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New Earth #1

White Christmas

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What if your only chance at survival was to seduce the man who broke your heart?

Seventeen years after the Apocalypse, Admiral-class Explorer Tabysha is caught up in a firefight and shot down over Tyver, where ice vampires hunt human warmth. Seeking shelter in an ice cave, she is instructed to stay put and await rescue. But after another ship crash-lands, and the Hunter Gatherers stalk its wounded pilot, Tabi breaks protocol.

When it turns out the survivor is the man who stole her heart then skipped out on her ten years before, it seems to Tabi that no good deed goes unpunished, and things can’t get any worse. But she’s so wrong.

As the Hunters pick up the escalating heat signature of the former lovers, Tabi has to tell Asha that there is only one way to repel the creatures stalking them.

And it involves picking up where they left off ten years before.

29 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 1, 2013

15 people are currently reading
144 people want to read

About the author

Ros Baxter

22 books37 followers
Ros writes fresh, funny, genre-busting fiction. She digs feisty heroines, good friends, quirky families, heroes to make you sigh and tingle, and a dash of fantasy from time to time.

She lives in Brisbane, Australia, with her husband Blair, four small but very opinionated children, a neurotic dog and nine billion germs.

You can email Ros at rosbaxterink@gmail.com or find her at www.facebook.com/RosBaxterInk, on twitter @RosBaxter, or www.rosbaxterink.com

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5 stars
25 (15%)
4 stars
33 (20%)
3 stars
59 (36%)
2 stars
27 (16%)
1 star
18 (11%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
Profile Image for Sally906.
1,464 reviews3 followers
December 3, 2014
A very quick read, as is a novella (29 pages. White Christmas is not the usual hot chocolate, fluffy kittens and God's spirit at work sort of Christmas romance, in fact God has been banned after an Apocalypse has wiped earth out.

It is December 24 and the heroine has crash landed on an alien planet, and is waiting for rescue in a snow cave - the snow cave is to hide from wormy vampires who suck all vestages of human warmth until just a skeleton remains. Then someone else crashes - her ex-boyfriend, who she rescues and drags into her cave just before the vampire worms find him. When the vampire worms discover their quarry has gone they start to home in on the ice cave - luckily ex-boyfriend has a way to repel the vampire worms and after he has quickly explained why he left her 10 years previously they do what comes naturally to get rid of the little blood suckers. They also defy the anti-Christmas stance and sing some Christmas songs while they wait for the Vampire worms.

Cute story, with lots of sizzle and amazingly in the number of pages there is background and characterisation to ensure it is an entertaining read.

Profile Image for Terri.
732 reviews20 followers
December 3, 2014
I was in the mood for some holiday reading so I found this on Amazon and thought I would give it a try.

I was sadly disappointed. Since it was such a short novella I thought maybe it would be a cute quick read however wrong. It really wasn't even a holiday read aside from the fact that it took place at Christmas. There were no other links to the season.

This essentially was a story of two people having hot steamy sex and nothing else. It has a futuristic theme at the beginning but really the only point of it was to set the stage for the sex scene. No investment in the characters was evident or I think even intended in this story. Think of some cheesy porn movie where the girl answers the door for the pizza boy...queue cheesy music and forget plot.

This just wasn't for me.
Profile Image for Sassy Sarah Reads.
2,407 reviews310 followers
December 27, 2015
White Christmas by Ros Baxter

First in the New Earth trilogy

2 stars

The Apocalypse has destroyed the earth and humans have begun to travel to different planets to colonize and make homes for themselves. Tabi is a scientist looking for a way to survive the Hunter Gatherers on the planet of Tyver and ends up saving a man who has fallen during a battle. Tabi doesn't expect the man to be Asha, the boy who broke her heart one Christmas. White Christmas is the only Christmas read I've read this holiday season and it was very lackluster for me. I was hoping that this short story would pack a real interesting punch. The storyline is intriguing and sounds like something that would automatically become a favorite. There's space, vampires, romance, and Christmas, but none of these elements flowed well and the story seemed to be a mashup of ideas that held no solid rhyme or reason.



The word building for this novel is choppy and doesn't flow. Sentences like,
"It looked like a magic egg of Earth legend, silhouetted on the ice as the sky flashed and screamed from the firefight raging overhead."
have no flow and seem to be thrown into the story to seem concrete. There shouldn't be a simile or metaphor for any descriptive setting that occurs in the story; it made everything feel bogged down with unnecessary sentences.



Whimsical Writing Scale: 2

The main female character is Tabi who is also referred to as Tabysha. How anyone came up with the name Tabysha is beyond me. It sounds like the author thought of a normal way and then had to spice it up to seem more sci-fi. Not all sci-fi stories need interesting or different names, especially when said names are laughable. Tabi is a character that I don't like very much. She's bitter, which is understandable, but her snide comments don't give a sass element, but an ass element. She was upset when she rescued her ex and immediately wished she left him for dead and that is a trait I can't behind.

