Retrograde

The Afflicted Zodiac #2

by M.J. Marstens

ZAHRA’S BACK, ALONG WITH HER ENDLESS EMBARRASSMENT, AND HER WORLD IS ABOUT TO GET TURNED UPSIDE DOWN.

HELP!

No, wait- I mean FIIIIIIIIRE!

This is a Trust Tree S.O.S.

My world is crumbling around me and I don’t even know who I really am anymore.

Only three things are for certain:

I am not the white Zahra Delsol. I am the peach Zahra Delsol. Moon is white. Literally. (Also, psychotic and deadly.) Red is the universal safe word. No food words allowed.
If that were not ridiculous enough, apparently I am Venus. . . destined to break Moon’s diabolical curse over my bosses. All we need to do is vow our undying love to one another.

Sounds easy, right?

Except, they don’t love me and I don’t love them. . . and this is not a fake it ‘til you make it moment.

But time is running out and when Moon’s curse sends us all to different realms, I must find a way to reunite all my guys again back on earth.

Luckily, we have the help of some Minor gods and my amazingly awesome skills as a human being.

We’re doomed, aren’t we?

Retrograde is book two in the Afflicted Zodiac Series.

WARNING: This novel is intended for readers 18+. There is explicit language, sexual scenes with multiple partners, dominant/submissive content, and threats made by men who KNOW they are gods.

Genres: Paranormal, Fantasy, Gods, Mythology, Paranormal Romance, Romance, Humor

254 pages, ebook

Published May 28, 2019

About the author

Bestselling author M.J. Marstens mixes romance, suspense, comedy, and sassy characters who can say whatever they are thinking because it is just a story. When she is not creating steamy scenes or laugh-out-loud fiascos, she is refereeing her four children that she homeschools. In her free time, she loves to eat, sleep, and pray that her children do not turn out like the characters she writes about in her books.

Reviews

[G · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars

[Alaina · Rating 3 out of 5]

UGH, the formatting in this book annoyed the crap out of me. Besides that, this book needs a better editor.

Retrograde is the second book of The Afflicted Zodiac series. Yes, it is just another reverse harem book for me to dive through. However, this time around it was okay. I feel like it sort of got hit by the second book syndrome. Yet, since Zahra is freaking hilarious and crazy - I kind of just went with it? Not going to lie, I was definitely entertained from beginning to end but there were so many little things that annoyed me.

One major thing was the ending. I am not even going to call it a cliffhanger because it just makes me mad all over again. I'm a little hesitant to dive into the next book at the moment because I just have a feeling that I'm going to be annoyed. YET, I really want to know what the hell is going to happen. Heck, I was already mad because I even got to the ending - so yeah, I need to know what the hell is going on and if things are going to be redeemed.

Overall, I'm screwed and just need to read it. BRING IT ON!

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Zahra learns her place in the zodiac at the same time she figures out that Lina is trying to kill her. She's briefly reunited with the other gods before Lina separates them all by sending them to different planes of existence. Zahra is on the path to gaining power and reuniting everyone again on Earth when the author ends the book practically in the middle of a thought. Okay, so not exactly, but I can't even call it a cliffhanger since I didn't feel like I gained any information that is taunting me into reading the next one.

Horrible place to end a book aside, I can forgive a hell of a lot if the book is funny and keeps me entertained, which this book did. Zahra is batshit crazy but in the best way possible. I mean who tries to kill someone with a human-sized blue dildo? Her magic seems to manifest her crazy thoughts literally and the results are comic gold. She kind of reminds me a little of Willa Knight from Trickery, who I loved.

[Kristine Fangman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious!

I must have dropped my kindle laughing at least three times while reading this book! The god chart and cheat sheet in the back of the book is very handy! Characters are well developed and amusing. I’m in awe of Marstens imagination and interesting take on fantasy using planetary gods. I can’t wait for book 3

[Hannah Wenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Freakin funny

Laugh out loud funny, this is the funniest thing I’ve read in a long time. If you don’t have a filter this book is for you, the heroine is just the perfect mix of ditsy yet funny and smart it’s that funny my husband that I had mental problems when I could stop laughing for a good 10 mins was just perfection pick this book up def worth it

[Talia · Rating 5 out of 5]

What just happened?!

