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Single Silver Lining
Not yet published
Expected 1 Dec 26Onboard the elite starship Alexandria, the Stars' Solstice festivities are underway...
Rowan Donnelly has a three-step plan:
Drink lots of champagne.
Dance with a handsome stranger at a masquerade ball.
Pretend to be an ordinary woman for one night.
The flaws?
Imperial assassins have sieged control of the Alexandria, and Rowan's dance partner is none other than Nikolai Sokov, heir to the galaxy's most notorious mafia gang.
In order to survive the night, Rowan and Nikolai must redefine the line between hunter and prey, all while fighting their growing chemistry and uncovering government secrets that were never meant to see the light of day.
(Author’s note: The volumes in the Guild of Shifters series can be read as standalone novellas or as companions to the Order of Shifters series. The Guild of Shifters novellas may contain spoilers for the Order of Shifters series.)
Rowan Donnelly has a three-step plan:
Drink lots of champagne.
Dance with a handsome stranger at a masquerade ball.
Pretend to be an ordinary woman for one night.
The flaws?
Imperial assassins have sieged control of the Alexandria, and Rowan's dance partner is none other than Nikolai Sokov, heir to the galaxy's most notorious mafia gang.
In order to survive the night, Rowan and Nikolai must redefine the line between hunter and prey, all while fighting their growing chemistry and uncovering government secrets that were never meant to see the light of day.
(Author’s note: The volumes in the Guild of Shifters series can be read as standalone novellas or as companions to the Order of Shifters series. The Guild of Shifters novellas may contain spoilers for the Order of Shifters series.)
118 pages, Unknown Binding
Expected publication December 1, 2026
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Review of advance copy received from Author
They're two hot shifters on a luxury space cruise and their banter is top-tier. What more could we readers need?
I've had the honor of reading all of Kendra N. Niehaus's publications, and this one is without doubt the best. The banter? The explosive, high-stakes, fast-paced plot? The absolute banger lines that need to be on shirts, totes, bookmarks, ASAP?
Gosh, I'm so in love. I read this immediately after a very popular new release, and dare I say, Single Silver Lining is better. (Before you accuse me of heresy, do yourself a favor and go buy this novella to see for yourself! You won't regret it!)
This is truly romantasy in space. If you're a romantasy girlie, you will love it... and this may just be your gateway to the alluring world of romanta-SCI!
ROWAN 🩶
"You severely miscalculated the impossible possibility that is Rowan Donnelly."
I must confess, I did too! I went into this thinking I would know what I was getting: a sassy socialite in a stunning silver gown who has to escape some imperials on a cruise ship. Rowan defied all my expectations. She's a socialite AND a self-doubting scientist, vicious with a knife AND with her knowledge, sassy AND introspective. She's spunky, brilliant, and an endlessly engaging narrator. She's not a damsel, never a damsel, and it was a true privilege to experience that realization unfolding at the same time as our main man Nikolai.
NIKOLAI 🖤
"Rowan Donnelly is the murderess of my sanity"."
Broody, mafia types are not usually my choice of MMCs. USUALLY. But oh man, wait until you meet Niko. I feel like there's a list of things to be expected with that character archetype: trauma (check), tattooes (check), abusive family (check), past/current drug issues that the MMC is battling (check, and handled in a very tactful way here), a taste for violence (check), banter and broodiness (check)... but what really got me is the way this man respected her dad?? Like, obviously, there's a million other things that make him a compelling MMC: the banter, the way he's such a perfect match for Rowan, his tragic backstory and and his fierce protective instincts, but the way he sees how much Rowan loves and admires her dad, the way he RESPONDS to that and chills with the bad boy persona long enough to address "Doctor Donnelly" and be the picture of manners despite being a lethal drug-dealing mafia heir... idk, that's rare and it's a treat.
But obviously, he's only in it for the money. Obviously.
THE ROMANCE 🩵
How, precisely, does one manage to make a novella that's about 100 pages, one that takes place in the span of a few hours, lead to a budding romance in such a short span? MAGIC. That's the only conclusion I can draw, that Kendra N. Niehaus possesses magic, because though I am someone with an aversion to insta-love tropes, she nonetheless pulled off an insanely compelling romance in 100 pages without it feeling like insta-love.
What sorcery is this, I ask? She GENUINELY builds a believable connection, a romance that could've stood on its own . The instant attraction was done right, without batting you over the head with it. It was hot, their first dance was sexy, and the banter was top-tier. I giggled, I smirked, I blushed, I was all in on this ship within the first few chapters. The forced proximity was believable, too. Why does Rowan get stuck working with a mafia member who could probably kill her? One, she has agency to get to CHOOSE that (thank you, thank you, thank you, for not forcing her to go with him and for letting her seek him out, this is such a refreshing take on romantasy), and two, who else is better to ally with when the tyrannical imperial government attacks than a mafia member, probably the only armed person on the ship?
It was so very subtle, the way she engineered them slowly developing feelings in the midst of plot pacing that couldn't afford to be anything but fast. Even without the twist at the end, I would've 100% believed that within the span of a few hours, they walked out of here with a deep emotional and romantic connection. And I reiterate: I prefer the slowest of slowburns. I never read insta-love. But from the steamy first dance, to Rowan's realization that Mister Tall-and-Broody was her best hope of an ally, to the hurt-comfort scene (my absolute favorite) to the budding alliance and everything that happens after... I was in. I was invested. I believed.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Do you like Luthen Rael from Andor? Hmm? Do you?? Then you need to read SSL. I won't say more even though I desperately want to. I kinda saw it coming, but it stole the show. I NEED more morally dark gray, "for the greater good" characters like that and their complicated relationships with their .
One last quote, for the road:
I've had the honor of reading all of Kendra N. Niehaus's publications, and this one is without doubt the best. The banter? The explosive, high-stakes, fast-paced plot? The absolute banger lines that need to be on shirts, totes, bookmarks, ASAP?
Gosh, I'm so in love. I read this immediately after a very popular new release, and dare I say, Single Silver Lining is better. (Before you accuse me of heresy, do yourself a favor and go buy this novella to see for yourself! You won't regret it!)
This is truly romantasy in space. If you're a romantasy girlie, you will love it... and this may just be your gateway to the alluring world of romanta-SCI!
ROWAN 🩶
"You severely miscalculated the impossible possibility that is Rowan Donnelly."
I must confess, I did too! I went into this thinking I would know what I was getting: a sassy socialite in a stunning silver gown who has to escape some imperials on a cruise ship. Rowan defied all my expectations. She's a socialite AND a self-doubting scientist, vicious with a knife AND with her knowledge, sassy AND introspective. She's spunky, brilliant, and an endlessly engaging narrator. She's not a damsel, never a damsel, and it was a true privilege to experience that realization unfolding at the same time as our main man Nikolai.
NIKOLAI 🖤
"Rowan Donnelly is the murderess of my sanity"."
Broody, mafia types are not usually my choice of MMCs. USUALLY. But oh man, wait until you meet Niko. I feel like there's a list of things to be expected with that character archetype: trauma (check), tattooes (check), abusive family (check), past/current drug issues that the MMC is battling (check, and handled in a very tactful way here), a taste for violence (check), banter and broodiness (check)... but what really got me is the way this man respected her dad?? Like, obviously, there's a million other things that make him a compelling MMC: the banter, the way he's such a perfect match for Rowan, his tragic backstory and and his fierce protective instincts, but the way he sees how much Rowan loves and admires her dad, the way he RESPONDS to that and chills with the bad boy persona long enough to address "Doctor Donnelly" and be the picture of manners despite being a lethal drug-dealing mafia heir... idk, that's rare and it's a treat.
But obviously, he's only in it for the money. Obviously.
THE ROMANCE 🩵
How, precisely, does one manage to make a novella that's about 100 pages, one that takes place in the span of a few hours, lead to a budding romance in such a short span? MAGIC. That's the only conclusion I can draw, that Kendra N. Niehaus possesses magic, because though I am someone with an aversion to insta-love tropes, she nonetheless pulled off an insanely compelling romance in 100 pages without it feeling like insta-love.
What sorcery is this, I ask? She GENUINELY builds a believable connection, a romance that could've stood on its own . The instant attraction was done right, without batting you over the head with it. It was hot, their first dance was sexy, and the banter was top-tier. I giggled, I smirked, I blushed, I was all in on this ship within the first few chapters. The forced proximity was believable, too. Why does Rowan get stuck working with a mafia member who could probably kill her? One, she has agency to get to CHOOSE that (thank you, thank you, thank you, for not forcing her to go with him and for letting her seek him out, this is such a refreshing take on romantasy), and two, who else is better to ally with when the tyrannical imperial government attacks than a mafia member, probably the only armed person on the ship?
It was so very subtle, the way she engineered them slowly developing feelings in the midst of plot pacing that couldn't afford to be anything but fast. Even without the twist at the end, I would've 100% believed that within the span of a few hours, they walked out of here with a deep emotional and romantic connection. And I reiterate: I prefer the slowest of slowburns. I never read insta-love. But from the steamy first dance, to Rowan's realization that Mister Tall-and-Broody was her best hope of an ally, to the hurt-comfort scene (my absolute favorite) to the budding alliance and everything that happens after... I was in. I was invested. I believed.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Do you like Luthen Rael from Andor? Hmm? Do you?? Then you need to read SSL. I won't say more even though I desperately want to. I kinda saw it coming, but it stole the show. I NEED more morally dark gray, "for the greater good" characters like that and their complicated relationships with their .
One last quote, for the road:
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review