Kick-Butt Heroine Scale: 1.5

The main male character is Asha. Again with the -sha endings. Seriously these names give no helping hands for the characters. Asha is cliche and brings nothing to my female feels. He's dry and unimaginative as far as male leads go. Asha is also a douchecanoe that thinks that because Tabi has short hair it means she single because men don't like short hair. What a douche thing to say. There is nothing wrong with short hair and guys like Asha who think women should adhere to certain feminine standards make me want to rage.



Swoon Worthy Scale: 1.5

The Villain- The concept of the Hunter Gatherers is very interesting and creepy. These creatures thrive in the cold and suck their prey dry of marrow, blood, and cells. It's an interesting concept and a well-thought out idea. The problem was that these predators were used as a tool to have sex and that's a lame plot.



Villain Scale: 3

The chemistry in this novel is as dry as ice the outside on the planet of Tyver. These two have no chemistry. I'm told it's hot and steamy, but I don't feel the heat. These two didn't make me warm and left me feeling cold, which is fitting for this Christmas because it is too hot outside to want to be warm. The reason these two had sex was to save themselves from the Hunter Gatherers because for some reason human pheromones produced during sex repel them.



There was no point to this story. The concept was so cool, but the unnecessary sex as a plot device pissed me off more than the characters did. These characters are the reason this short story was a dud for me and it was a good thing it was short because otherwise I would've felt I wasted time.



Plotastic Scale: 2

Cover Thoughts: This your typical paranormal couple with a sci-fi backdrop.

Profile Image for Becky.
493 reviews15 followers
December 18, 2018
The author has good writing and the story line was interesting. There wasn't much to this novella though. The only Christmas about this book was the date and the guy singing a couple Christmas carols.
Profile Image for Danielle Eisner.
249 reviews24 followers
November 16, 2014
I was asked to review this book. And I've really liked all the other books by this talented author so I was excited to read this one.

Years in the future after the apocalypse, Admiral Class Explorer Tabysha is stranded in a snowy cave after her ship crashes. She is told to say inside and wait for help to arrive. But when another ship crashes near by she ignores orders and decides to help. Then the other pilot turns out to be the ex that broke her heart years ago. Now they are stranded together with crazy hungry vampires hunting them. She has to try to seduce Asha, in the last hope of keeping the vampires at bay. But is it worth risking her heart again for a guy who ran out and broke her heart?

This is a hard review to write without giving to much away. But I'll give it a shot. I liked Tabi, but I wish we could have gotten a little more deeper into her. I really liked Asha. He is one cocky dude, but he can also be vulnerable. He's definitely a heart throb type.

This is a short story, but it hooked me from page one. I really liked it. And read it in one sitting. I recommend this book if you're in the mood for a nice short and sexy holiday read. (But really who isn't?)
Profile Image for ✿kawehi.reviews.
1,453 reviews428 followers
December 28, 2013
2.5-3 stars

description

I have a love/hate relationship for novellas. While I do appreciate the short and accelerated pace, a lot of the times this is also where my problems with these reads lie.

In White Christmas, I felt that certain parts of the plot could have been expanded on as well as there were some loopholes in the story that needed to be addressed.

Also, pheromone secretion (a.k.a sexual excitement/juice) keeps the bad guys away?....

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Profile Image for Elizabeth (Stuffed Shelves).
531 reviews32 followers
December 4, 2013
Avenger 12 has crashed in snowy terrain leaving Tabi stranded, awaiting help that will come within two hours. She is told to maintain her position and not move. She disobeys orders as she attempts to save a man who has also gone down in his ship. She almost instantly regrets saving him for he the man that once broke her heart over ten years ago. Asha tries to explain that she doesn't know the whole story and he opens up to her and explains why he broke her heart so many years ago.

There they find themselves surrounded by creatures that could possibly end it all for both of them. Asha has learned a secret technique to keeping the creatures away. Fortunately it's going to be very easy for both of them to accomplish. Keeping the creatures away will bring them closer than ever.
Profile Image for Rach.
660 reviews37 followers
December 4, 2013
White Christmas was a fantastic quick read. I really cannot tell you much about it due to it being a short story and if I tell you more than the synopsis says then I would spoil it for you. Let’s just say that Ice Cave gets pretty steamy.
It is a must read, especially if you want a quick read.
I absolutely loved it. I think the author did a great job in getting enough detail and information into the book to make it a good read.
Well written and I will definitely be looking out more more from Ros Baxter.
Profile Image for Fiona Marsden.
Author 37 books148 followers
October 27, 2014
This is a great little short story with a sci-fi background and a lot of sizzle in the foreground. It's a reunion romance, one of my favourite kinds. The heroine and hero are stranded on a nasty ice planet and being stalked by the locals who are nastier even than the Mummy with the whole sucking the life out of you thing.

