also a slave mistress capable of controlling him and destroying everything he holds dear.
Mastering the hot-blooded miner seems impossible as sexual conquest becomes a battle neither of them can win.
If they and the planet are to survive, they’ll have to rely on one another, trust one another, because love may not be enough.
384 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published November 18, 2008
35 people are currently reading
189 people want to read
About the author
Susan Kearney
119 books129 followersSusan Kearney used to set herself on fire four times a day, now a USA TODAY—BESTSELLING author, she does something really hot—she writes paranormal romance and romantic suspense for Tor. She can apply the old rule of "write what you know" and never run out of ideas for characters and plots. An All-American and professional diver, expert in martial arts, sailor, real estate broker and owner of a barter business as well as women's fitness and three hair salons, she has enough material for a lifetime.
Kearney, a native of New Jersey, writes full time and has sold books to the industries' top publishing houses — Grand Central, Tor, Simon & Schuster, Harlequin, Berkley, Leisure, Red Sage and Kensington. As an award winning author, Kearney earned a Business Degree from the University of Michigan. Kearney's knowledge and experience spans throughout the romance genre, and her fifty plus books include contemporary, romantic suspense, historical, futuristic, science fiction and paranormal novels. She resides in a suburb of Tampa—with her husband, kids and Boston terrier. Currently she's plotting her way through her 54th work of fiction.
Kearney, a native of New Jersey, writes full time and has sold books to the industries' top publishing houses — Grand Central, Tor, Simon & Schuster, Harlequin, Berkley, Leisure, Red Sage and Kensington. As an award winning author, Kearney earned a Business Degree from the University of Michigan. Kearney's knowledge and experience spans throughout the romance genre, and her fifty plus books include contemporary, romantic suspense, historical, futuristic, science fiction and paranormal novels. She resides in a suburb of Tampa—with her husband, kids and Boston terrier. Currently she's plotting her way through her 54th work of fiction.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
August 15, 2008
One of the other reviewers recommended this book for anyone who liked Anne McCaffrey's The Rowan. I cannot tell you how absolutely wrong that recommendation is.
This book is GOD AWFUL. Susan Kearney totally phoned thsi one in. Let's talk about some of the things I've learned from this book so I can write my own scifi romance:
*When trying to create that sense of an alien environment, the trick is to take something normal, add a common suffix, and italicize it. This book contains such gems as diamondite, granitite, pepperite, jadite, marbellite, and appelite. One might also just very slightly twist familiar words to make them seem exotic and new, such as cinnabari, salmenda (get it? salmon?), gazella, micronbit (as in, “Give me a micronbit”), frong (chirping in the swamp), and vanillan. Also an option is completely making up words for human genitalia, such as longo and minga. (I’m sure you can figure that one out.)
*Random, non-corporeal, telepathic aliens who lower inhibitions and implant sexual fantasies but really have no impact on the plot except at the very end and with the vague explanation for their antics of “you’re meant to be” really help cram in extra love scenes.
*When most of the big issues have been resolved and you’re on a spaceship on your way to plant a bomb on an asteroid heading straight for your home planet in order to divert it far enough away from the gravitational field in order to save everyone stuck on the planet (Zor, in case you were wondering), the aforementioned random, non-corporeal, telepathic alien that’s been bugging you the entire book will randomly get the female protagonist pregnant. What’s more, he will mess with the genetic structure of the babies so that they’re telepathic, which results in such gems as this exchange:
“I’d call altering my children’s DNA and expediting the pregnancy process a helluva lot more than a nudge.”
Dad, it’s going to be all right.
We like being telepathic.
“My children haven’t even been born yet and they are arguing with me. It’s fripping unbelievable.”
“Don’t swear in front of the babies, dear,” Azsla instructed him in a mild tone as if she totally accepted what was going on here.
Yeah, don’t curse, Dad, or you might singe our delicate ears.
You don’t have ears yet, one twin teased the other.
