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He is ice cold.

Both his personality and his skin. When his icy gaze lands on me it freezes me temporarily, but the first time he touches me...

Sparks fly.

Not the romantic kind. The tattoos on his pale skin illuminate and they are brighter than the Northern Lights. And then something in his eyes changes, making him less callous, less cold.

And making me hot.

He says he needs me for something important, something monumental, but I'm not easily swayed. Even if he's gorgeous and I do need his help.

I guess we'll see if I can melt his heart before he chills me to the point of no return.

178 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 12, 2020

1588 people are currently reading
920 people want to read

About the author

Miranda Bridges

55 books597 followers
Miranda Bridges began sneaking romance novels as a teenager and did not confess to reading them until she became a legal adult. After years and years as a voracious reader she woke up one day with a story in mind. She decided to write it down in order to silence her imaginary friends, but they’ve grown in number and have gotten louder. When she is not reading, writing, or drinking coffee she is taking care of two princesses who are of a reading age. Needless to say Miranda is still hiding romance books around the house, but now some of them have her name on the cover.

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5 stars
1,185 (40%)
4 stars
857 (29%)
3 stars
594 (20%)
2 stars
196 (6%)
1 star
87 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 210 reviews
Profile Image for Angie.
1,415 reviews234 followers
July 20, 2020
The idea of having sex with Xelias is something I can't quite wrap my head around. Sure, he's handsome, but his personality is stiff and cold. His skin is too. Would it be like fucking a snowman?

This book was so deliciously steamy and had one of the best jealous/possessive alpha heroes I've ever read. There were so many great quotes I highlighted in this novel, and I enjoyed every single word. Hazel was a fab heroine as well, though she did frustrate me a bit towards the end, but her brother helped knock some sense into her. The ending was amazingly sweet and steamy, and I cannot wait for the other Commander's books! Highly recommend this book if you're looking for an ott dominant alpha, a feisty heroine, and an engaging post-apocalyptic storyline.
I press a kiss to the side of his neck, earning a low groan from him. "I trust you."
"You shouldn't," he rasps. His head snaps up, his gaze taking me prisoner. "I am going to fuck you, Hazel, and I am going to enjoy every second of it."
Profile Image for SunShiney10.
357 reviews
June 12, 2020
I disliked Xelias SO much. It didnt get better. All that the females are good for these males are as batteries and pleasure toys. Deleted
Profile Image for Saylor.
212 reviews2 followers
May 9, 2021
THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS

I am unconvinced that he even loves her. His writing comes off to me as callous and genital seeking. For example, when he pushed her up against the wall and demanded that she knew her c*nt belonged to him? Omg, what is that? Why did Hazel let him off so easy? That's all he had to say and his pathetic profession of love did not move me either. He's a self-serving bitch I only hope Blaze is better because I like the premise of the series I just don't like Xelias. Then there's Hazel quick to call another woman a whore (who mind you was at risk of being kidnapped) but anything for the icicle d*ck I suppose. This entire thing seems like a glorified f**k fest with no genuine interest in the women other than to be stronger and revitalize the Koraxian race.
Profile Image for Ivy Deluca.
2,388 reviews331 followers
June 25, 2020
Um, meh?

I say this because I barely remember reading this, but it didn't anger me, so points for that? *shrugs*

What I do recall is a little of the mythology about the mates pairing off and the alien realizing it when their tattoos "light" up like a Lite Brite, and well, it's different. I didn't buy into the romance fully, but I didn't hate it on sight, so I wouldn't rule out a return to the 'verse. But I'm not in a rush either.
Profile Image for Angi.
837 reviews15 followers
July 12, 2021

This story is about Hazel who lives on an earth that is dying, which made many humans crazy. When trying to steal food she gets catchend by an alien called Xelias. As soon as he touches her, his skin starts to glow brightly. Ignoring her will he takes her with him and later offers her help if she sleeps with him because she seems to be his match.
First of I think I could have liked this story. I loved the whole story about earth dying and also the part of Xelias people trying to find a species that is compatible with them, since they have no females of their own anymore.
I also liked that Hazel cared so much for her brother and wanted to everything she could for him. In general I also liked Hazel a lot. She was funny and sassy and most of the time seemed intelligent.
HOWEVER there is also Xelias, the other mc, and I really don’t like him the least. He is arrogant and cold and just takes what he wants. He doesn’t really seem to care for Hazel, only if she shares the bed with him. The was some non-con in the story that really bugged me. There is this one scene where they are arguing and then he just takes her. Like wth. I was so mad at the guy but I also didn’t like how the author tried to make it better with Hazels thoughts.
You can get orgasms even if being raped that doesn’t mean you enjoyed it or that it was ok. Another reason that scene annoys me so much is that through his behavior he only wanted to shut her up. That clearly showed how much he respected her.
If only his character was different, I guess I would have loved this, however he is terrible and therefor only two stars.
I would like to give the second book a chance. Hopefully Blaze will be a better mc.
Profile Image for Livres & Chats ll Eva.
414 reviews29 followers
December 31, 2025
Une bonne romance alien, rapide et efficace. Plutôt saine aussi, avec des enjeux classiques dans ce genre.
Je l’ai lu en 2 fois, très sympa.
Profile Image for Cheryl.
2,122 reviews62 followers
May 17, 2022
Commander and Hazel

Hazel is caught stealing by none other than the Commander. He ends up being her mate and helps him reach his full potential. The book slow in some parts but overall good. Only other problem were the sex science did lack and seemed somewhat repetitive. I was happy for her brother and hope we get to here of her baby later.
Profile Image for ~*Michelle R*~.
673 reviews27 followers
January 20, 2021
A fantastic, fun and sexy read! It was a nicely paced story with great characters, not OTT insta love but not drawn out either and includes just enough of the side characters to entice you to the next books.
Profile Image for Michelle Claypot_Reads.
2,517 reviews61 followers
June 14, 2020
I loved this take on aliens. Elemental aliens and a handful of surviving humans. Plenty of action, strong heroine and a sweet HEA.
200 reviews2 followers
June 20, 2020
Wow

Sometimes I am amazed at the minds of Alien Romance authors! Unique alien races and theme! I can not wait for the next book in this series!
Profile Image for Kelly Goode.
Author 15 books39 followers
August 2, 2020
I wasn't sure at first, but as the storyline progressed, I found myself rooting for the H&h
Profile Image for Tania Sharp.
Author 10 books24 followers
October 9, 2021
Sweet read and will be reading more in series.
Profile Image for Jenni.
6,730 reviews80 followers
October 17, 2024
3.5 - 4 stars
I realised that I had read these books before when it opened to the end of the book. But I reread it it was so long ago.
I enjoy Sci Fi because anything goes. There is wit, humour, action, evil, suspense, tension and more as these alpha men set about finding earth woman that may save them.
Earth is dying someone set it on fire. Aliens are looking for the one woman that will awaken their potential but what they find is more than they thought. Along the way they find their mates.
A quick and fun read.
Profile Image for Emily Pennington.
20.8k reviews367 followers
June 12, 2020
Sneaking onto an alien spaceship to find food, Hazel refuses to leave without something. Her brother is so hungry and she doesn’t want to see him lose hope if she returns with nothing. She opens a storage unit and finds fruits, vegetables, and grains, grateful for the food that will keep them alive. She feels cold and shivers, finding an alien standing behind her! He grabs her wrists, but then stands totally still, staring at the tattoos on his arms which are pulsing and growing brighter. He whispers that it cannot be! Then he drags her off to Eli, dressed in a doctor’s lab coat, and asks him to test her. The doctor said she had a broken bone never set correctly and the Commander told him to fix it! She was horrified! She tried to run but the Commander grabbed her and his tattoos lighted up again. He let her go and the doctor held her arm, moving it one way and the other, then used something looking like a hair dryer, and the constant ache was gone! Also, the doctor’s tattoos didn’t light up. She knew this was important, but didn’t know why. If their technology is this good, her brother might be able to walk again!

Eli reported to Commander Xelias that the human was a match for him, would unlock his elemental powers, and wanted to test her with the other crew members. But he didn’t want anyone touching her until he confirmed whether she was also his mate, as he suspected.

When Xelias went down to the cells to talk to the other female they captured, he had no reaction to touching her hand. Only Hazel caused that reaction. Meghan gave him the location of her small group so he could send provisions to them. But when his brother, Xalem, went there, the human males had killed all the female rather than let the aliens take them. But at least Hazel was the key for Xelias to unlock his powers. With that bargaining chip at her disposal, Hazel may be able to save her little group too.

This was a fantastic story that was so different from what I expected. It kept my rapt attention, and I loved the feisty Hazel’s stubbornness and lack of fear when she spoke to the Commander. Her strength will definitely be an asset to both the humans and aliens. I am eager for the next book to follow their story! With the indication that there are other factions looking for the same thing from the humans, it puts a sense of urgency on Xelias and his crew to find their match quickly.
Profile Image for Rasa Ievkalne.
1,087 reviews16 followers
November 27, 2020
No, no, no.
It's not only terrible, it's disgusting. I barely was able to get through it and it was mostly so I could give it a fair rating. So, if you think about reading it, let me give you some warnings first.
The writing. It's mediocre at best, composed of simple sentences and have no flow.
The storyline. The overabused " Me Alpha alien, you weak human " trope but with more disgusting touch. The is presumably the antagonist in the form of other aliens, but it is skimmed over and only relevant as those other aliens abducted the women first. Are they worse that aliens reader is supposed to root for? Barely. They have different agenda, but the same disregard for human life. Both feel free to murder and enslave humans, just with different outcome for themselves. So, how is reader to suppose to differentiate between them? The " good" ones are pretty and bad ones are not. At least that was the only difference i saw.
Love story. Disgusting. Xelious only care about his powers and would have raped heroine if he didn't get proof that that will not unlock his powers. So the only reasoning for him to be gentle, was for his gain and not for heroine. Author tends to describe his thoughts and feelings, so reader can better see that he is nothing to swoon over. Hazel is another story. Since when do virgins behave or feel this way? She falls in love with her captor, because he gave her orgasms on first try. I don't know what human reacts that way, but instead of seeing her as a strong character the author tried to portray her to be, she came across as a mess, a weak idiot and mentally dimmed. I hated them together, I didn't believe in their relationship or love. Just to clear it up, Xelious calls her a "pig" as endearment and she loves it.

I couldn't muster up anger about this story, but I was disgusted plenty. I will not continue with these series and I will think hard before ever pick up any book of this author.
Profile Image for Autumn Miller ~ autumnbookreads.
1,275 reviews633 followers
June 17, 2020
*I am a beta reader for this author and read this book before publication and copy was finalized*
I highly enjoyed this book. This universe has me so intrigued with the different men having elemental powers and the different factions involved with each element. I am SUPER excited to see how things progress and see all of these men unlock their full potentials!

The only reason I didn't give this book a higher rating was because it was more plot-oriented than I prefer. I gravitate towards characters more than plot so I can read an entire book where characters just sit in a room and talk. This book had more action so I just naturally wasn't the biggest fan of certain parts. It's more personal preference than an actual reflection on the writing or the quality of the book itself.
Profile Image for Mary.
523 reviews47 followers
July 19, 2020
Not a bad read (writing and grammar and such) but pathetic plot. DNF at 90% because even that far into the book there was nothing between the main characters other than sex. She was pretty useless to him for anything other than bringing out his full powers. That’s all the men in this series see the women as. I’m sure once the men fall in love they’ll want the women for love instead of just for what they get from having a woman, but blah!! It’s just all focused around the sex. I need more plot and value than that.
Profile Image for Tammi (Gracie).
94 reviews23 followers
June 22, 2021
This is a quick read if you are looking for something just to fill some time. It's not a bad book by any means, but there could be so much more. Since this was book one, I was looking for a little more detail. Why were they on Earth, what was going on their planet. What happened to Earth besides the little information that was given. Not sure if I am going to read the rest of the series as the secondary characters really did not grab me that makes me want to continue to read.
Profile Image for Terri.
Author 11 books7 followers
June 22, 2020
Dissatisfied

I got to about 16% of the story and had to stop. I was really put off over the story development and characters. There didn't seem to be any "romance" nor did the characters have any depth. The storyline also didn't flow well. It felt like it was stopped and started several times with no clear layout for the story. Did not like this at all.
Profile Image for Karen.
232 reviews40 followers
June 15, 2020

Really liked the idea behind the elemental aliens. The characters could have been fleshed out a little more, but overall a solid alien romance.
Profile Image for Mira.
192 reviews5 followers
December 30, 2020
This disgusting book glorifies rape. She constantly tells him no and he ignores her because her body reacts. That's fucking abominable.

The author needs a beating. Fuck you. I'm so mad.
Profile Image for Emily.
359 reviews18 followers
February 27, 2021
Quick and easy read, but I just wasn't very invested in the story or characters.
Profile Image for Sarah.
630 reviews290 followers
August 20, 2024
alien dated mates

This was quick but I devoured it. A bit diff than the normal and I ate it up.

Earth is in shambles of course and the H is here looking for compatible females.

The H is protective and possessive
The h is tough and strong willed but bends to the H
There is a drawn out - he doesn’t want me to stay so I’ll leave kinda scene which clearly he wants her to stay but we needed the drama I guess lol 😂
Good side characters and I’m excited to read about the other commanders

Fated mates— once found their mate causes the aliens birthmarks to light up which in turn gives them access to their full potential of their internal power. As you can tell- this one was ice themed.
Spicy but not overly
HEA

Profile Image for Katrina.
271 reviews1 follower
October 13, 2021
So I had a bit of a like/loath relationship with this story. I loved the concept and the world building was cool, but I hated some of the language. I really have a problem with the C word and it was used quite liberally in this novel. It felt course and unnecessary and jarred me every time I read it.

My other major issue was that all the male characters see the women as objects and commodities. The book even says that! I'm all for protective men but not those who treat women as objects.

I'm still going to follow the series for a little while as I want to see whether the introduction or strong female characters generates some awareness in the men of women as people. If after another couple of books that doesn't happen I'll likely pull the pin.
Profile Image for Jen.
419 reviews10 followers
June 21, 2020
So ive been waiting a hot minute to read this one. I really like miranda bridges' other series. I felt like the whole book was set in fast forward and we were just checking off boxes as we went. Fell super flat.
Profile Image for Alberta.
797 reviews
June 16, 2020
Disappointed ...

I was disappointed as the book progressed primarily as I was drowning in a lack of dialogue (which is in part my reading oxygen). Without dialogue my reading journey perishes which it did here after 38%.

Normally enjoy reading Miranda, so I’m going to chalk this up to the fact this was a co-authored book. Will not read anymore of this series but will continue to read Miranda’s solely authored books.
Profile Image for Carol.
1,265 reviews
October 5, 2021
1 Star - DNF @ 70% skimmed to the end.

Okay this wasn't horrible but so far from good. It was a rocky start with me and the hero Xelias, but the longer I read the more I found I actually liked him. And the story plot is sorta interesting tbh if not a little lacking in backstory and vital details. However, the big NOPE for me was the heroine Hazel.

Now, I could blame some of my issues with her on the author. We never learned her age, just that earth went to shit when she was a teenager and that's why she was still a precious virgin. So that irritated me, the age thing not the virgin thing even if it's played out. But also for an adult woman living in a post apocalyptic time and being the sole caregiver to her older brother who was disabled I just never felt anything from her that was authentic to a character like that. She was a thief, obviously since she was stealing food from the hero at the beginning of the book. And she obviously was having to hunt down resources and food for her brother and few friends in their compound. And you'd think surviving in this type a world would give you an edge or some inner strength. But honest to God I never saw that from the heroine. Just sarcastic comments. She never did anything worthy of being a "heroine" IMHO and I found her very lacking. She was about as interesting as watching paint dry. She also had no depth of character either. Entirely one dimensional.

That in part can be chalked up to the authors writing style. Everything is fast paced and condensed. Though particularly my biggest issue came with the poorly disguised "failure to communicate" plot device. By 70% I was done. At this point they've had sex and he's super attached but she's still lost in her brain about how it's only a one time thing, she's gonna take her brother and leave, and Xelias will continue on to find other women to unlock the potential for his brothers. Blah fucking blah. Add in her outright baiting him and lying about how she was gonna find another lover all because of some reason I wasn't privy to. I honestly don't know why she snapped at him and turned into a petty teenager throwing a tantrum. Sure being upset about her physical look changing and being immortal now due to mating was worthy of being shocked and upset but everything else that followed was just immature overreaction and lashing out at him for no reason. Add that she's not once implied she was now super into him and trusted him entirely and he never explained that she was his fated mate in a clear cut way.

So see, the communication is about as clear as mud here. And it was so blatant! Ugh. I tried and I liked Xelias mostly but boring immature Hazel ruined it for me.
Profile Image for JML.
1,311 reviews24 followers
June 14, 2020
Xelias and Hazel Elemental mates book 1

This book was a surprise find. I really enjoyed for the most part but I did want to punch the male lead and his friends a few times. The Koraxians have left their planet in search of mates because their female and all been wiped out. Without a female a Koraxian male can not reach the full potential of his powers. Earth is a last ditch attempt to see if they can find compatible females. They down side is that the earth is dying something happened in the recent past that decimated the planet. People are starving and humanity is at its worst. ThIs is how Hazel and Xalias meet she sneaks aboard his ship too steal food for herself, her brother and her friends. Xalias finds her and when he grabs her is birth marks glow, which is a sign that he has found a female that is compatible. Their is a bit of an instant connection, but the feeling he's just using her to get his powers is strong for the first part of the book. As their feelings grow and change Hazel falls in love and Xalias is amazed that he does too. He goes from treating her like an object he needs to a female& mate he can not live without. Another creepy alien race has landed on Earth at the same time and they are stealing women to sell into slavery. Xalias and his warriors agree to help find them because they see they too could!d find females to reach their potential. By the end of the book Xalias realizes the importance and value of the Earth females, but the other elementals only see a vessel that is I'll unleash their power. I don't think their minds will truly change until they find their own mates and realize they will mean everything to them. There were also some hints as to what really caused the destruction of the Earth, but not definite answers. The connections end passion between the H&h was hot and built as the H began to see how his female was So much more than he could have ever hoped for.💖
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