Luckily there is one way to repel them and it's something all concerned, apart from the creepy aliens, is going to like.

Cute story, lots of sizzle and just enough background and characterisation to save it from being all about the smexy. Not that it's a bad thing...
Profile Image for Brenda.
5,199 reviews3,027 followers
December 17, 2013
Stranded after her ship crashed, Taby was told rescue was two hours away – she needed to stay put to stay alive. But down below her haven another ship had crashed and she could see the pilot was alive. The hunters wouldn’t be long and she couldn’t watch what they would do to him – she couldn’t leave him to die, could she? Even though it was Christmas time, it wouldn’t be “merry”…

This wasn’t quite what I was expecting! A quick read, being a novella, but not the sweet Christmas magic I was expecting!!
Profile Image for Kathryn Parry.
Author 8 books70 followers
December 4, 2013
Okay I was not expecting Science Fiction in erotica. A nice change. Not really the Christmas story I was going for but a good story.
Profile Image for Kath.
1,067 reviews26 followers
December 4, 2013
Not a bad short story but not what was expected. This is a story post apocalyptic sci-fi that ends up being rather vivid rather than peaceful Christmas story.
Profile Image for C.J..
Author 4 books391 followers
December 4, 2013
Charming short story. Nice ending.
Profile Image for Hbeebti.
2,039 reviews50 followers
December 5, 2013
I thought this was really sweet and sexy. But way to short. I wish it was longer.
Profile Image for S. Policar.
Author 24 books134 followers
December 4, 2023
This Post-Apocalyptic Holiday Romance (I almost hate that 99% of holiday books are romance themed, you guys have no idea) was probably the worst thing I've ever tormented Mt eyes and brain with. While I'm not fond of overtly spicy scenes, I tolerate them when they make sense to the story. This did not. I mean if you like books with zero plots that make sense and that are more sex than anything this is right up your alley.
Sitting at 38 pages, this short had 8 pages of actual storyline. The rest was just sex. Which is where the issue lies. The creatures on the planet can teck heat signals but the answer to repelling them is sex? It's unrealistic even if it's a SciFi erotica disguised as a romance. There was no romance. Books like this are exactly why I started avoiding the romance genre like the plague.
I give this book 1 of 5 Paws.
780 reviews6 followers
December 23, 2018
Short novella. Interesting story line, think their could be some amazing development. Don’t think it was the best title selection.
Profile Image for Sam Still Reading.
1,667 reviews66 followers
February 9, 2014
White Christmas is a short read – easily read in one sitting. Despite Christmas being in the title, I read it after Christmas with no problems. (Christmas is linked to the main characters but it is not the main focus). This was out of my comfort zone – I don’t tend to read anything that involves aliens or other worldly experiences (with the exception of Harry Potter and The Bone Season). However, as it was free on Amazon at the time and a finalist for sci-fi, fantasy or futuristic romances in the Australian Romance Readers Awards, I decided to give it a go. (It is also part of the ARRA finalists challenge –how many finalist books you can read – something that I have no chance of winning!)

Ros Baxter is an excellent writer in that she can develop a whole other world involving ice, space ships and aliens and make it believable in so few pages. It didn’t take long for me to picture the alien planet Tabi, our heroine, had crashed on. The tension when the aliens are about to eat Tabi and her comrade is palpable. (Actually, the aliens are ice vampires – I’m not sure what that entails but it sounds creepy to this chicken hearted girl). The steam building up between Tabi and Asha (who is her former lover) blows off the page. Then there’s just one thing they have to do to conquer the ice vampires because they really, really don’t like it when humans get it on. This bit was written well, but the premise for the sex was initially a bit weird to me. This could be because this genre is a) pretty foreign to me and b) it’s a short story, so things need to move at a cracking pace. I can’t really spoil the ending, but…I was satisfied.

The world building that Baxter does is fast, yet detailed. This made me wonder if there was more to come for Tabi, Asha and the new interplanetary world they find themselves in. I did like how this doesn’t fit into the usual Christmas fiction genre – kudos for that. I’d definitely read more of Ros Baxter in genres I am more comfortable in.

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
Profile Image for Petra Grayson.
182 reviews6 followers
December 9, 2013
Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
This one looked rather intriguing when I saw it on Amazon preorder for free, so I grabbed it when I had the chance. It's really only about 30 pages, but they were really good. It's set in a post-apocalyptic world with Tabi trapped on a hostile alien world. Another human pilot is shot down/crash lands and Tabi runs to rescue him before the aliens get to him, but it just so happens that this survivor is the guy that left Tabi 10 years ago.

What I liked best about this book was that, even for as short as it was, it gave every relevant detail to make this a complete story without just info-dumping. That little teeny world of Tabi and Asha was perfectly groomed in my mind by the time I was done reading. Did I want more? Sure. But in this case, it'll make me go look up more books by Ros Baxter to see if there's any others set in this same world. I liked the writing style. I liked the strength of the characters and their emotional capabilities. And I'll definitely look for more by this author.
Profile Image for Sienna Logan (Lost to Books).
1,064 reviews20 followers
March 19, 2014
More reviews at http://losttobooks.blogspot.com

Actual rating 2.5


know this is a bit of an odd time to read this book, but there didn't seem to be much about Christmas in and I needed a short read and this definitely was that as it took around fifteen minutes to complete.

I'm not sure if it's a prequel to a series as a lot if detail was missing and with the sci-fi aspect it seemed a bit weird for that to be not to be there as I was left slightly confused by what everything was. I needed more information on the paranormal/sci-fi aspect as it felt like it had the potential to be a lot more. However, without that detail, I couldn't really connect or develop any kind of emotion for the characters and their story.

For a freebie it was OK. You could understand the basics and it flowed at a quick speed but I just couldn't get into it as there was no detail or in depth back story to connect with. The characters needed more of a background and the paranormal element needed to be elaborated.
Profile Image for Naomi.
1,499 reviews56 followers
December 17, 2013
White Christmas is a short novella, set in the future where the earth has been blown up and human’s have fled into space in spacecrafts. A lot of traditions have been abolished, but the two main characters happen to crash on a planet that is over run by armoured ice vampires, on Christmas Eve.

The story maybe short, but it is straight to the point and very quickly I was thrown into a sizzling sex scene that would have any girls toes curling. The only complaint I have about the story was that it’s too short!! I was swept away into this futuristic world and I wanted more. It covers everything: suspense, betrayal as well as action. If you are looking for a quick read to warm you up a little, snap this one up now while it’s FREE!!
Profile Image for Lee at ReadWriteWish.
892 reviews93 followers
December 19, 2013
This free novella was discussed on a group thread, and its premise made me laugh so hard, I had to read. Our heroine crash lands on an alien planet, as does her ex-boyfirend, and the only way to survive the worm vampires coming to get them is to have wild secksy times! Hilarious! Sadly the secksy times were not written as well as they should, and again, doesn't make me want to rush out and buy a full length novel by this author. Although... With this blurb... 'Dirtwater's straight-talking Duty Sheriff Rania Aqualina has a lot of her plate: a nicotine addiction that's a serious liability for a mermaid, a solder-of-fortune ex who's hooked on her mum's brownies, a gorgeous, naked stranger in her shower, and a mysterious dead blonde with a fish tattoo on Main Street.' LOL!
Profile Image for Crystal Marie.
1,483 reviews68 followers
December 29, 2013
3.5 Paws!!

Another interesting short from Ros Baxter has graced my kindle today! And to be honest, when I started reading it, I was very confused as to what I had jumped into!
To me, it felt as though the book started halfway through the story itself. I really felt like there could have been more added to it to make it a full length novel. This story though, it was a really quick read and there was plenty of smut to keep you warm on the winters day!!
I don’t want to give too much away from the story because it is such a quick read, but I do have to say that if you enjoy sci-fi type books, or even if you’re unsure how you will like that genre, then you should check this book out.
Profile Image for Shelley.
482 reviews3 followers
January 2, 2016
Although novella's are usually a quick escape read, by the start of chapter one my kindle said I'd read 11% of the book and I hadn't even started. At 82% read the book ends so you don't get a whole lot of book. I think I read in as little as 30 minutes if that.

It had the premise for an interesting story, as it's set in the future after an apocalypse and humankind are fighting to survive, however there is no depth to the story as this is essentially setting the stage for two people to have raunchy sex and not much else. There is no investment in the characters, and probably no intention of doing so either.

Based on this book alone I wouldn't read any more by this author
Profile Image for Julie Read Our Lips! Book Review Blog.
354 reviews17 followers
January 7, 2014
Set in futuristic setting two ex-lovers celebrate Christmas fighting off an evil horde of vampires that feeds off warmth. How convenient the vamps are scared off when sexual lust is released. :)

White Christmas features:

erotica
future fantasy
oral sex
vampires
Profile Image for Jane.
Author 6 books91 followers
May 1, 2015
While crashed on a foreign planet, two pilots celebrate a White Christmas using pheromones produced during sex to save them from death by flesh eating ice monsters. It is not what I expected from a novella with this title.
Profile Image for Helen.
2,975 reviews70 followers
February 21, 2014
This is a great short story I really enjoyed it past lovers reunite in a very interesting situation which calls for a hot reunion to save them :)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews