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Under Violet Suns #1
Heart Fire
*The planet Falosia has an excess of females. The planet Verit has a surplus of males. The best of each have been put forward to start a new colony and find mates, in a last desperate attempt to save both worlds. A scorchingly hot sci fi, alien romance.*
Denara barely survived her disastrous first attempt at marriage; for years she threw herself into her research, giving herself time to heal. When the opportunity arises to take up a position on the colony, she decides to take a risk for the chance to live, and love, again.
Lucius has spent his life under the heel of the ruthless Matriarchs of Verit. Tasked with leading the males of the new colony, he reluctantly accepts the assignment. The last thing he wants is to tie himself to a scheming female through mating, but nothing could have prepared him for meeting Denara.
Sparks fly, but can they overcome their pasts to find love? With the political machinations of two planets vying for control over the colony, perhaps together, they can bridge the gap between their worlds.
What to expect: Glorious world building, spicy alien romance, friends to lovers, enthusiastic consent. Recommended 18+ due to sexual content.
Denara barely survived her disastrous first attempt at marriage; for years she threw herself into her research, giving herself time to heal. When the opportunity arises to take up a position on the colony, she decides to take a risk for the chance to live, and love, again.
Lucius has spent his life under the heel of the ruthless Matriarchs of Verit. Tasked with leading the males of the new colony, he reluctantly accepts the assignment. The last thing he wants is to tie himself to a scheming female through mating, but nothing could have prepared him for meeting Denara.
Sparks fly, but can they overcome their pasts to find love? With the political machinations of two planets vying for control over the colony, perhaps together, they can bridge the gap between their worlds.
What to expect: Glorious world building, spicy alien romance, friends to lovers, enthusiastic consent. Recommended 18+ due to sexual content.
200 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 10, 2022
93 people are currently reading
182 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
April 2, 2022
This sci-fi romance was excellent! The world building was intricate and vivid. The clash of cultures was fascinating, and the political machinations kept the stakes plenty high. There was enough action and danger to keep me turning the pages rapidly, too. The heroine was compassionate, strong, and deeply sympathetic. The hero was wounded by past abuse and deliciously alpha. The plotting was tight and coherent, too. However, the development of the romantic relationship needed more attention and a bigger share of this novel, and the heat level was disappointingly low. The author needs to improve the romance part of the sci-fi romance for the next book in this series. Nonetheless, I enjoyed it and I do recommend it. .
I received a free copy of this book, and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book, and am voluntarily leaving a review.
May 7, 2022
a plethora of aliens to love
This book was well written and the story of two alien races, both altered to survive their situation was lovely. The lower rating was for the head hopping, on a single page we could jump to several different points of view and a few world building questions I had that didn’t quite fit. In the end, I could forgive most of that for the fun read.
This book was well written and the story of two alien races, both altered to survive their situation was lovely. The lower rating was for the head hopping, on a single page we could jump to several different points of view and a few world building questions I had that didn’t quite fit. In the end, I could forgive most of that for the fun read.
April 15, 2022
This was a well-written story with excellent world building and characters. The only problem I had with it was the multiple POVs – often in the same scene – that at times made it difficult to know whose head we were in. There were also a few minor editorial glitches, but again, minor ones.
The story mostly concerns Denara of Falosia and Lucius of Verit. The Falosian world has an over-abundance of females while Verit is overrun with males. Solution? Find a new world and ship some of both there and see if they can make a go of it on a new world. Both Denara and Lucius have issues. Denara from a failed marriage and Lucius from living his life under the harsh matriarchy on Verit. Though they are attracted to each other, the two have to learn to trust each other and coming from two very different cultures, that’s not always easy.
Add in a saboteur who’s trying to derail the entire experiment and a matriarch who has her own agenda and rules and you’re bound to run into problems. Which they do—before they even reach the new world. But this is a romance, so you know the two will end up together. But their road is not an easy one.
If you like hunky warrior heroes, strong no-nonsense women, and alien landscapes, pick this one up. Oh, and lots of very hot sex too.
