Alien Innkeeper

by Roxanne Barbour

Sylvestine Amera is the manager of the Mars Best-Tycho Basin Hotel. When her first alien visitors arrive on planet, Syl is faced with solving numerous challenges. Not the least of having Dedare Sath rubbing her cheeks in a gesture she is curious to understand. Irion customs are different than what she is used to, but when Dedare who owns a hotel on Irion asks her to leave Mars and manage his flagship hotel, she is more than ready to leave her home planet behind.

Once on the alien planet Syl is subjected to new customs, more alien encounters, adventures, not to mention romance. The only problem is now she has three aliens interested in her. But before Syl is able to choose a mate, a former girlfriend of Dedare's and several other nemeses attempt to take her out of the equation—permanently. She can't help but wonder if her out of the world experience is worth dying for.

Genres: Science Fiction

332 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 17, 2017

About the author

I have been reading science fiction since about the age of eleven when I discovered “Miss Pickerell Goes to Mars” by Ellen MacGregor.
The years passed by while I had careers as a computer programmer, music teacher, insurance office administrator, and logistics coordinator for an international freight company.
I took early retirement and decided to put to use all the books on writing that I had accumulated over the years, and actually start writing.

Novel: REVOLUTIONS (2015)
Novel: SACRED TRUST (2015)
Novel: KAIKU (2017)
Novel: AN ALIEN PERSPECTIVE (2017)
Novel: ALIEN INNKEEPER (coming soon)

I also dabble in speculative poetry.

Reviews

[Hélène Louise · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was really interested by this book, hoping that it would have, maybe, the same atmosphere than "The innkeeper chronicles" by Illona Andrews, a series I like very much for all its little flaws. I wasn't waiting for some hard science-fi or even for some serious science-fi, but was ready for a light and pleasant read, with some delicious change of scene from my everyday life... But I was disappointed and annoyed, and couldn't read past 33 per cent of the book.

The beginning wasn't to bad, I rather enjoyed the main theme. I don't mind slow writing with a lot of mundane details in fantasy or science-fi books, as it gives some depth and substance to an imaginary world. But I quickly realised that the author had chosen a very expeditive kind of narration, keeping to the outlines of the story. To seduce me this kind of story has to follow some rules and to express the reality of an imaginative mind. Alas, in this book there was no sense of wonder, no excitement to discover some new world, new alternative reality...

The story begins on Mars where humans have been living for a while. But we could have been anywhere or Earth just now for all the differences (none) between our existence and the heroine's. The story hasn't any roots, we have nothing to imagine this life on Mars (under a dome? terraforming?). No detail either to help figuring the characters, what they look like (just some perfunctory description for the alien and maybe the bestie), it's impossible to "see" them or their surroundings.
Al this lack of padding was uncomfortable but still not the worst.
The scenario was so transparent and awkward, especially about the science aspects, that it was painful to read. I don't pretend that one have to have read extensive science-fi books to write some; I don't even think mandatory to have read any. But for shame, some little reflection should be made about the subject! How a scientist about to go away from Mars, for the first time, to another planet, couldn't have thought about the situation of this planet, not to know if it was in the same solar system or not? How could anyone think to accept a travel cryogenic treatment that haven't been test on humans before? (and to make one character go and try - oh, I've just try this afternoon it's okay - is not a satisfying answer!) And what about making some travellers chose cryogenation for a travel, to save time and senescence, when the journey is about to last ten days?!
I just couldn't read more especially as it was still, and the third of the book, a bunch of mundane details over and over, about some aliens who were so much like humans in their ways that one couldn't help thinking about the interest of their existence in the book.
All in all this book has a strong childish vibe, innocent and uninformed, that may present some charm for some readers - but not for me.

I wouldn't recommend this book for anyone else than some reader interested by a light science-fi fiction, mundane and slow, with a possible romance - a reader who have little or no interest in science credibility in science-fi books, and don't mind imagine a story with very little help from the writer.

(A review copy (e-galley) of this book was provided by the publisher through netgalley)

[Sadie Forsythe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Have you ever wanted to be a hôtelière? Ever imagined yourself tending to all the minutia needed to run a large inn? I’m talking staffing, and menu creations, and billings, and reservation systems, and computer programs, and housekeeping, and tour guides, and productivity management, and employment guides, and job descriptions, and customer services? Have you? I have not. Therefore I did not enjoy this book that is almost entirely dedicated to the boring details of running a hotel, spliced in with the main character being considered amazing for implementing the most basic changes.

Sure, there was some artificial drama toward the end, based entirely on the cliched crazy is as crazy does, jealous woman, and scorned boyfriend tropes. (I mean could it have been less creative or disconnected?) And there’s a side romance that does nothing but detract from the rest of the story. And then there is the main romance that doesn’t develop even far enough for me to know which man is supposed to be the romantic lead until he puts a ring on her finger. Seriously!

This wasn’t necessarily badly written in general. But the dialogue is very stiff (and not just because of the language barrier between the characters) and the narrator didn’t really do much to alleviate the problem.

All in all, the best I can say is that I’m happy to be finished. If you go into this hoping for something along the lines of Ilona Andrews’ Innkeeper’s Chronicles (which has a similar description) you will be very, very disappointed.

[Sophia]

I chose this book because I was enamored with the idea of a human being an innkeeper on an alien planet and having adventures.

I ended up DNF-ing this book ten chapters in at the 31% point for a couple of reasons.

First of all, it was a third of the way done and they were just arriving on the alien world. My issue is not that I couldn't be patient through an introduction to the characters, the plot, and transition, but that I was bored by tedious details. There were four chapters during the packing phase dealing with- yep, packing.
Secondly, I never really warmed up to the main character, Syl, and found her companions okay. But then at the point I decided to end things, it was because Syl got snotty and bossy when it wasn't a good time. She had nearly ten chapters to get used to the idea that she was freely agreeing to pioneer a human visit to an alien planet with an alien culture (as in a culture not like hers, LOL). Her first little hiccup and she cops an attitude toward anyone and everyone because she was inconvenienced (not hurt or harmed, just inconvenienced).

Yeah, I figured I wasn't interested in waiting to see if something was going to happen when I was barely tolerating the heroine at the same time. Let's just say it was a bit mellow and slow build for my sci-fi tastes and expectations. Maybe it would work for others.

I rec'd this book from Net Galley in exchange of an honest review.

[Neil · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a free copy via Netgalley in exchange for a honest review.

This is a nice easy read with some really great characters.
Unfortunately the story itself is let down with alot of unnecessary background to bulk it out.

[BookWormAli · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I thought this was a great series starter and enjoyed the sci-fi story. I liked that the author put a lot of thought into the different scenarios that a hotel offering rooms to new types of aliens would run into. I liked that the language barrier and conversations were unique and staccato as they would be between two species as well as the difficulty of idioms etc.

I thought the characters were all well rounded and added to the story and plot. The secondary characters created more drama and made the book flow well. I also liked that the terms of affection were different and as such created a need for open communication. I liked that they were different and unique.

I also enjoyed the plot and the suspense as well as the romance angle, however I do wish that had been fleshed out a bit more, as it felt almost awkward at times between Syl and Dedare. The word building was great and I thought the author had a well thought out creation. She made the reader think of things you wouldn't necessarily think of when reading of alien interaction, but that would crop up. There were times it felt more like a memoir than a novel but, i took that as the authors style choice.

[Viking Jam · Rating 2 out of 5]

https://koeur.wordpress.com/2017/08/0...

Publisher: Wild Rose

Publishing Date: may 2017

ISBN: 9781509213795

Genre: SciFi

Rating: 1.6/5

Publishers Description: Sylvestine Amera is the manager of the Mars Best-Tycho Basin Hotel. When her first alien visitors arrive on planet, Syl is faced with solving numerous challenges. Not the least of having Dedare Sath rubbing her cheeks in a gesture she is curious to understand. Irion customs are different than what she is used to, but when Dedare who owns a hotel on Irion asks her to leave Mars and manage his flagship hotel, she is more than ready to leave her home planet behind.

Review: This whole reading experience was just too too patterned and slick. Everything was predictably perfect, down to the characterization and story line. Almost like it was written in hopes of getting a movie deal. There is nothing close to being believable about the characters, including the the aliens.

In this novel everyone in Syl’s circle is the best of friends and everything works out wonderfully. If you’re outside this gilded circle, you are an unforgivable miscreant bent on ruining Speshul Syl’s new life on an alien planet. Really? This whole novel was really patterned after a controlling narcissist. How someone on an alien planet has three alien men that want to marry/bang her after a week, is beyond reasoning.

This novel’s main shortcoming was the lack of world building and alien development. Aliens that are really humans, only bald with blue blood and strange mannerisms does not an alien make. The one alien that was murderous had scales but was not built in any memorable way. The idea that a space fairing alien lacks the reasoning skills to disassociate criminals of his own species from a lone alien on another planet, is pretty weak.

Towards the end of this novel I really despised Syl and her band of all knowing,Uber Rich douche bags.

[Chelon · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an OK read. It could have been great as I was drawn in and very interested in the characters. However a large portion of the book is spent on conversations that are are not relevant to understanding the characters, or driving the plot. Conversations about packing, then arranging to have more conversations about packing, the same conversations multiple times with the same people over the same subject There is also a ton of hotel management stuff which should have been interesting considering it's a new species and planet but it was made boring and bland, this left me frustrated and annoyed. If you can get past the mundane, this story has a good shell, and the author made me interested in the characters and the possibilities of what was to come.

I was given an ARC for my honest opinion.

[Cathleen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received a free ARC from Netgalley.

I am fascinated by science fiction involving aliens and this had some practical scenarios that I hadn't thought of before. However, the rest fell flat, maybe because the things focused on were mundane and questions were left unanswered. I started and stopped multiple times and never finished.
Is there a thing such as sci-fi lit, like chick lit?

[Eeet · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.6 I actually liked the hotel based parts. It's nice to see competence in any of its forms after all. If I tried really hard I could imagine there was a deep slow burning passion in the cool seeming Irions but there wasn't much to go on. So the romance if you could call it that was weak but it was where the author tried for action that it really fell flat.

The Irion chef is killed, and the main thing seems to be replacing him. Not "Oh god there's a murderer loose in the hotel!" Not once does Syl ask her captor "So how do you feel about animals with this colour hair?"

[Susan Underbrink · Rating 5 out of 5]

A big Thank you to NetGalley and Wild Rose Press for the ARC for my honest review. This is my first time reading this author. I rate this book a 4.5. I have not read a book like this ever. It combines science fiction, mystery and romance and throw in aliens. It has it all-this is not to say that there aren't issues in the book but I was so fascinated with the characters and alien planets that I overlooked them. There are no unresolved issues and there is nothing to explicit in the book-it was just a fast fun read. Give it a try. Hope you enjoy it as well.

[Craig Pearson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story is quite different than most science fiction books. I would almost call it science fiction lite and even romance lite. Questions arise that are not answered. Who are these aliens and why are the focused on Mars but not Earth? Why do travelers need to go into stasis if the trip to the alien planet is only 10 days away. For that matter where id the planet and what is the means for traveling the great distance? I agree the characters are not very well developed and the conversations are stilted. It seems most of the book is dedicated to eating meals.