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Red Planet Dragons of Tajss #1
Dragon's Baby
Not every alien is an enemy, even if he kidnaps you...
Calista is happy with her life of scientific research. She has no need for a man, she has her books, her friends, and her work. Things are fine until her ship is attacked by space pirates and crash lands on a desert planet with heat so intense she and her friends can't survive without help.
Ladon is a Zmaj warrior resigned to a life alone, who only desires to protect his treasures. His hopes for a mate faded long ago, yet when he meets Calista something stirs. It takes no more than one look to know that she belongs to him. He's been alone for so long but she is the ultimate treasure and he will protect her.
Now there's only the small problem of her living long enough to understand.
A devastated planet, a mysterious history, space pirates, and threats environmental and alien beset them on all sides. The sexy Zmaj warrior will have to battle the planet's ultimate threat in an epic effort to obtain the one thing he knows Calista needs to survive. Then maybe they can begin to come to terms with the feelings they create in each other.
But will the other humans accept this huge and alien looking dragon warrior? Or will they find him just as big a threat as the rest of the red planet? The future of both their races depends on it.
Alien Dragon's Baby is a full length scifi novel with a happily ever after ending, plenty of steam, bloody battles and alien-human intrigue. It is standalone and has been co-written by newcomer Miranda Martin and one of the hottest science fiction romance authors out there, Juno Wells.
(B01J6WA1T2 Original Cover Edition. This is an alternate cover edition.)
Calista is happy with her life of scientific research. She has no need for a man, she has her books, her friends, and her work. Things are fine until her ship is attacked by space pirates and crash lands on a desert planet with heat so intense she and her friends can't survive without help.
Ladon is a Zmaj warrior resigned to a life alone, who only desires to protect his treasures. His hopes for a mate faded long ago, yet when he meets Calista something stirs. It takes no more than one look to know that she belongs to him. He's been alone for so long but she is the ultimate treasure and he will protect her.
Now there's only the small problem of her living long enough to understand.
A devastated planet, a mysterious history, space pirates, and threats environmental and alien beset them on all sides. The sexy Zmaj warrior will have to battle the planet's ultimate threat in an epic effort to obtain the one thing he knows Calista needs to survive. Then maybe they can begin to come to terms with the feelings they create in each other.
But will the other humans accept this huge and alien looking dragon warrior? Or will they find him just as big a threat as the rest of the red planet? The future of both their races depends on it.
Alien Dragon's Baby is a full length scifi novel with a happily ever after ending, plenty of steam, bloody battles and alien-human intrigue. It is standalone and has been co-written by newcomer Miranda Martin and one of the hottest science fiction romance authors out there, Juno Wells.
(B01J6WA1T2 Original Cover Edition. This is an alternate cover edition.)
150 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 27, 2016
2783 people are currently reading
1883 people want to read
About the author
Miranda Martin
168 books585 followersUSA Today bestselling author Miranda Martin writes fantasy and scifi romance featuring heroes with out-of-this-world anatomy that readers call 'larger than life' and smart heroines destined to save the world. As a little girl, she would sneak off with her nose in a book, dreaming of magical realms. Today she brings those fantasies to life and adores every fan who chooses to live in them for a while.
Though born and raised in southern Virginia, Miranda Martin is a veteran who's traveled to places like Korea, Hawaii, and good 'ole Texas. She's since settled in Kansas, the heart of America, with her husband and daughters, a cat, and wishes for a pet dragon or unicorn. When she's not writing, you can still find her tucked away somewhere with a warm blanket and her nose in a book.
Visit her website http://mirandamartinromance.com and subscribe to her newsletter for new releases, special sales, and a FREE ebook!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 445 reviews
May 30, 2023
A dangerous place!
The following ratings are out of 5:
Romance: 💙🤎💜❤️
Steam: 🔥🔥🔥
Story/Plot: 📕📗📘📙
World building: 🌏🌍🌍🌏🌎
Character development: 😠☺️😋🥰
Narration: 🎙🎙🎙🎙🎙
Narration Type: Dual Narration
The heroine: Calista - she works on a scientific research vessel in space. She is working on strains of wheat. She loves biochemistry and she is one of the third generation aboard the ship. They will live there for their entire lives and won’t reach their destination for another few generations. Her best friend Jolie dreams about falling in love. Though Calista thinks it isn’t for her and wants to stick with science.
The Story: When space pirates attack the ship Calista is on, the alarm sounds and the ship fills with smoke. Calista and her friends try to get to their life pods with everyone going insane on the ship. They run into the scary alien pirates, who are happy to see the three human women, but aren’t expecting them to fight back, killing some of the pirates. They never make it to the pods when the ship crashes on a hot desert planet.
The Hero: Ladon - he was the alpha and the leader of his city which is now abandoned and he is on his own. He is out on a hunt when he sees a massive spaceship crash land on his planet. He wants to make it first to the wreck to gather treasure from the ship. He hopes there might be survivors as his race is dying, there aren’t many people left and no females. When he sees a female a bit away from the wreckage, he determines he will take her.
The world building is pretty good, there are a lot of dangerous creatures on the planet and Ladon keeps thinking about something called Epis, that Calista needs to survive. They don’t speak the same language and there are no language translators, so they have trouble communicating through much of the book, though they try to teach each other words from their respective languages. It isn’t until very late in the book where they are able to really communicate.
This book was told in dual points of view by a dual narration. It and was narrated by Tristan James and Jillian Macie. I like Jillian Macie’s voice and she is a great voice actor/narrator. She shows a lot of emotion through her voice. Tristan James has a good voice, but speaks in a bit of a monotone so he could be better, but he isn’t bad either.
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The following ratings are out of 5:
Romance: 💙🤎💜❤️
Steam: 🔥🔥🔥
Story/Plot: 📕📗📘📙
World building: 🌏🌍🌍🌏🌎
Character development: 😠☺️😋🥰
Narration: 🎙🎙🎙🎙🎙
Narration Type: Dual Narration
The heroine: Calista - she works on a scientific research vessel in space. She is working on strains of wheat. She loves biochemistry and she is one of the third generation aboard the ship. They will live there for their entire lives and won’t reach their destination for another few generations. Her best friend Jolie dreams about falling in love. Though Calista thinks it isn’t for her and wants to stick with science.
The Story: When space pirates attack the ship Calista is on, the alarm sounds and the ship fills with smoke. Calista and her friends try to get to their life pods with everyone going insane on the ship. They run into the scary alien pirates, who are happy to see the three human women, but aren’t expecting them to fight back, killing some of the pirates. They never make it to the pods when the ship crashes on a hot desert planet.
The Hero: Ladon - he was the alpha and the leader of his city which is now abandoned and he is on his own. He is out on a hunt when he sees a massive spaceship crash land on his planet. He wants to make it first to the wreck to gather treasure from the ship. He hopes there might be survivors as his race is dying, there aren’t many people left and no females. When he sees a female a bit away from the wreckage, he determines he will take her.
The world building is pretty good, there are a lot of dangerous creatures on the planet and Ladon keeps thinking about something called Epis, that Calista needs to survive. They don’t speak the same language and there are no language translators, so they have trouble communicating through much of the book, though they try to teach each other words from their respective languages. It isn’t until very late in the book where they are able to really communicate.
This book was told in dual points of view by a dual narration. It and was narrated by Tristan James and Jillian Macie. I like Jillian Macie’s voice and she is a great voice actor/narrator. She shows a lot of emotion through her voice. Tristan James has a good voice, but speaks in a bit of a monotone so he could be better, but he isn’t bad either.
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July 19, 2018
1.5 stars
I was in the mood for a silly entertaining sci-fi romance, also Dragon's Baby reminded me of the Ice Planet Barbarians, but this one was short of the mark.
The beginning was fun and engaging, I especially liked the scene where the cheeky old man forgot his ID and was outrageous and funny. Things quickly deteriorated as soon as they got boarded by space pirates, crash land on a desert alien planet and no one was injured even though they were all without safety gear and passed out in the hallway of the spaceship. Things are not explained or are overlooked. The reactions of the characters were off. They cracked jokes and argued about Star Wars and Star Trek in the middle of life threatening situations and it wasn't funny or quirky.
My number one pet peeve in this sub-genre The language barrier trope carried on until near the end of the book, leaving me feeling bored with their clumsy attempts to understand each other. All that effort and word count could've been used to develop character and plot. *Sigh*
There's another pet peeve here, the clever heroine who is actually dumb. The heroine, Calista, is a Botanist researching a new strain of wheat, but for an intelligent woman she sure acts dumb e.g. wandering aimlessly in a new scorching planet and almost dying of dehydration and heatstroke; running away from the hero (for no good reason) and being attacked by animals and needing to be recued again and told off like a naughty child by the hero.
The hero, Ladon, is a Zmaj warrior (an alien dragon with a surprise in his tale...wink wink) and last of his kind. As soon as he sees Calista, he rescues her and looks after All her needs. He also thinks of her as his treasure...definitely a swoon worthy hero...except, he touches the heroine in a fully intimate way without her permission, while she's unconscious. A definite no no! This whole molesting an unconscious female under the guise of curiosity/saving her life is fast becoming a trope in this sub-genre and it's not okay. It's not romantic. It needs to stop. And just because the heroine is later attracted to him, it doesn't excuse his actions. I know this is a light fluffy read, still, consent is important between adults.
The characters were not well developed, the plot...there was not much of a plot, just romance. The romance and side characters were bland and forgettable and the ending was abrupt and left me feeling like several pages were missing from the book. It was a disappointing read. The sequel might be better but I'm done for now.
I was in the mood for a silly entertaining sci-fi romance, also Dragon's Baby reminded me of the Ice Planet Barbarians, but this one was short of the mark.
The beginning was fun and engaging, I especially liked the scene where the cheeky old man forgot his ID and was outrageous and funny. Things quickly deteriorated as soon as they got boarded by space pirates, crash land on a desert alien planet and no one was injured even though they were all without safety gear and passed out in the hallway of the spaceship. Things are not explained or are overlooked. The reactions of the characters were off. They cracked jokes and argued about Star Wars and Star Trek in the middle of life threatening situations and it wasn't funny or quirky.
My number one pet peeve in this sub-genre The language barrier trope carried on until near the end of the book, leaving me feeling bored with their clumsy attempts to understand each other. All that effort and word count could've been used to develop character and plot. *Sigh*
There's another pet peeve here, the clever heroine who is actually dumb. The heroine, Calista, is a Botanist researching a new strain of wheat, but for an intelligent woman she sure acts dumb e.g. wandering aimlessly in a new scorching planet and almost dying of dehydration and heatstroke; running away from the hero (for no good reason) and being attacked by animals and needing to be recued again and told off like a naughty child by the hero.
The hero, Ladon, is a Zmaj warrior (an alien dragon with a surprise in his tale...wink wink) and last of his kind. As soon as he sees Calista, he rescues her and looks after All her needs. He also thinks of her as his treasure...definitely a swoon worthy hero...except, he touches the heroine in a fully intimate way without her permission, while she's unconscious. A definite no no! This whole molesting an unconscious female under the guise of curiosity/saving her life is fast becoming a trope in this sub-genre and it's not okay. It's not romantic. It needs to stop. And just because the heroine is later attracted to him, it doesn't excuse his actions. I know this is a light fluffy read, still, consent is important between adults.
The characters were not well developed, the plot...there was not much of a plot, just romance. The romance and side characters were bland and forgettable and the ending was abrupt and left me feeling like several pages were missing from the book. It was a disappointing read. The sequel might be better but I'm done for now.
November 17, 2023
Ладон(Змай) и Калиста(човек)
5***** <3
Много ми хареса. Честно казано, вероятно защото супер много харесвам поредицата за Варварите от ледената планета на Руби Диксън, и фактът, че тази поредица много наподобява поредицата на Руби даде голям плюс към цялостното ми впечатление от книгата.
Калиста е ботаник. Целият си живот, тя е прекарала на космически кораб, пътуващ към далечна дестинация, където да се преселят хората. Изчислено е, че едва петата генерация хора, пътуващи на кораба ще достигнат до новата планета, която искат да населят. Като едва трета генерация, Калиста в родена на кораба и смята, че ще е на него до края на живота си. Обществото в което живеят е общество със стриктни правила, и Калиста е доволна с това да работи в лабораторията и да създава различни видове семена за хранителни нужди. Докато един ден живота й не се преобръща из основи, когато кораба е нападнат от извънземни пирати, и част от него пада на негостоприемна планета.
Оцеляват само шепа мъже и жени, а планетата на която падат е пустинна. Горещината е непоносима. Водата и провизиите им са малко, затова като ботаник, Калиста е изпратена да разгледа малкото растения наоколо и да види дали някое е годно за консумация. Изтощена и дехидратирана скоро Калиста припада, само за да се събуди по-късно в ръцете на огромен сексапилен извънземен.
Ладон е воин от расата Змай. Преди много години след унищожителна война, цивилизацията на планетата загива. Сега, на това негостоприемно място, горещо и пълно с опасни създания живеят малко на брой воини, които живеят отделно в порутените градове останали след разрушенията. Приспособени към климата, тази раса е с опашки, рога, криле и люспи, подобно на дракони. Всеки от останалите войни живее напълно сам, отказвайки се завинаги от надеждата, че някога ще намери половинка. Докато по време на лов не вижда от небето да пада космически кораб. От останките излизат странни бледи същества, които не са подготвени за тежките условия на планетата му. Виждайки Калиста, той смята, че е най-красивото и безценно нещо, което някога е виждал и започва да я следи, докато не я вижда как припада и знае, че само той може да я спаси.
За да се приспособят към условията на планетата, обитателите й трябва да взимат Епис. Растение, което расте само на тази планета, и което макар и полезно, даващо дълъг живот и здраве на този който го получава, така е и смъртоносно, ако не се взима периодично. Въпреки невъзможността да общуват един с друг, Ладон се грижи колкото се може по-добре за Калиста. Храни я и я пази от опасностите докато пътува с нея към дома си. В началото Калиста е малко стресната от него, но минават дни и тя осъзнава, че никога през живота й, никой мъж не се е отнасял с нея все едно е безценно съкровище. Добротата, отдадеността и закрилата на Ладон я карат да се влюби е него.
Историята е динамична, изпълнена с много нови и интересни неща. Както бях споменала, това, че авторките използват български думи, написани на латиница, за имена на животните населяващи планетата супер много ми допадна. Всеки път като се споменеше Guster на лицето ми цъфваше тъпа усмивка. Честно казано, не знам, защо толкова ме радва това, но е факт. Книгата като цяло е лека, сладка и романтична. Разбира се, не липсват и дразнители, но ако няма и негативни герои, няма да е интересно. Авторките дадоха заявка за развитието на доста интересна сюжетна линия, и макар това да е края на историята на Лодан и Калиста, съм сигурна, че ще ги срещнем обратно в следващите книги и че ще научим много за тази червена планета и дистанцираните й самотни обитатели.
5***** <3
Много ми хареса. Честно казано, вероятно защото супер много харесвам поредицата за Варварите от ледената планета на Руби Диксън, и фактът, че тази поредица много наподобява поредицата на Руби даде голям плюс към цялостното ми впечатление от книгата.
Калиста е ботаник. Целият си живот, тя е прекарала на космически кораб, пътуващ към далечна дестинация, където да се преселят хората. Изчислено е, че едва петата генерация хора, пътуващи на кораба ще достигнат до новата планета, която искат да населят. Като едва трета генерация, Калиста в родена на кораба и смята, че ще е на него до края на живота си. Обществото в което живеят е общество със стриктни правила, и Калиста е доволна с това да работи в лабораторията и да създава различни видове семена за хранителни нужди. Докато един ден живота й не се преобръща из основи, когато кораба е нападнат от извънземни пирати, и част от него пада на негостоприемна планета.
Оцеляват само шепа мъже и жени, а планетата на която падат е пустинна. Горещината е непоносима. Водата и провизиите им са малко, затова като ботаник, Калиста е изпратена да разгледа малкото растения наоколо и да види дали някое е годно за консумация. Изтощена и дехидратирана скоро Калиста припада, само за да се събуди по-късно в ръцете на огромен сексапилен извънземен.
Ладон е воин от расата Змай. Преди много години след унищожителна война, цивилизацията на планетата загива. Сега, на това негостоприемно място, горещо и пълно с опасни създания живеят малко на брой воини, които живеят отделно в порутените градове останали след разрушенията. Приспособени към климата, тази раса е с опашки, рога, криле и люспи, подобно на дракони. Всеки от останалите войни живее напълно сам, отказвайки се завинаги от надеждата, че някога ще намери половинка. Докато по време на лов не вижда от небето да пада космически кораб. От останките излизат странни бледи същества, които не са подготвени за тежките условия на планетата му. Виждайки Калиста, той смята, че е най-красивото и безценно нещо, което някога е виждал и започва да я следи, докато не я вижда как припада и знае, че само той може да я спаси.
За да се приспособят към условията на планетата, обитателите й трябва да взимат Епис. Растение, което расте само на тази планета, и което макар и полезно, даващо дълъг живот и здраве на този който го получава, така е и смъртоносно, ако не се взима периодично. Въпреки невъзможността да общуват един с друг, Ладон се грижи колкото се може по-добре за Калиста. Храни я и я пази от опасностите докато пътува с нея към дома си. В началото Калиста е малко стресната от него, но минават дни и тя осъзнава, че никога през живота й, никой мъж не се е отнасял с нея все едно е безценно съкровище. Добротата, отдадеността и закрилата на Ладон я карат да се влюби е него.
Историята е динамична, изпълнена с много нови и интересни неща. Както бях споменала, това, че авторките използват български думи, написани на латиница, за имена на животните населяващи планетата супер много ми допадна. Всеки път като се споменеше Guster на лицето ми цъфваше тъпа усмивка. Честно казано, не знам, защо толкова ме радва това, но е факт. Книгата като цяло е лека, сладка и романтична. Разбира се, не липсват и дразнители, но ако няма и негативни герои, няма да е интересно. Авторките дадоха заявка за развитието на доста интересна сюжетна линия, и макар това да е края на историята на Лодан и Калиста, съм сигурна, че ще ги срещнем обратно в следващите книги и че ще научим много за тази червена планета и дистанцираните й самотни обитатели.
August 31, 2017
I was in the mood for a sci fi romance and had this recommended to me. A story written by two completely new to me authors and several good reviews for what I thought might just be run of the mill alien captures human. Hmm well yes and no actually. Calista is part of a crew on a voyage to find a new home ( she's third generation) and I will be honest here and say it doesn't really feel very futuristic to this reader at all . They are attacked and the ship breaks up leaving Calista and fellow survivors on an inhospitable planet with creatures out of nightmares or even Dune ! Now our heroine just happens to be a botanist and is sent out to scout for edible plants and just why she's sent out completely alone is beyond me because hey that's a downright stupid thing to do! Well you know I intimated that the planet wasn't really suited to sustaining human life forms and yep Calista struggles to walk let alone explore but unknown to her someone is watching!
A planet devastated by war , with few survivors but those left have adapted to their harsh environment. One such is Ladon, not a shifter exactly but this alien has wings and a tail plus scales so to Calista he looks like a dragon. Now their first meeting is not exactly a case of shaking hands but Ladon is very keen to explore the new piece of treasure that he has claimed! Although I hasten to add that even though this story is adult Ladon is no brute to force the issue and the couple get to know each other in spite of obvious language difficulties. Yet still there remains the problem of Calista getting back to her friends although she has no idea that without help from Ladon the planet they have crashed on will kill them all !
So it didn't feel like I was reading a story about people hundreds of years from now but nevertheless I did get sucked in. There are possibly too many references to popular culture but the authors pass that off as crew members devouring old Earth movies , videos and books. Plus there's a very strange female general in it who felt very out of place and unfortunately she isn't really explained so I'm left wondering about her. Maybe she's an alien?
Still I mustn't digress from the story and I think most readers will fall a little for the lonely but sweet Ladon. Calista can't stop talking and her dialogue is very funny as she struggles to understand her new situation. I think the fact that Calista doesn't see herself as attractive and hadn't really wanted a man made her romance with Ladon all the more poignant. It's not sloppy though , funny yes, sexy too but most of all an interesting take on what it is to be completely out of your comfort zone. I think the fact that we get first person narrative from both central characters really added immensely to my enjoyment. Ladon isn't the only native on his planet though so I'm off to see what else the authors have written!
A planet devastated by war , with few survivors but those left have adapted to their harsh environment. One such is Ladon, not a shifter exactly but this alien has wings and a tail plus scales so to Calista he looks like a dragon. Now their first meeting is not exactly a case of shaking hands but Ladon is very keen to explore the new piece of treasure that he has claimed! Although I hasten to add that even though this story is adult Ladon is no brute to force the issue and the couple get to know each other in spite of obvious language difficulties. Yet still there remains the problem of Calista getting back to her friends although she has no idea that without help from Ladon the planet they have crashed on will kill them all !
So it didn't feel like I was reading a story about people hundreds of years from now but nevertheless I did get sucked in. There are possibly too many references to popular culture but the authors pass that off as crew members devouring old Earth movies , videos and books. Plus there's a very strange female general in it who felt very out of place and unfortunately she isn't really explained so I'm left wondering about her. Maybe she's an alien?
Still I mustn't digress from the story and I think most readers will fall a little for the lonely but sweet Ladon. Calista can't stop talking and her dialogue is very funny as she struggles to understand her new situation. I think the fact that Calista doesn't see herself as attractive and hadn't really wanted a man made her romance with Ladon all the more poignant. It's not sloppy though , funny yes, sexy too but most of all an interesting take on what it is to be completely out of your comfort zone. I think the fact that we get first person narrative from both central characters really added immensely to my enjoyment. Ladon isn't the only native on his planet though so I'm off to see what else the authors have written!
April 25, 2018
So my friend CC called this a knock off of all our fav blue alien series and I just thought that, "Yeah okay, it might be a knock off but between sexy blue aliens and hot as hell dragon men, I would always go for the dragon."
How could I resist?
So did it seem similar? YES! Ridiculously similar.
Based on what I just read, if I ever end up in a situation where I have to choose between blue horned aliens and dragon men with wings, to spend the rest of my life with . . . I'm going with the sexy blue horned aliens.
It wasn't bad per say, just a lot less fleshed out. It ended and I thought I was missing pages, it was so abrupt. Other than the MCs, none of the side characters were endearing. Maybe Jolie cause she was nice but I'm totally not interested in continuing the series.
Another 2 point fiver. Boy am I on a roll!
December 11, 2017
I really enjoyed this. Even though it seemed like almost a knock off of my favorite blue alien series.
I really liked Landon and Calista. Enjoyed the story. It totally sucked me in!
I really liked Landon and Calista. Enjoyed the story. It totally sucked me in!
April 14, 2020
This book has so many problems.
The second I finished this book, I immediately called a friend to talk to, and we had the best time talking about the ridiculousness of this book.
Let's firstly discussing the elephant in the room: Landon raped Calista during his /'exploration", but the author played it off as "yes he touched her without her consent and she said no several times, but she enjoyed it!"
Second, there are still Star Wars /Star Trek references? One hundred years in the future? Really? We still have access to "I Love Lucy" episodes and "Leave it to Beaver", but you don't have people CONSTANTLY talking about it. 100 years in the future and you can't figure out how to make your own TV shows, or even put on your own plays or write your own books? And Calista and Jolie seem to only know Star Wars/Star Trek, they are not able to compare anything that isn't Star War/Star Trek related.
Calista is also so stupid. Honestly, she comes up with stupid excuses and stupid ideas. She, a botanist, decides to walk into the scorching desert to look for plants, when she describe the desert of only containing red sand. Also, she has no bag to collect samples, no camera, no notebook for documenting. She also goes alone. For a "scientist" she's quite ignorant and stupid. And when Landon brings he to the cave, she says how she collects samples--but HOW?! She has no tools, so apparently she's touching the plants directly with her dirty and sweaty fingers which contaminates the sample. She has no notebook for notes, so she apparently just has really good memory. She has no bag to put the samples in, so I'm think she can do what cartoon characters do and put it behind her back and it disappears.
Landon literally KIDNAPS her. He said how she would be his "greatest treasure", as in:
I see her
I want her
I can take her
She's mine now
But at the end of the book, the author (basically) says how Landon didn't kidnap her because she enjoyed it. No, no. Kidnap is taking somebody against their will. Apparently it's not kidnapping when the person is unconscious and you're not able to understand their language--go figure.
his name also confuses me. His language is described to have a lot os "s" sounds--his name has no s's. Given, not hugely important, but most names are based on their language. Like a lot of English names have hard sounds/consonants, like Katie (hard C sound) or Jack (hard J).
Now, there were somethings--every FEW--that the author did that I appreciated. For one, Landon has certain adaptations that make sense, like his wings to glide over the sand and his tail to guide him. But Blue and Yellow scales--for a red desert? Another thing was the language barrier, but the author shot herself in the foot in this one. While yes, it makes sense for Landon and Calista to not speak the same language, they understand their non0verbal communication--like shaking the head no. In some countries in our world, if you shake your head left and right, that means yes. And then, Calista just magically knows his language thanks to machinery. For the time when the planet wasn't a desert, it makes sense and it's cool. But even though the machine hadn't worked for years--she gets it to. Just her. Little miss, Mary Sue. And then she PERFECTLY understand him. Doesn't he have slang? Most people have slang, like "TBR" is slang among readers, or 10-4 is slang for "yes" for police/first responders/armed forces.
Now, my personal favorite part:
HOW did the author get so much anatomical knowledge wrong????
Landon's *ahem* one-eyed-trouser-snake *ahem* is described as has long as her forearm, and as thick as her fist. Firstly, the forearm is considered fingertip to elbow, but most people see it has wrist to elbow. Either way, that one-eyed-trouser-snake is 12+ inches, bare minimum a foot. The problem is that the vaginal canal is (on average) six inches, so his one-eyed-trouser-snake would be going through the cervix and into the uterus. Painful.
Also, in his "exploration" that's rape, he sees one hole that he immediately say it's for mating--um, he should be seeing at least 2 holes (bladder and vaginal canal), but he could also see the third one. But nope. Apparently this girl does not get rid of waste. (he also sees this "hole" which he somehow knows is a "tunnel" and decides to put his finger in it? He didn't do that to her nose, mouth, or ears.)
He also has bone ridges on his one-eyed-trouser-snake. Wouldn't that be painful? I am imaging them to look like round hills, but if they are pointy at all, that would hurt and even lead to damage.
And his (direct quote) "prime penis" must have super sperm. Because they have been together less than a month, and she knows she's pregnant. Most girls know they are pregnant around 8 weeks, when they missed at least one period and symptoms start to happen. She just knows. It's possible for different species to procreate? Heck, it's possible for different species to have the necessary part to do the devil's tango. But super sperm? Really?
The idea of "birth control" in this book surprises me, and not in a good way. For a girl, she can't have her period when on birth control (trust me, I know from experience). But birth control is laced in their food--and they have been eating that food for years? Women wouldn't have periods then, and all that birth control for years would hurt their reproductive systems. Also, when taking birth control (or at least the ones I know of) you need to take it around the same time everyday, but only a certain amount everyday. What happens if one day on the ship Calista barely eats, and another day she's snacking all day? That's different amounts of birth control, that's not great.
Lastly (I know this review is long, sorry), patriarchy. Wow. Women in history have general not been treated as well as men, and a lot of cultures were patriarchal. Nowadays, things are a lot better (given, not perfect). But this book took the history of feminism and took a one hundred year step back while going one hundred years in the future. Women expect to consummate with a male, and the male basically gets to pick? Perfect, not like women have opinions. Not many women fight? Great, it's not like there are women in the area forces.
Overall, there was a lot wrong with this book. And I knew this book was going to be a bad book (the cover, the page number, etc) but I did not expect this dumpster fire of things wrong.
The second I finished this book, I immediately called a friend to talk to, and we had the best time talking about the ridiculousness of this book.
Let's firstly discussing the elephant in the room: Landon raped Calista during his /'exploration", but the author played it off as "yes he touched her without her consent and she said no several times, but she enjoyed it!"
Second, there are still Star Wars /Star Trek references? One hundred years in the future? Really? We still have access to "I Love Lucy" episodes and "Leave it to Beaver", but you don't have people CONSTANTLY talking about it. 100 years in the future and you can't figure out how to make your own TV shows, or even put on your own plays or write your own books? And Calista and Jolie seem to only know Star Wars/Star Trek, they are not able to compare anything that isn't Star War/Star Trek related.
Calista is also so stupid. Honestly, she comes up with stupid excuses and stupid ideas. She, a botanist, decides to walk into the scorching desert to look for plants, when she describe the desert of only containing red sand. Also, she has no bag to collect samples, no camera, no notebook for documenting. She also goes alone. For a "scientist" she's quite ignorant and stupid. And when Landon brings he to the cave, she says how she collects samples--but HOW?! She has no tools, so apparently she's touching the plants directly with her dirty and sweaty fingers which contaminates the sample. She has no notebook for notes, so she apparently just has really good memory. She has no bag to put the samples in, so I'm think she can do what cartoon characters do and put it behind her back and it disappears.
Landon literally KIDNAPS her. He said how she would be his "greatest treasure", as in:
I see her
I want her
I can take her
She's mine now
But at the end of the book, the author (basically) says how Landon didn't kidnap her because she enjoyed it. No, no. Kidnap is taking somebody against their will. Apparently it's not kidnapping when the person is unconscious and you're not able to understand their language--go figure.
his name also confuses me. His language is described to have a lot os "s" sounds--his name has no s's. Given, not hugely important, but most names are based on their language. Like a lot of English names have hard sounds/consonants, like Katie (hard C sound) or Jack (hard J).
Now, there were somethings--every FEW--that the author did that I appreciated. For one, Landon has certain adaptations that make sense, like his wings to glide over the sand and his tail to guide him. But Blue and Yellow scales--for a red desert? Another thing was the language barrier, but the author shot herself in the foot in this one. While yes, it makes sense for Landon and Calista to not speak the same language, they understand their non0verbal communication--like shaking the head no. In some countries in our world, if you shake your head left and right, that means yes. And then, Calista just magically knows his language thanks to machinery. For the time when the planet wasn't a desert, it makes sense and it's cool. But even though the machine hadn't worked for years--she gets it to. Just her. Little miss, Mary Sue. And then she PERFECTLY understand him. Doesn't he have slang? Most people have slang, like "TBR" is slang among readers, or 10-4 is slang for "yes" for police/first responders/armed forces.
Now, my personal favorite part:
HOW did the author get so much anatomical knowledge wrong????
Landon's *ahem* one-eyed-trouser-snake *ahem* is described as has long as her forearm, and as thick as her fist. Firstly, the forearm is considered fingertip to elbow, but most people see it has wrist to elbow. Either way, that one-eyed-trouser-snake is 12+ inches, bare minimum a foot. The problem is that the vaginal canal is (on average) six inches, so his one-eyed-trouser-snake would be going through the cervix and into the uterus. Painful.
Also, in his "exploration" that's rape, he sees one hole that he immediately say it's for mating--um, he should be seeing at least 2 holes (bladder and vaginal canal), but he could also see the third one. But nope. Apparently this girl does not get rid of waste. (he also sees this "hole" which he somehow knows is a "tunnel" and decides to put his finger in it? He didn't do that to her nose, mouth, or ears.)
He also has bone ridges on his one-eyed-trouser-snake. Wouldn't that be painful? I am imaging them to look like round hills, but if they are pointy at all, that would hurt and even lead to damage.
And his (direct quote) "prime penis" must have super sperm. Because they have been together less than a month, and she knows she's pregnant. Most girls know they are pregnant around 8 weeks, when they missed at least one period and symptoms start to happen. She just knows. It's possible for different species to procreate? Heck, it's possible for different species to have the necessary part to do the devil's tango. But super sperm? Really?
The idea of "birth control" in this book surprises me, and not in a good way. For a girl, she can't have her period when on birth control (trust me, I know from experience). But birth control is laced in their food--and they have been eating that food for years? Women wouldn't have periods then, and all that birth control for years would hurt their reproductive systems. Also, when taking birth control (or at least the ones I know of) you need to take it around the same time everyday, but only a certain amount everyday. What happens if one day on the ship Calista barely eats, and another day she's snacking all day? That's different amounts of birth control, that's not great.
Lastly (I know this review is long, sorry), patriarchy. Wow. Women in history have general not been treated as well as men, and a lot of cultures were patriarchal. Nowadays, things are a lot better (given, not perfect). But this book took the history of feminism and took a one hundred year step back while going one hundred years in the future. Women expect to consummate with a male, and the male basically gets to pick? Perfect, not like women have opinions. Not many women fight? Great, it's not like there are women in the area forces.
Overall, there was a lot wrong with this book. And I knew this book was going to be a bad book (the cover, the page number, etc) but I did not expect this dumpster fire of things wrong.
February 3, 2017
DNF
1st) Too many modern day movie references for me to honestly believe this story takes place in the distance future, a future where the heroine is a third generation passenger on a ship.
2nd) The writing style was confusing at times. Example; a pirate blocks the path of the heroine and her friends. Suddenly he has a hole in his head... Never explained how it got there. It's just there and the pirate is (ex machina style) dead. There were a lot of instances like this where things weren't explained well enough
3rd) The reactions and emotions of the characters weren't ever believable or appropriate for the situation: their ship is under attack by pirates, let's have all major characters cracking jokes and talking about scenes in Star Wars. They've crashed on a desert, alien planet and instead of being understandably freaked out or scared they're arguing if it resembles Tatooine or Vulcan more.
4th) They just crash landed on a desert, alien planet and none of the characters are even DIRTY let alone INJURED. They never made it to the life pod. They were literally in a hallway, the scene faded to black, and when they woke everyone is scattered on this planet... not at all injured.... There's a woman who was wearing a "white, flowing dress" and her dress wasn't at all dirty; not a hair was out of place and she "stood tall and perfect".... Uhm... did none of you actually crash land here? Or were you beamed down? I didn't understand this.
This is probably nit picking since it's literally a short story about Alien Dragons but the fact that I've read way stranger alien stories that came out way BETTER and more believable than this shows that's not an excuse. I'd suggest Ice Planet Barbarians. The plots are similar (crash landed on a planet with extreme temperatures only to be saved by aliens etc) but the author does a better job of making the plot and characters more believable. The writing is also ten times better.
1st) Too many modern day movie references for me to honestly believe this story takes place in the distance future, a future where the heroine is a third generation passenger on a ship.
2nd) The writing style was confusing at times. Example; a pirate blocks the path of the heroine and her friends. Suddenly he has a hole in his head... Never explained how it got there. It's just there and the pirate is (ex machina style) dead. There were a lot of instances like this where things weren't explained well enough
3rd) The reactions and emotions of the characters weren't ever believable or appropriate for the situation: their ship is under attack by pirates, let's have all major characters cracking jokes and talking about scenes in Star Wars. They've crashed on a desert, alien planet and instead of being understandably freaked out or scared they're arguing if it resembles Tatooine or Vulcan more.
4th) They just crash landed on a desert, alien planet and none of the characters are even DIRTY let alone INJURED. They never made it to the life pod. They were literally in a hallway, the scene faded to black, and when they woke everyone is scattered on this planet... not at all injured.... There's a woman who was wearing a "white, flowing dress" and her dress wasn't at all dirty; not a hair was out of place and she "stood tall and perfect".... Uhm... did none of you actually crash land here? Or were you beamed down? I didn't understand this.
This is probably nit picking since it's literally a short story about Alien Dragons but the fact that I've read way stranger alien stories that came out way BETTER and more believable than this shows that's not an excuse. I'd suggest Ice Planet Barbarians. The plots are similar (crash landed on a planet with extreme temperatures only to be saved by aliens etc) but the author does a better job of making the plot and characters more believable. The writing is also ten times better.
May 24, 2022
This actually started out strong I Liked the writing and the story was intriguing I was optimistic about what was to come. In fairness, I did enjoy bits of this but I also had some issues with certain character portrayals there were some unlikable individuals and not just from the ones that I’d been expecting to dislike.
The initial first chapters were good but after they crash land when their ship is boarded by pirates it swiftly went downhill for me. I wasn’t very keen on Calista as a person it wasn’t an immediate distaste rather it crept up on me very gradually. I found her to be weak and easily swayed by the opinions of others. Her initial defence of her new protector was half-arsed at best. In my opinion, she did the bare minimum needed and actually started to distance herself to avoid the group's censure which was a pretty shitty thing to do. Especially because her inner monologue was telling me that she knew exactly how to play it she just chose not to and I thought he deserved better than that.
Ladon on the other hand was a real sweetie. He had a tail and wings but he was also very humanoid in appearance he was protective and loyal. But I felt he was also the one making all of the concessions. Why should he assist and lend his aid to such an ungrateful rude people and even allow them to reside in his home because it was what Calista wanted it all seemed to be about her and her happiness and I did feel she valued their good opinion much more than she cared for Ladon and it did leave a bad taste.
Calista also constantly makes stupid decisions putting herself in constant danger this surprised me as initially she didn’t seem the sort Ladan finds himself constantly having to rescue her and when he’s naturally irate she just turns on the waterworks which totally works with Ladan every time
I also found her friends inappropriate and lacking boundaries. I think it was meant to come across as cute and banterish but who places hands on another’s male suggestively without a sheer lack of respect for your close friend. Calista’s inferiority complex was definitely her own issue but her friends didn’t feel much like friends to me.
This one was also quite instalove in nature there isn’t really any resistance or angst and our two lovers swiftly succumb to their mutual attraction. There is some slight inappropriate behaviour on Ladan’s part initially but to be honest it was more curiosity than anything sinister. There’s also some unusual anatomy and the spice level with this was indeed hot there is also a language barrier to further complicate things.
Overall the writing was ok but it was also slightly stripped back and I didn’t think there was enough personal background on either Calista or Ladan they did feel a bit one dimensional and I wasn’t invested mostly due to not feeling I really knew them that well.
There were also slight discrepancies that weren’t explained to my complete satisfaction. I wasn’t sure who the who was when it came down to rescue. I mean they’ve been travelling the stars their whole lifetime to reach somewhere that they wouldn’t be arriving at in their own lifetimes so where were they even planning to go next to resume their journey in space it just wasn’t clarified to my satisfaction. The final nail for me was the title it’s totally misleading there are no babies anywhere in this story instead it alludes to the fact that Calista right at the end of this discovers she’s pregnant and that’s it so I’ve no idea why it’s called what it is.
So though it was apparent this is a series as it dropped crumbs I won’t be continuing on unfortunately I’m just not interested or invested enough in reading any further. This may be a fit for those who like a lighter more easy style of sci-fi romance it does have a sweet devoted buff alien dragon man as the love interest to recommend it.
Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
https://www.bookbub.com/profile/63435390
January 31, 2024
Have you read the Dune Series. It's where i learned the importance of water rights. Any who everything revolves around this spice. That can only be found on this one planet. Whomever controls the spice. Controls this section of the universe. So replace humans and the spice with a plant found underground. With a planet that's has hazards setup for your destruction. Unless you partake of the cave plant. Oh and unbeknownst to you this planet has higher intelligence... well the ruins gives that impression.
June 3, 2017
I liked this story....the heroine was weak for an Alpha Dragon to pick... she could have used more backbone and to stand up for herself w/her fellow humans. I liked the Dragon Alien...he was strong, smart, kind, but protective...
August 2, 2018
Total rip-off ice planet barbarians.
November 15, 2017
[for Series]
I’ve found a new crack obsession. My definition of crack is a crazy balls-out premise, an alien hero (different color and/or unusual appendages are a MUST), a tried and true romance formula and a fascinating ‘verse that captures my interest. Boy, has the Dragons of Tajss delivered. Does it have its flaws? Yep. Do I give a flying zemjla? Nope, not even a little bit.
A mishmash of different fantasy/sci-fi components that we’ve seen in shows from Dr. Who to Beetlejuice, this is a series that goes for some serious issues like xenophobia, racism, etc. and there’s danger everywhere, but it’s the details that tend to make me giggle. There’s a generation ship that is hurtling through space, minding its own business, when it is attacked by space pirates and crash lands on a planet called Tajss. Everything, and I mean everything, is designed to kill and/or eat you, not necessarily in that order. It’s hot AF so the human body is NOT designed to survive on this planet.
For example, there’s an ongoing debate between the Star Wars vs. Star Trek fans, Dr. Who references and a big worm-y thing that will kill you but all I could picture was this:
Basically, all the fixins for a cracky kind of sci-fi rom read. This will appeal to fans of the Ice Planet Barbarians-type of romances. If that’s your jam, get a taste of this Zmaj jelly. I think you’ll like it.
BOOK SPECIFIC Review:
Calista and Ladon (Lay-dun). Story follows the “intro to sci-fi crack 101.” Survival is paramount, except for some questionably timed romantic interludes during the heroine’s severe dehydration and threats from everything that’s trying to kill her. A little ridiculous and not the strongest writing and yet I was hooked.
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June 22, 2023
dnf dnf dnf
Okay so I got to 113 pages and had to give up now don’t get me wrong. I do not mind where it has dubious consent and I don’t mind other things that could be triggering. However, there Hass to be sense to the scene, and I have to say when the MMC meets the FMC and one of the first things even though it is meant to save her life is he strips her bare , he then fondles her unconscious body. And it’s not like he isn’t aware of her body parts. His species has similar so he is fully aware of the sexual nature his actions have. That isn’t something that is okay. It’s gross. I went in wondering about the dubious consent and things and was prepared. But I wasn’t prepared for the blatant molestation of someone he claims is his mate while she is unconscious and near death. That isn’t a good story to me and I do not understand how other women find that to be sexy I do not care if it is fantasy I do not care if it is fiction it isn’t about kink, and it isn’t about kink shaming it is basic disgusting behavior that turns the MMC into a POS
Okay so I got to 113 pages and had to give up now don’t get me wrong. I do not mind where it has dubious consent and I don’t mind other things that could be triggering. However, there Hass to be sense to the scene, and I have to say when the MMC meets the FMC and one of the first things even though it is meant to save her life is he strips her bare , he then fondles her unconscious body. And it’s not like he isn’t aware of her body parts. His species has similar so he is fully aware of the sexual nature his actions have. That isn’t something that is okay. It’s gross. I went in wondering about the dubious consent and things and was prepared. But I wasn’t prepared for the blatant molestation of someone he claims is his mate while she is unconscious and near death. That isn’t a good story to me and I do not understand how other women find that to be sexy I do not care if it is fantasy I do not care if it is fiction it isn’t about kink, and it isn’t about kink shaming it is basic disgusting behavior that turns the MMC into a POS
October 1, 2019
3.5 stars
This new to me author and series have some potential, but some things didn't work for me.
I liked the idea of the human generational ship trying to get to a new home. The pirate attack was sudden and they were really lucky to even be able to crash on a planet.
Ladon is pretty amazing. He is not a shifter, but rather an alien that has some dragon features like scales, wings and a tail . He rescues Calista and decides to keep her, but the planet's heat is killing her. Ladon is strong and well adapted to his environment but not invincible, this fact endeared him to me.
Not sure how I feel about the whole "epis" business.
Why are the other human survivors such assholes all of a sudden?
The language solution was a little too easy for me.
This new to me author and series have some potential, but some things didn't work for me.
I liked the idea of the human generational ship trying to get to a new home. The pirate attack was sudden and they were really lucky to even be able to crash on a planet.
Ladon is pretty amazing. He is not a shifter, but rather an alien that has some dragon features like scales, wings and a tail . He rescues Calista and decides to keep her, but the planet's heat is killing her. Ladon is strong and well adapted to his environment but not invincible, this fact endeared him to me.
Not sure how I feel about the whole "epis" business.
Why are the other human survivors such assholes all of a sudden?
The language solution was a little too easy for me.
January 25, 2025
DNF at 20%
May 23, 2017
Dragon's Baby
Red Planet Dragons of Tajss Book 1
by Miranda Martin, Juno Wells
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
WOW! This is a Spectacular read. What a phenomenal story that's written so well with lots of humor. The dialogue is clever, awesome and incredible. The characters are creative, amazing, unique and captivating. I absolutely adore the way Miranda and Juno always do a phenomenal job with the alien worlds, scene descriptions and characters. This is a truly FANTASTIC story! This story is about Ladon and Calista. Ladon is a Zmaj warrior who had resign hisself to living his life alone. He only desires to protect his treasures. Ladon has no thoughts of having a mate it hasn't cross his mind in a long time. Calista is happy with her scientific research, her work, her books, her friends and She isn't concern with the need for love. Space pirates attacks her ship and they crashed land on the desert planet that has heat so intense its evident that without help her and friends can't survive. I enjoy that it's told in first person! Because Ladon seeing, touching and talking to a human for first time! Will make you laugh so hard it wiIl bring tears to your eyes.This book will make this happen all the way to the end. I was laughing so hard when he first rescues Calista and her friends!! I all most had a cow. I agree it's PRICELESS! Ladon and Calista are smoking HOT together. They have amazing sexual chemistry and the sparks fly and the tension is thick. They have me glued to my reader. All in all the story is great.I definitely enjoyed reading this book and I recommend it for all to read.
Red Planet Dragons of Tajss Book 1
by Miranda Martin, Juno Wells
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
WOW! This is a Spectacular read. What a phenomenal story that's written so well with lots of humor. The dialogue is clever, awesome and incredible. The characters are creative, amazing, unique and captivating. I absolutely adore the way Miranda and Juno always do a phenomenal job with the alien worlds, scene descriptions and characters. This is a truly FANTASTIC story! This story is about Ladon and Calista. Ladon is a Zmaj warrior who had resign hisself to living his life alone. He only desires to protect his treasures. Ladon has no thoughts of having a mate it hasn't cross his mind in a long time. Calista is happy with her scientific research, her work, her books, her friends and She isn't concern with the need for love. Space pirates attacks her ship and they crashed land on the desert planet that has heat so intense its evident that without help her and friends can't survive. I enjoy that it's told in first person! Because Ladon seeing, touching and talking to a human for first time! Will make you laugh so hard it wiIl bring tears to your eyes.This book will make this happen all the way to the end. I was laughing so hard when he first rescues Calista and her friends!! I all most had a cow. I agree it's PRICELESS! Ladon and Calista are smoking HOT together. They have amazing sexual chemistry and the sparks fly and the tension is thick. They have me glued to my reader. All in all the story is great.I definitely enjoyed reading this book and I recommend it for all to read.
January 28, 2018
The Heroine's Brain Is Lost In Space
"She has no sense! No protection, no weapons, not strong enough to lift a baoba limb on her own and she runs off blindly. Stupid and dangerous." These words by Ladon describe Calista perfectly.
She starts out the book seeming pretty intelligent. She's a biochemist who wears glasses. But once she crashes on the planet her glasses disappear (with no mention of them or indication she has any decrease in vision) and her intelligence disappears as well. The rest of the book she shows a complete lack of common sense. She alternates between running into danger(not because she is bold or wants to face it head on but just because she has no sense), screaming and bawling. Each time she sees something scary she screams to alert it to her presence and location. She also likes to scream and distract Ladon when he his fighting for his and her lives.
The constant sobbing is especially foolish on a planet where she nearly died from heat exhaustion in like 30 minutes. She should try to conserve the water and salt. And she is supposed to be smart. She is so pathetic that useless would be an upgrade.
If you like helpless shrinking violet heroines this is the book for you. She actually fights back against the space pirates before the crash. But as soon as she hits the planet any useful characteristics she had evaporate.
The book was ok despite brainless blondie but it wasn't enough to draw me into the series. I might read more later. The heroines can't all be that bad can they?
"She has no sense! No protection, no weapons, not strong enough to lift a baoba limb on her own and she runs off blindly. Stupid and dangerous." These words by Ladon describe Calista perfectly.
She starts out the book seeming pretty intelligent. She's a biochemist who wears glasses. But once she crashes on the planet her glasses disappear (with no mention of them or indication she has any decrease in vision) and her intelligence disappears as well. The rest of the book she shows a complete lack of common sense. She alternates between running into danger(not because she is bold or wants to face it head on but just because she has no sense), screaming and bawling. Each time she sees something scary she screams to alert it to her presence and location. She also likes to scream and distract Ladon when he his fighting for his and her lives.
The constant sobbing is especially foolish on a planet where she nearly died from heat exhaustion in like 30 minutes. She should try to conserve the water and salt. And she is supposed to be smart. She is so pathetic that useless would be an upgrade.
If you like helpless shrinking violet heroines this is the book for you. She actually fights back against the space pirates before the crash. But as soon as she hits the planet any useful characteristics she had evaporate.
The book was ok despite brainless blondie but it wasn't enough to draw me into the series. I might read more later. The heroines can't all be that bad can they?
June 16, 2022
Don't Waste Your Time
IPB fan fic at best.
The version I read was the new 2022/expanded edition. Having not read the original I can only figure that the expansion was 100% unneeded. What was needed however, was a solid edit and proofreading. The story is full of inconsistencies and contradictions. Things that happen or are mentioned earlier in the story and completely debunked and ignored later in the story. In addition to that there are way too many fight scenes between the MMC and the millions of deadly creatures on the planet. Was this outer space or Australia? I think he fought a deadly opponent in every chapter. My last complaint, why is this called Dragon’s Baby? The FMC isn’t even pregnant until the Epilogue and even then we never see her give birth!
Check out Bonded Books Podcast for our episode on this book!
IPB fan fic at best.
The version I read was the new 2022/expanded edition. Having not read the original I can only figure that the expansion was 100% unneeded. What was needed however, was a solid edit and proofreading. The story is full of inconsistencies and contradictions. Things that happen or are mentioned earlier in the story and completely debunked and ignored later in the story. In addition to that there are way too many fight scenes between the MMC and the millions of deadly creatures on the planet. Was this outer space or Australia? I think he fought a deadly opponent in every chapter. My last complaint, why is this called Dragon’s Baby? The FMC isn’t even pregnant until the Epilogue and even then we never see her give birth!
Check out Bonded Books Podcast for our episode on this book!
January 8, 2018
Not bad but really not good
The plot is a good one even if it reminds me of another series just hot and not icy. However that’s where the good ends since this story goes down hill quickly.The heroine is a weeping silly spineless mess so you really never feel any real connection to her. Guy saves her and has treated her well he shows some interest a lady nut job runs off screaming in a unfamiliar alien world only to be captured and require saving from the very alien that saved her before. They have sexual contact was too quickly and at a time when you’d least expect them to since you know “danger” and her suffering from heat exhaustion. Also it’s like the author wants you to like Calista so much that she makes the other characters unnecessarily unlikeable like Lana and Rosalind. I don’t like wimpy female leads so Calista ruins what could have been a good book.
The plot is a good one even if it reminds me of another series just hot and not icy. However that’s where the good ends since this story goes down hill quickly.The heroine is a weeping silly spineless mess so you really never feel any real connection to her. Guy saves her and has treated her well he shows some interest a lady nut job runs off screaming in a unfamiliar alien world only to be captured and require saving from the very alien that saved her before. They have sexual contact was too quickly and at a time when you’d least expect them to since you know “danger” and her suffering from heat exhaustion. Also it’s like the author wants you to like Calista so much that she makes the other characters unnecessarily unlikeable like Lana and Rosalind. I don’t like wimpy female leads so Calista ruins what could have been a good book.
June 5, 2021
My biggest problem was with the character, Calista. She was supposed to be a scientist, yet she showed very little common sense and was not a believable character. The language barrier between the hero and heroine quickly became annoying.
I really love this author’s books, but this one seemed to have no editing and was filled with the type of errors that throw readers off and take them out of the story. I will definitely try another in this series, because I have read many other books by the author. I hope the quality of the next one will reaffirm my decision.
I really love this author’s books, but this one seemed to have no editing and was filled with the type of errors that throw readers off and take them out of the story. I will definitely try another in this series, because I have read many other books by the author. I hope the quality of the next one will reaffirm my decision.
dnf
May 24, 2020Of course he decides that touching on our passed out girl’s vagina is a great idea. Who needs something insignificant like consent?
January 10, 2024
This was surprisingly good! I don't think the title fits the book very well but I thought the plot and the characters were interesting and this was a good read
September 7, 2021
Read for 2021 SPSFC
Overall Thoughts
Alright. So this will be an interesting review. Let me get this out of the way first: this won’t be one of my recommendations to move on to the next stage of the contest. That said, I have read sci-fi romance stories before and this absolutely follows the tropes and fulfills the story it intends to tell. It was a fun diversion. However, I don’t think it’s a good match for a contest looking for the subjective best indie science fiction book out of 300 books submitted.
In fact, having just completed publishing a sci-fi (lesbian) romance anthology myself, I am more in tune with the tropes and storylines that go into a romance story than usual. If you like romances (with explicit sex scenes), this might be an enjoyable read for you. However, I’m reviewing these books for an indie science fiction contest and, well, I have to think people knew what they were getting into when submitting books…
Plot
Ok, buckle up and we’ll get into the nitty gritty. The plot here is the standard romance: girl is on a generational ship, girl gets attacked by pirates, girl crash lands on a planet, girl meets a sexy dragon-man with (since he’s descended from reptiles) not one but two huge…errrrr…wings, and hijinks ensue!
Ahem. In all seriousness, I did have some issues with how the romance was treated here. Ladon (dragon-dude) effectively tries to rape Calista the first time he meets/abducts her, which I am definitely not alright with. There are many more chances in which she gives consent, even if some are in the throes of passion, but I keep going back to the first meeting and the fact that it was never fully addressed for me.
Second, even a romance needs some ups and downs. Most of the danger and tension in this story come from external dangers of flora and fauna. There’s very little tension between the characters, Calista is pretty okay from the beginning with knocking boots with a giant alien, and nothing much comes between them in any meaningful way except some language barriers. There’s a little tension with a skeevy guy from the ship, but it’s pretty obvious that’s not going anywhere. Overall this trended toward the more erotic side of romance than the will they/won’t they tension of relationships.
Setting
*Cracks Knuckles*
So you want to submit a fluffy, fun, alien romance to an indie sci-fi contest filled with crunchy, techy books? More power to you.
I will have some issues with this.
So, first off, this starts out on a generational ship, but I guess the only media that’s survived the years after they left Earth is Star Trek and Star Wars? Like, there are multiple references, and the only comparison used for the hostile-ness of the planet, which seems like it’s just trying too hard. It’s a desert planet compared to Tatooine and Vulcan. What about Arrakis, especially since there’s a giant worm species that has a connection to an addictive substance? In addition, Calista is supposed to be a plant biologist, but seems to be absolutely useless at any other sort of science. Her expert opinion on plants is also…lacking:
“…there is a rough-bladed species of grass. I run my hands around myself. The grass is thick and almost sharp on the edges. A hardy breed, which also means logically this must be an oasis. Grass and plants can’t grow without water.”
I…would have liked a little more scientific analysis. For example, wouldn’t the plants outside an oasis need to be hardier than the ones inside? Also, grass and plants? As a scientist, she doesn’t even use the proper names she would be familiar with for classification of plants. This doesn’t even get into the logic jump when she determines a species of plant must change her DNA when she eats it.
The first few pages in this story almost turned me off because they could have been in any chick-lit story about a woman and her girlfriends talking about guys at work and what to eat. It was a small thing, but there were no hints that they were on a generational ship, which is a very specific sort of self-contained space ship, until I think a chapter or two in.
None of the characters on the generational ship seem to have any clue how to approach emergency measures or repairs for basic things like light, water, and heat. Plus the entire ship crashes on a planet, but thousands of people are still alive after it breaks up in space and then hurtles through atmosphere to land in a desert. I’m not saying it couldn’t happen, but not with these people at the helm.
Character
The two main characters pull the reader through the story, and I think the romance is definitely intriguing. The (several) sex scenes are, well, *fans self,* which is the point of this story, after all. That said, the biggest issue I had was the characters seemed fairly generic. Calista is the nerdy (not really) girl who does Science and thinks she can never get a man because her girlfriends are so much better at that sort of thing. Ladon is the very alpha, protective overly macho male who is at the same time completely considerate of his female and will do anything to protect her.
As I mentioned above, I would have liked a little more tension to the story. There are some fights with dangerous creatures, and a slimy boss from the ship who naturally also wants Calista, but from the first, somewhat rapey meeting between the two main characters, there’s never any doubt the two will be together. Even when they encounter the rest of the crashed refugees on the planet, there’s no relationship tension. Her gaggle of girlfriends is instantly forgettable, and there are five or six of them. There also is very little reaction to the generational ship, which presumably has been a self-contained home for three generations, crashing with all their dreams, with no chance of rescue. I would think the characters would be completely unaccustomed to being on a planet, since they’ve lived their whole lives on the ship. I don’t think it was ever stated where they were going or why.
Score out of 10 (My personal score, not the final contest score)
Temporary score until more books in the contest are read: If you love romance and you’re reading this for the D(ragon), then it’s a fun, fluffy read. If you want any sort of thought-provoking science fiction, I’d look elsewhere. I think romances are completely capable of doing both, but this is not one of those. 3/10
Overall Thoughts
Alright. So this will be an interesting review. Let me get this out of the way first: this won’t be one of my recommendations to move on to the next stage of the contest. That said, I have read sci-fi romance stories before and this absolutely follows the tropes and fulfills the story it intends to tell. It was a fun diversion. However, I don’t think it’s a good match for a contest looking for the subjective best indie science fiction book out of 300 books submitted.
In fact, having just completed publishing a sci-fi (lesbian) romance anthology myself, I am more in tune with the tropes and storylines that go into a romance story than usual. If you like romances (with explicit sex scenes), this might be an enjoyable read for you. However, I’m reviewing these books for an indie science fiction contest and, well, I have to think people knew what they were getting into when submitting books…
Plot
Ok, buckle up and we’ll get into the nitty gritty. The plot here is the standard romance: girl is on a generational ship, girl gets attacked by pirates, girl crash lands on a planet, girl meets a sexy dragon-man with (since he’s descended from reptiles) not one but two huge…errrrr…wings, and hijinks ensue!
Ahem. In all seriousness, I did have some issues with how the romance was treated here. Ladon (dragon-dude) effectively tries to rape Calista the first time he meets/abducts her, which I am definitely not alright with. There are many more chances in which she gives consent, even if some are in the throes of passion, but I keep going back to the first meeting and the fact that it was never fully addressed for me.
Second, even a romance needs some ups and downs. Most of the danger and tension in this story come from external dangers of flora and fauna. There’s very little tension between the characters, Calista is pretty okay from the beginning with knocking boots with a giant alien, and nothing much comes between them in any meaningful way except some language barriers. There’s a little tension with a skeevy guy from the ship, but it’s pretty obvious that’s not going anywhere. Overall this trended toward the more erotic side of romance than the will they/won’t they tension of relationships.
Setting
*Cracks Knuckles*
So you want to submit a fluffy, fun, alien romance to an indie sci-fi contest filled with crunchy, techy books? More power to you.
I will have some issues with this.
So, first off, this starts out on a generational ship, but I guess the only media that’s survived the years after they left Earth is Star Trek and Star Wars? Like, there are multiple references, and the only comparison used for the hostile-ness of the planet, which seems like it’s just trying too hard. It’s a desert planet compared to Tatooine and Vulcan. What about Arrakis, especially since there’s a giant worm species that has a connection to an addictive substance? In addition, Calista is supposed to be a plant biologist, but seems to be absolutely useless at any other sort of science. Her expert opinion on plants is also…lacking:
“…there is a rough-bladed species of grass. I run my hands around myself. The grass is thick and almost sharp on the edges. A hardy breed, which also means logically this must be an oasis. Grass and plants can’t grow without water.”
I…would have liked a little more scientific analysis. For example, wouldn’t the plants outside an oasis need to be hardier than the ones inside? Also, grass and plants? As a scientist, she doesn’t even use the proper names she would be familiar with for classification of plants. This doesn’t even get into the logic jump when she determines a species of plant must change her DNA when she eats it.
The first few pages in this story almost turned me off because they could have been in any chick-lit story about a woman and her girlfriends talking about guys at work and what to eat. It was a small thing, but there were no hints that they were on a generational ship, which is a very specific sort of self-contained space ship, until I think a chapter or two in.
None of the characters on the generational ship seem to have any clue how to approach emergency measures or repairs for basic things like light, water, and heat. Plus the entire ship crashes on a planet, but thousands of people are still alive after it breaks up in space and then hurtles through atmosphere to land in a desert. I’m not saying it couldn’t happen, but not with these people at the helm.
Character
The two main characters pull the reader through the story, and I think the romance is definitely intriguing. The (several) sex scenes are, well, *fans self,* which is the point of this story, after all. That said, the biggest issue I had was the characters seemed fairly generic. Calista is the nerdy (not really) girl who does Science and thinks she can never get a man because her girlfriends are so much better at that sort of thing. Ladon is the very alpha, protective overly macho male who is at the same time completely considerate of his female and will do anything to protect her.
As I mentioned above, I would have liked a little more tension to the story. There are some fights with dangerous creatures, and a slimy boss from the ship who naturally also wants Calista, but from the first, somewhat rapey meeting between the two main characters, there’s never any doubt the two will be together. Even when they encounter the rest of the crashed refugees on the planet, there’s no relationship tension. Her gaggle of girlfriends is instantly forgettable, and there are five or six of them. There also is very little reaction to the generational ship, which presumably has been a self-contained home for three generations, crashing with all their dreams, with no chance of rescue. I would think the characters would be completely unaccustomed to being on a planet, since they’ve lived their whole lives on the ship. I don’t think it was ever stated where they were going or why.
Score out of 10 (My personal score, not the final contest score)
Temporary score until more books in the contest are read: If you love romance and you’re reading this for the D(ragon), then it’s a fun, fluffy read. If you want any sort of thought-provoking science fiction, I’d look elsewhere. I think romances are completely capable of doing both, but this is not one of those. 3/10
February 20, 2023
This takes an already established concept to a new level, which I really enjoyed.
Calista and Landon's relationship dynamic is something I've enjoyed in this book. From the moment they meet, there was an undeniable connection.
I enjoyed the disruption of the conflict on views between different people. This can be seen when Landon is introduced to the group. He's ready to protect her at all costs. Yet she's also fiercely protective over him, too. They are a solid unit, and it shows to the others.
This is a love story that is steamy, romantic, and passionate, but it doesn't shy away from the conflict. I enjoyed how this book looks at people being fearful of people they've never encountered before.
Calista and Landon's relationship dynamic is something I've enjoyed in this book. From the moment they meet, there was an undeniable connection.
I enjoyed the disruption of the conflict on views between different people. This can be seen when Landon is introduced to the group. He's ready to protect her at all costs. Yet she's also fiercely protective over him, too. They are a solid unit, and it shows to the others.
This is a love story that is steamy, romantic, and passionate, but it doesn't shy away from the conflict. I enjoyed how this book looks at people being fearful of people they've never encountered before.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 30, 2019
I picked this up because I like Ruby Dixon's books and thought why not? Well nothing really worked for me in this. The world building wasn't that great. The language barrier between the hero and heroine was annoying. I felt like it took away from building the H/h relationship. The heroine was supposed to be smart but came off dumb. The hero was ok. The steamy parts weren't good in my opinion. Unfortunately, this was a flop for me.
August 28, 2020
I really liked this book. I really enjoyed the romance and the relationship between these two characters. I also was intrigued by this universe and I’m eager to see more of it.
The only thing I wasn’t a big fan of in this book was the end. It felt rushed and I felt like a lot of things are left open ended or incomplete. I also felt like the title of the book was a bit misleading of what the story is about.
I’m eager to read the next book though!
The only thing I wasn’t a big fan of in this book was the end. It felt rushed and I felt like a lot of things are left open ended or incomplete. I also felt like the title of the book was a bit misleading of what the story is about.
I’m eager to read the next book though!
February 9, 2018
El libro en si ha sido raro. En cierta forma, me ha recordado a la pelicula Passengers, la de Jennifer Lawrence. Ha estado bien, y me intriga seguir leyendo la “saga”, quiero leer la historia de la mejor amiga de Calista, Julie.
May 24, 2022
This story reminds me of IPB. I love it I read through those books so fast im glad I found these ! Just as good as them. Thanks to the person who recommended them on TikTok and they’re fast reads and on KU !
June 25, 2022
Dnf at 35%.
I wanted to like this series. I tried REALLY HARD to get through the jungle ones and it was rough, but getting to this one just pointed out to me just how not-worth-it this series is to finish [for me].
I don't like the women featured. I don't enjoy the side characters. The guys are trippy, and their motives just are...so replayed and basic enough to make me think...if you've read one, you've read them all.
Just.
Meh.
The actual writing is adequate, it's just the way that it's all meshed together that is flat for me.
Don't recommend, but that's just my preference and opinion, so please disregard if you love this bad boy!
I wanted to like this series. I tried REALLY HARD to get through the jungle ones and it was rough, but getting to this one just pointed out to me just how not-worth-it this series is to finish [for me].
I don't like the women featured. I don't enjoy the side characters. The guys are trippy, and their motives just are...so replayed and basic enough to make me think...if you've read one, you've read them all.
Just.
Meh.
The actual writing is adequate, it's just the way that it's all meshed together that is flat for me.
Don't recommend, but that's just my preference and opinion, so please disregard if you love this bad boy!
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