The Orc Wife

Monsterly Yours #1

by S.J. Sanders

Sammi is having the worst weekend. When what was supposed to be a secluded romantic get away turns into a near death experience when she is stranded alone in the mountains during a snow storm by her two-timing boyfriend, Sammi faces a desperate situation. With no cell-service, dwindling food supplies, and a power outage, she doesn't think it could get worse until an accident leaves her unconscious and vulnerable. When she comes to, she awakens to find herself in a warm cabin, and her rescuer a creature of fantasy--an orc. And he thinks that she will be a perfectly obedient pet. Ha! He wishes.

Orgath is an exile, the son of a vanquished chieftain of his clan. His days and nights are spent alone more often than not. When he finds a tiny human while hunting in the human world his compassion moves him to rescue the little thing and bring her home as a companion. He quickly finds out that there is a lot more to humans than orc-kind has believed.

When things starting heating up and passion ignites between them, they discover the potential for a lot more in their relationship than either could have imagined.

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Monster Romance, Paranormal, Fantasy Romance, Monsters, Paranormal Romance

236 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 25, 2019

About the author

S.J. Sanders is a mom of two toddlers and one adult living in Anchorage, Alaska. She has a BA degree in History, but spends most of her free time painting, sculpting, doing odd bits of historical research, and writing. While she has more research orientated writing under another pen name, her passion is sci-fi and paranormal romance of which she is an avid reader. After years of tinkering with the idea, and making her own stories up in her head, S.J has began to seriously pursue writing as an author of Sci-fi Romance utilizing her interests in how cultures diversify and what they would look like on a extraterrestrial platform to humans interacting with them and finding love.

She can be found on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Author-SJ-Sa...

And follow her blog at https://sjsandersromance.wordpress.com

Reviews

[Bex (Beckie Bookworm) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was really so much fun it’s a creature romance between an Orc and a human with lots of imagination and magical creatures and one adorably grumpy Orc with a massive protective streak a mile wide.
So Sammy expecting a romantic getaway at an out of the way Alaskan mountain cabin gets stranded when her douche boyfriend ditches her for greener pastures.
Stupidly leaving the safety of indoors to collect firewood Sammy manages to lose her way in the bleak landscape and falls headlong into one of Orgath’s traps.

Orgath is in the human realm collecting stores for the winter when he comes across the unconscious little human in one of his snares.
Not wanting to leave her to perish out in the elements and thinking the company might be nice and she’d make a cute pet he decides to take her back through the portal with him.

Sammy awakens far from home and the guest of this compelling and strangely sexy orc.
So this wasn’t perfect but there were enough pluses here that I was able to ignore the few things that did niggle me.
My favourite part of this was most definitely Orgath he was just so un-apologetically male and such a dominant and crude character.
But he was also incredibly caring and there was nothing he would not do for his human Sammy, he really had it bad.
Sammy I also liked she was resilient and a trooper but also as stubborn as a mule.
But she most definitely accepted her situation much to fast.
it just didn’t seem realistic that she wouldn’t have fought her current predicament in a more aggressive way rather than just rolling over the way she did.

This was also rather instalove which is usually not my thing here it didn’t bother me and seemed to fit well within the story.
This was also super sexy and highly physical but also very sweet and romantic at the same time, it was also incredibly amusing.
I’m looking forward to reading The Trolls Bride which is next up and is Cavek and Kate’s story.
I liked this one a lot.



Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
https://www.facebook.com/beckiebookworm/
www.beckiebookworm.com

[Brenda ✨Delirious, Disjointed, Digressive, and (highly) Dramatic Rambles✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started it as a joke because dear God the cover is so ugly I'm sorry that is nOT how marketing works that is nOt how you grab someone's attention and do it in a good way. I started it because I had to see with my own eyes what kind of story could be attached to such monstrosity.

Well maybe that was the plan all along and there's some marketing mastermind behind all this and I just fell prey of orrific book covers that compel you to buy the book just to see what the actual fuck.

I was ready for trash. I love trash. I was ready to have my fill of a trashy book, orc sex and fantasy lore.

It was trashy at times, the heroine is the main cause for it, but what I wasn't ready for was how incredibly sweet Orgath is.
I don't always feel the need to hug men, but this one? I'll hug this one. I'll pat him on the head and tell him daily what a good boy he is. Cause he's the bestest of boys, I adored him. I was expecting a brute. He's a sexy orc that smiles and is attentive and caring.

It was a funny book, random at times, the world building, with the addition of orc culture bits and tales, it was solid and entertaining. All the drama with the other species of supernatural beings such as elves and sorts and the portals was a good twist. Probably not a full solid 4 stars but what the hell I was expecting the worst with that cover I'm just glad it's so far away from what this book is about and thank the Lord I have an awesome imagination and could completely detach myself from the vomit-instigating excuse for a cover.

Okay I don't hate it that much, I saw the kindle edition actually has another cover edition and that my folks is way better so I'm just having fun here but oh the cackles, I can't imagine writing a book and after seeing this cover go "yep this one".

But points for the bravery and the amazing marketing play I'm certain it was.

Cover slander aside, I did enjoy it and I actually finished it, it was eye opening since I've never gotten close to orc culture and how they are portrayed as honorable hardworking creatures, that wear clan tattoos and are attached to traditions but also willing to accept and learn more about others. Fun and light.

[Jessica's Totally Over The Top Book Obsession]

DNF at 12% Sorry but ew. Mr. orc picks up a hurt human and decides to keep it like a pet. Because humans are stupid and animal like, but within minutes of Sammie waking up he is licking her nipples and other stuff. When you think about the fact that he thinks of her as a dog or cat that is just gross. It gave me the ick and I can't read anymore. No Rating as I didn't read at least 50%.

[❤️Emma Book Lover ❤️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Such a silly read ,but entertaining enough to keep me engaged a few hours last night. The cover is not very attractive, ok...not attractive at all, so don't judge a book by its cover.

This could be sooo much better to be honest, more world building, more explaining why,how,when. Also,every time I read about her "weeping vagina" I wanted to dnf.

“...my thumb toying with the pearl of flesh crowning her weeping slit.„

“Something thick and hard to be pushed inside of my weeping cunt.„

And the fact that her mom saw Orgaths erection, blushed,looked some more, then heard them going at it and mentioned it the next morning along with the rest of her family...yuk ...just yuk.

what I liked? Secondary characters, how patient and sweet Orgath was with Sammy . She is a bitchy woman this heroine,the kind that has to fight absolutely everything, every little thing the orc says to her, which got old pretty quickly. I liked the idea of all realms opening to each other.

Anyways, as I said, entertaining enough to make me try Cavek -the troll- book as well 🤷
It's a 2.5 rounded to 3 indulgent stars.

[Lyn❤Loves❤Listening to Real Voices Only!!!!❤️🎧📚 Addict ON HIATUS]

Audio - 4 Stars
Story dnf @ 8%

Wow! I get that this is fiction but dang!! How does the heroine go from .....



after seeing a nonhuman male with monstrous features to ....



in the matter of what seems like minutes??!!! Come on! If that's what happens in the 8% I managed to get through, I am not interested in what's to come.

[Somia · Rating 3 out of 5]

When her cheating ass of a boyfriend ditches her, Sammi finds herself having a crappy weekend stranded alone in the mountains during a snow storm, and soon finds her very life at risk. When Orc - Orgath comes across a unconscious human he finds himself curious, taking her home he thinks he's found a companion to entertain/amuse him, what he doesn't count on is the fire Sammi holds once she wakes up.

Sammi was a little too quick when it came to accepting everything (Orcs, and other magical beings were real and that she would never see her family again) - it would have been nice if she double blinked just a tad.

I wasn't so sure about this at first, and was close to DNF-ing it, but found myself mostly engaged not too long after that. The romance didn't entrance me but the story had me engaged enough to move on to another book in the series.

I have to say took a whole to remove the Lord of the Rings representations of Orcs from my mind, but was able to do that... mostly, by the end.

Acquired via KU.

[Umaiya ❄️Ramblings of a Scattered Mind❄️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

In my head, this is and forever will be what Orcs look like:


So how you romanticise that, I does not know.

That being said if you can look past that, which I did for the most part, this was good. Hate the h, she is the definition of a spoiled-too stupid to live-I am Superhuman-dumbass b*tch. The "romantic-swoony" lines from the H made me cringe and green in the face. (The sick-barf kind, not the jelly kind)
And yet I still say, it wasn't bad.

It was cookie cutter however.

2.5 stars

[Amy Imogene Reads · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'd like to start by saying that I truly love SJ Sanders. In fact, some of my all-time favorite alien romance books are hers. But this one was a huge miss for me and I've officially DNF'd it.

I think it's one of her earlier stories, and that's totally fine, but coming from her later books back to this one is a rough writing flop for me and I had a hard time with the elements of this story. I'm also not an orc person—there's a lot of oddly canon tropes about orcs that I apparently don't jive with? it's a unique thing—so joke's also on me for thinking that I'd feel differently about the orc element in this book when I've struggled with it in other novels.

Oh well. If you've tried this book and not liked it, I highly recommend reading Sanders' Red or Havoc of Souls. Both fantastic books.

[Poppy || Monster Lover · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was my second go at this book and I just hate the MCs. Orgath is a piece of shit who makes demands of Sammi and even through 70% of the book, was unwilling to apologize for the shit he pulled. I can get behind a morally gray or even morally black MMC, but not one who doesn’t recognize that he is. He sees himself as the hero, but ew. No.
Sammi had every reason to be pissy at Orgath and to be uncooperative at the beginning of the book. Who wouldn’t be? However, her personality was not endearing at all. She was obnoxious and took “blunt” to a level that I couldn’t stand.

[BJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great read, with orcs, crazy human families, baddies and goodies - basically everything including the kitchen sink, but no oven. You think of a crazy plot, and it's in there somewhere. The story is well paced and well written with great characters who fell in love and enjoyed the cross cultural experiences. I really liked the h, she was smart, funny and sweetly demanding. Her family were fantastic. Great fun.

[Amber · Rating 1 out of 5]

there was not enough porn in this book for the plot to be that bad

[Sunseeker☀️ · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

[Chalice · Rating 3 out of 5]

The couple: Orgath and Sammi

Romance genre: monster
Series: Monsterly Yours
Length: 288 pages

Plot: Sammi is in a cabin in Alaska, having been abandoned by her no-good boyfriend. She leaves the cabin to look for firewood and falls and knocks herself unconscious. Orgath has crossed over from the Orc realm for a little bit of hunting and finds the cute little human. He takes her back with him, and even though he thought he would keep her as a sort of pet/servant, she becomes so much more. But what about the rest of the Orcs? A human bride is not normal and Orgath is already on the radar of their leader.

Commentary: One thing I loved? There was no attempt to change Orc culture. Sammi thinks about things she would like to have, but there's no real comparison where one culture is considered better than the other. I've read that quite a few times, where a human is taken through a portal and then goes about showing them how to do things the "right" (human) way. I don't like that - it makes the whole story a moralistic guide rather than a romance story. In this story, even when Orgath takes Sammi back to earth to visit her family, they don't take all the things you would expect in order to make life easier in the Orc realm. They only take things that someone personally tried and liked (like the champagne and the coffee) - no technology or anything like that. They only took the baby clothes I think to not offend Sammi's mom. That attitude of the Orc home being adequate already made it believable that Sammi wanted to stay there.
And hot seductive unicorns? Well. That's...new.

Grammar/formatting: That cover. The whole series is like that, though, so I guess either the author really likes them or she's gotten good feedback. Maybe it's just me!

Next book in the series: The Troll Bride

[Ang · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have a lot of thoughts.

Not even five pages in, I had some problems.

1. On the very first page Sammi says: "Let's face it: I'm five-foot-two, thirty years old, and even though I have a trim figure, I still have thick thighs and a big ass. My large breasts are the only decent compensation, and they give me that old world hourglass figure that went out of fashion with the Victorian era."
- what in the ever loving hell? Can we stop making female characters completely bash themselves in their heads about features that aren't bad at all?!! It's like oh no, I have tits and ass and an overall rocking bod. I'm just so ugly (please read this in a very annoying whiny voice). An hourglass figure is still awesome. Being short doesn't make you ugly (she's hetero- a lot of hetero guys like short girls), and she's acting like 30 is old!! Its not.

2. She runs out of food in like three days, and yet she was originally supposed to stay with her boyfriend.... So was she too dumb to pack enough food for two or did she not ration herself like a smart person and ended up eating all that food that quickly?

3. She needs to go out and chop fire wood. She doesn't have snow shoes and at one point there is mention she is waist deep, and yet, when she's done collecting wood, her tracks are snowed over. ?? Where's the logic here. Was there a blizzard while she was out there because there's no way waist deep tracks were covered that quickly.

This is literally five pages in.

5. Then she wakes up with Orgath, the orc. She doesn't like him; he thinks of her as a pet. Aaand yet she willingly goes naked and then lets him finger her. Really weird escalation, and worse yet, he somehow gets her to almost orgasm (he stops before it happens) in what reads as barely any time. Can this woman orgasm by a stiff wind because don't think an orc I didn't like would do it for me.

6. Orgath continuously says she's his pet and that she is not equal to him. The way he flips to I want her, I want her to come to me, I want her as my bride, I don't want orcs to be around her could break your neck from whiplash.

7. Sammi tries to cook Orgath breakfast by frying some bread and an egg in a pan. She burns it and then cries that she's seen her mom to it a lot and how hard could it be.
- this woman is 30... 30!! You're gonna tell me that this thirty year old woman doesn't know how to cook an egg or some bread?

8. They decide that when they go into the market/town that she'll just be a mute. That's an idiotic plan.

9. There is a constant mention of this elusive bloodbond. It's mentioned so randomly. The author eludes that this is what is happening with the main characters and yet, it is never explained. What the fuck is it? I think later its mentioned its a deeper bond but that's it. If there is not going to be a more in-depth explanation than this is kind of a useless detail.

10. Sammi says, "This morning, he seems determined that I learn how to milk a goat. Ha...yeah...no."
- I genuinely don't see what Orgath sees in her. Really, I don't. Because all I see is a woman is clearly spoiled and refuses to learn any new skills that would help her. And I wouldn't be happy about being expected to be a maid but come on. She could at least keep an open mind to learning new skills instead of thinking and acting like a petulant child and not wanting to do anything.
- I mean seriously, she can't do anything. She has no outwards skills, or at least none that are mentioned. She can't clean, she definitely can't cook. And in the modern world, that wouldn't be a problem and the feminism in me wants to say that a woman doesn't need to know those things. But for an orc that only knows how to live off the land and has never known the luxury of modern technology, one would think he would desire a wife that has some skill in that, as well.
- she eventually does stuff but her attitude in the beginning is a major turn off and hard to forget.

Yeah, I don't like Sammi. She just comes across as hard-headed, stubborn, and whiny. And not in a good way.

11. He 'marries' her without her knowing. Come on man. That's just wrong and I know he understands he went wrong considering big wedding ceremonies are custom for orc wives.

12. She just lets him tattoo her face and neck. She's way too chill about that; Ain't no way I would let some guy tattoo my fucking face.

13. She starts to feel a bit queasy - its a goddamn pregnancy isn't it.

14. Later, she pukes and its confirmed- yep, she pregnant.

15. Sammi claims she is confused at Orgath still pretending to be her husband (at this point she doesn't realize he is) and says it feels too real.
-BITCH, YOUD LET SOME DUDE TATTOO YOUR FUCKING FACE WHEN YOU DON'T EVEN THINK YOUR RELATIONSHIP IS THAT SERIOUS?! make it make sense.

16. Then Sammi doesn't even tell Orgath she's pregnant to his face. uh what?

17. Sammi gets kidnapped by Orgath's enemy. Saw that coming a million miles away.



So some unicorn dude (that was weird) puts a spell on all the bad guys so that they all fall asleep for 24 hours. But Orgath and his group decide to wait until they're just waking up to strike. What?? Why?? You had the perfect opportunity to get in and out while everyone was asleep. Dumbest decision and it made no sense.

18. Orgath of course defeats his enemy cause his enemy (Lorf) is a little bitch but this is at 65 PERCENT! What reads as the end of the book happens at 65%.
- I skimmed the rest but not before the next part happens.

19. After Orgath kills Lorf everyone just starts having sex. Yeah, the author throws in an orgy. Wtf. It made absolutely no sense and it was really weird. Sammi's just cool doing it in front of everyone? And not to mention, they don't even participate with anyone else so what even was the point of the orgy? Just have them go off from the group first so they can have sex.

20. "His cock is now gloriously thick and heavy against his belly. it brushes against my abs..."
- pretty sure he has the abs babe.

21. Orgath's family home as a TWILIGHT ROOM. Yeah, a twilight room.

[image error]

Do you think the room is just filled with Edward and Jacob cutouts?

22. she says, "BOOM, baby!"

23. When the orcs, fae, trolls etc, go to the human world, its mentioned the fae already let the humans know they exist. Like as a tv announcement.
- how convenient. Honestly, thats just lazy at this point. What's next, an alien invasion? Also, I don't know a single human that wouldn't be shitting bricks over that.

24. She tells her family Orgath is a better lover than Travis, her ex. Honestly weird detail to drop with your family.

25. She has really loud sex in her moms home. Like she's screaming like a banshee and he's roaring. Have they no shame?? I would not be having obnoxiously loud sex in my parents home. AND ALSO! QUIET SEX IS A THING. WHY IS IT THAT EVERY FEMALE BOOK CHARACTER IS A SCREAMER IN BED. NOT EVERYONE SCREAMS. And I know she can be quiet.

26. Her brother barges in right after that and she doesn't care. I would be so embarrassed if my brother saw me like that.

props if you got this far, but yeah, it needed a lot of work.

[Johanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adorable

This was fantastic. Girl gets horribly treated by human man - gets saved by sexy orc who wants her as a pet. What dreams are made of. I love books where its also a clash of times or worlds. She from the world of cell phones. He from the world of well.. orcs.

[Ann Hupe · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's time these wonderful "brutes" had a romance novel written about them!!

I'm always am cheering for the underdog. Goblins. Trolls. Vampires (long before the days of Interview with a Vampire). The first Lithuanian olympic basketball team. Loki (NOT the comic book version). So why not Orcs? After all, when you check them out, they aren't like what the movies portray them to be.

I really appreciate this new idea of a universe coexisting next to ours, connected by "wandering" portals, one just happening to be in Alaska! (I suppose Orcs could be mistaken as Sasquatch or the Hairy Man, but any Orc could tell you that they don't possess that amount of stinky body hair!) And to think that's where our... what ARE these Orcs hunting for in Alaska? Based on the existence of trees, I would have to say either oomingmak (native name for musk oxen which really are related to goats, not cattle!) or moose. Doesn't matter which. Orcs love what Alaska produces in mass quantities.

Anyway, back to the story. Travis, her sleazy boyfriend) no-shows for a romantic weekend in a remote cabin out... well, perhaps 8-9 hours driving time outside of Anchorage, AK (we Alaskans consider that to be local distance), and a snow storm maroons Sammi who truly eats herself out of house and home. After a few days without any food, she ventures outside to find something... like she could eat spruce buds which would be the only thing available that time of year since she didn't bring a gun?? Instead of dying from exposure, Sammi is rescued by an Orc on a hunting trip and is whisked away between worlds, finding herself in a cottage that isn't the rental with a two-legged hunting male that is hardly her Travis (who is currently on her sh*t list because when she had called him before losing her signal, there was plenty of female giggling in the background which alerted her that he had better women to mess around with that weekend than with her). Unfortunately, these portals aren't as reliable as one would hope, so she finds herself stuck with the reality that she won't be seeing her family (Mom, Dad, Luke, and Jake) ever again. And, no, even though she's an Alaskan, she's a true city girl without any survival skills whatsoever. She truly can burn water in a pot. So she's in an even worse spot when she's told she's pretty much a servant, maybe his pet if she can't get the gist of standard household chores, in her rescuer's eyes.

But not for long.

Orgath is proud to be an orc. Better an Orc than an Elf which, by the way, isn't the nice race we Humans have bee programmed by Tolkien to be. Trolls are actually magical beings, not the intellectually deficient hulks that live under bridges. And Unicorns? Well, you just better read that one yourself. But as for Orcs, Orgath is a pretty good guy, but even good guys have skeletons in their closets.

Though Humans aren't unknown to the races in this universe, apparently there is a moratorium on what can pass between these worlds via the portals. These laws were meted out by the Elves (but not like they don't make exceptions strictly for themselves!) to be enforced by Orgath's clan of Orcs. So what can possibly happen when Sammi and Orgath prove that not only are Orcs and Humans are genetically compatible, they can form the rare bloodbond that so many yearn for but never get?

So you can only guess how the story line goes.

Now I know you're probably thinking that this is a repeat of an oft-used plot line. I did. But instead of the usual vacuous, airhead of a heroine we readers have had foisted upon us uncountable times, this is a more realistic version of what should be happening if our heroine had half the brain the original Grey's Anatomy had once purported. (Honestly. Check out the original first edition!!) I enjoyed the culture of Orc Sanders created because it is intriguing and imaginative. Just because your boyfriend is an Orc doesn't mean he's mean-spirited as an Ogre! (Apparently, there IS a difference.)

I can't wait for the next installment to come out. (Of course, Sanders sets us up for another good read!) I only hope we get to see more of Orgath and Sammi because I connected well with these two characters and the others they brought into the fold. I only hope Sanders maintains the complexity of the politics between races because nothing is easy. Humans will be Humans, unfortunately, and one can never trust an Elf to keep his word. Though I find the Trolls will be the most intriguing with Orcs being endearing. How's that for a change!

I did get an ARC in advance, but I did end up buying this wonderful book without the guarantee of an honest review. This IS an honest review and is definitely worth the purchase!!

[sarah ♡ · Rating 2 out of 5]

kudos to this author for being early on the orc romance beat (thank u queen)

This was solid but maybe went on a little too long.

But that unicorn tho 🥵🫢

[Trip · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was of a mix of feelings for me, there are parts that I adored but it started to feel rushed after first half and jumping about scenes. Still I enjoyed for the majority and the world building was fascinating, with lovable characters.

Sammi and Orgaths first meeting is wonderful, i loved how they clashed with each other and different views. While still lots of attraction and heat between them. I liked that Sammi stood up for herself and didn't just go along with him, took some time to become used to the new world and find how she fits among them.

Their chemistry is great from start to finish and I love that they learn from each other, don't always agree but they find a balance and work together. Sammi is headstrong and may come across as spoiled, yet I loved her growth and learning. Making friends in the new world and introducing to her home, the differences and creating community for all.

I actually loved that they go to her home and meet Sammi's family, get to know everyone and get to see another side. Although the way Orgath handled her ex was a bit much,just not necessary but still not a surprise based on the Orcs.

The ending is very sweet and happy ending for these two, while leaving the world open for future pairings and plot. 💕

[FlewB'DoobeyDoo · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an enjoyable read (one that tided me over on a 6 hour drive to Bend, OR) and i really enjoyed the premise of a mythical creature being the love interest, especially a MF'n ORC.

For anyone else who is a hot to trot LOTR fan HOLLAAA!

But real talk, Orc's in that movie....nahhhh no thanks.

S.J. Sanders did a really good job humanizing them and making them seem far more enjoyable to picture as a love interest.

My one pet-peeve: Sanders. It's not just you girl. But alot of times when a supposedly 'current times woman' goes either back in time or to some place where we get fancy formal speak, She Suddenly Talks Extremely Formal. It's such a small pet peeve iknowiknow but gahahhhhhhh it drives me nuts. NOBODY, i repeat nobody is going to start going from don't to do nots and couldn't into could nots, especially with the way people talk today (and as a teacher, my pet peeve is usually the opposite.....but you get the picture).

Troll bride? Oh you bet boo.

3.56 who-just-gets-it-on-at-home-and-strait-up-screams-i-cant-even-girl stars

[Georgina Parkin · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was just an OK read for me. It had potential but I didn’t really like the writing style and it just felt like plot wise, things just kept getting added and it didn’t quite flow naturally. Honestly I really disliked the heroine. At times she was all good, and then a bad situation would pop up, and she’d run her mouth and it was just like she had no self preservation. If I saw an orc for the first time would I be giving him attitude? Hell no id be silent as hell, what if he went all agro and killed you! Get captured- while pregnant- would you egg them on, taunt them and say stuff that will obviously make them mad? HELL NO. But she does and it just became increasingly frustrating.

I liked the side stuff that links to the next book, but I think this authors writing just isn’t for me so I’m going to pass on it.

I liked their take on different creatures, but not much else.

[Oleksandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

4,5 ⭐️
Мені було ну дуже цікаво, я ніби повернулась в минуле, де я насолоджувалась такими романчиками 🤧

Раніше я згадувала, що в цій історії гарно прописано побут, так оот, ще додався цікавий моментик у вигляді перебування орків у людському світі. Обожнюю такі штуки, бо завжди цікаво дивитись як інші реагують на звичні для нас речі🤩

[Vania Nunes · Rating 4 out of 5]

To say that Sammi's weekend was being a nightmare would be an understatement. She was supposed to have a romantic weekend with her boyfriend, Travis, but when he calls her claiming an emergency, she hears a woman giggling, and learned he was cheating on her.

Due to heavy snow, Sammi is trapped in the cabin. Food runs out, power goes out. On the fourth day, she needs to go out to get firewood. When she gets enough, she has an accident, trips and falls into a trap.

In fact, Sammi has just discovered a portal to two worlds, and she is rescued by an Orc. And she wakes up in his cabin, a pristine place.
In the first impression between the two there is an impasse. She wants to go home; he doesn't want to have to go through the portal one more time and have to deal with humans.
To stay at his house, eating his food, Sammi needs to help around the house, and that's where the fun parts begin. How a 21st century girl, with all the modernity, could survive in a time almost like the Middle Ages?

And despite all the odds, Orc and Sammi start a friendship; she is introduced to his friends and over time, she realizes that he treated her better than her traitorous ex-boyfriend.
Could a romance between a human and an Orc work?

Funny and unpredictable.
4 stars

[Izzy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The start was ... okay. Girl gets abducted from earth to the orc world and has to adjust. Only she keeps crying about missing dishwashers and keeps using horrid Americansisms, never ever actually trying to speak more simplified English. "Boom, baby!" (and doesn't understand what a market is, asking if it's a brand of supermarket. Like, please, lady. Use your brain before you speak)
Girl also suffers from instant orgasms, which is a bit of a shame. I like it when books build it up

The final 25% was cringy as all hell. suddenly, as if the author realised they wanted a second book, the portal to the human world was opened up and we get the worst 'orcs in human world' arc ever. Not only do we get a social commentary about how humans are wasteful for how much bread and meat they produce, having it just lying around in a supermarket.
Then we get into vlogging, racism (xenophobia?), babyclothing shopping? It just felt so random

[Angi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sam was supposed to meet up at a cabin in the woods with her boyfriend in winter, but when said boyfriend decides to not come, she soon is left without food or wood and decides to go outside to find help or at least wood.
When an orc finds her in one of his traps he takes her how. Not knowing that this small human woman is absolutely not like what he thought.

This was pretty great. I love the story it was good, thought there was a lot left open especially at the end. I do hope to get more info in the second book, which has a different main couple but involves people we already got to know.

Besides the story I also liked the characters. Gosh the banter between these two was so freakin funny.
In general this book had lots of funny moments.

Sometimes I was a little at Sam but overall she was great.

The whole thing through the end with the visit was like super unrealistic but again mostly funny.

I plan on reading book two and am looking forward to it.

[Charlotte · Rating 5 out of 5]

***************may contain SPOILERS*********************
*WARNING* contains explicit adult sexual situations and cursing
Orgath went to Ov'ge to hunt enough food to get him through the winter. When Orgath check his trap he was surprised at what he found, but instead if food, decided to keep his catch as a pet.
Sammie thought Travis was going to meet her at the cabin in the middle of nowhere. When she called Travis to find out when he was going to get there and heard a giggling female in the background she was furious!
WOW! This story was not what I expected, it was SO much better!! Sammie has "fallout" with her boyfriend and instead of being alk sad and heartbroken, this character gets anger, it's awesome! There is some world building here to give a good picture of the market place, outside of the cabin, and some other places. The family dinner towards the end of story had me laughing hysterically! These characters are amazing. There are humans, orcs, trolls, elves and a unicorn! What I loved most about this story is that these beings are nothing like what other stories depict them as. Oh geez I just like it all and will be watching for more, because I think there is a little "something, something" going on with Kate and Cavek.
RECOMMENDED!!!!

[Hollie Smurthwaite · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an entertaining concept. I liked the orc civilization and how they were technologically less advanced but, in some ways, better socially.

Sammi and Orgath made a good pair, their temperaments a good complement to each other. I liked the setup and their initial interactions quite a bit. I liked how Orgath's mistakes weren't overlooked, though I felt he never really took responsibility.

But, the novel read to me like it had a climax at around the 70% mark and then had 30% epilogue. That's a lot of book real estate to set up the next book/books in the series, I thought.
We hear almost nothing about Sammi's friends and family while she's been away, and then suddenly she has a best friend and family she can't bear to be apart from for long (though she hasn't really thought of them at all before she could get home. It felt a little tagged-on to me. Although there were some fun moment of the world's colliding.

[Theresa · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. Horrible writing. Unlikable heroine. Ugly book cover.

[Mika · Rating 1 out of 5]

Whoa. This went from zero to weirdly sexual in like five seconds. DNF

I usually like this author, so that was disappointing. Liked the new cover though.

[Arctic_Banshee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve read many of this author’s sci fi alien romances. So I know I’m apt to go easier on authors I know I like, BUT… need to try to assess more realistically.

This is a light and fluffy book, that will have silly situations in it.
Sammi, the fmc, was ok. Some people took exception to her not being able to cook. And I am here to say some people in RL that are even older than 30 that really can’t be bothered. (Someone told me recently they don’t make anything that takes longer than 6 minutes to cook. What?!)

She was horny before she got kidnapped, so I could see her falling quickly for Orgath’s beefy goods. (The new cover shows him being very handsome lol). This was instalust, which I’m fine with most of the time. I don’t look for a lot of realism in orc books because they are sex machines. Why fight it? I mean, you CAN fight it. If you can write a book with slow burn and an orc in it that won’t piss you off by the time they do the deed because orcs are usually a-holes until they get some boobs in their faces. (The spice was hot. 🥵) This author can write good spice scenes.

Orgath was dangerously too a-holish for me in the beginning, though.

It did make me laugh that that Sammi would have inner monologue moments like ‘I kind of have a big mouth that gets me into trouble’ and then proceeds to let her mouth get her in trouble. I also know people like this. It’s a flaw. But at least the fmc comps to it.

What REALLY oddly endeared me to this story was the elf rep. They are douches, and I think the author doesn’t like ‘em. NEITHER DO I. Yes, they’re sexy and intelligent. They are also manipulative, secretly feral, and hypocritically possessive dandy narcissists. I’m not a fan, even though I’ll read elf books now and then if they aren’t the ‘fae court’ type of book. (Sorry to be negative here, but that’s how I feel.)

Though this book had faults, I still mostly enjoyed it, especially when the orcs arrive on Earth. The spaghetti feast was so funny. I like food descriptions in stories.

I’m thinking the other books will be more enjoyable. This is one of those “foundation” books that happen to get things out of the way.

[Romance All the Way · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was slow going at the beginning of the story for about 38%, but after that it really got rolling and I couldn't stop reading. Also, Sammi was kind of irritating and way too stubborn the first 30% or so, but she finally learned to relax and stopped fighting her feelings for Orgath.

The world building was very well done and want in your face all at once like some authors do. And the characters had many layers that continued to make me like them even more as the book progressed.

The sex scenes were also very hot and steamy.

Happy reading.