I’m absolutely speechless after that ending. Dang do I love this story!! Just like the first one get ready to laugh your butt off. Can I just say how much I can’t stand Lina?! Can’t wait to see what happens next.

[Faith Richie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

I love the screwed up roller coaster ride that this book it. I love how don’t even think about trying to guess what it going to happen next. Can’t wait for book 3

[Tiera McMillian · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are so many reasons to sit down and read a book. I feel like this year is the year for hilarity and ridiculousness in writing. Humor goes a long way to make even the most ridiculous heroines and stories completely enjoyable despite some of the most eye rolling and cringe worthy scenes. That is where this series is after book 2. When you look back and realize you might have had the best couple of hours ever but also may have lost some brain cells along the way lol.

This FMC.. I can't even begin to describe her. She is one of a kind absolutely... not always in the best ways. I thoroughly enjoyed book 2, and at the same time am embarrassed to say that I did lol. This series is taking ridiculous to whole new levels. I'm not sure that I have ever seen ADD written into a character so well and the sidebars where the FMC talks straight to the reader like a sitcom or something just make me love her more despite her idiocy at some points in the story.

I don't even know that I can make a synopsis that makes any sense.. Our FMC and entourage of godly men are scattered across the universes by the evil Luna. Its up to Venus incarnate, good ole Zahra to get her collect all her crazy men while trying to survive their deadly home planets.. and giant blue B.O.Bs.. yea it happens. Ever wonder what would happen when you give a word vomit heroine with some crazy ADD the ability to manifest things with just a thought... Wonder no more!

Yea, I'll probably continue this series. This is me giving absolutely no effs about all the judgement that may fall on me for having a good time keepin on keepin on.

[Autumn Miller ~ autumnbookreads · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars
I loved this book and it was over far too soon! The classic, “just one more chapter” definitely applied with this book. I couldn’t sleep last night because I just wanted to keep reading it! It hurt so much to have to put it down because the story line is just that good and entertaining! But I finally did go to sleep... Next thing I know, I’m up super early this morning and finished the rest the book in one sitting.

I am DYING to get my hands on the next one in the series and I can’t wait to see where these characters go next!

I have just one comment about the very last chapter: WHAT THE HELL IS JUPITER THINKING?!?!?! LINA IS EVIL AND SHE HAS CAUSED HIM AND THE OTHER GUYS NOTHING BUT PAIN!!!! HOW COULD HE DO THIS TO THEM OR ZAHRA?!?! I NEED AN EXPLANATION PRONTO!

[Natalie H · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this one at the start. After the abduction Zahra finds herself with her minor guardians and then back to the eight planetary gods. Only to be pulled apart again and separated in each others' dimensional pockets. As the story went on, it got a little tedious towards the end and did feel like it was cut short.

I liked Zahra's new form and how uncontrollable her powers are. There was plenty of humor and awkwardness but not much embarrassment, it feels like she's just decided it is what it is. Her battle with Lina was entertaining and there is plenty of sex, mentions of sex and banishing of dicks. After the separation its one on one time with some of the guys, as she gets through each dimension. So this one only has the Sun, Mercury and Mars. I'm looking forward to seeing how this one ends.

[Leanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Retrograde is Amazing!!!
This book needs to come with a health hazard warning! Seriously! I was choking from laughing so hard; spilt tea everywhere, it was even coming out of my nose!
As fantastic (if not better) than the first. It’s sexy, funny and interesting with just enough emotions thrown in to give it some serious feels.
This is probably one of the funniest books I’ve read in a while, but you kind of need a dirty mind to really enjoy it. Binge read it in one sitting, I just couldn’t put it down.
Leaves you desperately wanting more!

[3.14lover · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG THIS BOOK

Stop what you are doing and read this book! IT IS FREAKING HILARIOUS! I love it more than the first one. I honestly didn't think Zahra could get any funnier, but the antics in this book. The drama, too! I still can't believe what I just read. PLEASE GIVE US THE LAST BOOK! 5 stars, I highly recommend!

[Namera [The Literary Invertebrate] · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were still a few glaring typos, but MUCH, MUCH FEWER than in the first book.

Zahra is still very funny and her personality is the best thing about the book. Luckily, there was a character guide at the back so I could re-familiarise myself with the many, many heroes. I just wish there'd been character descriptions to go along with it - I've totally forgotten what all of them look like.

I won't lie, I skim over all the astrology stuff because I find it extremely complicated, so I have a limited idea of what the plotline is, but I do actually intend to read the next book in this series... Make of that what you will.

[Blog] - [Bookstagram]

[Taylor Z · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author needs to stop talking to the reader, it's horribly awkward and baffling. You don't know what I'm thinking and you're constantly breaking the fantasy just to babble unnecessary shit at me. Just stop it.

Lina is nuts. More than half the time the FMC is an idiot that says random shit for no reason. I'm not continuing to book 3.

[Machelle Johnston]

What's a goddess of love to do? Well, have sex and be highly entertaining of course. The second instalment of The Afflicted Zodiac sees Zahra discovering and learning about her new found girl god powers as Venus, which means sex scenes, lots of sex scenes, and even more sexual thoughts. It's even more entertaining to see the guy's points of view and know that they are so easily affected by this woman/goddess. Although this book is not without its dangers it also brings them closer together and even allows them to discover some new allies that have been there all along. It's a godolicious gaggle of giggles and sexy stimuli and well worth the read.

[Stargazer · Rating 1 out of 5]

No astrological interest for me other than i'd never heard the word hypsoma, an ancient greek term for exaltation. Along with words like domicile, there are old fashioned terms, but the guys are gods i guess. Some terminology seems stilted to me, Lina, as the moon' is simply ingress' sounds weird when to ingress means to enter. There were a couple of humorous incidents but i was pretty bored and was far more entertained by book one.
But i am more interested in the astrology, i see from reviews that others loved it.

[Simms Is Litty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know...

*Some spoilers*
This book of the series were I don't know... Kinda cringe worthy because I think the author was more focused on making Zarah more funny than really developing the story. I couldn't take the fights seriously. I mean who starts a fight by shoving their hand up their opponent's ass. In the first book Zarah was funny, now she's just annoying. When she finds out that Sun has died I hope she gets more serious.😬😬

[Alli · Rating 5 out of 5]

It just keeps getting better!
If you loved Virgo Rising, this will not disappoint. M.J. just dishes out everything that was amazing from book one in even bigger helpings! The plot twists are even more surprising, the love scenes are hotter, and the MC's inner dialogue and shenanigans are even more hilarious! That cliff-hanger is a doozy though. I'm really glad I can dive straight into book three!

[Imee Benzon · Rating 5 out of 5]

***Hilarious***

I still laughed my ass off and yes Zara is a loveable clutz and finding out who she really is, is astounding I'm glad she is not Lina the psycho. I hope Nyam would be ok and Kane? Bloody traitor grrrr. I can't wait to see Venus and moon showdown. It's gonna be epic.

[Colette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could not put down

Laughing hysterically throughout. Just when I thought something couldn’t get funnier it did. Not to mention the steamy scenes. Can’t wait until the next one. Love a story that is crass, hilarious, keeping you guessing and steamy. Great job M.J.!

[Sterling Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

So freaking funny

Seriously. Zahra is hilarious and I spent so much time laughing during this book, but it’s also fun, suspenseful, and sexy. I definitely recommend this series so far.
And now I’m off to read the third book!

[Angelica Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laugh out loud

This book, like the first had me laughing out loud! I felt like I got to the end quickly and I don’t know how much the story was moved along by this book, but there was great sex!

Looking forward to the next!

[Julia · Rating 2 out of 5]

This really might only get a 1.5, but I’m wobbling between 1.5-2, so…I dunno.

Somehow this book is cringier and weirder than the first one. I wanted to like it. I wanted to get invested. But everything about this book feels like a cartoon. Zahra’s inner monologue is so distracting that I’m not even sure I understood half of what was happening.
In the first book, it came off as kinda cutesy in this “I’m a quirky manic pixie dream girl” way, which was annoying, but not completely obnoxious.

In this one??? She’s completely unhinged and not in a way that makes her character fun and interesting, but in a way that makes her seem extremely young.
I’m sorry, but it’s hard for me to be invested in a character having romantic/sexual relationships when all of her inner monologue sounds like an 11 year old who just learned a bunch of swear words.

She walks around calling people “bitchface” and “cuntmuffin” and whatever else, and it really just feels like a seventh grader’s diary entry.

Will I finish the series? Yes, because I’m a masochist and because I’ve already read the first two, so I might as well finish the last one. But I don’t think I’ll enjoy it.

[Felicia Tousey · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's like the author read my last review and completely delivered! A little less spice and more plot! The world building was *chefs kiss* I was able to really feel the characters emotions in this one. I loved how the FMC talked to her audience "Trust Tree" throughout the whole book. Just love love love!

[Becky Withnall · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book had me in stitches highly recommended for those who love a 'crazy' fmc

[May]

DNF at 87%. This book is just bizarre. I liked the first book, but I can’t push myself to read the last 13% of this book.

[Kat Quinn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shoulda taken the dump instead.

Loved this book and it was a GREAT continuation of the first one. Within the first like....four seconds of reading I was already struggling to hold back laughter that would have woken the whole block up at 4am. I fully intended to “just read a chapter or two” but found myself accidentally devouring the whole thing in one sitting! Sure, that means I basically didn’t sleep and have almost no idea what I’m even saying right now, but here are some of the things that matter:
1-trust tree ON POINT. Happy to see its gratuitous use!
2-the best insults.
3-UGH. THE MOON. JUST KNIFE HER ALREADY!!!
4-Super Blue.
5-as a centaur rights activist, I am disappointed at the lack of pants but delighted at the centaur inclusion’ #accountabiliteam
6-NOOOOOO, GREEEEEEEEEEN!!! DONT DO ITTTT!!!
7-all the points to Slytherin.

I know that doesn’t really make much sense to you if you haven’t read this book yet, but i have and it makes sense to me. If you read the first book and loved it, you’ll love this one even more. I genuinely think it’s EVEN BETTER and the humor was exactly what I needed after reading a string of bully academy books. Keep this one handy for a crappy day!

[Jacquelyn G · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ish stars

I was VERY relieved to see that the parenthesis were toned down in this book. Also there was more story than astrology explanations which I welcomed because I have zero interest in risings, zodiacs or the explanations that go with it. I found myself constantly skipping all of those portions.

I also think the Nyam/Sunny/Sun thing is a bit too much. Not only do we have 8 different men to keep track of, we have to remember their planetary names AND the "dimension" their kingdoms are part of. It is an excessive amount of detail to remember for a RH story. Don't get me wrong I love a story with a little meat to it... but HOLY CHRISTMAS this is a lot of stuff to remember that doesn't seem important. If it were that important then the story would make no sense to me (as I am skipping all the crash course info), yet it does. So it is basically filler... pointless filler. It seems like the author wanted to incorporate all of this just to prove WHY she wrote about celestial beings based on the zodiac. It was a drag to read.. but I still enjoyed the rest of the story.

I will recommend and I am already reading the last book. :)

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

WTF Jupiter?!?!

Seriously, what the hell?!?! I don’t think I could forgive Jupiter for this in the next book unless it’s something really convincing. 😡😡

Great second book of this hilarious series. Zahra is still scatterbrained but it makes this whole series laugh out loud funny, especially now that she has “girl god” powers. The steam is still pretty hot but the BDSM has taken a back seat in this book compared to book 1 which was kind of a let down for me. So in other words, no spankings, no D/s scenes, and no bondage. 😭

The plot still heavily centers Lina and her curse on the 8 men and Zahra doing her best to find them now that they have been scattered in their different worlds. The suspense, drama, and action have kicked up a few notches and has become rather fast paced and a race against time. I can’t wait to read the next book because JUPITER!!! What the hell are you doing?!?!?!?!?!

[Miriam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is again full of hilarious moments. I laughed a lot again.

Zahra learns about herself as Venus and her place in the zodiac. And she and the guys gets scattered and separated in the planes of existence, courtesy of Lina. So, it is in interesting journey through the home worlds of the gods. And Zahra gets more powerful. Did you ever ask yourself, what happens if you give a person like Zahra the ability to create anything with the just a thought? No? Let's say it really gets ridiculously funny. Oh, and don't forget an unhinged Moon goddess, that constantly tries to kill her.

And there are some serious moments, too. I don't want to spoiler, so I don't mention anything of that.

So, only one book left to go. I'm excited to see how it ends.