It is good to know that, while the fetuses don’t have ears, they do have fully-formed brains and telepathic powers.
*Finally, when you’ve written yourself into the corner as the female protagonist prepares to set off the bomb in the asteroid which, they’ve learned, is really just a giant alien womb filled with young from the random, non-corporeal, telepathic aliens (”our young begin life corporeally”) and if they blow it up to save their home planet then all the alien fetuses will die, but if they blow the bomb up in a different location it’ll merely be diverted around planet Zor, thus saving the humans AND the alien fetuses but the female protagonist won’t survive the blast because the ship that was coming to pick her up before the bomb went off damaged its engines in the last space-battle with the main antagonist and won’t be repaired in time, you can use those aforementioned telepathic babies to get you out of a sticky jam. Example:
Her only hope was to find the biggest pile of fendiziom available and hide behind it.
Or under it, her baby suggested.
Mom, there’s an ancient tunnel and air, the other twin added. Hurry. Hurry. Hurry.
“A tunnel? Air?” How could her unborn children know about an ancient tunnel?
We learned of the primeval secret from the alien young.
Hurry, Mom.
They proceed to direct her where to drill to unlock the door by giving her directions in precise degrees. Absolutely atrocious, which is a shame, because I'd been actually entertained by the other books in this line. However, the terrible plot of the book didn't diminish the sheer enjoyment my roommate and I found in advising each other of our intentions to journey to the store in search of milkite, eggites, and breadite.
This book is GOD AWFUL. Susan Kearney totally phoned thsi one in. Let's talk about some of the things I've learned from this book so I can write my own scifi romance:
*When trying to create that sense of an alien environment, the trick is to take something normal, add a common suffix, and italicize it. This book contains such gems as diamondite, granitite, pepperite, jadite, marbellite, and appelite. One might also just very slightly twist familiar words to make them seem exotic and new, such as cinnabari, salmenda (get it? salmon?), gazella, micronbit (as in, “Give me a micronbit”), frong (chirping in the swamp), and vanillan. Also an option is completely making up words for human genitalia, such as longo and minga. (I’m sure you can figure that one out.)
*Random, non-corporeal, telepathic aliens who lower inhibitions and implant sexual fantasies but really have no impact on the plot except at the very end and with the vague explanation for their antics of “you’re meant to be” really help cram in extra love scenes.
*When most of the big issues have been resolved and you’re on a spaceship on your way to plant a bomb on an asteroid heading straight for your home planet in order to divert it far enough away from the gravitational field in order to save everyone stuck on the planet (Zor, in case you were wondering), the aforementioned random, non-corporeal, telepathic alien that’s been bugging you the entire book will randomly get the female protagonist pregnant. What’s more, he will mess with the genetic structure of the babies so that they’re telepathic, which results in such gems as this exchange:
“I’d call altering my children’s DNA and expediting the pregnancy process a helluva lot more than a nudge.”
Dad, it’s going to be all right.
We like being telepathic.
“My children haven’t even been born yet and they are arguing with me. It’s fripping unbelievable.”
“Don’t swear in front of the babies, dear,” Azsla instructed him in a mild tone as if she totally accepted what was going on here.
Yeah, don’t curse, Dad, or you might singe our delicate ears.
You don’t have ears yet, one twin teased the other.
It is good to know that, while the fetuses don’t have ears, they do have fully-formed brains and telepathic powers.
*Finally, when you’ve written yourself into the corner as the female protagonist prepares to set off the bomb in the asteroid which, they’ve learned, is really just a giant alien womb filled with young from the random, non-corporeal, telepathic aliens (”our young begin life corporeally”) and if they blow it up to save their home planet then all the alien fetuses will die, but if they blow the bomb up in a different location it’ll merely be diverted around planet Zor, thus saving the humans AND the alien fetuses but the female protagonist won’t survive the blast because the ship that was coming to pick her up before the bomb went off damaged its engines in the last space-battle with the main antagonist and won’t be repaired in time, you can use those aforementioned telepathic babies to get you out of a sticky jam. Example:
Her only hope was to find the biggest pile of fendiziom available and hide behind it.
Or under it, her baby suggested.
Mom, there’s an ancient tunnel and air, the other twin added. Hurry. Hurry. Hurry.
“A tunnel? Air?” How could her unborn children know about an ancient tunnel?
We learned of the primeval secret from the alien young.
Hurry, Mom.
They proceed to direct her where to drill to unlock the door by giving her directions in precise degrees. Absolutely atrocious, which is a shame, because I'd been actually entertained by the other books in this line. However, the terrible plot of the book didn't diminish the sheer enjoyment my roommate and I found in advising each other of our intentions to journey to the store in search of milkite, eggites, and breadite.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 15, 2011
This book was awesome. Not awesome good, mind you, but awesome. It was perfect garbage sci-fi with perfect (in my limited experience) garbage romance in it. Seriously, the romance is like exactly what Achewood does. Stupid class struggle, stupid lies between lovers, stupid lovers. The sci-fi is equally stupid - Aslza, the sexy (?) super (?) spy (???) is psychic because she ate enough salt when she was a kid. Really. I mean it. Last I checked that gave you hypertension, yet in this book there's only hyperdrive and sexual tension. (Okay that was a stretch). But seriously folks! If you want to read a book where you will not stop laughing, this is the book for you.
November 13, 2015
Well honestly, this book was very weird. It wasn't well written, at times it was incredibly redundant. The story was weird, apparently people had incredible powers because of... SALT. Anyway, maybe they had a different salt, a good one that didn't cause hypertension, but that doesn't matter. It is definetly strange. I don't give it less stars because even though it was lame, I kinda liked the two main characters and they kept me rooting for them. So there. Two stars...
May 31, 2019
I actually enjoyed this book. I wasn't sure about the futuristic aspect, but it worked here. Azsla is a strong main character so I liked her immediately. I'll admit, it got crazy toward the end. If you're looking for something different than your normal reading material, then you may want to give this a try.
Read
April 1, 2012A science fiction romance that's worthy of a read. (Despite the cover!)
SYNOPSIS:
There's this group of slavemaster overlords called the 'Firsts'. The privileged ones who enslaved the vast majority of the population by using a special ESP type of power. Slaves who resist are killed or mind-wiped. The masters are ruthless, without mercy and quite evil.
A large contingent of slaves escaped through a wormhole. They have had 10 years of freedom to colonize another planet on the other side of the wormhole.
The Firsts chose "Azsla" the heroine to be a spy. Her mission is to lead a real band of escaped slaves on a stolen ship through the wormhole to the freed slave's colony. She's to re-capture the very group she escaped with on the other side, and work with other spies to effect the downfall of the escaped slaves civilization.
Azsla has a great chance of succeeding as she has a specially trained ability to control her need to dominate and use her special power. Most of the Firsts have no ability to control their dominance and have to resort to drugs to blend in as spies. The drugs have drawbacks, as they are both detectable by the former slaves, and cause the spies to be mushy headed and somewhat unreliable to think clearly.
Azsla's ship is destroyed, and she goes through the wormhole in an escape pod. She is rescued by this dreamy hero who is instantly concerned that he has rescued a First spy. They fall head over heals for each other and tumble along with the political intrigue associated with the rise of the new republic of escaped slaves. Azsla reluctantly discovers that maybe - oh say - killing an entire world of slaves as revenge might not be the nice thing to do, so she switches sides.
She helps the hero rescue his own family, and ultimately helps him save the new world.
What I liked: I loved the sci-fi of this book. It was just as cool as a Heinlein, but - oh with love scenes thrown in. The everyday aspect of their lives were what was so fascinating. How they did commerce, how they lived, how they governed. It was all part of a good package.
This is part of a series of books. I read them out of order, and am looking forward to reading the others in this series. I heartily recommend Solar Heat for any sci-fi romance fans.
SYNOPSIS:
There's this group of slavemaster overlords called the 'Firsts'. The privileged ones who enslaved the vast majority of the population by using a special ESP type of power. Slaves who resist are killed or mind-wiped. The masters are ruthless, without mercy and quite evil.
A large contingent of slaves escaped through a wormhole. They have had 10 years of freedom to colonize another planet on the other side of the wormhole.
The Firsts chose "Azsla" the heroine to be a spy. Her mission is to lead a real band of escaped slaves on a stolen ship through the wormhole to the freed slave's colony. She's to re-capture the very group she escaped with on the other side, and work with other spies to effect the downfall of the escaped slaves civilization.
Azsla has a great chance of succeeding as she has a specially trained ability to control her need to dominate and use her special power. Most of the Firsts have no ability to control their dominance and have to resort to drugs to blend in as spies. The drugs have drawbacks, as they are both detectable by the former slaves, and cause the spies to be mushy headed and somewhat unreliable to think clearly.
Azsla's ship is destroyed, and she goes through the wormhole in an escape pod. She is rescued by this dreamy hero who is instantly concerned that he has rescued a First spy. They fall head over heals for each other and tumble along with the political intrigue associated with the rise of the new republic of escaped slaves. Azsla reluctantly discovers that maybe - oh say - killing an entire world of slaves as revenge might not be the nice thing to do, so she switches sides.
She helps the hero rescue his own family, and ultimately helps him save the new world.
What I liked: I loved the sci-fi of this book. It was just as cool as a Heinlein, but - oh with love scenes thrown in. The everyday aspect of their lives were what was so fascinating. How they did commerce, how they lived, how they governed. It was all part of a good package.
This is part of a series of books. I read them out of order, and am looking forward to reading the others in this series. I heartily recommend Solar Heat for any sci-fi romance fans.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 10, 2008
This book was awful! It started out so good and just degenerated into a huge incoherent mess. It's like the author saw that the book was getting up there in page length and decided to wrap it up with no regards to logic, flow or even coherence. The female lead became pregnant and ready to almost give birth on the same damn page!!!! How stupid is that? I was so disappointed.
April 27, 2012
Well I liked it. It was not bad as some other people says... maybe it's a different taste kind... I don't know but I liked it mostly because both the hero and the heroine were not debating overly about the rightness of their love: they just accepted it after a reasonable time and went along with it. It was a nice difference. The story was interesting and fast paced.
August 11, 2016
Solar Heat
The Heat #2
By: Susan Kearney
5 stars
Reviewed by:Angels
Format:Kindle
Published: Belle Books
Source:ARC NetGallery Gene: Futuristic Romance
http://angelswithattitudebookreviews-...
Blurb
Is she an indispensable ally or his worst enemy?
When intersolar mining entrepreneur Derrek Archer rescues Azsla from her emergency sleeping pod, he's confounded by his desire for her - and the other strange feelings that begin to emerge whenever they're together.
Is she better off with him or without him?
Azsla's attracted to the sexy asteroid miner, but she fears getting close to Derrek might compromise her mission - and reveal that she's an enemy spy.
Looming over them is a cataclysm of deadly proportions - for if Azsla doesn't complete her mission, more than one world could be destroyed. She and Derrek must overcome their distrust, suspicion, and opposing loyalties, but between Azsla's secret, and Derrek's murky past, this mission may bring them closer together - or tear them apart.
Our Review
This is not the kind of normally read so I mixed things up and decided to give this title a try.I read some of Susan's books many years ago and loved her Rysrani series so I thought to see what was in store in her new heat series.
I loved it.From cover to cover.I really enjoyed Derrek Archer and Azsal story.I am always excited to re- discover an author you haven't read for sometime and realize you still love there writing.I will admit that for many years I stuck to one reading gene and the same authors and never ventured but, once I took the plunge a whole new world opened up for me.So be adventurous to and you won't be disappointed.
