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Captured
[Siren Erotic Sci-Fi Romance] Mari never expects to find herself in a cage in a cargo hold on a spaceship. She quickly learns from her captors she's headed to the meat market. When they try to return her to hypersleep, she resists. After allowing her to stay awake, Mari realizes her survival depends on connecting with the male in charge, Ekkatt. She must make him see her as a sentient being or she will end up as dinner. Ekkatt has never spoken to any human. They are valued for one thing, the money they bring at auction. The Attun race is vegetarian, but other species prize human flesh and bring in good money. Then the female with red hair speaks to him and forces him to admit she has a name. Mari throws Ekkatt's entire life into question, the biggest question...can he watch her sold to the highest bidder? ** A Siren Erotic Romance
148 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 6, 2010
12 people are currently reading
819 people want to read
About the author
Julia Rachel Barrett
6 books98 followersI write erotic science fiction, paranormal and contemporary romances for Resplendence Publishing, Siren, Logical Lust and Cobblestone Press. In my other life, I write nonfiction. If you ever find me sitting in one place, it’s because I’m reading or writing.
I attended the University of Iowa as a creative writing major. Later I returned to school and became a Registered Nurse. You know, gotta make a buck! I am proud to admit that I was born and raised in Iowa, but I’ve lived, camped, hiked, traveled all over the United States and Israel. I am married with three children, a new puppy, two cats, two birds and two very lucky koi.
I like nothing better than to be out in the fresh air with my boys – hubby and dog! I’m a sports fanatic and I love riding horses – used to own three. Ten years ago, I lost my wonderful cutting mare to laminitis. I haven’t found a horse that can replace her. She was my best friend ever.
I come from a long line of amazing cooks – one of my great-great grandmothers was a chef to the Hungarian Royal Family – a fun day often involves creating a perfect meal. So I am all about food and fantasy and obsessive exercise – so I can eat my favorite food, chocolate!
All the best, Julia
I attended the University of Iowa as a creative writing major. Later I returned to school and became a Registered Nurse. You know, gotta make a buck! I am proud to admit that I was born and raised in Iowa, but I’ve lived, camped, hiked, traveled all over the United States and Israel. I am married with three children, a new puppy, two cats, two birds and two very lucky koi.
I like nothing better than to be out in the fresh air with my boys – hubby and dog! I’m a sports fanatic and I love riding horses – used to own three. Ten years ago, I lost my wonderful cutting mare to laminitis. I haven’t found a horse that can replace her. She was my best friend ever.
I come from a long line of amazing cooks – one of my great-great grandmothers was a chef to the Hungarian Royal Family – a fun day often involves creating a perfect meal. So I am all about food and fantasy and obsessive exercise – so I can eat my favorite food, chocolate!
All the best, Julia
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 72 reviews
April 13, 2020
This is a typical sci-fi romance story in which an alien guy falls for the earth girl. The only difference is the twist in the beginning: He has captured her in order to sell her for meat in the alien meat market. Soon, he will realise that she is not just an aninal, but a sentient being with feelings, thoughts and fears.
Not a bad story, but I cannot understand how a vegetarian can sell meat for a living.
Not a bad story, but I cannot understand how a vegetarian can sell meat for a living.
March 6, 2014
Blurb: Mari is abducted by aliens who sell human women to other aliens for use as, um, meat. The aliens think of humans as dumb animals. But then, luckily, Mari turns out to be magically feisty and she impresses her main captor, Ekkatt, and then eventually, I am guessing, some sex stuff happens.
This book is a good example of why, in spite of how many romance novels I read, I am not very good at reading romance novels: my compulsive, unstoppable nitpicking. I know, I know, when you're reading a book about alien abductions, you're supposed to press pause on the critical-thought part of your brain. I am not able to do that. (I try. I can't make it happen.) I just don't understand why, after you've already gone to the trouble of writing an alien-abduction novel, you don't quickly breeze through the manuscript and remove the parts that are stupid. Just for people like me.
Here are a handful things that made me grumpy, as I read them:
'As a trained linguist she spoke French, Italian, Spanish, Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, and Japanese in addition to her native English.'
I know this is a thing people let pass without comment in fiction, but anyone who has ever learned a second (third, fourth) language knows that it's not really super likely that someone can learn eight additional languages extremely fluently. ALSO NOBODY SPEAKS LATIN IT IS A DEAD LANGUAGE, you may read and write it, but you don't speak it. Okay. I am getting off to a rocky start.
And... if your main character is a genius linguist, what does she do as a job? Why is she collecting eggs in her sister's giant henhouse when she is abducted?
"In the two hundred years we've been harvesting them there has never been a reported incident like this. Not one has ever fought back, or for that matter, awakened during the voyage, or learned a single word of our language before they were auctioned off. Extraordinary."
The aliens have been abducting human women and selling them as meat for two centuries and none of them have ever fought back or tried to communicate with their captors? Really? They all just march silently off to their doom? None of them ever struggle or make a break for it? I know that in romance novels, the heroine is often supposed to be incredibly fascinating and unusual and Not Like Other Women, but... you guys.
"They have a culture?"
The aliens are all very startled that Mari is, just possibly, more than a dumb animal. It seems somehow unlikely that you would be able to achieve interstellar spaceflight, but still unable to recognize a sentient species when you saw it. But I suppose if you start down that line of argument, you'll notice that it also seems unlikely that you would fly around the galaxy abducting sentient beings for meat. Not even for moral reasons, but because that is a really expensive way to acquire your steaks.
I KNOW I KNOW you are reading this review and rolling your eyes. I get it. But I'm 13% in and it's just killing me. I haven't even reached the romance yet. I'm too irritated.
'As it happened, their scientists had determined that humans were physiologically compatible with his own species.'
Let me guess. MAGIC SPACE BABY.
'Ekkatt kept his expression blank. He nodded and left the chief's office. Fucking cock sucker. There were no curse words in his language.'
No curse words in your language, eh?
17%: Ekkatt saves her and now they are fleeing to his house. Mari says that he should take her back to the meat compound so nobody will be mad at him.
It's like there's this thing everyone agrees on, that in romance novels, people can behave in ways that are totally unlike any kind of way any human has ever behaved in real life, and it's fine, because it is just a romance novel. But I did not get that email when it went out, so every. time. I am startled and thrown out of the book to argue with myself.
20%: Mari sees Ekkart in his cabin, no longer wearing his jumpsuit.
'He also seemed shorter, maybe five or six inches shorter. Mari blinked a few times to clear her vision. Ekkatt might be leaner without his suit, but it hardly seemed possible that he'd be shorter.
Boots. He was barefoot now. He'd worn thick soled boots on the transport ship. She bet it was so he could easily reach the second level of cages to turn the occupants. It'd be easier than carrying a step stool.
She wondered why they hadn't built a ledge to reach the second level of cages. Then she realized that would block access to the first level. Mari wondered what the hell was wrong with her than she was even wondering about this at all. The women she'd arrived with might already be dead.'
Five or six inches of boots looks like this:
Also, the pondering of the cage setup. Also, the "oh, and the other abductees might be dead, bummer" section. Maybe later this books turns into a thing where Mari is a rebel leader forcing a change in this culture so they stop kidnapping people for hamburger. I don't know. But I just can't keep reading a book, even a silly book, that does not bother to take its own conceits even semi-seriously. If you're going to introduce the really startling idea that these women are abducted for meat, either grapple with that idea for real in even a romance-novely kind of way, where the heroine is horrified and confronts the hero about it, or don't have that idea. Don't have the next scene be the heroine snuggling under some cozy blankets in the hero's remote cabin, and waking up to eat ALIEN PANCAKES, like nothing weird just happened to her.
Bailed at 20%.
This book is a good example of why, in spite of how many romance novels I read, I am not very good at reading romance novels: my compulsive, unstoppable nitpicking. I know, I know, when you're reading a book about alien abductions, you're supposed to press pause on the critical-thought part of your brain. I am not able to do that. (I try. I can't make it happen.) I just don't understand why, after you've already gone to the trouble of writing an alien-abduction novel, you don't quickly breeze through the manuscript and remove the parts that are stupid. Just for people like me.
Here are a handful things that made me grumpy, as I read them:
'As a trained linguist she spoke French, Italian, Spanish, Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, and Japanese in addition to her native English.'
I know this is a thing people let pass without comment in fiction, but anyone who has ever learned a second (third, fourth) language knows that it's not really super likely that someone can learn eight additional languages extremely fluently. ALSO NOBODY SPEAKS LATIN IT IS A DEAD LANGUAGE, you may read and write it, but you don't speak it. Okay. I am getting off to a rocky start.
And... if your main character is a genius linguist, what does she do as a job? Why is she collecting eggs in her sister's giant henhouse when she is abducted?
"In the two hundred years we've been harvesting them there has never been a reported incident like this. Not one has ever fought back, or for that matter, awakened during the voyage, or learned a single word of our language before they were auctioned off. Extraordinary."
The aliens have been abducting human women and selling them as meat for two centuries and none of them have ever fought back or tried to communicate with their captors? Really? They all just march silently off to their doom? None of them ever struggle or make a break for it? I know that in romance novels, the heroine is often supposed to be incredibly fascinating and unusual and Not Like Other Women, but... you guys.
"They have a culture?"
The aliens are all very startled that Mari is, just possibly, more than a dumb animal. It seems somehow unlikely that you would be able to achieve interstellar spaceflight, but still unable to recognize a sentient species when you saw it. But I suppose if you start down that line of argument, you'll notice that it also seems unlikely that you would fly around the galaxy abducting sentient beings for meat. Not even for moral reasons, but because that is a really expensive way to acquire your steaks.
I KNOW I KNOW you are reading this review and rolling your eyes. I get it. But I'm 13% in and it's just killing me. I haven't even reached the romance yet. I'm too irritated.
'As it happened, their scientists had determined that humans were physiologically compatible with his own species.'
Let me guess. MAGIC SPACE BABY.
'Ekkatt kept his expression blank. He nodded and left the chief's office. Fucking cock sucker. There were no curse words in his language.'
No curse words in your language, eh?
17%: Ekkatt saves her and now they are fleeing to his house. Mari says that he should take her back to the meat compound so nobody will be mad at him.
It's like there's this thing everyone agrees on, that in romance novels, people can behave in ways that are totally unlike any kind of way any human has ever behaved in real life, and it's fine, because it is just a romance novel. But I did not get that email when it went out, so every. time. I am startled and thrown out of the book to argue with myself.
20%: Mari sees Ekkart in his cabin, no longer wearing his jumpsuit.
'He also seemed shorter, maybe five or six inches shorter. Mari blinked a few times to clear her vision. Ekkatt might be leaner without his suit, but it hardly seemed possible that he'd be shorter.
Boots. He was barefoot now. He'd worn thick soled boots on the transport ship. She bet it was so he could easily reach the second level of cages to turn the occupants. It'd be easier than carrying a step stool.
She wondered why they hadn't built a ledge to reach the second level of cages. Then she realized that would block access to the first level. Mari wondered what the hell was wrong with her than she was even wondering about this at all. The women she'd arrived with might already be dead.'
Five or six inches of boots looks like this:
Also, the pondering of the cage setup. Also, the "oh, and the other abductees might be dead, bummer" section. Maybe later this books turns into a thing where Mari is a rebel leader forcing a change in this culture so they stop kidnapping people for hamburger. I don't know. But I just can't keep reading a book, even a silly book, that does not bother to take its own conceits even semi-seriously. If you're going to introduce the really startling idea that these women are abducted for meat, either grapple with that idea for real in even a romance-novely kind of way, where the heroine is horrified and confronts the hero about it, or don't have that idea. Don't have the next scene be the heroine snuggling under some cozy blankets in the hero's remote cabin, and waking up to eat ALIEN PANCAKES, like nothing weird just happened to her.
Bailed at 20%.
January 31, 2020
.
I revisited this in audio format. The reader was meh. She does a fine job on Mari's voice but reads Ekkatt's parts V E R Y slowly, making him sound kinda slow witted.
Mari the human captive and Ekkatt the villainous alien.
One of my fave 'Mars needs women' stories. When i read this the first time the story ending was a little anticlimactic and I kept hoping the author would write another book to find out what happened when they got to their destination. Unfortunately there still isn't a sequel but the author instead added a very long epilogue to help bring more closure. I loved this but still felt that another book would have been better.
Anyways,
Mari is the first human Ekkatt has captured that has woken up in transit. He allows her to stay awake and so finds out more about humans than he had probably wanted to.
At first I found it unbelievable that Ekkatt could consider humans to be animals. But then I remember all the racism in our not so distant history (Nazis, American segregation etc.) . On some level I think Ekkatt's prejudices were willful blindness and Mari forces him to see.
When he does acknowledge his part in what he now knows to be crimes, he feels horrible self loathing. It takes him a long time to forgive himself and maybe he never will entirely.
I loved the world building and although Mari comes across as a bit of a mary sue at times, I really enjoyed their love story.
I don't want to give too many details away as I liked the way the author reveals things throughout giving more depth to the characters as you read.
Safety is good
I revisited this in audio format. The reader was meh. She does a fine job on Mari's voice but reads Ekkatt's parts V E R Y slowly, making him sound kinda slow witted.
Mari the human captive and Ekkatt the villainous alien.
One of my fave 'Mars needs women' stories. When i read this the first time the story ending was a little anticlimactic and I kept hoping the author would write another book to find out what happened when they got to their destination. Unfortunately there still isn't a sequel but the author instead added a very long epilogue to help bring more closure. I loved this but still felt that another book would have been better.