Disclosure of Material: I received a final and/or advanced reader copy of this book with the hope that I will leave my unbiased opinion. I was not required to leave a review, positive or otherwise, and my opinions are just that… My Opinions. I am posting this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”
The story mostly concerns Denara of Falosia and Lucius of Verit. The Falosian world has an over-abundance of females while Verit is overrun with males. Solution? Find a new world and ship some of both there and see if they can make a go of it on a new world. Both Denara and Lucius have issues. Denara from a failed marriage and Lucius from living his life under the harsh matriarchy on Verit. Though they are attracted to each other, the two have to learn to trust each other and coming from two very different cultures, that’s not always easy.
Add in a saboteur who’s trying to derail the entire experiment and a matriarch who has her own agenda and rules and you’re bound to run into problems. Which they do—before they even reach the new world. But this is a romance, so you know the two will end up together. But their road is not an easy one.
If you like hunky warrior heroes, strong no-nonsense women, and alien landscapes, pick this one up. Oh, and lots of very hot sex too.
Disclosure of Material: I received a final and/or advanced reader copy of this book with the hope that I will leave my unbiased opinion. I was not required to leave a review, positive or otherwise, and my opinions are just that… My Opinions. I am posting this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”
January 23, 2023
I've read the first three of these back to back (am reading book 3 now). I have feedback but intend to hold it until I get all the offerings currently available in this series read, then I will review.
This is good stuff for scifi romance. There are a few places where I think a bit more work could make this an excellent series.
For clarity - on the heat scale these come in about where you would expect for romance by Diener or Draven. Excellent world building, wonderfully sympathetic characters, social structures that lend themselves to conflict quite naturally so the issues don't feel contrived. I'm emotionally invested in this world, enough to be reading them back to back.
Negatives? Girlfriend REALLY needs editors. At the very least a copy editor but I think if she worked with a good content editor to smooth out and fluff up a couple spots that this could be a GREAT scifi romance. But each book has been progressively worse on the copy editing. I'm starting to think she is writing with autocorrect turned on and it's not doing her any favors.
This is good stuff for scifi romance. There are a few places where I think a bit more work could make this an excellent series.
For clarity - on the heat scale these come in about where you would expect for romance by Diener or Draven. Excellent world building, wonderfully sympathetic characters, social structures that lend themselves to conflict quite naturally so the issues don't feel contrived. I'm emotionally invested in this world, enough to be reading them back to back.
Negatives? Girlfriend REALLY needs editors. At the very least a copy editor but I think if she worked with a good content editor to smooth out and fluff up a couple spots that this could be a GREAT scifi romance. But each book has been progressively worse on the copy editing. I'm starting to think she is writing with autocorrect turned on and it's not doing her any favors.
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April 7, 2023This wasn’t for me. I got to 9% before quitting. I didn’t like that we shifted POV several times within a chapter. And not just within the two MCs but between several characters. And you didn’t know until a few sentences in that you were inside someone else’s head.
I also didn’t like how overdone the sci fi stuff was. I read plenty of sci fi and fantasy. It can be written to where it doesn’t feel like you’re reading a foreign language.
I also didn’t like how overdone the sci fi stuff was. I read plenty of sci fi and fantasy. It can be written to where it doesn’t feel like you’re reading a foreign language.
March 23, 2022
Fantastic sci fi adventure romance
The worldbuilding is phenomenal; be sure to read about the planets in Mackie's Alliance at the end of the book. The characters are fascinating, the culture clashes are massive and enthralling, and the story is amazing. These are characters I want to know with stories I want to read. I'm looking forward to future courtships, as well as the exploration of Colony 29.
The worldbuilding is phenomenal; be sure to read about the planets in Mackie's Alliance at the end of the book. The characters are fascinating, the culture clashes are massive and enthralling, and the story is amazing. These are characters I want to know with stories I want to read. I'm looking forward to future courtships, as well as the exploration of Colony 29.
October 5, 2022
So well written & thought out
The story is sublime. It is alien & yet totally human. The characters are well rounded, intelligent, emotionally scarred & completely likeable. To say I loved this book is a definite understatement. Can't wait to read the next book.
The story is sublime. It is alien & yet totally human. The characters are well rounded, intelligent, emotionally scarred & completely likeable. To say I loved this book is a definite understatement. Can't wait to read the next book.
June 24, 2023
HEART FIRE is the first book in the Under Violet Suns series and the debut novel by this author. This promises to be a great series as we deal with two opposing cultures, political machinations, plus someone trying their best to sabotage all the good work being done by the colonists. Is it one of them or someone who was on the planet before them? No idea so far!
The females from Falosia may be seen as weak by some due to their caring and compassionate natures, aided and abetted by their empathy. However, I wouldn't cross one of them! And the males from Verit... bless them. They've had it rough and so don't quite believe the females are as they seem.
The world-building was brilliant, for the new colony AND the two worlds our colonists are from. The pacing is brilliant and the overall character development is consistent throughout. The only place where I felt this book faltered slightly was the relationship between our two main characters. The first book is always hard as it has to set the scene for whatever comes next, but it seemed as though their relationship fell foul to this, meaning they didn't have enough time together for their relationship to grow properly and, as such, it didn't feel as smooth as the rest of the book.
Overall, this was a great read that I enjoyed and I look forward to continuing with the series and seeing where the author takes me next. Definitely recommended by me.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Apr 11, 2022
The females from Falosia may be seen as weak by some due to their caring and compassionate natures, aided and abetted by their empathy. However, I wouldn't cross one of them! And the males from Verit... bless them. They've had it rough and so don't quite believe the females are as they seem.
The world-building was brilliant, for the new colony AND the two worlds our colonists are from. The pacing is brilliant and the overall character development is consistent throughout. The only place where I felt this book faltered slightly was the relationship between our two main characters. The first book is always hard as it has to set the scene for whatever comes next, but it seemed as though their relationship fell foul to this, meaning they didn't have enough time together for their relationship to grow properly and, as such, it didn't feel as smooth as the rest of the book.
Overall, this was a great read that I enjoyed and I look forward to continuing with the series and seeing where the author takes me next. Definitely recommended by me.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Apr 11, 2022
April 15, 2022

I am a huge fan of alien romances and this one did not disappoint. This book is centered in two races that are descended from humans, but they aren't quite human. They are from their own respective planets, but have genetic enhancements specific to their race. The Falosians have a planet that is majority female and the Verits are majority male. These two faces decide to come together on a new planet to establish a new mixed colony, and to hopefully fix the gender ratios.
The chemistry between Danara and Lucius is perfect, and I loved reading their journey to being mates. I wish their was a little bit more romance between the two, but I understand this book was to establish more world building than anything else. I did enjoy that everything wasn't perfect between them. It was refreshing for an alien romance.
Overall, I really enjoyed this first book in the series. It has a ton of world building and you're introduced to a lot of main characters for the subsequent books in the series. I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys worls building and alien romance.
https://coffeewanderbooks.blogspot.co...
I am a huge fan of alien romances and this one did not disappoint. This book is centered in two races that are descended from humans, but they aren't quite human. They are from their own respective planets, but have genetic enhancements specific to their race. The Falosians have a planet that is majority female and the Verits are majority male. These two faces decide to come together on a new planet to establish a new mixed colony, and to hopefully fix the gender ratios.
The chemistry between Danara and Lucius is perfect, and I loved reading their journey to being mates. I wish their was a little bit more romance between the two, but I understand this book was to establish more world building than anything else. I did enjoy that everything wasn't perfect between them. It was refreshing for an alien romance.
Overall, I really enjoyed this first book in the series. It has a ton of world building and you're introduced to a lot of main characters for the subsequent books in the series. I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys worls building and alien romance.
https://coffeewanderbooks.blogspot.co...
April 1, 2022
Balancing Their Needs . . .
Two planets are trying to solve their issues and start a new colony with mates coming from each of the planets. Falosia has an excess of females. Their females are considered gentle and weak. Verit has a large number of males who have been controlled by overbearing and cruel females, so many of them are not happy with the situation. With each planet offering their people, they hope the new colony will form and be the salvation for both worlds.
Denara originally had a bad marriage. Now she is ready to try again on the new colony. Lucius has had a difficult life under the domineering Matriarchs of Verit. He is not eager to get stuck with a scheming female mate, but Denara surprised him. Are they willing to push beyond their unhappy pasts and take a chance on real love and respect? Or will those trying to destroy the new colony’s efforts be able to keep them apart?
Two planets are trying to solve their issues and start a new colony with mates coming from each of the planets. Falosia has an excess of females. Their females are considered gentle and weak. Verit has a large number of males who have been controlled by overbearing and cruel females, so many of them are not happy with the situation. With each planet offering their people, they hope the new colony will form and be the salvation for both worlds.
Denara originally had a bad marriage. Now she is ready to try again on the new colony. Lucius has had a difficult life under the domineering Matriarchs of Verit. He is not eager to get stuck with a scheming female mate, but Denara surprised him. Are they willing to push beyond their unhappy pasts and take a chance on real love and respect? Or will those trying to destroy the new colony’s efforts be able to keep them apart?
June 5, 2022
An awesome debut!
Ms. Mackie provides well thought out world building that shines throughout her writing. The culture clash between the Falosians and the Verits is superbly woven into the romance between Denara & Lucius. There is plenty of external adventure and conflict to keep you on your toes. Heart Fire is an excellent first in series and I can't wait to read the next.
Ms. Mackie provides well thought out world building that shines throughout her writing. The culture clash between the Falosians and the Verits is superbly woven into the romance between Denara & Lucius. There is plenty of external adventure and conflict to keep you on your toes. Heart Fire is an excellent first in series and I can't wait to read the next.
May 6, 2025
I had dizzyingly high hopes for this book - I love the setup (Mars needs women, but Venus needs men!) and the "perfect for fans of Ilona Andrews" in the blurb shows me the author has great taste. The start of the book was really promising, I loved the outlining of how the colony crew came to be, the mix of differing cultures, the challenges they faced and the highly accessible overview of how a new colony might come to be, everything felt really well considered and I hugely admire the effort put into worldbuilding.
So as a sci-fi alien colony story, it was great. As a romance? Hmm. I was a bit bamboozled by the use of the term "mate" and the Verit males being driven by animal instincts, only for mates to effectively be just a marriage. I was waiting for payoff that never came - "mate" is a loaded word for fans of the fated mates trope, but ultimately Lucius and Denara are just super into each other, that's all. I also didn't love the multiple POVs (not just our main couple) in one continuous stream, I need at least a chapter break to work out whose head I'm in.
I really loved how the brutal systems and structures in place for the Verit society were explored and never wholly celebrated or condemned, though arguably flawed, the Maman in particular could have been a one-dimensional villain but she's treated with complexity. Falosia though just seems to be awesome, all the females are super great and talented and always in the right. I would have loved a bit more balance. Conversely, with the romance, Denara felt quite well fleshed out and consistent as a character, her backstory informing her decisions. Lucius meanwhile was impossible to pin down - is he a super amazing soldier who never really gets a moment to show quite how gifted he is? A brooding, near-defeated warrior whose spirit has been beaten down by a cruel matriarchy? A handsome charmer who smirks a lot and is happy to casually touch people when everything in his backstory would suggest otherwise?
I am definitely curious about the rest of the series, there were a lot of plot threads left dangling and lots of threats that will no doubt come into play. I just hope the future love stories in the series are just as well considered as the world building.
So as a sci-fi alien colony story, it was great. As a romance? Hmm. I was a bit bamboozled by the use of the term "mate" and the Verit males being driven by animal instincts, only for mates to effectively be just a marriage. I was waiting for payoff that never came - "mate" is a loaded word for fans of the fated mates trope, but ultimately Lucius and Denara are just super into each other, that's all. I also didn't love the multiple POVs (not just our main couple) in one continuous stream, I need at least a chapter break to work out whose head I'm in.
I really loved how the brutal systems and structures in place for the Verit society were explored and never wholly celebrated or condemned, though arguably flawed, the Maman in particular could have been a one-dimensional villain but she's treated with complexity. Falosia though just seems to be awesome, all the females are super great and talented and always in the right. I would have loved a bit more balance. Conversely, with the romance, Denara felt quite well fleshed out and consistent as a character, her backstory informing her decisions. Lucius meanwhile was impossible to pin down - is he a super amazing soldier who never really gets a moment to show quite how gifted he is? A brooding, near-defeated warrior whose spirit has been beaten down by a cruel matriarchy? A handsome charmer who smirks a lot and is happy to casually touch people when everything in his backstory would suggest otherwise?
I am definitely curious about the rest of the series, there were a lot of plot threads left dangling and lots of threats that will no doubt come into play. I just hope the future love stories in the series are just as well considered as the world building.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 14, 2023
I really enjoyed this story.
There was some basic world building, enough that I wasn't clueless to the setting but there was more emphasis on the cultural differences. It was enlightening to see two humanoid cultures evolve from ancient earth so differently.
This book was pretty low on spice, and normally that would bother me but I was so engrossed in the story I hardly noticed.
I did feel that the ending should have been more.. I was a bit disappointed by that.
I am not going to finish the series because I'm not really that interested in any of the other characters enough to read solely about them. Sadly even though there are many other names mentioned in the book there isn't really enough engagement on page to have some sort of tie to them. They are mentioned in a scene or thought and then fade into the background. Which can be great to focus on the main characters, but it leaves me feeling no connection to them as if they're unimportant. Also I read the blurb for the next one and I honestly don't even remember who Zera is, so there is not really a burning desire to read her story.
I will gladly read more by this author in the future. She has a nice way of painting a beautiful story and I found myself laughing a lot.
There was some basic world building, enough that I wasn't clueless to the setting but there was more emphasis on the cultural differences. It was enlightening to see two humanoid cultures evolve from ancient earth so differently.
This book was pretty low on spice, and normally that would bother me but I was so engrossed in the story I hardly noticed.
I did feel that the ending should have been more.. I was a bit disappointed by that.
I am not going to finish the series because I'm not really that interested in any of the other characters enough to read solely about them. Sadly even though there are many other names mentioned in the book there isn't really enough engagement on page to have some sort of tie to them. They are mentioned in a scene or thought and then fade into the background. Which can be great to focus on the main characters, but it leaves me feeling no connection to them as if they're unimportant. Also I read the blurb for the next one and I honestly don't even remember who Zera is, so there is not really a burning desire to read her story.
I will gladly read more by this author in the future. She has a nice way of painting a beautiful story and I found myself laughing a lot.
October 16, 2022
I enjoy a good sci-fi alien story but I found this one a hard read with the introduction of many made-up planets and people's names, places and objects and then trying to remember them as the story went on. Written in the third person which is not something I usually read as I find it difficult to follow who’s talking (not many authors write in the third person very well IMO)
I’m a detailed oriented person so when the details are complicated the story slows greatly and frustration sets in leading to skimming - this was all in the first chapter it didn’t bode well for the rest of the book.
For me, there was too much description as the author would include the characters turning in certain directions when it had no value to the story and when it came to the love scenes it was not thorough enough only perfunctory this book is a long exhausting read and I really tried to finish it but the author just kept adding more characters and more details and the grammar and spelling errors are throughout the whole book.
One conflict between Lucius and Denara has written him off as a failed affair, Denara had so readily dismissed their relationship that she couldn’t have been in love with him. The author failed to really connect Lucius and Denara’s chemistry, their whole relationship was just ho-hum. Near the end of the book, I was definitely Team Lucius as I felt Denara and the other women had no true understanding of what the males have been through. This book is a complete disaster on every front.
I’m a detailed oriented person so when the details are complicated the story slows greatly and frustration sets in leading to skimming - this was all in the first chapter it didn’t bode well for the rest of the book.
For me, there was too much description as the author would include the characters turning in certain directions when it had no value to the story and when it came to the love scenes it was not thorough enough only perfunctory this book is a long exhausting read and I really tried to finish it but the author just kept adding more characters and more details and the grammar and spelling errors are throughout the whole book.
One conflict between Lucius and Denara has written him off as a failed affair, Denara had so readily dismissed their relationship that she couldn’t have been in love with him. The author failed to really connect Lucius and Denara’s chemistry, their whole relationship was just ho-hum. Near the end of the book, I was definitely Team Lucius as I felt Denara and the other women had no true understanding of what the males have been through. This book is a complete disaster on every front.
March 15, 2023
Not quite 2 & 1/2 stars.
There is so much detail in the backstory- to the point of having trouble keeping up with it all, but all the characters are just flat. There’s a lot of effort made with the backstory, but just not the characters themselves. I never felt the connection or love between the main characters, especially because they were so flat/one dimensional. Also, the author goes into all sorts of details about the background, but when it came to the sex scenes, they were way too bland & glossed over. I don’t need such extreme sex scenes in the books I read, but compared to the other detailed stuff, it felt like the author isn’t comfortable writing sex scenes. It needs to be more balanced. I also felt the ending was sort of abrupt, it was such a back & forth thing between the couple, and suddenly it's not. Not sure I’d want to continue with the series.
There is so much detail in the backstory- to the point of having trouble keeping up with it all, but all the characters are just flat. There’s a lot of effort made with the backstory, but just not the characters themselves. I never felt the connection or love between the main characters, especially because they were so flat/one dimensional. Also, the author goes into all sorts of details about the background, but when it came to the sex scenes, they were way too bland & glossed over. I don’t need such extreme sex scenes in the books I read, but compared to the other detailed stuff, it felt like the author isn’t comfortable writing sex scenes. It needs to be more balanced. I also felt the ending was sort of abrupt, it was such a back & forth thing between the couple, and suddenly it's not. Not sure I’d want to continue with the series.
October 19, 2023
Very soapy, but strangely addictive. This is the tale of the colonization of a planet. Two matriarchal civilizations join forces to form a new colony on an unoccupied planet. One civilization is predominantly male, and ruled by a clan of cast-iron, overly controlling bitches. The other civilization is primarily female, the women are empaths, view each other as sisters, and as their few males are largely overly coddled and infantile, don’t have very much respect for men. Predictively, the cultures clash. Working together, they have to establish a new colony, build a new society, and survive in the face of both a harsh planet, and sabotage… dun dun dunnn… seriously very soapy and addictive. Is that kind of a
August 9, 2023
as someone who has read.. ahem.. A LOT of sci fi romance (AND I WILL NOT BE SHARING THE ACTUAL NUMBER OF YEAR TO DATE BOOKS READ IN THIS GENRE HEEHEEEE)
this one honestly dazzled me. The character growth, world building, plot points and pivots were all so well done. The romance even gave me the warm fuzzies as they worked to overcome their cultural differences and find a balance in between. Lovely lovely book.
this one honestly dazzled me. The character growth, world building, plot points and pivots were all so well done. The romance even gave me the warm fuzzies as they worked to overcome their cultural differences and find a balance in between. Lovely lovely book.
October 8, 2024
Great story!
I totally enjoyed this sci-fi indeath story. It's part of an ongoing series, but each novel is a stand alone romance for each couple, but is best read in book number order. The story is compelling and each love relationship is deep and satisfying. The story has lots of twists and turns a,nd plot drama to keep you interested to keep you interested what will happen next. Sci-fi and romance together you can't beat. Very entertaining read, enjoy.
I totally enjoyed this sci-fi indeath story. It's part of an ongoing series, but each novel is a stand alone romance for each couple, but is best read in book number order. The story is compelling and each love relationship is deep and satisfying. The story has lots of twists and turns a,nd plot drama to keep you interested to keep you interested what will happen next. Sci-fi and romance together you can't beat. Very entertaining read, enjoy.
October 23, 2022
Heart Fire
What a great new series I've found. So well written, great storyline and so different from the usual Aliens v Humans, instead we have male warriors and female empaths from differing planets, joining up to start a new colony on a new planet. Can't wait to get started on book 2.
What a great new series I've found. So well written, great storyline and so different from the usual Aliens v Humans, instead we have male warriors and female empaths from differing planets, joining up to start a new colony on a new planet. Can't wait to get started on book 2.
March 13, 2023
Healer, Healer, Heart Stealer
Ooh wee was this an exciting book! I found it to full of intrigue, excitement and a lot of heat. I found the two species to be quite interesting, both run by females and males beaten down and uses with an iron fist. I am SO looking forward to the next book.
Ooh wee was this an exciting book! I found it to full of intrigue, excitement and a lot of heat. I found the two species to be quite interesting, both run by females and males beaten down and uses with an iron fist. I am SO looking forward to the next book.
April 3, 2023
Unique and complex
This story takes two disparate cultures and merges them, but not without difficulties. There's a lot going on in this story. It's complex and layered. I detected no egregious grammar glitches, although the formatting is amateurish. Don't let the wonky formatting distract you: this is an excellent story.
This story takes two disparate cultures and merges them, but not without difficulties. There's a lot going on in this story. It's complex and layered. I detected no egregious grammar glitches, although the formatting is amateurish. Don't let the wonky formatting distract you: this is an excellent story.
May 7, 2023
This book is adorable. It feels very sweet with the character interactions. You can trust feel the empathetic connections. I would have loved to see more physical descriptions of character interactions and surroundings, but the book was still beautiful without it. The author shows serious potential and I am excited to read the rest of the series.
August 2, 2023
Heart Fire has great potential with interesting characters and a great start on world-building. It felt like a first draft with a handful of fifty-cent words thrown in. The sex scenes need to be completed (no yadda-yadda through the best part) and the POV slowed down. I wish Rose Mackie great luck with future stories and hope she continues to work on her craft and write more stories.
May 6, 2023
Extremely strong start, rough ending.
I thought more was coming. Then the story ended & im left thinking “that’s it?” Cause the story seemed to be gearing for more revelations, more interactions between the characters. The mama getting a smack down for her abusive behaviour (I didn’t like her at all)
I feel cheated out of my justice. Also, I was expecting something more w the juvenile females (the maman-las), annoyed nothing came of that
I liked some elements. The idea that the same ancestors can evolve into complex & different cultures, biology & so on is not a new concept but it is interesting to see how different authors tackle it. I liked this authors expressions but ultimately the story fell flat for me as much as I liked the characters & their interactions
I thought more was coming. Then the story ended & im left thinking “that’s it?” Cause the story seemed to be gearing for more revelations, more interactions between the characters. The mama getting a smack down for her abusive behaviour (I didn’t like her at all)
I feel cheated out of my justice. Also, I was expecting something more w the juvenile females (the maman-las), annoyed nothing came of that
I liked some elements. The idea that the same ancestors can evolve into complex & different cultures, biology & so on is not a new concept but it is interesting to see how different authors tackle it. I liked this authors expressions but ultimately the story fell flat for me as much as I liked the characters & their interactions
September 16, 2025
Significantly more well developed than the average alien romance. Slight issues here and there and I felt like there was not enough empathy for the abuse the males have suffered their whole life. They were just kind of told to get over it but hey, overall a fun read
November 6, 2022
Amazing
Stayed up all night reading. So well plotted and edited. Absolute joy to read.. and I can’t wait to see what happens next!
Stayed up all night reading. So well plotted and edited. Absolute joy to read.. and I can’t wait to see what happens next!
January 7, 2023
Excellent worldbuilding.
Good plot. Well written.
Smart characters.
Will reread
Good plot. Well written.
Smart characters.
Will reread
January 28, 2023
I really enjoyed the balance between the sci-fi elements of the world, the mystery, and the romance.
Will continue this series!
Will continue this series!
March 3, 2023
Great
This is the first book I have read by Laura Mackie and it won't be the last. Loved this book. Can't wait to read book two
This is the first book I have read by Laura Mackie and it won't be the last. Loved this book. Can't wait to read book two
May 23, 2023
It took a little time to get used to the amount of head hopping, but afterwards I really enjoyed the story and the intricate world building!
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