The story takes place in space were Aszal and her crew of escaped slaves are on the way to the planet Zor. Aszal is on a spy mission to discover information on there military defenses. Zor is now a planet that was built from escapee slaves from the planet Rama. During there escape there were technical difficulties and they had to escape to several pods into space and hopefully to be discovered so she could fulfill her mission.
Aszal and Derrek met as he is the one who discovered her and her crew.The sparks fly once Derrek set eyes on Azsal he felt this possessiveness and jealousy he has never experienced before.Thinking in a plot of some kind he tries to dismiss it.If only his feelings were that easy to ignore.
My favorite character had to be Aszal I love when you have a strong female character.One that is witty ,smart,beautiful and deadly all wrapped up into one package.We also saw another side of Aszal of being able to be a loving and caring person. Azsal has a very complicated past.She struggles daily to suppress who she really is not just her real identity but also her true Quait abilities that would give her away.I admired Aszal for the decisions she would be forced to make and by coming to know her character by now I felt confident she would make the right choices.
Derrek the hunky asteroid miner character is complicated as well.A former slave who is now on of the most influential man on the planet Zor. Forced to start his life over again after his mind was scrubbed for a crime he didn't commit.You feel Derrek's pain of heartache at feeling the loss of his former family and his life as a slave who was under the control of the Quait echelons or former masters.He has made a new life for himself and his crew and loves living in space but, also has established homes on land.
Learning the background of this couple there fierce attraction complicates things. Aszal she can't tell the truth without exposing herself and after learning more about Derrek's past he will not be able to let go of his past so easily and accept her for who she really is. Aszal knows no matter what her mission is she is not happy about being one to betray them after coming to know and care for Derrek and his crew.
What a page turner for me and the complicated relationship between this couple took us with them on there amazing journey of finding love and starting over and showed us how to overcome ones past.We saw that people can change if they let go of ones past in hopes of finding ones true life- mate.There was so much intrigue going on around this couple throughout this book that you never new what would happen next.I believe it just made the love between them grow stronger.The story was also filled with political intrigue ,betrayals,unlikely friendships being developed.Surprises of all kinds.Love and laughter.The plot had everything that a reader could want.I loved the characters and the odds they all had to overcome.
Really enjoyed this story from the beginning to end.I know there is mixed reviews about this one you seem to love it or hate it but ,I for one really enjoyed the story and I am looking forward to the next installment in this series.
Recommended to readers who love science fiction. reads and futuristic romance.
My favorite quote form the book !
"My children haven't been born yet ,and they are arguing with me. It's fripping unbelievable."
December 27, 2013
Once again, I've got the distinct feeling I've read this before. The sequence when they're evacuating the planet (or trying to) came through most clearly. I'm 99% sure I read this in its prior release - not a bad thing at all, as I certainly enjoyed the ride the second time!
In Lunar Heat, we got to see the evil side of the Firsts from Rama. In Solar Heat, we learned that (of course) not all is black and white, and there are different Firsts. Oh sure, Azsla believes she has every right to retake the slave world, but she's been scarred by the slave uprising (slaves slaughtered her parents as they escaped Rama), so I can't really blame her for resenting them. She's also willing to admit when she might have been wrong/that the Firsts have it wrong about the underfirsts' ability to take care of themselves. I think she legitimately believed they weren't able to function without Firsts to take care of them until she visited the new world the escaped slaves built.
Derrek is Cade's brother (the hero of Solar Heat). He's built a really good life for him even though he has no memory of his earlier life because it was wiped from him as punishment for some misdeed against the Firsts. He understandably has issues with the Firsts and really wants to keep his people free of them. He's a strong man who's utterly focused on making sure the escaped Raman slaves have the best chance of making something of the new world they've inhabited. He's also filthy rich, having started a salt mining operation shortly after escaping. Heh.
Azsla and Derrek are a very interesting couple. I was fascinated as I watched Azsla strugged to control her Quait. The mental powers of the Firsts became almost a living thing as embodied in her, and the potrayal of her constant struggle not to give in to the need to use it, what was as natural to her as breathing, was well done.
The mission Azsla and Derrek go on after Derreck discovers Azsla's true identity was fraught with an additional layer of tension because he was so worried she might betray him/his people. And the ultimate quest to destroy/deflect the asteroid revealed a very interesting tie-in to Ms. Kearney's Rystani Warriors series as well.
This was a fantastic book and I can't wait to read more by Ms. Kearney! 5 stars!
Book provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
In Lunar Heat, we got to see the evil side of the Firsts from Rama. In Solar Heat, we learned that (of course) not all is black and white, and there are different Firsts. Oh sure, Azsla believes she has every right to retake the slave world, but she's been scarred by the slave uprising (slaves slaughtered her parents as they escaped Rama), so I can't really blame her for resenting them. She's also willing to admit when she might have been wrong/that the Firsts have it wrong about the underfirsts' ability to take care of themselves. I think she legitimately believed they weren't able to function without Firsts to take care of them until she visited the new world the escaped slaves built.
Derrek is Cade's brother (the hero of Solar Heat). He's built a really good life for him even though he has no memory of his earlier life because it was wiped from him as punishment for some misdeed against the Firsts. He understandably has issues with the Firsts and really wants to keep his people free of them. He's a strong man who's utterly focused on making sure the escaped Raman slaves have the best chance of making something of the new world they've inhabited. He's also filthy rich, having started a salt mining operation shortly after escaping. Heh.
Azsla and Derrek are a very interesting couple. I was fascinated as I watched Azsla strugged to control her Quait. The mental powers of the Firsts became almost a living thing as embodied in her, and the potrayal of her constant struggle not to give in to the need to use it, what was as natural to her as breathing, was well done.
The mission Azsla and Derrek go on after Derreck discovers Azsla's true identity was fraught with an additional layer of tension because he was so worried she might betray him/his people. And the ultimate quest to destroy/deflect the asteroid revealed a very interesting tie-in to Ms. Kearney's Rystani Warriors series as well.
This was a fantastic book and I can't wait to read more by Ms. Kearney! 5 stars!
Book provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
February 21, 2017
I kind of hate it when the author feels obliged to provide a happy ending to a situation that couldn't possibly have one.
March 7, 2013
This was a really good book. I loved the plot, characters and pretty much everything about it. I loved the paranormal aspects too. They were different and a little new and were a great addition as well as the unexpected twists and turns. I loved the action and the suspense. This was written well and definitely pulled me in. Kept me reading into the wee hours. I would read this again and am looking forward to reading the other book in this series. This is almost like Battlestar Galatica meets Armageddon (Bruce Willis movie, not the Apocalypse). This is definitely a keeper! I can't really think of anything bad about this except for the Ramans (supposed to be bad anyway) and the ex-wife...I soooo wanted to smack her upside the head, repeatedly. Errrrggg! Get a grip lady. Anywho, Great book...Read it. Enjoy!
May 15, 2008
Azsla is a spy sent to sabotage a colony started by escaped slaves, but when she falls for mining CEO Derrek Archer, betrayal becomes her game. Can she and Derrek stop her people from destroying his world? If you like a blend of sci fi with romance, this is for you.
January 22, 2011
I really enjoyed the book although I think at times it seemed a little rushed (Derrek forgives Azsla a little too easily after being determined not to) and some things arent explained for example what happened to Micoo? On the whole though it was a good book.
July 22, 2008
Taking place in a world where slavery of all races is taking place, this book shows that no mater the cause, slavery is never a good thing.
July 18, 2010
Space romance, packed chock full of a storyline, light on the romance, and a fast, enjoyable romance.
October 12, 2012
Read this book over two years ago and can't seem to draw on the feelings or memories that are usually lingering with every good book I have read. I don't know.
November 23, 2016
Too much forced like between the main characters, too much forgiveness too fast, too much some alien saves the day just in time, and the science?? It was enough to turn me off the rest of the story.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews