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Spire Station #3
Space for Growth
A lonely human unlucky in love…
When all your friends are pairing up with the alien partners of their dreams, it’s hard not to feel left behind. I’m as single as ever, working my boring desk job and spending most of my time alone.
So when I meet an intriguing alien who invites me back to his ship, I wonder if maybe it’s finally my turn for love. Turns out, that drunken hookup ended up with me kidnapped by space pirates, and now I’m stuck on the other side of the galaxy surrounded by dangers I never even knew existed.
I should be worried about getting out of this alive, but once the shock wears off, all I can think about is my attraction to my alien captor. They flirt and tease me, but I know it means nothing. Why would someone so confident and capable ever be interested in an anxious mess like me?
A dashing alien pirate…
What should’ve been a simple job ended up with me and my crew fleeing for our lives. Someone obviously set us up, but in order to get to the bottom of things, we need a lot of credits.
As if things weren’t bad enough, I’ve accidentally abducted a human. Nothing like what was meant to be a one-night stand turning into a full-time captive.
Now we’re stuck together until I get the funds needed to set things right. But each night cycle spent with this human by my side makes it harder to keep my distance. How do I keep him safe and return him home without falling for him—or ending up in a prison colony for the rest of my life?
Space for Growth is a high-heat M/NB alien romance featuring a human forced out of his comfort zone and the alien who shows him what the universe has to offer.
Space for Growth is Book 3 in the Spire Station series of interconnected standalone alien romances. It can be read without reading the other books in the series.
When all your friends are pairing up with the alien partners of their dreams, it’s hard not to feel left behind. I’m as single as ever, working my boring desk job and spending most of my time alone.
So when I meet an intriguing alien who invites me back to his ship, I wonder if maybe it’s finally my turn for love. Turns out, that drunken hookup ended up with me kidnapped by space pirates, and now I’m stuck on the other side of the galaxy surrounded by dangers I never even knew existed.
I should be worried about getting out of this alive, but once the shock wears off, all I can think about is my attraction to my alien captor. They flirt and tease me, but I know it means nothing. Why would someone so confident and capable ever be interested in an anxious mess like me?
A dashing alien pirate…
What should’ve been a simple job ended up with me and my crew fleeing for our lives. Someone obviously set us up, but in order to get to the bottom of things, we need a lot of credits.
As if things weren’t bad enough, I’ve accidentally abducted a human. Nothing like what was meant to be a one-night stand turning into a full-time captive.
Now we’re stuck together until I get the funds needed to set things right. But each night cycle spent with this human by my side makes it harder to keep my distance. How do I keep him safe and return him home without falling for him—or ending up in a prison colony for the rest of my life?
Space for Growth is a high-heat M/NB alien romance featuring a human forced out of his comfort zone and the alien who shows him what the universe has to offer.
Space for Growth is Book 3 in the Spire Station series of interconnected standalone alien romances. It can be read without reading the other books in the series.
418 pages, Paperback
First published March 13, 2025
82 people are currently reading
699 people want to read
About the author
Emily Antoinette
16 books905 followersEmily loves cozy, emotional, and spicy romances with a monstrous twist. When she isn’t musing on the merits of doting, dominant monsters, she reads an obscene amount of romance novels, and cultivates her eccentric recluse persona.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 113 reviews
July 4, 2025
Paul was such a great representation of anxiety and dissociative trauma responses. I felt deep in my soul his insecurity that led to him assuming that everyone would rather spend time with anyone but him. Hadrell was so fun with their debonair attitude that masked their own trauma. They were playful and encouraging, and, given time, Paul was able to return this to them. Their love story had a disastrous beginning, but it just added some spice to the beginning. Also, I loved the migraine rep.
I’m Ngl, I’m devastated that this is the end of the trilogy, even though this wrapped up the friend group. But I won’t give up hope that Yaz will come back 🤞🏻
Spice: 4/5
Triggers: sex trafficking (not involving MCs), violence and death, accidental abduction, anxiety and panic attacks (human MC), past medical trauma (human MC), mentions of childhood neglect (human MC), dissociation (human MC), migraines (alien MC), worries/trauma involving a secret (alien MC, doesn’t involve their gender identity), discussions of body modification and surgery, brief depiction of vomiting, accidental drug use, power imbalance in relationship
I’m Ngl, I’m devastated that this is the end of the trilogy, even though this wrapped up the friend group. But I won’t give up hope that Yaz will come back 🤞🏻
Spice: 4/5
Triggers: sex trafficking (not involving MCs), violence and death, accidental abduction, anxiety and panic attacks (human MC), past medical trauma (human MC), mentions of childhood neglect (human MC), dissociation (human MC), migraines (alien MC), worries/trauma involving a secret (alien MC, doesn’t involve their gender identity), discussions of body modification and surgery, brief depiction of vomiting, accidental drug use, power imbalance in relationship
March 11, 2025
WOW. Just wow. This was a the perfect book full of emotion, adventure, love, and acceptance. The anxiety rep was amazing. I related so much to Paul. "I swallow hard as opposing surges of fear of taking a risk and fear of never trying something new war within me" Yeah I felt that one DEEP in my soul. I wasn't sure how much I would like Paul in this story given how he acted in the previous books but he absolutely redeemed himself.
Hadrell was the perfect partner for him, too. They were dominant but caring and understanding while encouraging Paul to recognize his worth. And I loved the way they just got it with Paul. Like it was just normal for him to try to accommodate Paul as best as he could. Reading the parts where they explained that to Paul had me crying like a baby. I wish the real world was like that.
Emily has such a talent writing spice scenes. And this book was no different! The spicy tech she comes up with.....you'll be fanning yourself while reading. Hadrell and Paul's dynamic in the bedroom was so hot.
I'm sad that the series had come to an end for now. But I love how Emily brought all the characters together at the end. Feels like we've come full circle. Just can we have a Yaz romance...please?? I'm in love with that aespian.
Hadrell was the perfect partner for him, too. They were dominant but caring and understanding while encouraging Paul to recognize his worth. And I loved the way they just got it with Paul. Like it was just normal for him to try to accommodate Paul as best as he could. Reading the parts where they explained that to Paul had me crying like a baby. I wish the real world was like that.
Emily has such a talent writing spice scenes. And this book was no different! The spicy tech she comes up with.....you'll be fanning yourself while reading. Hadrell and Paul's dynamic in the bedroom was so hot.
I'm sad that the series had come to an end for now. But I love how Emily brought all the characters together at the end. Feels like we've come full circle. Just can we have a Yaz romance...please?? I'm in love with that aespian.
March 12, 2025
5 stars
This one is for sure my favorite in this series and such a great conclusion to this trilogy following our little friend group (Fina, Mezli, and Paul). Paul and Hadrell are such great characters and so well written. Paul's anxiety and trauma response was so well done and felt so real. Hadrell's gender identity (non-binary and transmasc) was so relatable to me, even in this science fiction setting. Emily Antoinette very obviously approached these subjects with so much care, and I absolutely love that. ALSO, for anyone who knows me, there is a pretty awesome found family aspect to this story with Hadrell's ship crew, and I ADORED THIS. They were so endearing, quirky, and hilarious. I really enjoyed the character development for Paul, especially as he really comes into his own. I found a lot of his internal monologues to be super relatable. Many of his thoughts and feelings are things I have experienced myself. All in all, perfection. This was beautiful, hilarious, and so so sweet. I'm sad to see this series end, but, man, did it end on the highest of high notes.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This one is for sure my favorite in this series and such a great conclusion to this trilogy following our little friend group (Fina, Mezli, and Paul). Paul and Hadrell are such great characters and so well written. Paul's anxiety and trauma response was so well done and felt so real. Hadrell's gender identity (non-binary and transmasc) was so relatable to me, even in this science fiction setting. Emily Antoinette very obviously approached these subjects with so much care, and I absolutely love that. ALSO, for anyone who knows me, there is a pretty awesome found family aspect to this story with Hadrell's ship crew, and I ADORED THIS. They were so endearing, quirky, and hilarious. I really enjoyed the character development for Paul, especially as he really comes into his own. I found a lot of his internal monologues to be super relatable. Many of his thoughts and feelings are things I have experienced myself. All in all, perfection. This was beautiful, hilarious, and so so sweet. I'm sad to see this series end, but, man, did it end on the highest of high notes.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
March 12, 2025
This was amazing!! I related way too much to Paul's anxiety and the representation was so good to see. Emily Antoinette's creativity is endless when it comes to writing these stories. I cannot wait to read her next books!