Anyways,
Mari is the first human Ekkatt has captured that has woken up in transit. He allows her to stay awake and so finds out more about humans than he had probably wanted to.
At first I found it unbelievable that Ekkatt could consider humans to be animals. But then I remember all the racism in our not so distant history (Nazis, American segregation etc.) . On some level I think Ekkatt's prejudices were willful blindness and Mari forces him to see.
When he does acknowledge his part in what he now knows to be crimes, he feels horrible self loathing. It takes him a long time to forgive himself and maybe he never will entirely.
I loved the world building and although Mari comes across as a bit of a mary sue at times, I really enjoyed their love story.
I don't want to give too many details away as I liked the way the author reveals things throughout giving more depth to the characters as you read.
Safety is good
July 23, 2017
Re-read: July 20-21, 2017...still wonderful
I really enjoyed this book and it was quite unique. Ekkatt was a major asshat at first but boy did he grow on me. First of all he's super hot with black hair and yellow cat eyes and I loved the way we got to see his perceptions about humans change over the course of the story. Once he realised that human women were sentient and civilised, he struggled with guilt over what he had done.
There is definite substance here and I hope to read about Ekkatt and Mari again and how they join the colony.
I really enjoyed this book and it was quite unique. Ekkatt was a major asshat at first but boy did he grow on me. First of all he's super hot with black hair and yellow cat eyes and I loved the way we got to see his perceptions about humans change over the course of the story. Once he realised that human women were sentient and civilised, he struggled with guilt over what he had done.
There is definite substance here and I hope to read about Ekkatt and Mari again and how they join the colony.
January 17, 2011
Captured by Julia Rachel Barrett:
Unlike other sci fi/romance stories I have read, Captured was not about the action, it was about the characters. It still had tons of cool details about this alien society, but the real story was about the relationship between the alien hunter and his human cargo. Barrett puts forth an incredible thought-provoking premise for this novel...what if an alien species sees humans as a source of....food? Kidnaps us and treats us like cattle, then auctions us off to hungry aliens? Cripes....gives me shivers just thinking about it. Needless to say, this brings up a lot of disturbing themes, including similarities with Jews in Nazi Germany. Barrett certainly does not shy away from difficult material. The bottom line: the book is very well written, the love story is totally believable and evolves in a very emotional way, and the plot had me spell-bound (if not a nervous freakin' wreck) until the very end. The end was perfect for a sci fi story, although the romance-lover in me wanted an epilogue...hee hee! My only concern with this book (and frankly, all of the sci fi books I have been reading lately) is that I'm not quite sure erotica and sci fi is a great combination. It is sometimes jarring to have hard-core erotica scenes mixed into a sci fi story. I think romance and sci fi would be okay, but erotica (especially the terminology, etc) is tough to blend in with this type of story. Bottom line: loved the premise, the characters, and Barrett's intelligent narrative.
Grade: A-
Unlike other sci fi/romance stories I have read, Captured was not about the action, it was about the characters. It still had tons of cool details about this alien society, but the real story was about the relationship between the alien hunter and his human cargo. Barrett puts forth an incredible thought-provoking premise for this novel...what if an alien species sees humans as a source of....food? Kidnaps us and treats us like cattle, then auctions us off to hungry aliens? Cripes....gives me shivers just thinking about it. Needless to say, this brings up a lot of disturbing themes, including similarities with Jews in Nazi Germany. Barrett certainly does not shy away from difficult material. The bottom line: the book is very well written, the love story is totally believable and evolves in a very emotional way, and the plot had me spell-bound (if not a nervous freakin' wreck) until the very end. The end was perfect for a sci fi story, although the romance-lover in me wanted an epilogue...hee hee! My only concern with this book (and frankly, all of the sci fi books I have been reading lately) is that I'm not quite sure erotica and sci fi is a great combination. It is sometimes jarring to have hard-core erotica scenes mixed into a sci fi story. I think romance and sci fi would be okay, but erotica (especially the terminology, etc) is tough to blend in with this type of story. Bottom line: loved the premise, the characters, and Barrett's intelligent narrative.
Grade: A-
January 17, 2011
If you love alien/human romance like I do, this was a good one. It was one of those books you just don't want to end. The relationship between the alien male, Ekkatt, and the human woman, Mari, seemed real and solid. The characters grew over the course of the book particularly Ekkatt. Parts of the story were hard to read. This wasn't just a fluff alien/human romance. There were difficult ethical dilemmas these two faced. There was some pretty major forgiveness needed for their relationship to grow. It was well written and the character of Mari was what allowed the reader to forgive the alien slaver, Ekkatt. I would love to see a sequel to this story. The plot was straight forward and made sense. The world building was well done. The alien world of Atunn wasn't explained in detail but was drawn in the actions of the characters and some well placed description. Very good love story that focused almost entirely on the two main characters. Highly recommended to SFR fans who like alien romance.
Even though this is listed as erotic, I wouldn't consider it as such. It had a couple of explicit love scenes but they were of a normal level for romance these days. The main thrust of the story is the love that grows between the alien man and the human woman.
Even though this is listed as erotic, I wouldn't consider it as such. It had a couple of explicit love scenes but they were of a normal level for romance these days. The main thrust of the story is the love that grows between the alien man and the human woman.
December 16, 2011
I'm always on the look out for a good SciFi Romance where one of the leads isn't human, so that's why I picked up Captured.
And I have to say: It's an enjoyable erotic romance as long as you don't mind that the story has plot holes big enough to swallow up small countries.
Ekkatt thinks humans are little more than animals at the beginning of the story, still he speaks almost every human language and he has visited Earth many times, has seen human cities and has even been in them to abduct humans. Ehm.... either Ekkatt is a little slow in the head or Barrett didn't think this through.
I had some trouble with this and with other glaringly obvious plot holes, but otherwise I enjoyed the romance, which is really hot.
This book won't end up on my reread pile, but I'm willing to try something else by Barrett if the story sounds appealing.
And I have to say: It's an enjoyable erotic romance as long as you don't mind that the story has plot holes big enough to swallow up small countries.
Ekkatt thinks humans are little more than animals at the beginning of the story, still he speaks almost every human language and he has visited Earth many times, has seen human cities and has even been in them to abduct humans. Ehm.... either Ekkatt is a little slow in the head or Barrett didn't think this through.
I had some trouble with this and with other glaringly obvious plot holes, but otherwise I enjoyed the romance, which is really hot.
This book won't end up on my reread pile, but I'm willing to try something else by Barrett if the story sounds appealing.
January 13, 2012
Captured was the first sci-fi romance book I have read. The beginning of the book got straight to the point. The book was a fast and easy to read; not passing two hundred pages. I quickly got intrested in the book, but during the middle of the story, I became instantly bored. There was detail but it dragged way too much for my taste. When the conclusion finally came, I was ready to put the book back on my shelf. The story plot was intresting but pehaps not my taste.
February 10, 2020
Great writing
This is a new author to me . Good world building, great premise . Dual POV. I really enjoyed this book.
This is a new author to me . Good world building, great premise . Dual POV. I really enjoyed this book.
March 6, 2010
This book was quite a surprise for me. I have not delved into science fiction much, to be quite honest I have only read Ann Aguirre’s Jax series so far. I never thought that it would be a genre I would enjoy much and Captured proved me wrong.
It’s a strong story with a lot of world building and very easy to get lost into. Mari has been taken from her home on Earth and awakens in a spaceship where she is a prisoner. She meets Ekkatt, a humanoid alien that works for an organization in his planet that takes human women and sells them in the meat-market.
Yep, you read that right. I do not even mean they became sexual slaves, which would have been horrible enough. Apparently human meat is a delicacy to a lot of interplanetary species and what is worse, they don’t even acknowledge that humans are sentient creatures and regard us all as unthinking animals.
Mari waking up during that trip changes everything. No prisoner has ever woken up before and by being rational and opinionated she shows Ekkatt that things are not what he has been led to believe.
I loved the growth both characters go through and how much they teach each other and come to rely in one another. It’s a beautiful love story and both Ekkatt and Mari are great leading characters and sooooo hot together hehe.
Their journey for survival and right to exist and just be together is great to follow and the only fault I have found in this book was that it was too short. I wanted more and more and Julia had a such a rich world and story that there is much more to be told in that world.
If you are up to an awesome sci-fi romance, this is the book for you!
It’s a strong story with a lot of world building and very easy to get lost into. Mari has been taken from her home on Earth and awakens in a spaceship where she is a prisoner. She meets Ekkatt, a humanoid alien that works for an organization in his planet that takes human women and sells them in the meat-market.
Yep, you read that right. I do not even mean they became sexual slaves, which would have been horrible enough. Apparently human meat is a delicacy to a lot of interplanetary species and what is worse, they don’t even acknowledge that humans are sentient creatures and regard us all as unthinking animals.
Mari waking up during that trip changes everything. No prisoner has ever woken up before and by being rational and opinionated she shows Ekkatt that things are not what he has been led to believe.
I loved the growth both characters go through and how much they teach each other and come to rely in one another. It’s a beautiful love story and both Ekkatt and Mari are great leading characters and sooooo hot together hehe.
Their journey for survival and right to exist and just be together is great to follow and the only fault I have found in this book was that it was too short. I wanted more and more and Julia had a such a rich world and story that there is much more to be told in that world.
If you are up to an awesome sci-fi romance, this is the book for you!
June 7, 2010
LynnMarie’s Review
Mari has just about had it with life. While she’s out collecting eggs, something happens that will change her future forever. She wakes up inside a cage, naked, and never so confused. Little does she know, she is being taken to a far away planet to be sold on the meat market.
The concept of the book intrigued me from page one. I had to know Mari’s fate. She was a great character! Strong, foul mouthed, and very easy to relate to. Mari isn’t a reluctant heroine or wilting flower, despite the traumas in her past. She’s smart and knows what she wants.
The beautiful cover of the book perfectly reflects the striking dragon tattoo on her back, as well as her flaming red hair. The same hair that caught her captor’s attention when he came to Earth seeking prisoners.
Ekkatt is so easy to fall in love with. He’s a hot, ripped alien, with golden skin, and a strong moral conscience. When he discovers that humans are far more than mindless animals, he just can’t sell Mari off like cattle. He hides her out in his home, and a love story is born.
Julia Rachel Barrett has created a complex sci-fi romance that I adored. Her sense of humor was priceless! The sex scenes were hot, but the developing romance took the prize in Captured. Our hero and heroine are so different, but learn from each other, and grow as people.
I highly encourage you to take this journey…to lose yourself in a different world. Captured is a sci-fi romance you don’t want to miss out on. I want more from Julia Rachel Barrett!
5 Tea Cups and a Recommended Read!
Mari has just about had it with life. While she’s out collecting eggs, something happens that will change her future forever. She wakes up inside a cage, naked, and never so confused. Little does she know, she is being taken to a far away planet to be sold on the meat market.
The concept of the book intrigued me from page one. I had to know Mari’s fate. She was a great character! Strong, foul mouthed, and very easy to relate to. Mari isn’t a reluctant heroine or wilting flower, despite the traumas in her past. She’s smart and knows what she wants.
The beautiful cover of the book perfectly reflects the striking dragon tattoo on her back, as well as her flaming red hair. The same hair that caught her captor’s attention when he came to Earth seeking prisoners.
Ekkatt is so easy to fall in love with. He’s a hot, ripped alien, with golden skin, and a strong moral conscience. When he discovers that humans are far more than mindless animals, he just can’t sell Mari off like cattle. He hides her out in his home, and a love story is born.
Julia Rachel Barrett has created a complex sci-fi romance that I adored. Her sense of humor was priceless! The sex scenes were hot, but the developing romance took the prize in Captured. Our hero and heroine are so different, but learn from each other, and grow as people.
I highly encourage you to take this journey…to lose yourself in a different world. Captured is a sci-fi romance you don’t want to miss out on. I want more from Julia Rachel Barrett!
5 Tea Cups and a Recommended Read!
September 14, 2016
An extraordinarily strong woman is taken from earth to a strange, alien world that after first glance seems much like our earth. She has faced terrible loss, yet managed to stay alive ...that bodes well for her survival in this hostel new world.
If you love Alien/Human romances, then you will be enthralled by Captured!
The heroine, Mari, awakens in a cage, naked and terrified. She has no idea where she is or how she got there...enter the hero, Ekkart...her captor. To him, she and the other women he and his fellow trappers have taken are just animals heading for the auction to be either slaughtered, or used as strange alien prostitutes. The 'animals' are kept sedated for easier transport.
But Mari wakes up... and she is pissed! She confronts her captors, intrigues Ekkart and makes him question everything he has ever believed. He must come to terms that what he does is morally wrong, in- humane and this will turn his life up-side down.
I loved this book! Ekkart is pissed that the cargo is awake.... Mari tells him.... ___you! LOL She gains his respect and he gains his heart... this is a wonderful love story that will have you rooting for this wonderful couple...and the lovemaking isn't bad either...in fact it is HOT....
Captured is the first book I have read by author Julia Rachel Barrett but it will not be the last.... I give it 5 Stars....
If you love Alien/Human romances, then you will be enthralled by Captured!
The heroine, Mari, awakens in a cage, naked and terrified. She has no idea where she is or how she got there...enter the hero, Ekkart...her captor. To him, she and the other women he and his fellow trappers have taken are just animals heading for the auction to be either slaughtered, or used as strange alien prostitutes. The 'animals' are kept sedated for easier transport.
But Mari wakes up... and she is pissed! She confronts her captors, intrigues Ekkart and makes him question everything he has ever believed. He must come to terms that what he does is morally wrong, in- humane and this will turn his life up-side down.
I loved this book! Ekkart is pissed that the cargo is awake.... Mari tells him.... ___you! LOL She gains his respect and he gains his heart... this is a wonderful love story that will have you rooting for this wonderful couple...and the lovemaking isn't bad either...in fact it is HOT....
Captured is the first book I have read by author Julia Rachel Barrett but it will not be the last.... I give it 5 Stars....
January 15, 2011
Read this book at almost one sitting. Very hot, believable, and shows Julia's Science Fiction love, yet is squarely a romance. I loved the combination of an other-worldly creature who can become a true hero, fall in love with a human. She does this expertly, IMHO.
She is a new author for me, but now I have two other books of hers I can't wait to get into.
She is a new author for me, but now I have two other books of hers I can't wait to get into.
April 6, 2010
I truly enjoyed this great sci-fi erotic romance. Ms. Barrett twined believable science fiction and harrowing incidents into one hot, delicious erotic romance. One genuinely hot read!
December 28, 2010
I loved this story! The writing was fantastic and I loved the chemistry between Mari and Ekkart. This is not a book to miss!
July 3, 2016
Basically, I was Kindle cleaning with this one. It has sat on there for well over a year and a half. Intriguing Sci-Fi concept, and a time passing read.
January 9, 2013
now don't go expecting some great read about a wonderful romance, hot and heavy sex and a really interesting storyline... and you'll be just fine!!!
February 12, 2015
DUMB. DUMB. DUMB. SO DUMB IT HURTS.
JUST SHUT UP. YOU'RE STUPID.
NO MORE PLEASE! YOU DUMB B****
I didn't finish this book, got bored hence the default 1* rating. Poorly written, not enough detail, gaping plot holes, and tedious.
I'm not sure what category to put this in - this story is
- NOT erotica (As some reviewers have pointed out. Not enough sexual tension etc);
- NOT SciFi; far too unimaginative and unsophisticated;
- NOT well written enough or engrossing to be a good story
- hence may be it's geared towards the tender romance variety? But I didn't feel any chemistry for that either.
Overall, perhaps it's just a little bit of the above genres but not enough to be any of those
I like books that capture my interests. There are some books that require one to read a good few chapters before one is engrossed. Due to the gaping plot holes, the poor writing style and lack of imagination this didn't intrigue me.
=================
The Characters:
Heroine: Mari speaks many different languages and is a linguist, hence she picks up the Alien language very quickly. Her age wasn't really mentioned in the chapters I read, but the readers are informed on numerous occasions that she has vivid red hair (I assume she's a natural ginger sans freckles). She's defiant and originally challenges her captors. However, after the hero spares her, she's rather mellow and doesn't seem freaked out by being far away from earth and living in Alien territory.
Hero: apart from being rather tall with cat like eyes, there's not much Alien about him that i could tell. Mari, the heroine describes him as resembling Native Americans, however, I've never seen bronze 7 feet Native Americans (the few I met were mixed heritage and resembled light-skinned Hispanic). He's rather mild, not the Alpha Male type. Basically, he's a tall, dark handsome cliche found in chick lit but with feline eyes. It's unfortunate the author didn't make him purple or blue skinned with horns on his head or something more imaginative. Tall, bronze skinned with long black hair reminds me of men I've seen from certain Middle Eastern countries and Punjab. He's like a tacky Bodice Ripper Native American hero
================
Plot holes:
I'm not going to mention the glaringly obvious plot holes or I'll give away the story. However, a few are:
1. The Alien species can speak English. Even the heroine points out that if one can converse with a species than it doesn't make much sense to allocate them as pets or food? The responding argument was not convincing enough to make this plot work. Even during the slavery trade - one of the reasons why slavers believed they were dealing with inferior species was because they believed the Africans they dealt with did not have a formal language or a proper culture.
2. The Aliens believe that the humans are primitive and don't posses a proper culture. Considering that Earth has satellite it would be pretty easy for the Aliens to pick up a huge amount of data which would prove that humans have a form of electronic communication, entertainment and civilisation. The Aliens own form of living isn't very sophisticated hence I didn't understand why they thought they were so much more superior? I appreciate it might be a denial process (to justify the capturing of women) but again far too far fetched an argument. The Aliens technology such as their "blackberry" type hand held computer would be easily spotted by any number of aliens visiting earth.
3. Considering the Aliens were suffering plagues and so forth - surely earth would have far more valuable possessions than human meat that would help them - additionally, you'd think they'd have sophisticated vaccinations or protective gear too.
4. Mari manages to convince the Aliens within a space of a few minutes that she ought to be allowed to stay awake and engage in conversation with them. It seems that the aliens capitulated far too quickly. The story also jumps so one minute she's woken up and confronting them and the next minute we're told it's been a few days and they're impressed by her oddity.
5. The Aliens do not look much different from many humans living on Earth. If they'd traveled to South East Asia, the Middle East or even the Far East they'd see beings much like them. Hence, their incredulity over Mari being able to engage in conversation with them is baffling. In fact even if they were to visit Norway or Iceland they'd find Viking like tall people (when I go there I feel like a munchkin and I'm 5.9). Hence, the story just wasn't convincing.
I can't get into the reasons properly because I don't want to give away the story. I think it would be better if the Aliens found Mari in a primitive planet where her spaceship and stranded. The beings of that planet could be primitive but human physically and thus they mistaken her for one of them - when she's out bathing or something. She eventually slowly learns a few of their tongue and thus they are shocked by her even talking to them.
================
Summary of Plot:
Mari (a human) was collecting eggs when she's captured by an Alien species with the intention to sell her at a meat market (humans are an expensive delicacy for certain species). The Aliens failed to tranquilize her properly and hence she wakes up to find herself naked and trapped in a cage on a cargo spaceship.
She engages with her captors who are surprised by her "intelligent" form of interaction as they assume humans to be uncivilised and non-sentient beings. When they try to return her to hypersleep, she resists. Within the space of a few minutes and without much persuasion she manages to convince them to allow her to stay awake and in a page or two later she's managed to persuade the Hero that's she's not a pet or food.
STUPID PEOPLE. WAKE UP.
JUST SHUT UP. YOU'RE STUPID.
NO MORE PLEASE! YOU DUMB B****
I didn't finish this book, got bored hence the default 1* rating. Poorly written, not enough detail, gaping plot holes, and tedious.
I'm not sure what category to put this in - this story is
- NOT erotica (As some reviewers have pointed out. Not enough sexual tension etc);
- NOT SciFi; far too unimaginative and unsophisticated;
- NOT well written enough or engrossing to be a good story
- hence may be it's geared towards the tender romance variety? But I didn't feel any chemistry for that either.
Overall, perhaps it's just a little bit of the above genres but not enough to be any of those
I like books that capture my interests. There are some books that require one to read a good few chapters before one is engrossed. Due to the gaping plot holes, the poor writing style and lack of imagination this didn't intrigue me.
=================
The Characters:
Heroine: Mari speaks many different languages and is a linguist, hence she picks up the Alien language very quickly. Her age wasn't really mentioned in the chapters I read, but the readers are informed on numerous occasions that she has vivid red hair (I assume she's a natural ginger sans freckles). She's defiant and originally challenges her captors. However, after the hero spares her, she's rather mellow and doesn't seem freaked out by being far away from earth and living in Alien territory.
Hero: apart from being rather tall with cat like eyes, there's not much Alien about him that i could tell. Mari, the heroine describes him as resembling Native Americans, however, I've never seen bronze 7 feet Native Americans (the few I met were mixed heritage and resembled light-skinned Hispanic). He's rather mild, not the Alpha Male type. Basically, he's a tall, dark handsome cliche found in chick lit but with feline eyes. It's unfortunate the author didn't make him purple or blue skinned with horns on his head or something more imaginative. Tall, bronze skinned with long black hair reminds me of men I've seen from certain Middle Eastern countries and Punjab. He's like a tacky Bodice Ripper Native American hero
================
Plot holes:
I'm not going to mention the glaringly obvious plot holes or I'll give away the story. However, a few are:
1. The Alien species can speak English. Even the heroine points out that if one can converse with a species than it doesn't make much sense to allocate them as pets or food? The responding argument was not convincing enough to make this plot work. Even during the slavery trade - one of the reasons why slavers believed they were dealing with inferior species was because they believed the Africans they dealt with did not have a formal language or a proper culture.
2. The Aliens believe that the humans are primitive and don't posses a proper culture. Considering that Earth has satellite it would be pretty easy for the Aliens to pick up a huge amount of data which would prove that humans have a form of electronic communication, entertainment and civilisation. The Aliens own form of living isn't very sophisticated hence I didn't understand why they thought they were so much more superior? I appreciate it might be a denial process (to justify the capturing of women) but again far too far fetched an argument. The Aliens technology such as their "blackberry" type hand held computer would be easily spotted by any number of aliens visiting earth.
3. Considering the Aliens were suffering plagues and so forth - surely earth would have far more valuable possessions than human meat that would help them - additionally, you'd think they'd have sophisticated vaccinations or protective gear too.
4. Mari manages to convince the Aliens within a space of a few minutes that she ought to be allowed to stay awake and engage in conversation with them. It seems that the aliens capitulated far too quickly. The story also jumps so one minute she's woken up and confronting them and the next minute we're told it's been a few days and they're impressed by her oddity.
5. The Aliens do not look much different from many humans living on Earth. If they'd traveled to South East Asia, the Middle East or even the Far East they'd see beings much like them. Hence, their incredulity over Mari being able to engage in conversation with them is baffling. In fact even if they were to visit Norway or Iceland they'd find Viking like tall people (when I go there I feel like a munchkin and I'm 5.9). Hence, the story just wasn't convincing.
I can't get into the reasons properly because I don't want to give away the story. I think it would be better if the Aliens found Mari in a primitive planet where her spaceship and stranded. The beings of that planet could be primitive but human physically and thus they mistaken her for one of them - when she's out bathing or something. She eventually slowly learns a few of their tongue and thus they are shocked by her even talking to them.
================
Summary of Plot:
Mari (a human) was collecting eggs when she's captured by an Alien species with the intention to sell her at a meat market (humans are an expensive delicacy for certain species). The Aliens failed to tranquilize her properly and hence she wakes up to find herself naked and trapped in a cage on a cargo spaceship.
She engages with her captors who are surprised by her "intelligent" form of interaction as they assume humans to be uncivilised and non-sentient beings. When they try to return her to hypersleep, she resists. Within the space of a few minutes and without much persuasion she manages to convince them to allow her to stay awake and in a page or two later she's managed to persuade the Hero that's she's not a pet or food.
STUPID PEOPLE. WAKE UP.
August 26, 2019
This book started out on the wrong foot with me when the foul language was so frequent from the very beginning that I had to turn it off and decide how much I really wanted to complete the Audible Escape Category challenge. There was nothing else in the Galactic category that looked like it was rated PG except for this one which had a birdcage on the cover and was shown on the steamy scale as being "flirty." Ha!
It was most definitely mislabeled! It should have been at the far end of the scale labeled "red hot." It was very graphic (and pornographic).
The premise sounded interesting. It was about a race of beings from another planet coming to Earth and harvesting females (for food,not sex, if you can believe it) The main character is captured and apparently was the first female who ever talked or fought back. So her captor spirited her away and fell in love with her. Her career field was languages and it listed off about 8 or 9 languages that she spoke. However, all I heard her speak were vulgarities. So in my opinion that made look her look trashy and certainly not intelligent. Their relationship consisted of descriptions of her accommodating his size and also her teaching him all of the vulgar euphemisms for sex, which of course had to be repeated over and over.
The ONLY reason I finished the book was for the Audible Category Challenge. I listened to most of it on 3.25 speed so I could just get through it.
It was most definitely mislabeled! It should have been at the far end of the scale labeled "red hot." It was very graphic (and pornographic).
The premise sounded interesting. It was about a race of beings from another planet coming to Earth and harvesting females (for food,not sex, if you can believe it) The main character is captured and apparently was the first female who ever talked or fought back. So her captor spirited her away and fell in love with her. Her career field was languages and it listed off about 8 or 9 languages that she spoke. However, all I heard her speak were vulgarities. So in my opinion that made look her look trashy and certainly not intelligent. Their relationship consisted of descriptions of her accommodating his size and also her teaching him all of the vulgar euphemisms for sex, which of course had to be repeated over and over.
The ONLY reason I finished the book was for the Audible Category Challenge. I listened to most of it on 3.25 speed so I could just get through it.
February 27, 2014
This was originally published at my blog.
Genre & Keywords:
SciFi Romance, violence, kidnapping of humans, survival
Why I read it:
The author sent me the book as a present to cheer me up
Storyline:
A woman bonds with one of her male kidnappers who’s from another planet and never knew much about her race before. Mari shows Ekkatt that humans are sentient beings like him. She surprises him in more than one way and she on the other hand learns to see his softer, kind side. Together they run from the authorities of Ekkatt’s planet while they fall softly for each other.
My opinion in short:
I’ve hardly read any SciFi romances, but the ones I read I liked. Captured included. Mari’s and Ekkatt’s story drew me in like a moth to a candle. I was eager to learn more about this other world and Ekkatt’s and Mari’s romance was very addictive. I enjoyed switching from her to his perspective and thoughts from time to time so I could equally sympathize with both protags. All in all, Captured was a surprisingly believable, sweet love story that I adored. When all SciFi romances are written as well and convincingly as Julia Barrett's Captured, I might have discovered a new love.
~~~~~
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Heat level: 2 out of 3 flames
~~~~~
What’s more to know about this book:
• Characters
Mari is a feisty, smart and witty woman. I like how her survival mode kicks in and brings out her good qualities. She seems delicate and breakable to Ekkatt but she is very strong in fact. On top of that she has a good sense of humor and never complains. No wonder Ekkatt is at first intrigued and later totally smitten with her. She’s almost too perfect, but I loved her. Ekkatt is something else, he’s not human, does look a bit cat-like with his yellow eyes, and is huge. At first he doesn’t seem to be nice at all, but from the moment he risks his own life to save Mari he stole my heart. He’s a fun character because he doesn’t react as expected in a lot of situations and in the conversations with Mari. They make a sweet love couple that I would love to read more about.
I think Ms. Barrett is working on a sequel, but that'll tell Ekkatt's brother's story. I'm hoping we'll get a glimpse of Mari and Ekkatt as well.
• POV
The story is told in third person, alternated from Mari’s and Ekkatt’s point of view. This suits this story well. It makes both characters three dimensional and easy to empathize with, which is not unimportant when you’re dealing with an alien. ;)
• Plot
The plot is well developed and takes us from a dangerous situation, via some suspenseful moments to a happy ending, in the right pace. There are no annoying time gaps or huge jumps and all is told in chronological order. The world building is done gradually, nothing too overwhelming, but very convincing. And although a few questions remain unanswered, everything is totally credible, within the frame of the story. New developments and little twists and turns keep you reading until you’ve finished the book. The ending was maybe a bit abrupt, but that probably has more to do with the fact that I didn't want to say goodbye to this couple yet.
• Smexing
M/F. Human female and alien male, with a different but comparable anatomy. I was curious as hell how that would work out. But I had to wait, their attraction wasn't rushed and anticipation was built. Eventually they had really steamy sex and although Ekkatt turned out to be huge in every department, it did fit! Thank heavens that this difference in anatomy didn’t become cheap or putrid at all, because it easily could have. The smexy scenes were hot as well as tender and showed the H/h growing love.
• Writing style
It’s vivid and a nice variation of descriptions, thoughts and dialogues. It shows a good sense of humor and renders the characters feelings in all depth. Ms. Barrett’s writing kept me cleverly invested in her hero and heroine and produced an enjoyable suspense which kept me reading and reading. Her dialogues are witty and made me laugh out loud more than once.
Favorite scene/quote:
I enjoyed Ekkatt’s process of realizing that the leaders of his planet are not necessarily to be trusted. Their laws mean nothing to him anymore when he discovers they are based on false assumptions of the human kind. The next quote says it all:
Linking:
Julia Barrett’s website | on Goodreads
Buy Captured here
Other books by Julia Rachel Barrett:
- Beauty and the Feast
- My Everything
PS: Julia posted about her new SciFi series, Daughters of Persephone, at her blog yesterday. The first two books will be released in July and I look forward to them. You can read an excerpt at Julia's place here .
Genre & Keywords:
SciFi Romance, violence, kidnapping of humans, survival
Why I read it:
The author sent me the book as a present to cheer me up
Storyline:
A woman bonds with one of her male kidnappers who’s from another planet and never knew much about her race before. Mari shows Ekkatt that humans are sentient beings like him. She surprises him in more than one way and she on the other hand learns to see his softer, kind side. Together they run from the authorities of Ekkatt’s planet while they fall softly for each other.
My opinion in short:
I’ve hardly read any SciFi romances, but the ones I read I liked. Captured included. Mari’s and Ekkatt’s story drew me in like a moth to a candle. I was eager to learn more about this other world and Ekkatt’s and Mari’s romance was very addictive. I enjoyed switching from her to his perspective and thoughts from time to time so I could equally sympathize with both protags. All in all, Captured was a surprisingly believable, sweet love story that I adored. When all SciFi romances are written as well and convincingly as Julia Barrett's Captured, I might have discovered a new love.
~~~~~
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Heat level: 2 out of 3 flames
~~~~~
What’s more to know about this book:
• Characters
Mari is a feisty, smart and witty woman. I like how her survival mode kicks in and brings out her good qualities. She seems delicate and breakable to Ekkatt but she is very strong in fact. On top of that she has a good sense of humor and never complains. No wonder Ekkatt is at first intrigued and later totally smitten with her. She’s almost too perfect, but I loved her. Ekkatt is something else, he’s not human, does look a bit cat-like with his yellow eyes, and is huge. At first he doesn’t seem to be nice at all, but from the moment he risks his own life to save Mari he stole my heart. He’s a fun character because he doesn’t react as expected in a lot of situations and in the conversations with Mari. They make a sweet love couple that I would love to read more about.
I think Ms. Barrett is working on a sequel, but that'll tell Ekkatt's brother's story. I'm hoping we'll get a glimpse of Mari and Ekkatt as well.
• POV
The story is told in third person, alternated from Mari’s and Ekkatt’s point of view. This suits this story well. It makes both characters three dimensional and easy to empathize with, which is not unimportant when you’re dealing with an alien. ;)
• Plot
The plot is well developed and takes us from a dangerous situation, via some suspenseful moments to a happy ending, in the right pace. There are no annoying time gaps or huge jumps and all is told in chronological order. The world building is done gradually, nothing too overwhelming, but very convincing. And although a few questions remain unanswered, everything is totally credible, within the frame of the story. New developments and little twists and turns keep you reading until you’ve finished the book. The ending was maybe a bit abrupt, but that probably has more to do with the fact that I didn't want to say goodbye to this couple yet.
• Smexing
M/F. Human female and alien male, with a different but comparable anatomy. I was curious as hell how that would work out. But I had to wait, their attraction wasn't rushed and anticipation was built. Eventually they had really steamy sex and although Ekkatt turned out to be huge in every department, it did fit! Thank heavens that this difference in anatomy didn’t become cheap or putrid at all, because it easily could have. The smexy scenes were hot as well as tender and showed the H/h growing love.
• Writing style
It’s vivid and a nice variation of descriptions, thoughts and dialogues. It shows a good sense of humor and renders the characters feelings in all depth. Ms. Barrett’s writing kept me cleverly invested in her hero and heroine and produced an enjoyable suspense which kept me reading and reading. Her dialogues are witty and made me laugh out loud more than once.
Favorite scene/quote:
I enjoyed Ekkatt’s process of realizing that the leaders of his planet are not necessarily to be trusted. Their laws mean nothing to him anymore when he discovers they are based on false assumptions of the human kind. The next quote says it all:
“He’d come to enjoy the sensation of her beneath his fingers. He’d found pleasure in the silk of her hair, and he’d taken comfort in the smoothness of her skin. Ekkatt knew his own religious leaders would call such feelings a sin against nature. Their opinion on the subject had come to matter nothing to him. The little human, on the other hand, had come to matter a great deal.”
Linking:
Julia Barrett’s website | on Goodreads
Buy Captured here
Other books by Julia Rachel Barrett:
- Beauty and the Feast
- My Everything
PS: Julia posted about her new SciFi series, Daughters of Persephone, at her blog yesterday. The first two books will be released in July and I look forward to them. You can read an excerpt at Julia's place here .
February 9, 2020
I couldn't finish the the book. It's awful. And what's the Jewish deal? If you want a brief history of the Jewish nation, then this book is for you. Too much religion and God, too much Jewish language, too much(any amount would be too much) Jewish history (in a book about aliens on another planet?). Let me see... the author is Jewish? When I studied writing, it was called authorial intrusion - the author is forcing their beliefs on the reader. Its supposed to be a romance, a futuristic romance with an alien boyfriend in outer space. His language conveniently was just like Hebrew. Lucky! I can't believe that anyone would write this and not think to write a decent story. The write up for the book was much better than any of the book. The story was slow and didn't really have any sort of storyline. It has some scientific faults - don't you have google? Check your facts. My favourite was our Girl Hero saying to our Boy Hero (whose whole planet and race is vegetarian) "How do you get enough protein?" What did she want him to go back to eating humans? As I said, didn't finish it. Save yourself - read the blurb and make up your own story. It will be better.
July 27, 2020
I can't believe this book isn't rated over 3.9 to 4.2! This hidden Alien Romance gem has a unique storyline and cultural interaction with generational karmic repercussion. It is fluently written [although the end could have been made into a second book] and the dialogues are authentic. The characters are believable and well profiled - no insta love or push overs. The world building revolves more around cultural assumptions and misconceptions than nature or landmarks. The narration was superb - down to the aliens having a different cadence and intonation which makes them sound choosing their words carefully - comparable to an old Indian medicine man. This one goes into the top 7 of my Alien book [series] list. Fair warning though: the concept and logistics of a human meat trade is discussed in the book, but without the gore - so not for the sensitive reader.
December 28, 2019
A gem
This book is an absolute gem!! I can’t believe this was written this many years ago and I have missed it! Do not judge a book by its cover definitely describes this one! Just saying that I stayed up all night enjoying this beauty!
This book is an absolute gem!! I can’t believe this was written this many years ago and I have missed it! Do not judge a book by its cover definitely describes this one! Just saying that I stayed up all night enjoying this beauty!
April 28, 2018
Didn't expect much, but this turned out to be a rather nice, easy read.
February 14, 2020
I LIKE THIS BOOK.
May 21, 2022
I enjoyed this audiobook. The storyline, flow and characters were well developed. Narrator Heather Jane Hogan did a great job with the voices.
September 16, 2024
This was too sweet and insta-love.
January 20, 2010
A naked Mari awakens and finds herself in a cage on a spaceship surrounded by other unconscious naked women. She has been drugged and is very frightened. Things grow worse when two large figures in jumpsuits check on their captives. Mari refuses to cower, and demands to know why she has been treated this way. One of the males, who speak English, is both impressed and shocked because she shouldn’t be awake. The fact that Mari engages in conversation is an oddity because he thinks of her as an animal and a piece of meat that will be sold, much like cattle. Female human flesh is a delicacy and brings in a high price. Mari is appalled and disgusted by this cannibalism. She feels if she can become friendly with one of her captors, and make him see she isn’t a mindless animal meant for the dinner table, perhaps he will spare her.
Ekkatt Vom Barekah of Elae doesn’t know what to think of this specific type of livestock. His alien race doesn’t eat humans. When he tells his superior about Mari, the Chief is intrigued and wants to study her because it has been centuries since a human female has made problems. Mari will then be sold at a private auction because she is a rare specimen. Ekkatt has tender feeling for the human female even though these feelings or possible sexuality activity with a human is a sin against nature and a crime punishable by death. Ekkatt doesn’t want Mari to be sold and does something very illegal.
Against everything Ekkatt has been taught, he brings Mari to his home planet on Attun-Ra to hide her and keep her safe. He’s not sure what to do with Mari because he can’t return her to her home planet and she’s too smart to be his pet. Plus, his feelings for Mari are more elemental in nature where he wants her as a mate. At first Mari thought of Ekkatt as her enemy, but as she gets to know him and the length he has gone to in order to save her from death, her feelings for her former hunter and trapper has changed. She wants a future with him even though their relationship is taboo. Ekkatt tells Mari of time when the men of his planet once mated with human woman because of the lack of their native women. Rumors state that these Attun males, their women and offspring vanished and may live in secret. Because Ekkatt wants a future with Mari, he will try to find this place so they can build a life together.
Julia Barrett really takes some chances with Captured, her science fiction romance. Mainly, because Mari is thought of as food. Her eventual love interest, Ekkatt even thinks of her like that at first, as well as the belief she’s a mindless animal. This is a major hurdle, but because Mari is a strong, smart and quick thinking, she’s able to save her life and change Ekkatt’s opinion, who comes to many new conclusions because of the way Mari is able to stand up for herself.
It took me a while for Ekkatt to grow on me because he is the type who goes along with the status quo. As soon as Mari gets under his skin, that’s when he really makes an impression. He is a bit innocent in his thinking as he tries to understand Mari. He has always assumed things were one way. It takes the redheaded Mari to open his eyes. Ekkatt then must grapple with breaking the rules he lives by, as well as his growing feelings for a creature that goes against everything he’s been taught. Once he’s willing to embrace these feelings, his love for Mari is wonderful. Mari introduces him to new ways of loving such as mouth kissing and using her mouth to pleasure other body parts Ekkatt was never aware of before. These scenes smolder in their intensity.
Ekkatt and Mari’s quest for a Utopian society becomes a very important part of Captured and one that you hope they both find before a certain enemy comes upon them and destroys their new found happiness.
Captured has an almost erotic feel to it, and Ekkatt and Mari’s love for one another is very believable and emotional. Julia Barrett has written a nice sold romance.
Ekkatt Vom Barekah of Elae doesn’t know what to think of this specific type of livestock. His alien race doesn’t eat humans. When he tells his superior about Mari, the Chief is intrigued and wants to study her because it has been centuries since a human female has made problems. Mari will then be sold at a private auction because she is a rare specimen. Ekkatt has tender feeling for the human female even though these feelings or possible sexuality activity with a human is a sin against nature and a crime punishable by death. Ekkatt doesn’t want Mari to be sold and does something very illegal.
Against everything Ekkatt has been taught, he brings Mari to his home planet on Attun-Ra to hide her and keep her safe. He’s not sure what to do with Mari because he can’t return her to her home planet and she’s too smart to be his pet. Plus, his feelings for Mari are more elemental in nature where he wants her as a mate. At first Mari thought of Ekkatt as her enemy, but as she gets to know him and the length he has gone to in order to save her from death, her feelings for her former hunter and trapper has changed. She wants a future with him even though their relationship is taboo. Ekkatt tells Mari of time when the men of his planet once mated with human woman because of the lack of their native women. Rumors state that these Attun males, their women and offspring vanished and may live in secret. