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The Finding: Part 1
Sold for Pleasure
Abducted.Abused.Sold.Reece Halliday will find a way back home, even if it kills her. Abducted from Earth and auctioned off on the other side of the galaxy, a scarred starship XO buys her as a birthday present for his boss–as a pleasure slave.Ruthless starship officer Calin Aubron will do anything to climb the ranks of the Mendovan Alliance and regain the respect stolen from him. Life has taught him a harsh there is only duty, position, and honor. Neither Reece nor Calin expect to find a deep, abiding solace in each other’s company, a solace that leads Calin to dig deeper into Reece’s background and her claims of kidnapping.But the Rathian slave traders behind the kidnappings refuse to let one small, worthless human derail their lucrative income stream from reaped worlds.They will kill her first.*** Although this book is Part 1, there is a guaranteed HEA/HFN in all Angelica Grymm books***AG does not use AI in her writing or covers. We support artists everywhere!
Abducted.Abused.Sold.Reece Halliday will find a way back home, even if it kills her. Abducted from Earth and auctioned off on the other side of the galaxy, a scarred starship XO buys her as a birthday present for his boss–as a pleasure slave.Ruthless starship officer Calin Aubron will do anything to climb the ranks of the Mendovan Alliance and regain the respect stolen from him. Life has taught him a harsh there is only duty, position, and honor. Neither Reece nor Calin expect to find a deep, abiding solace in each other’s company, a solace that leads Calin to dig deeper into Reece’s background and her claims of kidnapping.But the Rathian slave traders behind the kidnappings refuse to let one small, worthless human derail their lucrative income stream from reaped worlds.They will kill her first.*** Although this book is Part 1, there is a guaranteed HEA/HFN in all Angelica Grymm books***AG does not use AI in her writing or covers. We support artists everywhere!
- GenresRomanceScience Fiction
478 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 14, 2023
21 people are currently reading
70 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
March 21, 2024
The weakest part of this book is honestly the premise—the MMC purchases a human being as a pleasure-slave for his boss. Like all sentient creatures when confronted with the enslavement of other people, he has some cognitive dissonance about it; in this case, he believes that all slaves are born that way, that they are treated well, and that they get to express their preferences to some extent—he is told that the FMC wanted to be a pleasure slave and requested a same-sex partner (er, owner?) neither of which is true. FMC is actually a heterosexual free human stolen from Earth, whoopsie!
There’s a side-plot where the MMC uses his family’s political connections to investigate the FMC’s claims of kidnapping and there’s not a lot of due process or thought given to the other stolen humans sold throughout the galaxy, let alone the enslaved non-human persons who MMC still kinda believes have a choice in the matter. There’s maybe one line that hints that he might be changing his mind on that, but it’s just not a central focus of the novel.
The emotional journey this book takes you on more than makes up for any deficits, in my estimation. The MMC has scars, physical and emotional, that deeply affect how he sees himself and interacts with others. I think a lot of people with physical scars that remind them of a painful time in their life can relate to the conflicting desire to 1) have people see and understand your pain, but 2) to have the evidence of your pain disappear when you’re not ready to talk about it. I considered tattooing over mine. The fact that aliens have the technology to basically erase them is I’m sure a bit of wish fulfillment for many of us, and the fact that the MMC has kept them so long in spite of that tells us a lot about where he is on his emotional journey. It also tells you a lot about the character of the people who love and accept him with his scars, and the people who shy away from him. The scene where FMC finds made me so sad, and made me wish she had said something sooner. The shower scene where MMC Heartbreaking!
The FMC doesn’t have so much of an emotional journey to go on, but she’s not just a meaningless reader-insert either. I think if she wasn’t so brash and bold, the story almost wouldn’t have worked—she needed to be able to take all of the MMC’s expectations and shove ‘em. She also does something that no other FMC in any space-tech book I’ve ever read has done after receiving ye olde universal translator implants… That NEVER happens in these alien romances and I’m so obsessed with it. Language is such a huge, huge cultural touchstone that some authors basically write out of existence with the universal translator trope, and I am so glad that this FMC recognized that and
There’s a side-plot where the MMC uses his family’s political connections to investigate the FMC’s claims of kidnapping and there’s not a lot of due process or thought given to the other stolen humans sold throughout the galaxy, let alone the enslaved non-human persons who MMC still kinda believes have a choice in the matter. There’s maybe one line that hints that he might be changing his mind on that, but it’s just not a central focus of the novel.
The emotional journey this book takes you on more than makes up for any deficits, in my estimation. The MMC has scars, physical and emotional, that deeply affect how he sees himself and interacts with others. I think a lot of people with physical scars that remind them of a painful time in their life can relate to the conflicting desire to 1) have people see and understand your pain, but 2) to have the evidence of your pain disappear when you’re not ready to talk about it. I considered tattooing over mine. The fact that aliens have the technology to basically erase them is I’m sure a bit of wish fulfillment for many of us, and the fact that the MMC has kept them so long in spite of that tells us a lot about where he is on his emotional journey. It also tells you a lot about the character of the people who love and accept him with his scars, and the people who shy away from him. The scene where FMC finds made me so sad, and made me wish she had said something sooner. The shower scene where MMC Heartbreaking!
The FMC doesn’t have so much of an emotional journey to go on, but she’s not just a meaningless reader-insert either. I think if she wasn’t so brash and bold, the story almost wouldn’t have worked—she needed to be able to take all of the MMC’s expectations and shove ‘em. She also does something that no other FMC in any space-tech book I’ve ever read has done after receiving ye olde universal translator implants… That NEVER happens in these alien romances and I’m so obsessed with it. Language is such a huge, huge cultural touchstone that some authors basically write out of existence with the universal translator trope, and I am so glad that this FMC recognized that and
November 30, 2023
The hero had a lot of drama in his life. His mother didn't like looking at his face (hero was kidnapped and tortured as a child so he has lots of scars on his face) and his mom kept trying to force him to marry the daughter of her best friend. Hero didn't like that woman and didn't want her.
So the "wants to be fiance" keeps coming around and causing problems. His mom keeps causing problems. I liked their romance but the hero felt like a wimp by letting his mom and this girl keep barging into his life and make demands on him.
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
He wants his mother's help to prove the heroine was kidnapped and sold into slavery (which is illegal). His mother refuses to help unless he agrees to marry the daughter of her best friend. Hero wants to help the heroine so he agrees. Really? He couldn't ask any other expert/judge on the planet to help him? Nobody would have helped? Ridiculous.
They find Earth and the heroine goes home and sees her father. The hero comes to Earth and begs her to return to his planet with him. She agrees and her father comes too. They live happily ever after.
So the "wants to be fiance" keeps coming around and causing problems. His mom keeps causing problems. I liked their romance but the hero felt like a wimp by letting his mom and this girl keep barging into his life and make demands on him.
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
He wants his mother's help to prove the heroine was kidnapped and sold into slavery (which is illegal). His mother refuses to help unless he agrees to marry the daughter of her best friend. Hero wants to help the heroine so he agrees. Really? He couldn't ask any other expert/judge on the planet to help him? Nobody would have helped? Ridiculous.
They find Earth and the heroine goes home and sees her father. The hero comes to Earth and begs her to return to his planet with him. She agrees and her father comes too. They live happily ever after.
November 18, 2023
Awesome romantic sci fi adventure
The worldbuilding and non-humans are fascinating. There is some graphic violence (they so deserved what they got). The characters are believable, and so is the romance. Reece's adventures make for an excellent, engrossing read. The supporting characters are enjoyable. I was thrilled by the hint of romance for the Admiral, and then I read the teaser for book 2, The Returning, and was....confused and less than thrilled. I loved this book on its own merits (no matter what happens in book 2). I read it in KU but will buy it to reread.
The worldbuilding and non-humans are fascinating. There is some graphic violence (they so deserved what they got). The characters are believable, and so is the romance. Reece's adventures make for an excellent, engrossing read. The supporting characters are enjoyable. I was thrilled by the hint of romance for the Admiral, and then I read the teaser for book 2, The Returning, and was....confused and less than thrilled. I loved this book on its own merits (no matter what happens in book 2). I read it in KU but will buy it to reread.
December 18, 2024
A lovely sci-fi romance with two characters you fall in love with - sassy human Reece, abducted from Earth and scarred, distant but kind elf alien ship XO Calin, who has closed himself from others. Lovely growing friendship and attraction. Great world building. Will definitely continue the series.
April 8, 2024
I really enjoyed this book
I appreciate the writing style, and the way the characters actually communicated about certain things. It wasn’t perfect, but it was much more realistic than a lot of other stories I’ve read.
I appreciate the writing style, and the way the characters actually communicated about certain things. It wasn’t perfect, but it was much more realistic than a lot of other stories I’ve read.
January 1, 2025
Fun story, but I felt that the MMC's character changed way too much by the end of the book, even the way he spoke. Still, it was nice ride.
*update*
After reading another reviewer's thoughts, I decided that I was being too harsh. The hero really did have the bigger character arc.
*update*
After reading another reviewer's thoughts, I decided that I was being too harsh. The hero really did have the bigger character arc.
November 30, 2023
Fabulous sci fi romantic adventure. The world building was incredible and the characters were resilient, realistic and interesting.
Read
May 12, 2024DNF
September 27, 2024
Dnf
DNF at 66%
Miscommunication galore. I hate this trope🙄
Other than that it was okayish. But really strip the alien part and bearly anything will change.
DNF at 66%
Miscommunication galore. I hate this trope🙄
Other than that it was okayish. But really strip the alien part and bearly anything will change.
May 1, 2025
We love aliens in this house. 😌🫵🏼 it’s giving Kylo ren redemption fix it and I am here for it
July 19, 2025
Ehhh.. just couldn't get into this book. It had a new cover (not this one) so I didn't realize I had tried it before. Once I saw I had I thought I'd give it another go. Nope. Simply not for me.
August 19, 2025
3.5/5*
Loved the length. The back and forth miscommunication got annoying tho
Loved the length. The back and forth miscommunication got annoying tho
September 21, 2025
This was good, like 3.5, but I didn’t like all the miscommunication between every single person every time, how there was no resolution between the mom and him, and how the dad was spineless.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews