Verdant: A Spicy Sci-fi MM Romance

by Twoony

Ethin “Lucky” Katlan doesn’t take orders, so one might wonder why he sold his life to be a lapdog to the Intergalactic Militia. The answer isn’t that simple, and Lucky isn’t that interested in sharing, especially with Roys Malik, the agonizingly attractive and rule-following commanding officer always on his back.

When a job gone awry results in their being lost on a planet where the flora wants to eat them, their bitter relationship takes a lustful turn. Lucky sees no reason in ruining a good thing and makes an offer of no strings attached sex to pass the monotonous days. What neither of them expects is for that simple suggestion to open an unexpected pathway to divulging the worst and most hidden aspects of themselves. When Lucky’s past comes knocking, and Roys’ secrets come to light, their ever-changing relationship is put to the ultimate test.

A story about messy men, overcoming trauma, inescapable pasts, futures we dare to wish for, and unraveling the hearts of cowards, this spicy MM romance will tug at the heartstrings and make you want to spend a rousing night under the stars.

Genres: M M Romance

397 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 12, 2026

About the author

Twoony is an agender and asexual geek with a love for story telling in all forms; movies, comics, books, games, and more. They write YA and adult stories ranging from the always enjoyable teen rom-com to high fantasy romance. At the age of twelve, they posted their first story online and have been addicted to sharing ever since. Now, they are a self-published author with six works available on Amazon and nine available on tapas along with three comics.

Although Twoony graduated from California University of PA with a Bachelors in Graphics & Multimedia, their true passion has always been writing. After writing original novels and comics on sites like Tapas and Wattpad, amounting over 144k subscribers and 7m+ reads, they have managed to live the dream. Twoony creates fulltime, lives with three needy cats, and not enough bookshelves.

Reviews

[Jake Vanguard · Rating 4 out of 5]

The world of Verdant is what I honestly love most about the book. A planet where flora has evolved to be the main contender, both as prey and food? Amazing! Plus, there's lots of other places mentioned, and while we don't get to see most, we can get a good feeling of them, like the Colony.

There's also many different species working together, with lots of potential for more stories set in this universe. Would absolutely love it. Lucky's friend group is made up of humans and other species, which I truly enjoyed. Plus, how much they care for each other, even if someone doesn't want to accept it.

One of Verdant's biggest topics is family, in different ways - found, lost, far away - and was handled beautifully.

The end felt a little rushed and a tad too convenient, but aside from that, I very much liked Verdant!

[Elliot Irwin]

Damnit I got invested in temperamental and morally ambiguous idiots!

This is a great story to read when looking for both plot and...not-plot. Not only was I heavily interested in Lucky and Roys' relationship - and jesus, did they keep me floundering from whiplash, irritation and begrudging support - but I was also in love with the intricacies and oddities of space and alien and unfamiliar worlds. Like always, Twoony did a wonderful job of creating characters and settings I truly believed in. The escapism and equally realistic social commentary was both a relief and a heart-wrench.

The main character's individual and joint journeys were also a delight to behold. The character development in this book is no joke. I found myself SO proud of the main 2 (and the people they connect to) for how far they had come from where we started.

This story has so much: grief, guilt, romance, friendship, sibling relationships, action (both life threatening and otherwise) and a whole lot of sass. It was a wonderful whirlwind to be part of :)

[Cayolimebooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC review 4/5 ⭐

Thank you Twoony for the eARC of Verdant! Queers in space will always be a reason for me to read a book.

Verdant follows snarky, not knowing when to shut up, Ethin (aka Lucky) and grumpy, can he even smile, Roys as they due to a cave in naturally commits to a no strings attached physical relationship. Then add in tragic backstories, unresolved trauma and the past catching up to you. It is a great ride!

Twoony writes in a way that makes it easy to follow what's going on, while at the same time drawing you in smoothly. I adore how they describe the Planet and how it's clear there's an appreciation of nature. I'd obviously get eaten by the flora but yeah worth it?

Let's not forget the spice! Which is hot, of course and Ethin is forever horny. But over the time it gets tender and feelings are caught. I do love the reluctance of a brat falling in love, definitely as much as a grump getting soft and smiling. It's a good trope for a reason!

My favourite thing in the whole book is Ethin coming to terms with his own name, going from hating to be called anything but his nickname (especially by Roys) and then hating it when Roys calls him Lucky. That's what does it for me. I love that.

Verdant comes out tomorrow, February 12th 2026. Do check out Twoony's bio for where it's available for purchase! ✨

[Corey · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Verdant" by @twoonyauthor is a sci-fi MM romance that will tug at your heartstrings and keep you entertained with epic man vs plant sci-fi battles.

This book comes out on Feb. 12th and you can preorder it on Amazon!

It will also be available on KU, so it's perfect for the kindle lovers looking for a new fix.

Overall, this book was great. It builds a compelling sci-fi world, that reminds me a lot of "Aliens" mixed with "The Expanse". It's colorful and complicated and is a gorgeous setting for this romance to take place in.

Both main characters have their own traumas and the POV MC in particular is an interesting mix of self-destructive and selfish. It was a joy to see him blossom and grow throughout the book.

Ratings:
Overall: 4/5 hearts - I enjoyed it a lot! There's sexy spice and an actual plot with real stakes that kept me on the edge of my seat.

Peppers: 3/5 - Lots of spice, but it's well balanced with the plot. I went back and forth on 3 vs 4 peppers here, but given the length of the book (long) and the number of spice scenes...I'm settling on 3.

Spice Quality: 5/5 - Not only is there a good amount of spice, but it's also hot and well written.

Plot: 4/5 - The plot is good, it focuses on healing from past trauma while also dealing with space pirates, ghosts from the past, drug use, and man eating plants.

The only reason that the plot doesn't get a 5 is because the first 10% of this book is a little tough to get through. A lot is thrown at the reader all at once and it takes some time to get a smooth flow going. This is pretty common with sci-fi books that need to get some ground rules settled ASAP.

Overall, I'd recommend this book for anyone interested in sci-fi romance!

Length: 393 pages
Time: 7.5 Hours

*I did receive a free copy of this book. However, this review is 100% voluntary and honest*

This review was originally posted on my Instagram page: @rainbow.reviews.mm

[AroundtheBookBend · Rating 5 out of 5]

My new favorite Twoony book!

If there’s one thing I look forward to when it comes to Twoony’s books it’s the world building. I’m blown away once again by this immersive world. Carnivorous plants trying their best to kill the humans that have landed on their planet, the intense heat, the habitat, and the cramped underground were all so vivid.

Ethin, or Lucky as he prefers, is the ultimate brat. He picks and mocks and gets on Roys’ nerves more than anyone and anything else. But he definitely grew on me as the story progressed and his layers were peeled back. His character growth was amazing and I enjoyed watching him come to terms with everything that was happening between him and Roys. His past is turbulent and full of loads of trauma that shaped him into what he is. But he’s still surviving in spite of it.

Roys has his own trauma as well, but he kept it close to his chest. And it was just as heartbreaking as learning of Lucky’s trauma. But I quite liked his character and took to him almost immediately.

The banter between these two was hilarious, a bit mean, and filled with delicious tension. And I adored Lucky’s friends so much!

I did receive an arc of this, but I couldn’t get to it before release so I decided to read it on KU.

[Twoony · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hi, I wrote Verdant when I couldn't write anything else. The idea hit me out of nowhere and I wrote about 80k words in six days. My hands were not happy. I feared my fingers would fall off, but I couldn't get myself to stop, then over the next few months I tweaked, edited, wrote more, and now here we are.

I am a sucker for characters that start out ROUGH and make you wonder if you'll even like them, and that's precisely who Lucky is. He can be a hard character to follow at the start, but if you want to see him evolve over the book, then this is a story for you. Please read the warnings, there are some rough topics, and I never wanted anyone to delve into something they may not be ready or want to read.

I also know some don't like when authors rate their own books, but I spent months working on this and this is a way to give myself a pat on the back, so yeahhhhh, I hope if you choose to read Verdant that you like it. Regardless, thank you for giving it a try!

[Adeselna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the author for the ARC

“Verdant” is an emotional journey through the darkest periods of our lives and how those memories of our lowest points make us human.

Ethin is a ticking bomb, he considers himself lucky, but he’s haunted by the mistakes from his past that cost him his family. He has a lot of walls, and he is constantly putting himself at risk because he doesn’t believe that he deserves a normal life. He believes he doesn’t deserve any atonement for his past, and he also doesn’t want to let anyone in.

Roys has a secret that could cost him everything he ever fought for. He sees in Ethin someone irresponsible, reckless, someone he cannot allow to have feelings for. Roys is far from being the perfect captain everyone portrays him to be. He’s anything but human, but so is Ethin, and together they are flawed and have a lot at stake. Ethin is smug, loud, he’s selfish, but with Roys he finds out he can be a better version of himself.

“Verdant” is really extraordinary. While it is sci-fi and Twoony did an excellent job on the descriptions of the planet during the mission, the focus is Ethin and Roys’s past and how it affects the way they live their lives. Roys is professional, he doesn’t allow himself to slip because he knows he cannot afford it. He needs to live by the rules so that he gets rewarded by the system. Ethin hides behind his carefree expression, but he is haunted by the events of his past. He cannot forget the mistakes he did, and that caused him to be separated from his family, so when Ethin and Roys’s attraction to one another is impossible to resist, they both tear down the walls one by one. Although that does not mean that their relationship is an easy one. They have a lot of demons, and they don’t believe they have what it takes to have a normal relationship. Still, they work together and slowly, by exposing more of their demons, they see the best in each other instead of the worst.

It is always a pleasure to read a book written by Twoony, and “Verdant” is no different, it’s emotionally beautiful, spicy when it needs to be, and it has a lot of action-packed scenes.

[Lorna Todesco · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started following this story when it came out on Tapas and was one that I really looked forward to the next episode coming out.
I love that the characters are not perfect but find a way to make each other better.
Definitely recommend reading it!

[Katie Steele · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite *they hate each other*-to-lovers. The banter is TOO GOOD. The characters are incredible, and the story is fun, sexy, emotional, WONDERFUL. Absolutely love this book!

[Manju · Rating 4 out of 5]

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