He's all fang and no bite... until I push him too far.
Tabitha: It's not like I'm a stranger to one-night stands, but I've never had a drunken make-out session with a horned, blue-skinned alien only for him to leave me with the female equivalent of blue balls. The jerk. Xavy's all talk but no bite. Is it so bad I want the bite? Well, turns out I might get more than I bargained for since I passed out in a hiding spot only to wake up miles in the air on an aircraft. And guess who's in the pilot seat? The very last alien I want to see...
Xavy: Everything about Tabitha tempts me. Her soft curves and her big smile and loud voice full of laughter. But it terrifies me how badly I want to do things to her that are dishonorable to a Drixonian warrior, so I have to reject her. When I find her as a stowaway on my important mission, I have no choice but to return her to camp. That is, until our return trip doesn't go quite as expected. Now I'm the only thing keeping her safe, and it's not so easy to avoid her now. Especially when I find that she likes my rough touch as much as I like giving it to her.
The Alien's Challenge is a full-length Sci-Fi Romance novel featuring a sassy heroine who doesn't mind a little bite to her kisses and a hero who can't stop fantasizing about inventive ways to occupy her smart mouth.
The following ratings are out of 5: Romance: 💙💚💜❤️🖤 Heat/Steam: 🔥🔥🔥🔥 Story/Plot: 📕📗📘📙📔 World building: 🌎🌍🌏🌎 Character development: 😤😠🙃😘🥰 Narration: 🎙🎙🎙🎙🎙 Narration Type: Dual Narration
The heroine:Tabitha - she was a college student who was taken captive from her bed by an alien race, then sold to other aliens who wanted to use her as a breeder before she was rescued by yet another race of aliens, the Drixonian Warriors. They are huge, muscular and blue with horns and all their females have died out. Tabitha has been writing stories for her fellow human girls, but lately all she can write about is her fantasies of Xavy. She doesn’t care about getting a mate or having a baby, she just wanted to hook up and get it on.
The Hero:Xavy - he is interested in Tabitha, but won’t let himself have her. He thinks he is less than honorable because of the desires he felt when he was around her. Xavy is a warrior and a pilot and is going on what might turn out to be a suicide mission in the cruiser that Gar found in The Alien’s Savior. War is looming with the Uldani and Xavy’s mission is of the utmost importance to the Drixonian warriors and the human females.
The Story: The night before Xavy is to go on his mission, there is a party where many of the Drixonian’s and human females imbibed a bit too much. Tabitha and Xavy hooked up but just as things started to get really steamy, Xavy stopped everything. Tabitha ended up drinking her sorrows away and when it was time to go to bed, she ended up falling asleep on the Cruiser, so when Xavy left for his mission, she was on the ship.
Xavy had to bring Tabitha back because his mission was to meet with another race of alien and he couldn’t take her, not just because it might be a suicide mission, but because the Kaluma people wouldn’t react well to a human female. They wouldn’t respect her sovereignty as an unmated female. Though when he turned the cruiser to bring her back, everything went wrong.
I liked Xavy from the start in this book and even more because of the dirty things he wants to do to Tabitha. He is afraid his desires aren’t normal or honorable and I couldn’t wait to find out what he wanted. This book was steamy from early on and I liked the fact that it was interspersed with a good story about the mission and the Drixonians preparing for war with the Uldani.
Like the previous books in this series, this one was told in both main characters points of view via dual narration. The narrators again were Jeffrey Kafer and Heather Costa, both of whom did a terrific job. Jeffrey has a deep voice and speaks at a good cadence for an alien male. Heather has a soft, somewhat raspy voice and shows a lot of emotion through her narration.
Currently re-reading this as a July 2025 LBR with my group: Midnight's Embrace
ETA: (Sept 2021) : I have no idea what I was thinking the first time I read this, but the 2nd time around it was way more intense on all fronts... So I've updated my stars from 4 to 5 for this one.
This was another good installment to this series and I loved finally reading about Xavy and Tabitha... But I must say, I was hoping for something alot more intense between these two, considering the build up for them in previous books and the discussions and actions between them, early on in their story. . Don't get me wrong, they have great chemistry together and a few just amazing scenes, but I wanted more with them in their story. Something was just missing for me with them...
I love the new species we meet here, the Kaluma. Things are getting deeper and even more disturbing as the on going plot to defeat the Uldani thickens. I am eager to know what lies ahead for our Drixonians and this uneasy alliance.. We shall see.
I hate that I wasn't aware until I began this one, that Hap's story was told in a free Novella before this one, which I'm about to read now. Seems like there were a few key things there, that would have been useful in knowing, before reading this book (#6)... No worries. I'll have something to keep me company until Nero's and Justine's story is released in late October :D
I would definitely recommend this series. Please read in order.
I'm honestly reading these because I'm invested in the over-arching storyline. In fact I skipped a couple in the middle that weren't that important. This one was good. I liked Tabitha, she was sassy and a little fighter. Xavy was a sweetie and so tore up thinking his kinky tendencies made him a dishonorable male towards Tabitha. They worked it out, she taught him "pineapple". I am intrigued about these Kaluma and can't wait to read one of their books. Though in the beginning of this series EM said it was only the Drixonians, the Uldani, and the Rizers on Trinor, but then when the Drixonians need help all of a sudden there is another warrior race we haven't heard a peep about?! Convenient.
This was really the best adventure in the whole series so far. This couple is pure dynamic and confidence in each other. Perfectly written and composed. Read it!
This was so good, but damn it, it could have been even better! There was so much missed potential with Xavy's kinky dom tendencies, and I was dying to get into it more, but it never happened! 😭
Still, he and Tabitha were awesome together and after the events of this book, I'm excited to see what happens in the conclusion. (And sad it will be over!)
Quick note for Maven: Page 14 - they sat on a hollow LOG, not leg. Fix, please?
This one was a little too '50 Shades of Grey' for me. "I'd redden you with my hand, there wouldn't be a place on your body that I didn't mark. You'd be covered with my bites and my handprints..." just a wee bit violent for me. He's penetrating her with anal sex and he's too big and NOT stopping when she's hurting and trying to get him to stop. That's NOT okay. He makes her bleed in many, MANY ways. That's NOT okay. I don't like abusive sexual 'play'. It's NOT okay.
And of course with the screaming. Maven is all about (and I do mean ALL about) screaming. I don't understand the screaming. It just seems overly dramatic, to me. "I came hard with an ear-splitting scream." Um... why? When I feel damn good, I don't scream. When I'm afraid, I scream. I... must be too average, r'something.
But then it's Tabitha and Xavy - she's the 'wild one' with the purple hair and he's the booze-soaked one with the mohawk, so really what else would we expect? To be honest? I did a LOT (((LOT))) of skimming. I don't care for the kind of kink these two are into. Some people do. It's not my thing.
There are other things that niggle. So far, every pairing has to leave the camp in order to mate up, for example. Nobody mates while in the clavas, they have to be out in dire situations somewhere - an underground tunnel, a treehouse in the jungle, a cave by the freshas. Apparently aliens can't fall for anyone with other Drix around? I'm still processing that one. Also, if getting loks makes them heal faster, then how is it when they get loks, Xavy's extreme wounds from a fight to the death all heal, but Tabitha's got marks and a 'sore pussy' from sex? Things that don't make sense.
Xavy was NOT considerate of her in *any* way. "The pace he kept up was blistering - I couldn't have kept up in $300 hiking boots, let alone barefoot and in a dress."
Can I be honest? This one had a very 'Barbie & the Magic of Pegasus' feeling to it... coming from a mom. I didn't care for that particular Barbie movie, or this book. Dude with harem thinking he's god, and needing defeating? Cheating all the way? It's not my favorite storyline. And I wouldn't have put it together, but the bad guy on Barbie is 'Wenlock', and the oppressed wifey-poo in this is Wensla... and yeah. SAME story line. So that was weird for me.
But mostly... mmmno. This had way too many issues.
ALTHOUGH Maven did introduce a new alien race. I really want Justine to get with the new alien race's captain of the guard (the one whose name starts with 'B'). Because the Drix protect the women and don't let them fight, but maybe the Kaluma would be way more prone to giving Justine the right to stand in battle. Besides, he could protect her while invisible, so that'd be totally awesome. On top of that, he could stay as emissary at the Drix camp with her, after.
Yeah, yeah, I know. Maven pairs Justine up with Nero in the next book, so I should shut up. Except Nero is always nose-deep in tech, a total hacker geek and Brainiac who hasn't shown interest in ANYONE in the past *SIX books*... so NATURALLY we're all going to believe he totally belongs with Justine. (((shakes head and walks away)))
Well, I enjoyed this one for the continuing overall story, but wasn't a fan of the couple. Honestly, Tabitha is the only FMC in this series that not only brought nothing to the partnership, she was actually an active liability. Every time something happened, she was just a screaming damsel that Xavy had to carry away from the situation. Like ... no. I'll admit Naomi, in the last book, made some TSTL choices, but at least she put herself out there to rescue her mate. Tabitha is just completely useless.
Hopefully this is the only shrieking imbecile in the series.
I’ve binge-listened to this series lately. They’re basically all the same, but I enjoy the world. This one was no different than the others, an entertaining enough listen to keep me company while I work.
4 stars.
Thank you so much for not publishing this audio ACX-only (I can’t afford to listen to those ones).
Description: He's all fang and no bite... until I push him too far.
Tabitha: It's not like I'm a stranger to one-night stands, but I've never had a drunken make-out session with a horned, blue-skinned alien only for him to leave me with the female equivalent of blue balls. The jerk. Xavy's all talk but no bite. Is it so bad I want the bite? Well, turns out I might get more than I bargained for since I passed out in a hiding spot only to wake up miles in the air on an aircraft. And guess who's in the pilot seat? The very last alien I want to see...
Xavy: Everything about Tabitha tempts me. Her soft curves and her big smile and loud voice full of laughter. But it terrifies me how badly I want to do things to her that are dishonorable to a Drixonian warrior, so I have to reject her. When I find her as a stowaway on my important mission, I have no choice but to return her to camp. That is, until our return trip doesn't go quite as expected. Now I'm the only thing keeping her safe, and it's not so easy to avoid her now. Especially when I find that she likes my rough touch as much as I like giving it to her.
Another good addition to this series. As with the last book, this one continues to move the story along as Xavy goes off to try and get allies for their war against the Uldani. Xavy has a stowaway, Tabby, who got drunk and fell asleep on the cruiser.
The mission goes awry when Xavy is trying to return Tab and their cruiser is shot down. They have to survive together and that's when they finally come together. Xavy has wanted Tabby since they first met but he has different urges (just some kink, hair pulling, doggy style, rough sex, basically) and doesn't think he is an honorable warrior because of it. Well, Tabby wasn't shy about sex on Earth and has no hesitations to be what Xavy wants.
Anyway, they work that out and continue on their mission, only to be captured by the Kaluma(?), the other aliens they were trying to get to join their war. The leader is not a good man and Xavy has to fight for Tabby.
It's a good and exciting story. I'm off to read the last one in this series and then to the series that basically continues what started with this Drixonian series.
No es de mis favoritos de la serie aunque a través de él conocemos a la raza de los Kaluma. Así que imagino que sirve un poco también como introductorio a la serie de los Kaluma. De hecho, ya he visto que muchos de sus protagonistas son mencionados en esta historia. Pero aparte de eso, la historia entre Tabitha y Nero es un poco sosa aunque cada uno sean los más ligoncetes de sus respectivos grupos. De hecho, creo que es lo único que los define y esperaba más pero me ha dejado faltando.
I LOVE alien romances, but they almost never have kinky couples. I am SO happy that we finally get a kinky dominant alien!!! This books was amazing, and it's clearly leading to something epic. So excited!!!!
Some intense parts. This was probably my favorite out of the series and we got to meet new aliens. I’m very curious how these new aliens will work out together. So many dominant personalities can be trouble. I’m ready for the next one!
“No sugarcoating. I’d own you. I’d mark you”......”What female would want a male like that in her life?”
“Me,” she gritted our, lips curled back in a feral snarl I was sure was a mirror of mine. “I’m that female who wants a male like you.”
Oh boy these two were fire together!!! Not only did they burn up my kindle with their insane chemistry but I also adored watching mutual trust, love and respect grow between them. Xavy has his kinks in the bedroom but outside of that he is every bit as honorable as all the other Drixonian warriors and that shows in the way he treats Tabby. She really is his perfect match in every way.
“I wanted Tabitha to wear my mark because I wanted everyone to know this brave, purple-haired beauty was mine. I craved her laughter. I wanted her to desire me with her every breath, not fear me.”
Besides the relationship between Xav and Tab I thought the side story with their adventure to gain allies for the upcoming war was very entertaining. We meet a new alien species that also lives on Torin and let me tell you they do not disappoint! There is so much potential for future books and I am here for it all!!! #Sherif
“You belong to me, Tab,” I whispered, my lips skimming her jaw. “And I belong to you.”
Will I ever stop talking about my love for this series? Probably not! I adored this one, again. I swear each new book is my favorite! Xavy is so loveable and funny. I adore his friendship with Sax too. And Tab might be my new favorite of the girls. I love that she writes smut for everyone and that she's the fun one. Also love her friendship with Hap. It's so cute. And then her and Xavy together. Woo! This one might be the hottest yet!! I seriously can't recommend giving this series a try enough! I never knew I'd love these aliens as much as I do.
I love when Sci-Fi / Fantasy has tropical settings. We get to meet a new species on the planet living on a jungle continent having some... internal issues with their system. Xavy and Tabitha finally pair up and it is *spicy* . I loved meeting the new group and I'm wondering if one of the new characters will have his own book... I'm staying tuned.
Loving this series and these big blue Drixonian warriors. Fascinating back story as the Drixonians lost all of their females to a virus and are then hired out as security by the Uldani. After years of servitude they Drixonians learn that the Uldani have secretly been selling them off world. The Drixonians go to war against their oppressors when they realize the betrayal. After winning their freedom The remaining Drixonians settle into clavases and begin to rebuild their society as best they can. Until they find the Uldani are bringing human women to attempt to breed with their captive Drixonians to create their own subservient generation of human/Drixonian without the pesky morals of the older Drixonian warriors. After the Drixonian rescue a group of humans from their fate with the Uldani hope for the future takes hold as one by one warriors bond and mate with the humans, many many skirmishes with the Uldani take place as they attempt to retrieve the females, more information is brought to light about other genetic experiments the Uldani have performed on the stolen Drixonian warriors. The Drixonian realize that the only answer is war to free themselves once and for all from the Uldani and return to their home planet to rebuild their society and population as each and every human they rescue bonds with a Drixonian. Fabulous series! This story is about Xavy and Tabitha and the part they play in the story arc, to seal the bond he’d been fighting against- convinced his desires/kinks in the bedroom were dishonorable- and the part they play in bringing in allies in their fight against the Uldani.
Genre: Alien Romance Tropes: Abduction, Big Blue Aliens, fated mates, aliens revere women, battle to the death, BDSM Spice: 3/5 BDSM, pierced MMC, dom/sub kink Content Warnings: forced harem, threat of sexual assault, violence POV: 1st Person POV, alternating between MMC and FMC Audiobook: recorded in dual narration with a female and male narrator.
Flirty Tabitha finally gets her guy. The dark alley encounter between Xavy and Tab was so hot. But then we have this ridiculous inner dialogue of the MMC that seems like a broken record at this point in the series. This idea that the Drix warriors have that they are not worthy of a female for whatever reason. Well, Xavy has the same problem. It is eventually overcome, obviously.
We repeat the stowaway trope again, though it is accidental this time. Xavy goes off on a mission to negotiate with another species that inhabits the planet, and Tabitha wakes up hungover on the ship. I rolled my eyes on this one. Then it gets interesting. They do end up going on the mission together, despite Xavy's efforts to get Tabitha back to camp. And the tribe of aliens is not exactly friendly when they finally cross paths. (spin-off alert!!) Xavy and Tabitha end up in the fight for their lives.
The spice is satisfying, if not too sparse. These two are KINKY. ;)
In this thrilling installment of the Drixonian Warriors series, we get another set of core eternal mates. One book to go.
I really have loved this series as I have read through it however I did just want to provide a heads up to other readers and a disclaimer warning. Trigger warnings: rape, sexual assault, sexual slavery.
This book details another race of aliens where all the women are being held as sexual slaves for the 'male leader' of the tribe. There is no explicit sexual assault or rape scenes depicted on page however I felt the way the book tackled this very heavy subject matter was quite tone deaf and personally disturbing. The main protagonist defeats the corrupt leader in a battle to the death and in the aftermath everything is 'resolved' with a big party. Completely neglecting the fact that each and every male warrior within the tribe was held culpable for the sexual slavery of their women. The author also tries to present this corrupt male leader as a more morally grey or sympathetic villain 'driven to madness' therefore his son has conflicting feelings about whether or not to help the main protagonist defeat him. Of course again neglecting the whole SEXUAL SLAVERY AND RAPE OF EVERY FEMALE MEMBER OF THEIR TRIBE. I felt as though the author wanted to create a sense of danger and tension but did not take the time or consideration to think about the tone of what ultimately is a short funny romance novel with themes of again sexual slavery and rape. It was incredibly disappointing and honestly very uncomfortable to read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Tabitha and Xavy are twoof my favorites. Xavy is charming, talkative and a fabulous warrior. His only failing at least in his own eyes is he wants to possess the one his Cora beats for his alpha male-ness wants complete control and because of this he feels unworthy but we the saying goes there is someone for everyone ,(at least I truly hope so for any age) his someone is Tabitha. She was in her 5 year of college when she was abducted. She just could decided what she wanted or where she belonged, but she has no trouble finding both her place and her purpose when she met Xavy. She just for no in a way she never has for any male. All of her not and steamy romances that she wrote for the girls all star the Both of them in her own imagination. When Xavy goes on a dangerous mission and Tabitha unexpectedly ends up on the transport their wants, needs and desires are laid bare. And what they both realized is that they are perfect for each other. This was soooooooo deliciously wicked I loved every minute of it and I'm sad this gorgeous blue Drixonian warriors series will be coming to an end 💔 please please tell me you have more delicious stories to tell because you really do know how to tell a story.💖💖💖💖💖💖
Such a great story! Xavy is so lovable. With his laughs and smiles for days and always trying to make people laugh. He was the one you knew could charm his way out of a paper bag. But he has always wanted Tabitha. The problem is that he doesn’t think he deserves her much like gar and Naomi. His desires run hot, and possessive and he thinks that is against the creed ‘she is all’. So he stays always as to protect her. Tab wants xavy even if she denies it. But her steamy stories she writes all seem to be inspired but the big blue pierced drix. After a night of drinking and what is to be probably his last night in the clavas before going on a deadly mission. They fool around and wind up getting into a disagreement while emotions run high. The next day he is flying the cruiser off the continent when she wakes up in the back after she drunkenly came aboard and fell asleep. So much craziness— crash landing, caves, huge seas aliens, giant killer birds, invisible warriors, and those who once again seek to steal tab for her womb. Loved the mild BDSM element I’m this book and how tab get xavy to accept who he is and recognize his kinks and desires don’t make him bad especially because she is always down when it comes to him. So excited for more.