Thank you to Emily Antoinette for giving me an arc for my honest opinions.
Thank you to Emily Antoinette for giving me an arc for my honest opinions.
March 8, 2025
Gosh, this is such a hard review to write without gushing over all the little details that made me fall in love with both Paul and Hadrell and the story as a whole. There are so many things that I wasn’t expecting that made this read so enjoyable, and so many others that Emily has shared in snippets, trope maps, and conversations that I looked forward to earnestly. In the spirit of ARC ethics re: avoiding major spoilers, I’ll try to stick to being as vague as possible with the promise to update my GR review at a later date with specifics, I think.
Space for Growth takes us full circle with Paul’s story, allowing him a beautiful character arc that brought tears to my eyes. He was not the most likable character when he was introduced back in the first Spire Station novel, and while he did get better in the second one, he grows so much throughout his story that he might as well be Paul 2.0, new and improved! I found his character extremely relatable on a lot of notes and very attractive on others. This will sound kind of horrible but I really love that Paul is kind of pathetic. And I don’t mean because he has severe anxiety or medical PTSD, although those things also endeared me to him because hello, same. I mean because he’s a mess. He cries and scares easily, he doesn’t think very highly of himself, he laps up every scrap of praise and affection tossed his way, and he has let himself stay too comfortable for too long in his privileged little bubble. He’s also a Simp with a capital S. (I promise when I say I love a pathetic man I do not mean it as a bad thing; its a very good thing in my book. I am sooo tired of macho alpha male types, it's beautiful when we get a character that is a little wobbly in the knees and isn’t afraid to shed a few tears.) He’s also like, the perfect subby little vers for Hadrell, which pushed allll the right buttons for me.
Hadrell also pushed all the right buttons on every front. They were the right combination of dominant and caring, gently pushing Paul towards the things that he knew Paul was capable of without *pushing* him, ya know? Both in and out of the bedroom! And their chemistry was unreal (like, holy wow the spice in this one was top-tier). But what really made Hadrell for me was that they were incredibly kind, compassionate, willing and wanting to help as much as he possibly could, even after working for years as a pirate seeing the worst of the worst that the universe had to offer. Yes, they had a devil-may-care attitude, yes they were incredibly flirtatious and a bit of a scoundrel, but it worked for him so perfectly. (And yes, I am using both they and he pronouns, as Hadrell is a transmasc nonbinary seladin! Which Emily handled incredibly.) I can’t gush too much about the ways that Hadrell also grows in this story without hitting on major spoilers, unlike Paul who its a little easier to be vague with, so I’ll just have to say that by the end of the book there was a moment that I teared up for him too. Emily has a way with eking out the more tender emotions that are sometimes hard to reach, and this story was such a great example of that.
The overarching plot, the adventure(s) that we go on with Hadrell and Paul, the incredible crew of interesting side characters (Yaz’s story pls!), and the revisiting of old friends… all of it made it incredibly difficult to put this book down. And at a hefty 400+ pages, I had to really fight with myself to not inhale it all in one sitting — staying up too late be damned lol. Spire Station and its universe beyond will be a series that I know I’ll revisit because Emily’s characters feel like friends, and the stories, while packed with emotion and adventure, feel like sharing a cup of cocoa in a cozy, safe space where you’d be valued and loved. And we all need a little more of that in this currently tumultuous world.
Space for Growth takes us full circle with Paul’s story, allowing him a beautiful character arc that brought tears to my eyes. He was not the most likable character when he was introduced back in the first Spire Station novel, and while he did get better in the second one, he grows so much throughout his story that he might as well be Paul 2.0, new and improved! I found his character extremely relatable on a lot of notes and very attractive on others. This will sound kind of horrible but I really love that Paul is kind of pathetic. And I don’t mean because he has severe anxiety or medical PTSD, although those things also endeared me to him because hello, same. I mean because he’s a mess. He cries and scares easily, he doesn’t think very highly of himself, he laps up every scrap of praise and affection tossed his way, and he has let himself stay too comfortable for too long in his privileged little bubble. He’s also a Simp with a capital S. (I promise when I say I love a pathetic man I do not mean it as a bad thing; its a very good thing in my book. I am sooo tired of macho alpha male types, it's beautiful when we get a character that is a little wobbly in the knees and isn’t afraid to shed a few tears.) He’s also like, the perfect subby little vers for Hadrell, which pushed allll the right buttons for me.
Hadrell also pushed all the right buttons on every front. They were the right combination of dominant and caring, gently pushing Paul towards the things that he knew Paul was capable of without *pushing* him, ya know? Both in and out of the bedroom! And their chemistry was unreal (like, holy wow the spice in this one was top-tier). But what really made Hadrell for me was that they were incredibly kind, compassionate, willing and wanting to help as much as he possibly could, even after working for years as a pirate seeing the worst of the worst that the universe had to offer. Yes, they had a devil-may-care attitude, yes they were incredibly flirtatious and a bit of a scoundrel, but it worked for him so perfectly. (And yes, I am using both they and he pronouns, as Hadrell is a transmasc nonbinary seladin! Which Emily handled incredibly.) I can’t gush too much about the ways that Hadrell also grows in this story without hitting on major spoilers, unlike Paul who its a little easier to be vague with, so I’ll just have to say that by the end of the book there was a moment that I teared up for him too. Emily has a way with eking out the more tender emotions that are sometimes hard to reach, and this story was such a great example of that.
The overarching plot, the adventure(s) that we go on with Hadrell and Paul, the incredible crew of interesting side characters (Yaz’s story pls!), and the revisiting of old friends… all of it made it incredibly difficult to put this book down. And at a hefty 400+ pages, I had to really fight with myself to not inhale it all in one sitting — staying up too late be damned lol. Spire Station and its universe beyond will be a series that I know I’ll revisit because Emily’s characters feel like friends, and the stories, while packed with emotion and adventure, feel like sharing a cup of cocoa in a cozy, safe space where you’d be valued and loved. And we all need a little more of that in this currently tumultuous world.
March 22, 2025
I don't mean to sound dramatic but holy heck this was the hottest book. WHEW!!!!
I have been so excited for Human Paul to find love! he was such a sad lonely bean.
Hadrell and Paul... My sweet sweet human Paul! I loved how anxious and insecure Paul was because we get to see Hadrell always building him up and showing him how incredible he is! and Paul showing Hadrell trust and love and so much joyyy. They are just instantly so good together, like they were meant to be. It takes a little time for them to find the way they fit together but once they do it works SO WELL. And the whole club scene with Paul as Hadrells pet (and their practice..). Dear lord. I also always appreciate how well Emily writes about consent and how she handles kink in her books. There is always clear consent and boundaries and always aftercare ♥
This was the funniest of the Spire station series so far. I could read these two together for another 300 pages and not get bored. We get to know more about both Paula and Hadrell and all the people on his ship ( I desperately need Yaz to get a partner he is so precious!!!!) and we also get to meet up with all the gang from Space for Love and Space for More :)
I have been so excited for Human Paul to find love! he was such a sad lonely bean.
Hadrell and Paul... My sweet sweet human Paul! I loved how anxious and insecure Paul was because we get to see Hadrell always building him up and showing him how incredible he is! and Paul showing Hadrell trust and love and so much joyyy. They are just instantly so good together, like they were meant to be. It takes a little time for them to find the way they fit together but once they do it works SO WELL. And the whole club scene with Paul as Hadrells pet (and their practice..). Dear lord. I also always appreciate how well Emily writes about consent and how she handles kink in her books. There is always clear consent and boundaries and always aftercare ♥
This was the funniest of the Spire station series so far. I could read these two together for another 300 pages and not get bored. We get to know more about both Paula and Hadrell and all the people on his ship ( I desperately need Yaz to get a partner he is so precious!!!!) and we also get to meet up with all the gang from Space for Love and Space for More :)
March 26, 2025
After one too many drinks, Paul wakes up in the bed of an alien pirate. As if that’s not bad enough, the ship takes off—leaving him stranded with Hadrell and their chaotic crew. What starts as an unfortunate mix-up turns into an unforgettable journey filled with danger, laughter, and some serious emotions.
I did not expect this one to hit so hard, but wow. The representation was beautifully done, and the romance? Equal parts tender and hilarious. Plus, the creativity with the alien tech? 10/10 👏
I did not expect this one to hit so hard, but wow. The representation was beautifully done, and the romance? Equal parts tender and hilarious. Plus, the creativity with the alien tech? 10/10 👏
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July 6, 2025
5 ⭐️ This series is over and I want to cry because I have NEVER read a more beautiful expression of gender and character growth on any MC on any sci-fi or romance novel probably EVER.
I am so, so, so in love with Emily Antoinette as an author, and I truly cannot wait to read what she cooks for us after this amazing three-book series! She's turned into a bit of an auto-buy author for me, or at least an auto-add-to-TBR and wait obsessively to have the money to buy or see if it's on KU lol.
I am so, so, so in love with Emily Antoinette as an author, and I truly cannot wait to read what she cooks for us after this amazing three-book series! She's turned into a bit of an auto-buy author for me, or at least an auto-add-to-TBR and wait obsessively to have the money to buy or see if it's on KU lol.
March 18, 2025
Go read this.
Point
Blank.
Period.
This made me say "aw," tear up (I’m an emotional crybaby, okay?), or blush too many times to argue with anyone!
The characters are very diverse, with great LGBTQ+ representation, and a great plot.
The spice is a bonus of course.
Go read it!
Point
Blank.
Period.
This made me say "aw," tear up (I’m an emotional crybaby, okay?), or blush too many times to argue with anyone!
The characters are very diverse, with great LGBTQ+ representation, and a great plot.
The spice is a bonus of course.
Go read it!
March 31, 2025
So sad to hear this is the last book in the series but it is the best and it ends on a high note.
Love the trans rep and anxiety rep. Great mix of romance and adventure. Sweet and spicy. Emily killed it with this one
Love the trans rep and anxiety rep. Great mix of romance and adventure. Sweet and spicy. Emily killed it with this one
March 14, 2025
Absolutely Excellent Story!
**I read this book as an ARC**
This book was simply perfect! I absolutely love the trans NB representation in Hadrell, who is one of the MCs. I also love that the character's gender isn't even remotely an issue with anyone. It is simply accepted and has no bearing on their interactions with anyone in the story. It's just refreshing.
Beyond Hadrell's gender, they are simply a joy to read because of their big, confident personality and how much fun they have, not to mention being a genuinely tender person while still being a bit rakish.
Paul makes my heart hurt (especially at the beginning of the story), but getting to see his development over the course of the book is inspiring. He is also absolutely a cinnamon roll, but with a deliciously deviant side.
The plot is fun, pacing is so well done, and I never felt frustrated with the progress of the romance or annoyed at the characters because they did something stupid. LOVE the lack of miscommunication trope!! 😅
Overall, this is an excellent story with great characters, lots of adventure, and a beautiful romance (and ALL of the spice). Absolutely recommend!
**I read this book as an ARC**
This book was simply perfect! I absolutely love the trans NB representation in Hadrell, who is one of the MCs. I also love that the character's gender isn't even remotely an issue with anyone. It is simply accepted and has no bearing on their interactions with anyone in the story. It's just refreshing.
Beyond Hadrell's gender, they are simply a joy to read because of their big, confident personality and how much fun they have, not to mention being a genuinely tender person while still being a bit rakish.
Paul makes my heart hurt (especially at the beginning of the story), but getting to see his development over the course of the book is inspiring. He is also absolutely a cinnamon roll, but with a deliciously deviant side.
The plot is fun, pacing is so well done, and I never felt frustrated with the progress of the romance or annoyed at the characters because they did something stupid. LOVE the lack of miscommunication trope!! 😅
Overall, this is an excellent story with great characters, lots of adventure, and a beautiful romance (and ALL of the spice). Absolutely recommend!
March 4, 2025
Never a bad book from this author. Everyone needs to be reading her work!
March 13, 2025
A relationship that begins with an accidental kidnapping seems like it might be doomed, but not if the extra hot space pirate and their also hot human hostage have the chemistry that Paul and Hadrell have. I love that Hadrell recognizes the power imbalance and while they are attracted to Paul from the start they do not make a move until they are sure that Paul is not just consenting, but that he is just as eager as Hadrell. I also love that Hadrell is loving, caring, nurturing, and supportive of Paul immediately. And Paul holds similar space for Hadrell.
Once they do begin their physical relationship it is hot as hell, and their interplay is wonderful. This book made me laugh, cry and turned me on. You can't ask for much more than that.
Once they do begin their physical relationship it is hot as hell, and their interplay is wonderful. This book made me laugh, cry and turned me on. You can't ask for much more than that.
March 13, 2025
This book was such a fun read! I loved being back in this world and Paul & Hadrell were possibly my favorite couple! Lots of shenanigans and good/funny miscommunications. The whole crew of Hadrell’s ship was hilarious and I want a book for each of them.
A great finale to the Spire Station Series, I loved what Emily wrote in her author notes especially;
“But to be frank, I didn’t write these books for those readers. I wrote them for myself and for the queer readers who deserve to see themselves in sci-fi romance. I wrote them for my exploration of my bisexuality and gender, and for my trans loved ones.”
5 ⭐️
4.5 🌶️
A great finale to the Spire Station Series, I loved what Emily wrote in her author notes especially;
“But to be frank, I didn’t write these books for those readers. I wrote them for myself and for the queer readers who deserve to see themselves in sci-fi romance. I wrote them for my exploration of my bisexuality and gender, and for my trans loved ones.”
5 ⭐️
4.5 🌶️
March 31, 2025
⭐️ARC REVIEW⭐️
If you are looking for a wonderful novel with beautiful trans representation, some excellent spice, and fun space pirate adventures then you should add this to your TBR and read it immediately! The third and final book in Antoinette’s Spire Station series honestly took my breath away. Paul was a character I was on the fence about in the previous books but after learning more about him, I became attached. His anxiety and dissociation episodes spoke to me personally. I saw myself and knew so many others would see themselves, and that more books like these need to exist in the world. Then Hadrell, I was swooning from their first interaction because, yes, space pirate please accidentally kidnap me and take me away! Then when they saw the ways Paul struggled it was achingly beautiful to see such care and comfort portrayed while their relationship developed. Hadrell has a dirty mouth with some fun space toys while also being the sweetest partner to Paul, always pushing him out of his comfort zone in a safe and supportive way. I couldn’t get enough! Please read this beautiful M/NB romance that will make you swoon while giggling the entire time.
If you are looking for a wonderful novel with beautiful trans representation, some excellent spice, and fun space pirate adventures then you should add this to your TBR and read it immediately! The third and final book in Antoinette’s Spire Station series honestly took my breath away. Paul was a character I was on the fence about in the previous books but after learning more about him, I became attached. His anxiety and dissociation episodes spoke to me personally. I saw myself and knew so many others would see themselves, and that more books like these need to exist in the world. Then Hadrell, I was swooning from their first interaction because, yes, space pirate please accidentally kidnap me and take me away! Then when they saw the ways Paul struggled it was achingly beautiful to see such care and comfort portrayed while their relationship developed. Hadrell has a dirty mouth with some fun space toys while also being the sweetest partner to Paul, always pushing him out of his comfort zone in a safe and supportive way. I couldn’t get enough! Please read this beautiful M/NB romance that will make you swoon while giggling the entire time.
July 8, 2025
Another beautiful book has been added to this wonderful series! And oooh boy did it nearly top Space for More for me, which is tough! Because I looooove Mezli so much! Buuuuuut, theres so many cameos and cute animal companions in this one … and this book made me love Paul!
This book was so funny and sweet and just .. I need to reread the whole series !!
Thank you again Emily for trusting/allowing me to beta read for you 💜 I really freaking appreciate you and your books and the community you have created 😭🎉
I recommend reading all of the series in order, but if this one catches your interest most, please check it out! 🤍
What You Can Expect:
👾Transmasc NB Alien Pirate x Cis Human Man
👽Accidental Alien Abduction
🤺Facing Fears
🫂Learning to Trust
🥰Idiots in Love
😏Exploring Kink
🏴☠️Space Pirate Nonsense
This book was so funny and sweet and just .. I need to reread the whole series !!
Thank you again Emily for trusting/allowing me to beta read for you 💜 I really freaking appreciate you and your books and the community you have created 😭🎉
I recommend reading all of the series in order, but if this one catches your interest most, please check it out! 🤍
What You Can Expect:
👾Transmasc NB Alien Pirate x Cis Human Man
👽Accidental Alien Abduction
🤺Facing Fears
🫂Learning to Trust
🥰Idiots in Love
😏Exploring Kink
🏴☠️Space Pirate Nonsense
November 16, 2025
Update *
I just reread the book (same year) and it’s just as good! I was really stressed and this book was a great way to relax!
I am so grateful to have read this book. It is not only a beautiful (and hella sexy) smut reading, but it is true and sincere. Emily brings out the humanity and complexities of the characters.
One of the main characters is a trans mask non-binary person, Haddrel. They are incredibly complex, warm, funny. It’s the representation that we deserve.
Paul is sweet, anxious, and just a little buff cinnamon roll !
Besides, having these two amazing characters, it’s just space pirate nonsense!
10 out of 10 ⭐️
Lots of steamy spice 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Everything I wanted in a book, I think everyone should read it!
I just reread the book (same year) and it’s just as good! I was really stressed and this book was a great way to relax!
I am so grateful to have read this book. It is not only a beautiful (and hella sexy) smut reading, but it is true and sincere. Emily brings out the humanity and complexities of the characters.
One of the main characters is a trans mask non-binary person, Haddrel. They are incredibly complex, warm, funny. It’s the representation that we deserve.
Paul is sweet, anxious, and just a little buff cinnamon roll !
Besides, having these two amazing characters, it’s just space pirate nonsense!
10 out of 10 ⭐️
Lots of steamy spice 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Everything I wanted in a book, I think everyone should read it!
April 9, 2025
Where do I start? 3 stars might be generous, honestly. But 2 seems harsh. It’s probably a 2.5 rounded up. The premise was really great and I did like some things, but the execution just didn’t really do it for me.
I honestly should have just DNFed, but I persisted with a friend. Why? I don’t know. I had to see it through. I really liked the premise- human is accidentally kidnapped, I get to learn about more fictional alien species which is always super fun, forced proximity is my jam, it’s high heat. The aliens were cool, and that was a highlight. I enjoyed the different species and the sc- fi aspect of it all.
My biggest issue was the characters, which is kind of the most important thing in a book. Specifically, Paul. The blurb says he’s anxious, but he goes way beyond anxious to a point where it was honestly hard to relate and sympathize with him because he just blew everything up to the extremes. Which, as someone who also has diagnosed anxiety, is relatable! Him being really anxious isn’t the issue at all, and I’ve read books where this is handled beautifully and the reader gets to watch them come out of their shell and interact more with the LI, or they manage it better, or simply they just work around it because that’s who they are and anxiety isn’t something that’s suddenly going to go away because you’re in love.
However I just didn’t feel it was handled the best here. Paul catastrophizes everything, either panicking and screaming or disassociating at the drop of a hat. A couple times, okay, I could have done that. He was kidnapped, he’s never done anything like this, isn’t used to space travel or being off planet, that’s fine. That’s scary and stressful. But the entire book he panics to the extreme over everything in a way that blocks plot points or relationship development and leads to Hadrell having to manage his anxiety like he’s a little kid, which I didn’t really love. Having a friend/significant other who helps you with anxiety is not an issue- that’s great! But it just happened so often for every little thing and it really made me question how Paul survived in the world if everything freaks him out so much and he needs so much help. It just got to the point where it was too much, and maybe that’s real realistic for this type of anxiety? It’s not the type I’ve got, so maybe it’s not overdo it just seemed like Paul had far too extreme of reactions and needed too much coddling and I struggled to get through it. This was a good spot for character development that just… didn’t really happen well. He did get more confident in the second half thankfully, but I feel like about 25% of the first half could have been removed and it would have been a more enjoyable book.
I did like Hadrell, though I feel he was too coddling. I’m all for a friend or lover or whoever helping manage anxiety, it’s a godsend. I also liked he was a pirate and what they did- it was pretty unique and fun.
Also, really not a lot of spice for a book marketed as being spicy. The first couple scenes were fun, though The last few sex scenes also just seemed very summarized in the “he did this and then we did this and then this happened” way, and I didn’t really see the point in them.
Could have been worse. Could have been so much better. I didn’t really see much chemistry between the characters and didn’t really connect to Paul, but the plot (when there was any) wasn’t bad. I probably had more thoughts a few days ago, but here we are
I honestly should have just DNFed, but I persisted with a friend. Why? I don’t know. I had to see it through. I really liked the premise- human is accidentally kidnapped, I get to learn about more fictional alien species which is always super fun, forced proximity is my jam, it’s high heat. The aliens were cool, and that was a highlight. I enjoyed the different species and the sc- fi aspect of it all.
My biggest issue was the characters, which is kind of the most important thing in a book. Specifically, Paul. The blurb says he’s anxious, but he goes way beyond anxious to a point where it was honestly hard to relate and sympathize with him because he just blew everything up to the extremes. Which, as someone who also has diagnosed anxiety, is relatable! Him being really anxious isn’t the issue at all, and I’ve read books where this is handled beautifully and the reader gets to watch them come out of their shell and interact more with the LI, or they manage it better, or simply they just work around it because that’s who they are and anxiety isn’t something that’s suddenly going to go away because you’re in love.
However I just didn’t feel it was handled the best here. Paul catastrophizes everything, either panicking and screaming or disassociating at the drop of a hat. A couple times, okay, I could have done that. He was kidnapped, he’s never done anything like this, isn’t used to space travel or being off planet, that’s fine. That’s scary and stressful. But the entire book he panics to the extreme over everything in a way that blocks plot points or relationship development and leads to Hadrell having to manage his anxiety like he’s a little kid, which I didn’t really love. Having a friend/significant other who helps you with anxiety is not an issue- that’s great! But it just happened so often for every little thing and it really made me question how Paul survived in the world if everything freaks him out so much and he needs so much help. It just got to the point where it was too much, and maybe that’s real realistic for this type of anxiety? It’s not the type I’ve got, so maybe it’s not overdo it just seemed like Paul had far too extreme of reactions and needed too much coddling and I struggled to get through it. This was a good spot for character development that just… didn’t really happen well. He did get more confident in the second half thankfully, but I feel like about 25% of the first half could have been removed and it would have been a more enjoyable book.
I did like Hadrell, though I feel he was too coddling. I’m all for a friend or lover or whoever helping manage anxiety, it’s a godsend. I also liked he was a pirate and what they did- it was pretty unique and fun.
Also, really not a lot of spice for a book marketed as being spicy. The first couple scenes were fun, though The last few sex scenes also just seemed very summarized in the “he did this and then we did this and then this happened” way, and I didn’t really see the point in them.
Could have been worse. Could have been so much better. I didn’t really see much chemistry between the characters and didn’t really connect to Paul, but the plot (when there was any) wasn’t bad. I probably had more thoughts a few days ago, but here we are
March 15, 2025
📖✨ Space for Growth by Emily Antoinette ✨📖
Overall Rating: [5/5]
Read: 03/02/2025 – 03/04/2025
Genre: Sci-Fi Romance
Tropes: Anxious x Confident, They take care of each other, Patient Love, & Found Family
Characters & Development: [5/5]
Spice Level: [5/5]
Emotional Impact: [5/5]
💭 First Impressions
Why I picked this up: I have read a significant amount of Emily's writing, and to say she is a talented author would be an understatement. Her ability to craft complex characters is consistently impressive. She writes queer characters with genuine care, and as someone who identifies within the community, I find it immensely gratifying.
Regarding this series, the first book was exceptional! I thoroughly enjoyed Mezli's journey and appreciated witnessing Paul's gradual development as he moved towards his own narrative. My love for fantasy and sci-fi was well-satisfied by the Spire Station series, which offers a rich universe filled with diverse creatures, endearing characters, and, of course, kinky alien romance.
In addition to her writing, Emily collaborates with talented artists. The cover art is stunning, and the portrayals of both Paul and Hadrell are incredibly appealing. ;)
Expectations vs. Reality: Did it live up to the expectations? Was it different from what I anticipated? --- I approached it with some caution at first, as sequels can sometimes lose their clarity and freshness. I must say, however, that this was as excellent as the first and second, if not better! The excitement surrounding it perfectly matched what I sought in a trans romance novel. All characters were portrayed positively and were encouraged to embrace their true selves, especially the dynamic between Hadrell and Paul, who is characterized by his anxiety—Hadrell's patience with him is heartwarming.
🌟 What I Loved
Besides Hadrell being my all-time favorite in this series, I really enjoyed Paul, along with Bre'tu, Xalit, and Yaz as some of my top side characters.
Bre'tu really won me over with his quiet and serious demeanor, yet he had so many amusing moments. I loved when Ze was just thrilled that someone (Paul) was finally willing to do what Ze asked without arguing. And every time Ze called out one of the couples for trying to get frisky in the med bay, I couldn't help but laugh.
Xalit captured my heart as well, even though they were only around briefly. I have a soft spot for those background characters who never appear again. Their excitement to meet a human and show off their love for human clothing was just delightful. It reminded me of a special interest, and it was wonderful to see such positivity towards a character like that.
Yaz totally stole my heart (and I think everyone else's in the servers) with his charm. He was like a wingman (pun intended) for both Hadrell and Paul. His straightforwardness about "customs" was great!
I found myself swooning over the characters and their unfolding romance, which at times moved me to tears.
Pacing: The pacing initially felt a bit slow as we met the characters but it quickly settled into a good pace.
Character Arcs: All the characters felt authentic and relatable!
❤️ Favorite Moments & Quotes
📢 Final Thoughts & Recommendation
Perfect for readers who love: Ruby Dixon’s Ice Planet Barbarians series
Would I reread? Yes, absolutely!
Final verdict: Overall, it was a delightful book filled with action, romance, and spice. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to explore beyond M/F pairings or to delve into the realm of science fiction!
Have you read this? What did you think? Drop your thoughts below! ⬇️💕
Overall Rating: [5/5]
Read: 03/02/2025 – 03/04/2025
Genre: Sci-Fi Romance
Tropes: Anxious x Confident, They take care of each other, Patient Love, & Found Family
Characters & Development: [5/5]
Spice Level: [5/5]
Emotional Impact: [5/5]
💭 First Impressions
Why I picked this up: I have read a significant amount of Emily's writing, and to say she is a talented author would be an understatement. Her ability to craft complex characters is consistently impressive. She writes queer characters with genuine care, and as someone who identifies within the community, I find it immensely gratifying.
Regarding this series, the first book was exceptional! I thoroughly enjoyed Mezli's journey and appreciated witnessing Paul's gradual development as he moved towards his own narrative. My love for fantasy and sci-fi was well-satisfied by the Spire Station series, which offers a rich universe filled with diverse creatures, endearing characters, and, of course, kinky alien romance.
In addition to her writing, Emily collaborates with talented artists. The cover art is stunning, and the portrayals of both Paul and Hadrell are incredibly appealing. ;)
Expectations vs. Reality: Did it live up to the expectations? Was it different from what I anticipated? --- I approached it with some caution at first, as sequels can sometimes lose their clarity and freshness. I must say, however, that this was as excellent as the first and second, if not better! The excitement surrounding it perfectly matched what I sought in a trans romance novel. All characters were portrayed positively and were encouraged to embrace their true selves, especially the dynamic between Hadrell and Paul, who is characterized by his anxiety—Hadrell's patience with him is heartwarming.
🌟 What I Loved
Besides Hadrell being my all-time favorite in this series, I really enjoyed Paul, along with Bre'tu, Xalit, and Yaz as some of my top side characters.
Bre'tu really won me over with his quiet and serious demeanor, yet he had so many amusing moments. I loved when Ze was just thrilled that someone (Paul) was finally willing to do what Ze asked without arguing. And every time Ze called out one of the couples for trying to get frisky in the med bay, I couldn't help but laugh.
Xalit captured my heart as well, even though they were only around briefly. I have a soft spot for those background characters who never appear again. Their excitement to meet a human and show off their love for human clothing was just delightful. It reminded me of a special interest, and it was wonderful to see such positivity towards a character like that.
Yaz totally stole my heart (and I think everyone else's in the servers) with his charm. He was like a wingman (pun intended) for both Hadrell and Paul. His straightforwardness about "customs" was great!
I found myself swooning over the characters and their unfolding romance, which at times moved me to tears.
Pacing: The pacing initially felt a bit slow as we met the characters but it quickly settled into a good pace.
Character Arcs: All the characters felt authentic and relatable!
❤️ Favorite Moments & Quotes
📢 Final Thoughts & Recommendation
Perfect for readers who love: Ruby Dixon’s Ice Planet Barbarians series
Would I reread? Yes, absolutely!
Final verdict: Overall, it was a delightful book filled with action, romance, and spice. I highly recommend it to anyone looking to explore beyond M/F pairings or to delve into the realm of science fiction!
Have you read this? What did you think? Drop your thoughts below! ⬇️💕
March 24, 2025
This was so good! First I love that Hadrell wasn't just the supportive partner that sweeps our romance interest off their feet. They have their own set of issues that Paul helps them work through. I also love that Paul isn't always the damsel in distress. I mean we see a bit of that, mainly Paul conveniently throwing those diplomacy skills out a window when he's having anxiety. Still we get to watch Paul work through those anxieties and whip out them diplomacy skills and save their asses it was so nice to see in a romance novel. He was also so badass and it was so refreshing after reading about most romantic leads just being useless.
I also really appreciate the diversity rep here. Not just Hadrell being a badass trans he/they but Paul's childhood illness and sexualtiy, and Val's protestic. I love Antoinette's approach to inclusivity and can't wait to read some of her other works.
Oh, you also can't complain about the those smut scenes. If I had spent my high school day's reading anything other than AO3 E rated fanfiction I would have been blushing.
Honestly I was hooked in at the promise of good M/NB smut scenes but really found myself enjoying the characters. That scene where Paul goes into shut down mode and disassociated, that is something I've actually experienced. So reading a character go through through it in something other than fanfiction makes me feel seen.
At times the world building felt it was just designed for smut, kinda like living on the Strip in Vegas. (And if you don't know what I mean, I have a picture of my 9-year-old younger brother posing with half naked strippers on the Strip, there is also a photo of teenage me nudging my bisexual dad towards a pink-clad male stripper, also on the strip. And I may or may not have been grounded for hording nude photos handed to 15-year-old me by strangers.) But I can't really be upset by that. I assumed it was due to our perspective of this world. The sex clubs, implants, nearly everyone being sex-controlled drones, I was surprised there wasn't someone on the station handing out nude pics of themselves. Would have been nice to see more "Humans are space orcs" and less "Humans are soft little sextoys" but still I knew what I was getting into.
And to anyone who thinks I'm being too critical. I am. I loved this book, it has become one of my favorite smut romance books. You have good characters, decent world building, and diversity rep WITH SMUT, not to mention I liked the plot. One thing I would love to see more of is plot and badass characters in the smut romance genre. This to me felt like a good start to this goal. It was great, and I am on board to see what the author writes next, that is why I am being a little more critical than I would if this were meant as a "trashy" or "cozy" smut novel. It was too good to be a trashy novel, and it had too many dark themes to be a cozy read.
I also really appreciate the diversity rep here. Not just Hadrell being a badass trans he/they but Paul's childhood illness and sexualtiy, and Val's protestic. I love Antoinette's approach to inclusivity and can't wait to read some of her other works.
Oh, you also can't complain about the those smut scenes. If I had spent my high school day's reading anything other than AO3 E rated fanfiction I would have been blushing.
Honestly I was hooked in at the promise of good M/NB smut scenes but really found myself enjoying the characters. That scene where Paul goes into shut down mode and disassociated, that is something I've actually experienced. So reading a character go through through it in something other than fanfiction makes me feel seen.
At times the world building felt it was just designed for smut, kinda like living on the Strip in Vegas. (And if you don't know what I mean, I have a picture of my 9-year-old younger brother posing with half naked strippers on the Strip, there is also a photo of teenage me nudging my bisexual dad towards a pink-clad male stripper, also on the strip. And I may or may not have been grounded for hording nude photos handed to 15-year-old me by strangers.) But I can't really be upset by that. I assumed it was due to our perspective of this world. The sex clubs, implants, nearly everyone being sex-controlled drones, I was surprised there wasn't someone on the station handing out nude pics of themselves. Would have been nice to see more "Humans are space orcs" and less "Humans are soft little sextoys" but still I knew what I was getting into.
And to anyone who thinks I'm being too critical. I am. I loved this book, it has become one of my favorite smut romance books. You have good characters, decent world building, and diversity rep WITH SMUT, not to mention I liked the plot. One thing I would love to see more of is plot and badass characters in the smut romance genre. This to me felt like a good start to this goal. It was great, and I am on board to see what the author writes next, that is why I am being a little more critical than I would if this were meant as a "trashy" or "cozy" smut novel. It was too good to be a trashy novel, and it had too many dark themes to be a cozy read.
March 5, 2025
✨✨Arc Review✨✨
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Spice in Chps: 21, 25, 26, 35, 38, 42& epilogue
‼️‼️TW|CW‼️‼️
- Anxiety/ panic attack representation in MMC
- Past medical trauma
- Dissociation
- Accidental drug use
- Sex trafficking (not by mcs)
- Violence
- Death
💕💕Tropes💕💕
- Public Sex
- (Accidental) kidnapping
- Dom/sub dynamic
❤️Quotes that stole my heart❤️
- “..It’s clear that you never received that kind of decency, because if you did, you wouldn’t think so poorly of yourself. The only thing ridiculous about you is that you can’t see your worth, and even that’s not your fault.”
- I’ve only loved a few people in my life, and before now, it was never romantic. There were a few people I probably could’ve loved given time, but no one ever stuck around for long enough for me to discover that.
✨✨Onto the Review✨✨
Thank you thank you thank you Emily for having me on your ARC team for this book! I was so surprised to be picked!!! I absolutely loved this book!
“Space for Growth” is the third book/ standalone in an interconnected series. Full disclosure I have not read the other two books in this series and this was my first book by the author but nothing was hard to understand! I have added the first two book onto my ever growing wishlist/ tbr! Emily has a fun glossary at the beginning of the book with words (mostly curse words) that the MC uses that don’t translate from their language to English and now I feel like I need to add these fun alien curses into my day to day language.
This is a M/NB romance our MMC is Paul (he/him) a human ambassador who is accidentally kidnapped by our other MC Hadrell (They/he) an alien pirate. Hadrell isn’t a bad pirate he’s more like a Robin Hood type of Pirate.
I loved the character development of Paul through this book he goes from being unconfident, and anxiety filled constantly to being more comfortable in his skin and taking charge when he knows help is needed. I loved how Hadrell was patient with Paul through this story and didn’t try to pressure him into doing anything he didn’t want to.
The spice in this book is out of this world all puns intended! I can’t even begin to describe it without getting shadow banned on all meta platforms but when I say this book has opened my eyes to things beyond the norm...
Space for Growth is coming our March 13th and if you’re wanting a sci-fi romance book that is heavy on the action and adventure and has a very beautiful message within it’s story go get it from Amazon!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Spice in Chps: 21, 25, 26, 35, 38, 42& epilogue
‼️‼️TW|CW‼️‼️
- Anxiety/ panic attack representation in MMC
- Past medical trauma
- Dissociation
- Accidental drug use
- Sex trafficking (not by mcs)
- Violence
- Death
💕💕Tropes💕💕
- Public Sex
- (Accidental) kidnapping
- Dom/sub dynamic
❤️Quotes that stole my heart❤️
- “..It’s clear that you never received that kind of decency, because if you did, you wouldn’t think so poorly of yourself. The only thing ridiculous about you is that you can’t see your worth, and even that’s not your fault.”
- I’ve only loved a few people in my life, and before now, it was never romantic. There were a few people I probably could’ve loved given time, but no one ever stuck around for long enough for me to discover that.
✨✨Onto the Review✨✨
Thank you thank you thank you Emily for having me on your ARC team for this book! I was so surprised to be picked!!! I absolutely loved this book!
“Space for Growth” is the third book/ standalone in an interconnected series. Full disclosure I have not read the other two books in this series and this was my first book by the author but nothing was hard to understand! I have added the first two book onto my ever growing wishlist/ tbr! Emily has a fun glossary at the beginning of the book with words (mostly curse words) that the MC uses that don’t translate from their language to English and now I feel like I need to add these fun alien curses into my day to day language.
This is a M/NB romance our MMC is Paul (he/him) a human ambassador who is accidentally kidnapped by our other MC Hadrell (They/he) an alien pirate. Hadrell isn’t a bad pirate he’s more like a Robin Hood type of Pirate.
I loved the character development of Paul through this book he goes from being unconfident, and anxiety filled constantly to being more comfortable in his skin and taking charge when he knows help is needed. I loved how Hadrell was patient with Paul through this story and didn’t try to pressure him into doing anything he didn’t want to.
The spice in this book is out of this world all puns intended! I can’t even begin to describe it without getting shadow banned on all meta platforms but when I say this book has opened my eyes to things beyond the norm...
Space for Growth is coming our March 13th and if you’re wanting a sci-fi romance book that is heavy on the action and adventure and has a very beautiful message within it’s story go get it from Amazon!
March 11, 2025
I had to hold in my scream in the middle of the hospital hallway when I got the email about this ARC. I was so, so excited to read this book since it's pretty much everything I like: space pirates, trans/NB MC, aliens, excitement, a little bit of D/s - complete package. And I'm happy to report this book threw every expectation I had for it into a blender. I can't get over how good it was. Also the cover. LOOK AT THE COVER. how could you not want to read this?
This book is a lively space adventure following our lonely, somewhat gloomy human Paul when he, on the pretense of a wedding hook up, follows our very dashing alien space pirate Hadrell back to their ship, only to be inadvertently whisked away when Hadrell and his gang have to make a daring escape from Paul's space station. Needless to say this doesn't go over very well with Paul, but luckily Hadrell is rakish and charming and they have plenty of time to bond while stuck on Hadrell's ship together. 😏
It's funny and cute and has plenty of plot and action to keep you interested alongside the romance. God I love queer space books. They may be my favorite of all time. Hadrell keeps Paul safe and sound through all their adventures, offering him love and excitement. They're very well suited to each other and the romance combined with the space plot gives you everything you would want. I had to drag it out and force myself to only read a little each day so it wouldn't be over too quickly. I'm very sad it's over and will probably read it again.
Also I really appreciated the author's ending note and her comments on writing queer books. Any author who doesn't or doesn't always write queer books speaking out in support of Trans and queer stories is so important right now. So, especially with Trans rights readathon right around the corner, go pick up this book because you won't be sorry.
This book is a lively space adventure following our lonely, somewhat gloomy human Paul when he, on the pretense of a wedding hook up, follows our very dashing alien space pirate Hadrell back to their ship, only to be inadvertently whisked away when Hadrell and his gang have to make a daring escape from Paul's space station. Needless to say this doesn't go over very well with Paul, but luckily Hadrell is rakish and charming and they have plenty of time to bond while stuck on Hadrell's ship together. 😏
It's funny and cute and has plenty of plot and action to keep you interested alongside the romance. God I love queer space books. They may be my favorite of all time. Hadrell keeps Paul safe and sound through all their adventures, offering him love and excitement. They're very well suited to each other and the romance combined with the space plot gives you everything you would want. I had to drag it out and force myself to only read a little each day so it wouldn't be over too quickly. I'm very sad it's over and will probably read it again.
Also I really appreciated the author's ending note and her comments on writing queer books. Any author who doesn't or doesn't always write queer books speaking out in support of Trans and queer stories is so important right now. So, especially with Trans rights readathon right around the corner, go pick up this book because you won't be sorry.
March 14, 2025
OBSESSED. Space for Growth is such a great conclusion to the Spire Station trilogy, it is all about leaning into discomfort, concurring your anxieties, and opening up to new explorations. Oh, and SPACE ADVENTURES!
Space for Growth is an alien romance between a non-binary alien (Hadrell) and a human man (Paul). There's fated mates, technologically advanced appendages, bed sharing, space politics, s/d dynamics, and intergalactic adventure. The spice hits about 40% in and there's lots of relationship building.
If you have read the first book in this standalone, interconnected series, you'll know Paul already. This is truly his redemption arc, people CAN change. I think this book also humanized Paul through the reveal of his own struggles with anxiety and medical trauma. I remember readers being pretty heated about Paul in Space for Love. If Fina can find forgiveness, I think we can too!
I thought the coupling was super cute! Paul and Hadrell compliment each other so well. Hadrell's cockiness and "fake it until you make it" philosophy provided many funny and entertaining moments. The strangers to friends to lovers progression was super smooth. As their relationship grows, they learn about each other's pasts and are able to provide comfort and support to one another. What really sets this love in motion is none other than a mission to a space club. It wouldn't be a cozy alien romance without it!
Emily really went above and beyond in this book. I absolutely adore reading her work. From the plus size and mental health representations to the queer relationships, everyone can see themselves in her work. This is her first non-binary MC and I really commend her approach and dedication to inclusivity. This is also the first time that our MCs are accompanied by a whole crew of side characters. While this is the end of the series, I doubt it's the last time we'll see this crew. The readers have spoken and...we want more Kaz!
Thank you so much Emily for gifting me an ARC.
Space for Growth is an alien romance between a non-binary alien (Hadrell) and a human man (Paul). There's fated mates, technologically advanced appendages, bed sharing, space politics, s/d dynamics, and intergalactic adventure. The spice hits about 40% in and there's lots of relationship building.
If you have read the first book in this standalone, interconnected series, you'll know Paul already. This is truly his redemption arc, people CAN change. I think this book also humanized Paul through the reveal of his own struggles with anxiety and medical trauma. I remember readers being pretty heated about Paul in Space for Love. If Fina can find forgiveness, I think we can too!
I thought the coupling was super cute! Paul and Hadrell compliment each other so well. Hadrell's cockiness and "fake it until you make it" philosophy provided many funny and entertaining moments. The strangers to friends to lovers progression was super smooth. As their relationship grows, they learn about each other's pasts and are able to provide comfort and support to one another. What really sets this love in motion is none other than a mission to a space club. It wouldn't be a cozy alien romance without it!
Emily really went above and beyond in this book. I absolutely adore reading her work. From the plus size and mental health representations to the queer relationships, everyone can see themselves in her work. This is her first non-binary MC and I really commend her approach and dedication to inclusivity. This is also the first time that our MCs are accompanied by a whole crew of side characters. While this is the end of the series, I doubt it's the last time we'll see this crew. The readers have spoken and...we want more Kaz!
Thank you so much Emily for gifting me an ARC.
March 12, 2025
When an accidental kidnapping traps anxious human diplomat Paul on the spaceship of a sexy nonbinary/transmasc space captain (and lowkey pirate), an adventure unfolds that pulls you in quickly. As the crew scrambles to uncover who framed them for a crime, Paul and Hadrell must navigate their growing feelings—and what it might mean for their futures if they give in to the love and trust blossoming between them.
First, I have to say that as a nonbinary individual (sadly, not also a lowkey pirate), stories like this are SO important. Especially in light of current events, it’s vital to highlight books that make people like me feel seen and heard. Gender nonconforming individuals deserve love. We deserve to read sweet, spicy, sexy books that allow us to imagine futures filled with happiness, safety, and people who cherish us.
This series has been one of my favorites for a while now, and this installment only solidified its place in my heart. The space adventure setting was lighthearted and fun, and the two main characters were great to read about. We love an anxious soul learning to trust themselves! The mutual pining leading to deliciously spicy scenes was perfection, and the side characters were also compelling, making you root for them too.
For a brief moment, I worried that Paul’s anxiety might overshadow the narrative or make his dynamic with Hadrell feel imbalanced. But Hadrell had their own lessons to learn about trust, and in the end, their relationship felt like a beautifully balanced journey of mutual growth.
This was such a fun read—spicy, comforting, and a glowing representation of a love story that so many of us can see ourselves in.
First, I have to say that as a nonbinary individual (sadly, not also a lowkey pirate), stories like this are SO important. Especially in light of current events, it’s vital to highlight books that make people like me feel seen and heard. Gender nonconforming individuals deserve love. We deserve to read sweet, spicy, sexy books that allow us to imagine futures filled with happiness, safety, and people who cherish us.
This series has been one of my favorites for a while now, and this installment only solidified its place in my heart. The space adventure setting was lighthearted and fun, and the two main characters were great to read about. We love an anxious soul learning to trust themselves! The mutual pining leading to deliciously spicy scenes was perfection, and the side characters were also compelling, making you root for them too.
For a brief moment, I worried that Paul’s anxiety might overshadow the narrative or make his dynamic with Hadrell feel imbalanced. But Hadrell had their own lessons to learn about trust, and in the end, their relationship felt like a beautifully balanced journey of mutual growth.
This was such a fun read—spicy, comforting, and a glowing representation of a love story that so many of us can see ourselves in.
March 15, 2025
Gleeful Goblin Review: As a gender gremlin stuck here on Earth with our limited technology and ability to change our bodies to fit our exact sense of self I was UNBEARABLY EXCITED for this book when I read the premise. I already adore this author, I've gotten so much joy out of the prior books (which are amazing but not critical to have read before this one), I was filled to bursting with glee to be able to sit down and read this story. And holy wow, whatever my hopes and expectations might have been the reality went above and beyond it.
Paul has been a character I've struggled with how I felt about him prior to this book. So it was really a pleasant surprise for me that I ended up liking him to the degree I did as the book went on. I liked that Paul showed a range of emotional depth and vulnerability, especially when it came up that he's been working on himself in therapy for years now to improve himself. I'm always thrilled to have that blend of realism and authenticity (like having characters go to therapy) in my fictional worlds and I thought it was really well done here.
Hadrell I fully expected to enjoy and I did, to an even greater degree that I could have imagined. Hadrell is this delightful blend of bravado, dashing good looks, and a larger than life personality but with a core of vulnerability underneath it all. Hadrell reminds me of Mal from Firefly in terms of swagger, bluffing their way through tough situations, and having a silver tongue. But Hadrell has even more of a live out loud feel to both their actions and their fabulous sense of style.
These two are sensational individually and as a couple. I could not be more pleased. 5/5 Stars
Paul has been a character I've struggled with how I felt about him prior to this book. So it was really a pleasant surprise for me that I ended up liking him to the degree I did as the book went on. I liked that Paul showed a range of emotional depth and vulnerability, especially when it came up that he's been working on himself in therapy for years now to improve himself. I'm always thrilled to have that blend of realism and authenticity (like having characters go to therapy) in my fictional worlds and I thought it was really well done here.
Hadrell I fully expected to enjoy and I did, to an even greater degree that I could have imagined. Hadrell is this delightful blend of bravado, dashing good looks, and a larger than life personality but with a core of vulnerability underneath it all. Hadrell reminds me of Mal from Firefly in terms of swagger, bluffing their way through tough situations, and having a silver tongue. But Hadrell has even more of a live out loud feel to both their actions and their fabulous sense of style.
These two are sensational individually and as a couple. I could not be more pleased. 5/5 Stars
March 13, 2025
I really enjoyed this low angst sci fi romp! Paul and Hadrell are so cute together, I adored them. Paul is an anxious, lonely, sensitive soul who needs all of the love and care. I wanted to give him the biggest hugs. Luckily, Hadrell is on the case!
Hadrell is fun, flirty and obsessed with his accidental human captive. They're so respectful of Paul but also totally feral about him. Hadrell has hidden depths of emotion that I loved seeing come to the fore when he could be vulnerable with Paul. They were also really great trans rep that I thoroughly appreciated!
Once these two get over their hangups and start getting serious, they're absolute fire together. You can tell how much they care about each other the whole way through, and the tension is also incredible. This book is slow burn so it takes a while for the spice to hit in this book, but once it does you're in for a lot of it and it's amazing! Not only that but you get to see both Paul and Hadrell grow as people and it's so beautiful. Emily writes wonderful characters and really puts so much thought into their arcs.
I really enjoyed the found family aspect of Space for Growth too, with the whole crew of Hadrell's ship being really distinct characters that were so much fun to spend time with. I'd love to see Yaz get his own book! I love how much the crew meant to each other and I really enjoyed reading about them all.
Overall I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves sci-fi romance, D/s kink, dashing pirates, or found family.
Hadrell is fun, flirty and obsessed with his accidental human captive. They're so respectful of Paul but also totally feral about him. Hadrell has hidden depths of emotion that I loved seeing come to the fore when he could be vulnerable with Paul. They were also really great trans rep that I thoroughly appreciated!
Once these two get over their hangups and start getting serious, they're absolute fire together. You can tell how much they care about each other the whole way through, and the tension is also incredible. This book is slow burn so it takes a while for the spice to hit in this book, but once it does you're in for a lot of it and it's amazing! Not only that but you get to see both Paul and Hadrell grow as people and it's so beautiful. Emily writes wonderful characters and really puts so much thought into their arcs.
I really enjoyed the found family aspect of Space for Growth too, with the whole crew of Hadrell's ship being really distinct characters that were so much fun to spend time with. I'd love to see Yaz get his own book! I love how much the crew meant to each other and I really enjoyed reading about them all.
Overall I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves sci-fi romance, D/s kink, dashing pirates, or found family.
March 12, 2025
This book was absolutely adorable! I loved Paul and Hadrell so damn much!
It follows Paul, a human, as he gets accidentally kidnapped by Hadrell and his crew. After a drunken night at his friends wedding Paul went home with an alien and when he wakes up he is not on the Spire station anymore. Hadrell's ship had to take off as their ship was flagged after doing a job. Now they not only have to get Paul home safe but also figure out who sent them on this faulty job.
Paul's journey with his anxiety really resonated with me. Seeing how he dealt with the situation felt all too similar to me. But also I loved that Hadrell was so in tune with Paul and did his best to help Paul feel calm enough to get through it. They were absolutely perfect for each other and seeing them grow closer to each other through out the journey was amazing to see. Hadrell really brought out the best in Paul. This also won't be an Emily book if there wasn't spice and this one even had very fancy spice alien tech which led to some interesting scenes. The two of them also just had such great chemistry. This series is absolutely one of my fave and even though I am sad to see it come to an end, I am excited to reread it all.
If you are looking for a queer, spice, alien romance adventure romance this one is for you!
Thanks to Emily Antoinette for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.
It follows Paul, a human, as he gets accidentally kidnapped by Hadrell and his crew. After a drunken night at his friends wedding Paul went home with an alien and when he wakes up he is not on the Spire station anymore. Hadrell's ship had to take off as their ship was flagged after doing a job. Now they not only have to get Paul home safe but also figure out who sent them on this faulty job.
Paul's journey with his anxiety really resonated with me. Seeing how he dealt with the situation felt all too similar to me. But also I loved that Hadrell was so in tune with Paul and did his best to help Paul feel calm enough to get through it. They were absolutely perfect for each other and seeing them grow closer to each other through out the journey was amazing to see. Hadrell really brought out the best in Paul. This also won't be an Emily book if there wasn't spice and this one even had very fancy spice alien tech which led to some interesting scenes. The two of them also just had such great chemistry. This series is absolutely one of my fave and even though I am sad to see it come to an end, I am excited to reread it all.
If you are looking for a queer, spice, alien romance adventure romance this one is for you!
Thanks to Emily Antoinette for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.
October 28, 2025
stealing from some of my updates:
Oh my goddddddddd. Ms. Antoinette, why do you love misunderstandings so much? I get Paul and Hadrell being from different cultures/species/whatever is bound to cause some issues, but aren't you tired of writing the same story over and over again? Can none of your couples sit and have a simple conversation? Can none of your MCs ask "what do you mean?" Are they all emotionally-stunted 30+ year olds? ~AND~ Please, no more secrets and misunderstandings before the hook-up. How can you have 3 separate consecutive books in the same series that follow the exact same plot just with different MCs?
All 3 of the books in this series follow the same basic plot. Nervous meet up > misunderstandings galore > insecure adults > BDSM and/or public sex > "I love you"s to people(s) you barely know. I just don't think Antoinette is the writer for me. Each of these books frustrated me. Half the MCs were annoying. It's only in this last book that I felt there was *some* actual emotional depth and relationship building between the MCs. I literally skimmed the last 30-40% of all of them because I wanted the experience to be over. Which was fine because it's mostly sex scenes and very little substance. I don't know why I didn't just DNF them. 2 stars because I didn't drop them .
Oh my goddddddddd. Ms. Antoinette, why do you love misunderstandings so much? I get Paul and Hadrell being from different cultures/species/whatever is bound to cause some issues, but aren't you tired of writing the same story over and over again? Can none of your couples sit and have a simple conversation? Can none of your MCs ask "what do you mean?" Are they all emotionally-stunted 30+ year olds? ~AND~ Please, no more secrets and misunderstandings before the hook-up. How can you have 3 separate consecutive books in the same series that follow the exact same plot just with different MCs?
All 3 of the books in this series follow the same basic plot. Nervous meet up > misunderstandings galore > insecure adults > BDSM and/or public sex > "I love you"s to people(s) you barely know. I just don't think Antoinette is the writer for me. Each of these books frustrated me. Half the MCs were annoying. It's only in this last book that I felt there was *some* actual emotional depth and relationship building between the MCs. I literally skimmed the last 30-40% of all of them because I wanted the experience to be over. Which was fine because it's mostly sex scenes and very little substance. I don't know why I didn't just DNF them. 2 stars because I didn't drop them .
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 8, 2025
I loved, loved, loved this book!
The story, itself, was great and didn’t feel laggy at any point. The main characters, Hadrell and Paul, were so much fun to read! Their dialogue wasn’t boring. It felt like I was watching a movie.
I really felt Paul’s anxiety and panic attacks and I love seeing that in books. It feels like I’m seeing a part of me in them which makes me more invested.
I also loved the side characters! The crew! Yaz’s observations were so funny! They added so much more to the story! Nothing felt flat.
I could talk about this book for days. It was so so good.
I loved watching Paul grow out of his shell and how Hadrell learned to trust. And watching as they (very badly at first) navigate these feelings they have for each other.
I love that pronouns were consistently used and that being non-binary wasn’t this long speech but something that was accepted without question.
This story pushed a lot of boundaries, especially in today’s current climate and it actually made me love the book more.
*** I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. ***
The story, itself, was great and didn’t feel laggy at any point. The main characters, Hadrell and Paul, were so much fun to read! Their dialogue wasn’t boring. It felt like I was watching a movie.
I really felt Paul’s anxiety and panic attacks and I love seeing that in books. It feels like I’m seeing a part of me in them which makes me more invested.
I also loved the side characters! The crew! Yaz’s observations were so funny! They added so much more to the story! Nothing felt flat.
I could talk about this book for days. It was so so good.
I loved watching Paul grow out of his shell and how Hadrell learned to trust. And watching as they (very badly at first) navigate these feelings they have for each other.
I love that pronouns were consistently used and that being non-binary wasn’t this long speech but something that was accepted without question.
This story pushed a lot of boundaries, especially in today’s current climate and it actually made me love the book more.
*** I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. ***
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 15, 2025
This story was everything. Emotional, adventurous, about love and acceptance and all of that while floating through space with a ragtag group of aliens.
Paul is the human mc (bi, he/him) who's accidentally kidnapped by our other mc, Hadrell (nb, he/they).
I absolutely adore Paul. His anxiety and how awkward he gets when people flirt with him: he's a great representation of a chaotic disaster bi and I felt seen 😂
Hadrell is an absolute gem, and the way they did their best to accommodate Paul as a friend and later as a romantic partner was heartwarming. Hadrell and the crew as a whole were a beautiful example of how one can be supportive of one another while simultaneously holding them accountable and helping them to grow.
Emily Antoinette writes steamy scenes like no other person. It's never just about the physical aspect. The emotions of the characters always come through beautifully. Through her writing, she shows that consent and boundaries are to be discussed and that they don't dilute the mood. If anything, it enhances it because mutual respect is sexy AF.
I'm sad that we've come to an end of the Spire series. I'll definitely re-read these!
Paul is the human mc (bi, he/him) who's accidentally kidnapped by our other mc, Hadrell (nb, he/they).
I absolutely adore Paul. His anxiety and how awkward he gets when people flirt with him: he's a great representation of a chaotic disaster bi and I felt seen 😂
Hadrell is an absolute gem, and the way they did their best to accommodate Paul as a friend and later as a romantic partner was heartwarming. Hadrell and the crew as a whole were a beautiful example of how one can be supportive of one another while simultaneously holding them accountable and helping them to grow.
Emily Antoinette writes steamy scenes like no other person. It's never just about the physical aspect. The emotions of the characters always come through beautifully. Through her writing, she shows that consent and boundaries are to be discussed and that they don't dilute the mood. If anything, it enhances it because mutual respect is sexy AF.
I'm sad that we've come to an end of the Spire series. I'll definitely re-read these!
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