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I'm falling for an alien who's forbidden. Does our interstellar love stand a chance?

The alien I’m crushing on has one destiny—to set up the computer tech division on the new colony before returning to his home planet. As for me, I’m supposed to make sure the aliens locked in stasis on the interstellar ship arrive on the planet ready to assume their duties. Then it’s a one-way back to Earth for me.

I’m not supposed to wake one of them up from his long winter’s nap.

I’m also not supposed to sneak Sleye out of the lab and whisk him off to the holiday party as my merry +1.

And I’m definitely not supposed to take him back to my cabin afterward and tuck him into my sugar plum bed.

Once word spreads through the cosmic grapevine about the heat growing between us, there will be caroling chaos for lightyears. You see, waking him from stasis early will cause an intergalactic incident. And our hookup puts me on the very naughty list.

The powers that be will terminate our love unless we can convince them that the magic between us will last for more than just a few holiday nights.

Sleye is a standalone romance and part of the Holidate With An Alien shared world. Expect size difference, dating hijinks, a hero with no experience, and enough heat to warm up your mulled cider.

Holidate With an Alien is a collaboration of some of Science Fiction Romance's best authors! Our Holiday present to our fun, steamy, romantic adventures that revolve around one or more holidates! Read them all in any order. Honey Phillips, Ava Ross, Ella Maven, Ella Blake, Tana Stone, Rena Marks, and Alana Khan. Curl up with a cup of hot cocoa and enjoy!

174 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 10, 2023

376 people are currently reading
125 people want to read

About the author

Ava Ross

163 books765 followers
AVA ROSS fell for men with unusual features when she first watched Star Wars, where alien creatures have gone mainstream. She lives in New England with her husband (who is sadly not an alien, though he is still cute in his own way), her kids, and assorted pets, including a yorkie pup and three cats.

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5 stars
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
Profile Image for TaylorReads.
204 reviews12 followers
December 7, 2024
I enjoyed this. The plot didn’t make a ton of sense, and it heavily relied on a “fabricator” device that could essentially create anything they wanted. But I did think the premise was cute and I’m glad it had a happy ending
Profile Image for Nevena.
920 reviews27 followers
November 6, 2023
💜 “You’re locked inside me, Tabitha, and I suspect that’s where you’re going to remain forever.”
~~~
Tabitha is a dedicated lab technician whose job is to keep the stasis chambers and their occupants safe and functioning properly until they reach their destination. I loved her so, so much! Tabitha is smart, kind, compassionate and very responsible. She’s also a bit shy and quiet, but can be quite feisty, too. But she’s also very, very lonely. Maybe the Holiday Magic is what she needs to make things better?

And Sleye is such a wonderful male! The big, strong and purple Ir’ok is so kind, thoughtful and patient. Even more, I loved his scientific mind and his curiosity and eagerness to learn and experience new things, despite how closed-off his people were. And he’s quite charming and utterly irresistible, too. I couldn’t help but adore every single thing about him!

I absolutely loved everything that happened between Tabitha and Sleye! For quite some time, Tabitha has been pining after one of the purple aliens locked in stasis and she’s been sharing all her secrets with him. Until one day, for reasons unknown, the said alien wakes up and then things get quite interesting. I just loved those two together! I loved their sexy banters and teasings. Even more, I loved how dedicated Sleye was to learning how to properly woo a human woman. And I absolutely adored him for giving Tabitha the time she needed to get to know him and open her heart to new love. However, the attraction they shared could cause an intergalactic incident, so both needed to make choices and keep Sleye hidden until the right moment. But between the holiday celebrations, the sneaking around the ship, the snowball fights, the romantic dates and the “popping” of various “cherries”, both discovered that they were meant to be and nothing would stand between them. And when they couldn’t keep their hands off each other, the passionate moments they shared were off-the-charts hot and I couldn’t get enough of all the naughty deliciousness. Sleye and Tabitha were so perfect for each other and both deserved to find happiness and love together.

Overall, the story is a wonderful, fun, festive and spicy read and I absolutely loved every page of it!
Profile Image for Ketty.
206 reviews12 followers
January 3, 2024
- Virgin MMC
- Sexual awakening (Literally)
- Fated mates
- Rotating bits
- Extra pieces, that add suction

Tabitha is the scientist assigned to maintaining the stasis pods Sleye and his people are in on the way to the new colony. They are to remain in stasis the entire trip as to not soil themselves with outside influences. The problem is...Sleye woke up early. Something that isn't possible. And the long dormant need to mate has been reactivated by his fated mate and he will stop at nothing to prove they belong together.

This is a pretty cute story, and an interesting take on reintroducing "old fashion" way of making children in a species that evolved past it. There hasn't been a fated mate in generations, but Tabitha wakes it up in Sleye and now he needs to know everything about it...even at the cost of being shunned by his people. It really makes him question everything he was raised to believe, and not just his attraction to her, but seeing children on the ship and all the things that go with them.

Sleye is naive (as anyone might be if they were from a species who no longer breeds the biological way) and in an attempt to court Tabitha he begins to use the computer's database to find human mating customs. It leads to some, very cringe, situations; aka a 13th century sonnet while dressed in period costumes on a private holodeck. It's awkward at best, cringe at worst, but sweet in it's own way. His people don't have things for him to fall back on so he's doing his best.

Tabitha is a flip-flop however. She has a crush on him from the start, then he wakes up and wants her bad, and she can't make up her mind as to whether they should speed up or slow down. She says no one second and then is on her knees the next. Like girl, my head is spinning so fast I might be possessed.

Overall, it's good. It's cute. The couple is likable and sexy.
Profile Image for Donna.
1,754 reviews1 follower
November 29, 2023
Another virgin alien. In this instance Sleye's race is reproduced in a lab and old-fashioned sex has been banned for thousands of years. Progeny are raised in a group home until 15 years of age and then assigned to a mentor.

Twelve Ir’oks are traveling in stasis and not to be awakened until arriving at a colony where they are to help the residents get established. Tabitha is the technician assigned to make sure their fluid levels and food pouches are maintained. She finds one of the Ir’oks attractive and spends a good part of her day talking to (at?) him. Much to their surprise he awakens without protocol and declares she is his ladiah (fated mate)

They go to great lengths to keep his identity a secret as his planet has strict laws about Ir’oks not interacting with others on the transport. Sleye tells Tabitha that the concept of a ladiah was so bizarre that he had believed it to be a legend. Having his libido be awakened, a totally unheard of reaction for his race, makes him a believer. He debates informing others as those who have brought up the idea of sex in the past have mysteriously disappeared. He and Tabitha decide to remain with the colony and look forward to a long and happy life together.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Terry Sasada.
1,216 reviews8 followers
July 21, 2024
I really enjoyed this book. Tabitha had one job as a scientist, and that was looking after a different alien species and basically their Cryo tanks to keep them alive until they reach the new base. Then they are awakened put to work and then returned to their own planet and species. But as Brooke look down and saw Sleye, there was just some thing there, and she felt it. She would pull the chair and sit and talk to him day by day, not expecting him to wake up. But now there he was and she had to find a way to hide him. One thing to know about Sleye and his species, they gave up their emotions, their connections to each other and others, and even sex. They are not born the way you and I are and they are basically kept in stasis till they are teenagers and can be trained. But Sleye is awake and has feelings he has never felt before. The best part about this book is the learning that Sleye does an all the explaining Brooke has to do. So many funny parts and so many steamy parts. It just moved a little slow for me and towards the end I wanted it to move a little further along in their relationship, but they did get there happily ever after.
Profile Image for Kelly.
5,685 reviews228 followers
September 22, 2024
One tiny little crush on a hunky alien in stasis, a whole lot of talking to said alien while he was in stasis, and suddenly Tabitha has a VERY awake alien who should absolutely not be awake on her hands. Seeing as how there's a whole treaty laying out how Sleye's people will NOT be awake or interacting with aboard the ship, this puts both Tabitha and Sleye in a bit of a pickle.

Because Sleye's awake. And he's interested in Tabitha despite his people's way of life. He also have ZERO experience with either the emotional or physical signals his body is sending out. Which means there are more than a few charged moments between these two.

On Tabitha's end, she's a little stunned by Sleye waking up, but he's a good guy who wiggles into her heart in no time flat. Keeping him a secret is a little tough, but nothing insurmountable. Mostly.

Some holiday fun, a romantic interlude gone awry, some sexy times, a little tension, and two individuals who are just right for each other. *thumbs up*

-Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal
696 reviews7 followers
November 12, 2023
Tabitha is traveling to Celestia taking care of 12 stasis units carrying Ir'ok's who have to travel this way as their government limits their interaction with other species. Tabitha has a crush on Sleye and spends a lot of time by his pod quietly talking to him. Then she's shocked to see movement of a particular part - not possible. She didn't start the wake up process.
Sleye wakes up to her voice; he's been hearing his ladiah mate for awhile now and he was able to leave the pod early. Sleye is from a culture that no longer has sex, no mates, no real connections. But Sleye learns about a certain part of his body fast with some guidance by Tabitha and vids he watches.
Ava writes so well, you will laugh, feel angst, worry, overheat, and thoroughly love this couple. A wonderful Christmas story in this series.
Profile Image for Sydnee Walsh.
1,271 reviews30 followers
October 14, 2023
Sleye is in stasis till the ship reaches the world he is helping to develop for a new colony. His people have gotten away from physical contact so his trip is becoming interesting now that he is awake and seems to be drawn to Tabitha his assigned caregiver.
Tabitha is charged with maintaining the sleeping aliens during the trip to the new world. She is drawn to one and starts to talk to the slumbering alien. Then on time he awakens.
Things get very interesting as she hides him and camouflages him to attend the holiday parties. They have one bed, hers and a magnetic attraction that is drawing them together. Showing Sleye physical activities between a male and women become a big thing too.
Profile Image for Lisa Bing.
6,189 reviews68 followers
November 11, 2023
This was such a fun holiday read and a fab addition to this fun multi-author series. The author hit it out of the park with this one, for me. Her world building is always great and her characters interesting but Sleye was so much fun. He feels the connection with Tabitha but his society has given up being physical to reproduce.... Well, being a computer nerd, he dives in deep to research how to woo her properly. There were so many humourous moments that I found myself giggling throughout ;) Tabitha was very relatable to me being shy but feisty. Their romance was filled with great heat and I had a blast following them to their HEA :D
Profile Image for Cynkris.
585 reviews
November 1, 2023
Ho Ho Hot! Sleye is both funny and sweet. You can't lose with an Alien virgin who "studies" to understand wooing and love making! He had me giggling while he was wooing her. Tabitha and Sleye are such a great couple..so much fun. Ava Ross keeps me reading and coming back for more. As always, her world building and characters are outstanding. And her story telling is out of this world! This multi-author series is so very good, so much fun to read that I can't wait for the next one. ***** 5 stars
Profile Image for Melanie Milburn.
1,247 reviews6 followers
November 18, 2023
Yeultide Magic

Tabitha is a scientist in charge of maintaining stasis for a group of Ir’ok on board a ship headed for a new colony. Most unexpectedly, one of the Ir’ok, Sleye, comes out of stasis on his own! And he tells her that she is his Iadiah mate—something that hasn’t happen to his species in over a thousand years, ever since they stopped mating and procreated scientifically! The fun ensues as they try to hide what’s happened to avoid an intergalactic incident, it’s Yuletide season, and Sleye determinedly searches the databases to woo his Iadiah mate!
1,353 reviews12 followers
December 9, 2023
I found this one to be really sweet despite the amount of bedroom antics but you can’t always rely just on theory! Something of a reverse sleeping beauty of sorts. For the most part I was laughing though as Sleye was truly funny. A bit of an innocent really as he comes from a culture that seems to have dispensed with any kind of real physical interaction. Though he has found his mate in Tabitha, something of a miracle in itself. She on the other hand seemed drawn to him from the start. Talking to him as he slept his journey away, that was until she woke him up.
Profile Image for Megan.
526 reviews42 followers
December 17, 2023
I love the innocent cinnamon roll alien trope, and this was exactly that. I could have used a bit more spice, but overall it had a decent amount for the length it was.

Didn’t mind the plot of having to hide him away (even though I thought it was going to be more of a Passengers vibe), but I did feel like it didn’t have a satisfying conclusion to the plot.

Overall this was cute and scratched that alien itch I was feeling. Loved that Sleye did so much research 🤣


Innocent virgin mmc, holiday on a spaceship
Profile Image for Emily Lindsey.
Author 4 books21 followers
January 22, 2024
Love finds a way!

Tabitha is a scientist taking care of some in stasis aliens. She's crushing on one and spends her days talking to him. She didn't know she'd trigger Sleye's reanimation. Sleye's pod delivers him to Tabitha and they conduct themselves in a cute, highly romantic courtship that is both sensual as well as adorably heart melting. The big thing that they are fighting is their relationship goes against everything his people live by. I loved this book, I read it straight through, it's a beautifully written love story!
777 reviews11 followers
October 29, 2023
What a great holiday story! Ava Ross has created a wonderful new species and I do hope she spins this into a series. Sleye was appealing on multiple levels…an Ir’ok alien who acts like a machine, grown in a vat. But he has heart and a strong alpha presents that just melts you. Tabitha is his Ladiah mate, one his species has not seen in decades. No one can write better romance that Ava Ross! ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Profile Image for Joy.
299 reviews2 followers
October 31, 2023
Sleye by Ava Ross is a standalone romance novel and is a part of the Holidate With An Alien series in collaboration with other best selling sci-fi romance authors. This was an entertaining holiday read full of romance, spiciness and the comedy of trying to navigate the human concepts of dating with a virgin alien. I highly recommend this book and I can't wait to read the rest of the books in the series.
Profile Image for Robin Ann.
1,388 reviews3 followers
December 2, 2023
Sleye: A Sci-Fi Holiday Romcom

This shows what happens when a scientist really gets into their job. She crushed on one of the aliens in stasis that she was taking care of and accidentally woke him up by just talking to him. Then also to find out she was his fated mate which his planet had gotten rid of generations ago. I enjoyed the steamy parts as he learned how to procreate the natural way. I had a smile on my face the entire book.
1,031 reviews
November 27, 2024
A Once in a Lifetime Surprise!!!

Out of the 12 scientists from Ir’ok in suspension on this voyage, human scientist Tabitha has been drawn to the handsome Sleye. She has been talking to him long after the nutrition pouches and suspension fluid levels have been handled. Enjoy how Tabitha and Sleye approach with cleverness and good humor the surprise of Sleye’s unexpected awakening, its possible repercussions, and their steamy explorations of each other!!!
284 reviews1 follower
March 17, 2025
Love Santa and his Sleye.

This story starts out with Tabitha just talking to an alien in cryosleep, but somehow he can hear her and wakes up. Sleye's race have all but done away with procreation and family and anything they don't think has merit. Seems like a very sad way to grow up. But he knows he's found his life mate in Tabitha and wakes up. It's such a cute sweet funny story its perfect for Christmas. Loved it!
Profile Image for Michele.
2,019 reviews6 followers
October 31, 2023
Sleye is in stasis on the way to set up a new colony, Tabitha is the scientist responsible for maintaining the stasis pods. Ava Ross takes this premise and brings the reader a great story filled with humor filled dialogue, lots of references to romantic movies, and one mustn’t forget the heat, lots of heat!
Profile Image for Trixie.
5,187 reviews
November 9, 2023
This is the first story I read from this author where the MMC is a beergin and is learning to wear a peejama 😂😂😂 to sleep. Expect some hilarity when it comes to the language barrier. But our MMC is a computer nerd, so where do computer nerds find the answer? It has been a great resource for. him.

But what is so sweet is that he wooed his mate and what a dating adventure it was.
Profile Image for Esmeralda Silva Tenazinha.
1,050 reviews16 followers
November 15, 2023
Tabitha and Slayer

Its amazing what this author can make. Tabitha is a scientist responsible to keep 12 aliens in stasis until they arive on Celestia were they Will work on infrastuctures. This aliens sonda have intimate contacto, they are made geneticaly and live Alone. Sleye is on stasis an he wakes up because he listens to Thabita and he thinks it's because She is his mate. Its just so sweet the way they find each other. I loved it and the holidays feeling. Great book.
97 reviews
December 1, 2023
Cute and Funny Story

I loved Sleye; he had quite a sense of humor and was so darn cute. All of the characters were likable. The depiction of children was on point. More could have been added to this book with the differences between planets/cultures. Enjoying holidate books immensely.
1,458 reviews3 followers
December 12, 2023
This book is funny with both sweet and steamy romance. Tabitha is a scientist while Sleye is in stasis expecting to reach a colony to help the new colonists then he is expected to leave. Once he awakens and experiences love and sex with Tabitha, he doesn't know how he could leave her. Tabitha feels the same. Can they arrange to both stay on the new colony together ?
Profile Image for Jeannette.
1,393 reviews
April 24, 2024
Tabitha and Sleye

This is a short, very good, well written, holiday romance between an Alien and a Human. Tabitha is a scientist who is responsible for 12 Ir’ok cryogenic pods. Sleye spontaneously awake and exited to meet his mate. Ir’ok have not had mates in over a thousand years. Read and enjoy.
Profile Image for Gloria.
2,038 reviews12 followers
November 1, 2023
Sleye is in stasis traveling to an alien colony when a woman's voice wakes him up. Tabitha is drawn to Sleye and has been talking to him while he sleeps. She will be in trouble if anyone finds out that Sleye is awake so she must keep him hidden. Cute steamy alien romance.
151 reviews2 followers
November 10, 2023
Sleye by Ava Ross is a quick, fun romance with a HEA in the multi-author Holidate with an Alien series. This story is adorably sweet, but seriously spicy! Highly recommend for someone who needs a quick happy pick me up!
Profile Image for Shawn.
3,165 reviews
November 19, 2023
cute

This was a cute book. It was different and something original for me. Sleye and Tabitha were interesting as a couple. There were some times that she was a little too much and I felt bad for him but overall it was a good read.
Profile Image for Debbie.
737 reviews1 follower
November 25, 2023
Sleye

This book is super light and fluffy. Not a lot of substance - they mostly do bedroom stuff. I don't know why I found this story boring and little silly. However, other readers may enjoy it just fine.
Profile Image for Kathleen Reed.
924 reviews2 followers
December 4, 2023
Very cool and sexy

Definitely for mature readers. Very interesting twist with Sleye being the virgin from a non re!at I on ship type planet. There is a lot of imagination in this. I loved the references to movies we all know.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews

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