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Spellster Universe #2
Tracking Trouble
Before a routine job brought him to the love of his life, Tracker's world had two facets: Hunting spellsters and entertaining strangers in his bed. There's no doubt he's good at both, even if only one is considered acceptable amongst the King's Hounds.
But there's something off about his current tasks. The spellsters he typically finds aren't usually this powerful or anywhere near as dangerous to a man untouchable by magic. It's as if someone is releasing them with an eye to weaken an already harried kingdom. Can he find out who before they run out of hounds?
Join this mess of an elven magic-hunter as he tries to uphold the code of the King's Hounds whilst struggling to unravel the truth.
But there's something off about his current tasks. The spellsters he typically finds aren't usually this powerful or anywhere near as dangerous to a man untouchable by magic. It's as if someone is releasing them with an eye to weaken an already harried kingdom. Can he find out who before they run out of hounds?
Join this mess of an elven magic-hunter as he tries to uphold the code of the King's Hounds whilst struggling to unravel the truth.
240 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 31, 2022
11 people are currently reading
120 people want to read
About the author
Aldrea Alien
17 books188 followersMother. Animal lover. Vampire. Fangirl.
Aldrea Alien is a multi-award-winning, USA Today Bestselling, bisexual and genderfluid author from New Zealand. She writes fantasy romance of varying heat levels and sexualities.
She grew up on a small farm out the back blocks of a place known as Wainuiomata alongside a menagerie of animals, who are all convinced they're just as human as the next person (especially the cats). She spent a great deal of her childhood riding horses, whilst the rest of her time was consumed with reading every fantasy book she could get her hands on and concocting ideas about a little planet known as Thardrandia. This would prove to be the start of The Rogue King Saga as, come her twelfth year, she discovered there was a book inside her.
Aldrea now lives in Upper Hutt, on yet another small farm with a less hectic, but still egotistical, group of animals (cats will be cats). She still hasn't yet found an off switch to give her an ounce of peace from the characters plaguing her mind, a list that grows bigger every year with all of them clamouring for her to tell their story first. It's a lot of people for one head.
Website | Twitter | Facebook
Aldrea Alien is a multi-award-winning, USA Today Bestselling, bisexual and genderfluid author from New Zealand. She writes fantasy romance of varying heat levels and sexualities.
She grew up on a small farm out the back blocks of a place known as Wainuiomata alongside a menagerie of animals, who are all convinced they're just as human as the next person (especially the cats). She spent a great deal of her childhood riding horses, whilst the rest of her time was consumed with reading every fantasy book she could get her hands on and concocting ideas about a little planet known as Thardrandia. This would prove to be the start of The Rogue King Saga as, come her twelfth year, she discovered there was a book inside her.
Aldrea now lives in Upper Hutt, on yet another small farm with a less hectic, but still egotistical, group of animals (cats will be cats). She still hasn't yet found an off switch to give her an ounce of peace from the characters plaguing her mind, a list that grows bigger every year with all of them clamouring for her to tell their story first. It's a lot of people for one head.
Website | Twitter | Facebook
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
June 4, 2023
Read for SPFBO, this is only my personal opinion, group verdict might differ widely 💥
4* for the writing and story, 2* for my personal taste.
This was a polished and easy read, however it's about as much from my personal cup of tea as you can get.
There's quite some graphic spice early on, and the main character is just utterly too sexy it seems - at least everyone, men, women, old and young, really everyone seems to want to have sex with him, grab bis crotch or flirt with him. I'm very much *not* a romance reader, even in the slightest. So the very fact that I even finished this book tells you it was very well written.
It's a dark story as well, there's plenty of killing, and some really disturbing details (not sex!) involving children, so beware if that's not something you want to read.
Now we got all of this out of the way, I found the setting and world quite well done for such a short and quick story! It didn't feel shallow, but it also wasn't bogged down by info dumps. There's a good mystery that keeps the story going, as the actual plot seems a bit meandering with the MC traveling around and fighting spellsters. The mystery was the exact glue the story needed to work well.
Aside from the grim topics, this was a really quick and easy read, not overly complex or complicated, but great as a quick bite between the giant tomes!
4* for the writing and story, 2* for my personal taste.
This was a polished and easy read, however it's about as much from my personal cup of tea as you can get.
There's quite some graphic spice early on, and the main character is just utterly too sexy it seems - at least everyone, men, women, old and young, really everyone seems to want to have sex with him, grab bis crotch or flirt with him. I'm very much *not* a romance reader, even in the slightest. So the very fact that I even finished this book tells you it was very well written.
It's a dark story as well, there's plenty of killing, and some really disturbing details (not sex!) involving children, so beware if that's not something you want to read.
Now we got all of this out of the way, I found the setting and world quite well done for such a short and quick story! It didn't feel shallow, but it also wasn't bogged down by info dumps. There's a good mystery that keeps the story going, as the actual plot seems a bit meandering with the MC traveling around and fighting spellsters. The mystery was the exact glue the story needed to work well.
Aside from the grim topics, this was a really quick and easy read, not overly complex or complicated, but great as a quick bite between the giant tomes!
February 1, 2022
This book has the kind of world building that feels immersive without being overwhelming: there are intricate dynamics galore and everything and everyone is *complicated* in really interesting and rewarding ways. I love stories with characters who are in the process of figuring out their own surroundings and their role within them, and you get that here, with Tracker piecing together what’s shifted in the world, and job, he inhabits. Well worth a read.
*I received an ARC of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
*I received an ARC of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
January 30, 2022
Tracker is a Hound that hunts Speedsters for the King. He is part of the King's Guardians, and Tracker is not only his name but also his function. He is also an elf... that know how good looking he is and use it to have fun and some informations. With mens and womens!
As you turn the pages you will find sex scenes, gore scenes, lot of fights and also some trips to Tracker's past.
I'm now waiting for the next book where I hope to have some answers regarding the guardians and Tracker future.
As you turn the pages you will find sex scenes, gore scenes, lot of fights and also some trips to Tracker's past.
I'm now waiting for the next book where I hope to have some answers regarding the guardians and Tracker future.
January 30, 2022
This was my first book that I read from this author and won’t be my last. I love fantasy books about elves and magic. Tracker is an elf who “tracks” for the King’s Hounds. He is tasked to bring in spelsters but is questioning what he finds. Looking forward to reading the next
June 24, 2022
This tale isn’t a long one, so the author did great at starting off with an action scene. It thrust me into the mindset of the MC quickly, revealing much background about Tracker (the MC) very efficiently.
Then, a lot of attention is placed on the MC hooking up for sexual gratification. Gotta say, that was the least favorite part of this tale. I want storyline, and action scenes. I can find romance tales everywhere. Yep, an entire chapter I just skimmed through.
Thankfully, the storyline comes back. The MC had a traumatic childhood, which did include a stint in a brothel. This author dies do an amazing job portraying Trackers continuous struggle between his duty and his morality. His duty as a kings hound is to hunt spellsters. It is clear that not everything he was raised to believe about hounds and spellsters are all true. This books redemption is being able to read on to find out what is true or false.
This tale definitely has diverse and mature content along with an admittedly unique and entertaining storyline. Other than the first sexual scene early in the tale, the rest of the mature content was entirely fittingly placed and really didn’t get carried away in detail unnecessarily (IMO). I do know for other readers, they enjoy tons of explicit content so there is always an audience.
All my reviews are always voluntarily written.
Then, a lot of attention is placed on the MC hooking up for sexual gratification. Gotta say, that was the least favorite part of this tale. I want storyline, and action scenes. I can find romance tales everywhere. Yep, an entire chapter I just skimmed through.
Thankfully, the storyline comes back. The MC had a traumatic childhood, which did include a stint in a brothel. This author dies do an amazing job portraying Trackers continuous struggle between his duty and his morality. His duty as a kings hound is to hunt spellsters. It is clear that not everything he was raised to believe about hounds and spellsters are all true. This books redemption is being able to read on to find out what is true or false.
This tale definitely has diverse and mature content along with an admittedly unique and entertaining storyline. Other than the first sexual scene early in the tale, the rest of the mature content was entirely fittingly placed and really didn’t get carried away in detail unnecessarily (IMO). I do know for other readers, they enjoy tons of explicit content so there is always an audience.
All my reviews are always voluntarily written.
January 24, 2022
Just finished Tracking Trouble - Spellster and the Hound #0 and really enjoyed it. Set in the fantasy world of "Spellster", Tracker is a Hound that hunts Speedsters for the King. Think of Hounds as like King's Guardians, and Tracker is his name, and also his function to a certain extent. His other job is flirting and bedding some same sex, some opposite sex. In fact is has LGBT Dark Fantasy in the heading of the title, in case that is not your cuppa.
Don't let that distract you from this romp as it is well crafted and smartly paced. "The figure shuffled closer, their movements growing increasingly fluid with every step. The gagging stench of decay also grew." Yes, there are some sex scenes and some gore, but it serves the plot quite well and I look forward to the next book set in Spellster. I will say that it took me a minute to figure out what was what, but then I had to know more about Tracker and his dark past and see what the future would bring or who....thanks for the fun. I was given an advance copy in exchange for an unbiased review.
February 9, 2022
This book is amazing. I already loved Tracker from the original run of In Pain and Blood, but reading this book gives us a clearer, deeper look into the hound and his motivations. He's been so broken down by his lot in life, taught to do his job and worry about nothing else. My heart ached for him as we learned more about his history.
While this isn't a romance, we get to see who Tracker is and how much Dylan helps bring him to life in their book. This book is dark, it's bloody and gritty, it will pull at your heartstrings as Tracker as so many big feelings but no one to share them with. I cannot wait for the re-write of the first book to happen as we now know who Tracker is, we can see the evolution of who he later becomes.
While this isn't a romance, we get to see who Tracker is and how much Dylan helps bring him to life in their book. This book is dark, it's bloody and gritty, it will pull at your heartstrings as Tracker as so many big feelings but no one to share them with. I cannot wait for the re-write of the first book to happen as we now know who Tracker is, we can see the evolution of who he later becomes.
February 1, 2022
Tracker is his name and his game, so to speak.
He tracks Spellsters for the King.
While Tracker appears to be a fun loving elf who doesn't particularly care what flavor his entertainment is, he's actually got a dark past that is only alluded to here.
While currently flushing out Spellsters things are not exactly going according to plan and he's left with more questions than answers and he's intent on finding them.
Plenty of mystery, intrigue and fast paced action that kept me thoroughly engaged and definitely has me anticipating the next book.
He tracks Spellsters for the King.
While Tracker appears to be a fun loving elf who doesn't particularly care what flavor his entertainment is, he's actually got a dark past that is only alluded to here.
While currently flushing out Spellsters things are not exactly going according to plan and he's left with more questions than answers and he's intent on finding them.
Plenty of mystery, intrigue and fast paced action that kept me thoroughly engaged and definitely has me anticipating the next book.
February 7, 2022
I'm in the minority here with only three stars. This was my first story by Ms Alien. While I enjoyed the book, I found the prose difficult and the flow odd. There were times that Tracker seemed extremely young. I can understand some of it due to his back story but it still interfered with the flow. It is most likely just me but I need to give an honest review. I found the world building and the intrigue to be very good. I will try another book by this author but perhaps with a different character.
July 2, 2022
Tracking His Destiny
As one of the king's hounds, Tracker has lived a brutal and lonely life. His job is to track down and capture or kill rogue magic users. Unlike his fellow hounds, he has a conscience and doubts about his job. It is a good fantasy story, but contains a lot of violence, gore and killing, which may be too much for some readers. The ending is a bit abrupt and is effectively like a cliffhanger, as it is clear there is more to the story. While there are some off-page sexual encounters, there is no romantic storyline.
As one of the king's hounds, Tracker has lived a brutal and lonely life. His job is to track down and capture or kill rogue magic users. Unlike his fellow hounds, he has a conscience and doubts about his job. It is a good fantasy story, but contains a lot of violence, gore and killing, which may be too much for some readers. The ending is a bit abrupt and is effectively like a cliffhanger, as it is clear there is more to the story. While there are some off-page sexual encounters, there is no romantic storyline.
May 11, 2022
A richly crafted tale
The imagery is so rich I could easily envision the scenes. I felt as though I was watching an augmented reality movie. The writing is intricately crisp and is well paced. The world-building is incredibly imaginative and the characters are well developed.
It's 264 Kindle app-pages long. The ending is abrupt and you're left hanging. The story continues in another novel. But I highly recommend this wonderful book!
The imagery is so rich I could easily envision the scenes. I felt as though I was watching an augmented reality movie. The writing is intricately crisp and is well paced. The world-building is incredibly imaginative and the characters are well developed.
It's 264 Kindle app-pages long. The ending is abrupt and you're left hanging. The story continues in another novel. But I highly recommend this wonderful book!
February 12, 2022
A sensitive tracker. I can see were he got his name. Interesting story. I don't like that they had to take children from their parents though. Tracker had a hard time doing what he was to do. I can see that. I felt sorry for him. I received a complimentary review copy of the book and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
February 21, 2022
Interesting and intriguing story. Almost a character study into who and what Tracker is and how he came to be at this current place in his life. As warned in the description, the story is dark and violent. Not a romance, but definitely an intense and intriguing tale with strong world and character building.
I received a free review copy and am voluntarily leaving this honest review.
I received a free review copy and am voluntarily leaving this honest review.
March 21, 2024
4.5⭐️ I love this focus on Tracker and the details we get of his past. He’s such a badass! Just wish there weren’t so many bad endings to his adventures he really needs some success and dare I say a happy ever after-fingers crossed
February 5, 2022
Pros: Aldrea's world-building is just as good in this book as in to poison a prince. Aldrea has been dropping hints as to the origins of the Elves and I am interested to know what were they like before their modern forms.
Cons: The story started out slow, with a lot of the same things happening throughout. I read the snippet following Dylan's character and I wasn't interested in his character but because It was set in the same world as the other spellster novels I decided to give it a chance but Tracker doesn’t seem to have much of a personality, he reminds me of agent Smith from the first Matrix, he’s just following his programming, even though it has given him trauma. I understand why Dylan reads like a teen, though he’s an adult in his mid twenties, he’s emotionally stunted because he was raised in the tower but Tracker doesn’t show almost any emotion. Why isn’t he angry at the people who sold him into sex slavery and benefited off him being used? The only time he showed emotion was when his partners were killed by another teen that was in the same mess he was in.
I know the story would be over if this happened but why did he not leave with the children and become dwarf claimed. The book mentions if they sailed straight for the dwarf village no one would bother them so if he joined them and became claimed the hounds would not be alerted.
I don’t see how he has any love for the adults that were at the brothel he was sent to as a teen. He was used by adults and the hounds got the profits. He said he was taught how to perform not to love so there’s trauma there so I am not understanding how he can go back in and let the madam touch him.
The hounds killed his mom, his daughter and his partners why does he continue to do their job? Like I mentioned above why does he not leave and become dwarf claimed there is no stakes, he has no family or friends being held hostage by the hounds so why does he not leave?
Cons: The story started out slow, with a lot of the same things happening throughout. I read the snippet following Dylan's character and I wasn't interested in his character but because It was set in the same world as the other spellster novels I decided to give it a chance but Tracker doesn’t seem to have much of a personality, he reminds me of agent Smith from the first Matrix, he’s just following his programming, even though it has given him trauma. I understand why Dylan reads like a teen, though he’s an adult in his mid twenties, he’s emotionally stunted because he was raised in the tower but Tracker doesn’t show almost any emotion. Why isn’t he angry at the people who sold him into sex slavery and benefited off him being used? The only time he showed emotion was when his partners were killed by another teen that was in the same mess he was in.
I know the story would be over if this happened but why did he not leave with the children and become dwarf claimed. The book mentions if they sailed straight for the dwarf village no one would bother them so if he joined them and became claimed the hounds would not be alerted.
I don’t see how he has any love for the adults that were at the brothel he was sent to as a teen. He was used by adults and the hounds got the profits. He said he was taught how to perform not to love so there’s trauma there so I am not understanding how he can go back in and let the madam touch him.
The hounds killed his mom, his daughter and his partners why does he continue to do their job? Like I mentioned above why does he not leave and become dwarf claimed there is no stakes, he has no family or friends being held hostage by the hounds so why does he not leave?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Want to read
January 25, 2024This is not a full review. I read through the beginning of all 300 SPFBO9 contest entries. This was a book I wanted to read more of.
A Hound of the King, tasked with hunting down rogue spell casters, corners his latest quarry in an abandoned corner of the city - but the magic this runaway employs is odd, and he isn’t alone…
Zombies. I know they’re zombies and you know they’re zombies, but our hunter doesn’t know it yet. It makes for a fun immersive turn in the drama of this opening, and I found it an engaging way to show what is and isn’t known about the powers of magic.
Though I found this opening was a little cluttered with worldbuilding details delivered in the 3rd person close narration, and that these made it difficult for me to orient myself in the story, once I got my bearings, this moved right along.
In fact, even when I was unsure just where the story was taking place, I still found it engaging because it leads with the perspective and experience of its MC - an elf in the rain on his hunt.
Small but important details like the sensitivity of our MC’s ears in the rain and his ability to see better in the dark than his missing human counterpart (guess where he is…) do a nice job of bringing this character to life.
The prose is competent and active, the dialogue is dramatic, and the story takes its time, drawing out the drama of the action by keeping us close to our MC and his thoughts and strategies as the circumstances of his hunt change.
This reminded me something of RA Salvatore’s writing, and that’s a complement (if you’ve been following along, he’s an obvious reference point for me.) We’re close on our MC and learning about this world from his perspective.
I expect an active, dangerous adventure out of this story with a focused, capable MC as the vehicle for the focused, short novel. This also promises MM romance, and is part of a series in a unique setting with forbidden magic. In in!
A Hound of the King, tasked with hunting down rogue spell casters, corners his latest quarry in an abandoned corner of the city - but the magic this runaway employs is odd, and he isn’t alone…
Zombies. I know they’re zombies and you know they’re zombies, but our hunter doesn’t know it yet. It makes for a fun immersive turn in the drama of this opening, and I found it an engaging way to show what is and isn’t known about the powers of magic.
Though I found this opening was a little cluttered with worldbuilding details delivered in the 3rd person close narration, and that these made it difficult for me to orient myself in the story, once I got my bearings, this moved right along.
In fact, even when I was unsure just where the story was taking place, I still found it engaging because it leads with the perspective and experience of its MC - an elf in the rain on his hunt.
Small but important details like the sensitivity of our MC’s ears in the rain and his ability to see better in the dark than his missing human counterpart (guess where he is…) do a nice job of bringing this character to life.
The prose is competent and active, the dialogue is dramatic, and the story takes its time, drawing out the drama of the action by keeping us close to our MC and his thoughts and strategies as the circumstances of his hunt change.
This reminded me something of RA Salvatore’s writing, and that’s a complement (if you’ve been following along, he’s an obvious reference point for me.) We’re close on our MC and learning about this world from his perspective.
I expect an active, dangerous adventure out of this story with a focused, capable MC as the vehicle for the focused, short novel. This also promises MM romance, and is part of a series in a unique setting with forbidden magic. In in!
March 11, 2025
Great start to this series, the book lays the groundwork for the part of the Spellster universe that takes place in the region of Demarn. In Demarn, spellsters are feared and are contained in a tower. If they leave the tower, they are leashed. The kingdom is using spellsters to fight a war.
Tracker is a hound who was trained since birth for his job tracking escaped and unidentified spellsters. After many years of his own grooming, abuse, and at times, torture, Tracker no longer blindly captures spellsters without reason. This book is not a romance, but it is adventurous and full of danger and challenges. I look forward to learning more about this world in the next book in the series.
Tracker is a hound who was trained since birth for his job tracking escaped and unidentified spellsters. After many years of his own grooming, abuse, and at times, torture, Tracker no longer blindly captures spellsters without reason. This book is not a romance, but it is adventurous and full of danger and challenges. I look forward to learning more about this world in the next book in the series.
July 14, 2022
I was so excited for this book and the next one. Make no mistake, this series is definitely fantasy. I guess I wasn't into it because I was bored as hell. I may try it again, closer to the release of the next book.
Read
March 22, 2023Trigger & Content Warnings:
Sex-trafficking
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Death of children
Graphic mass murder including infanticide
Kidnapping
Sex-trafficking
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Death of children
Graphic mass murder including infanticide
Kidnapping
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews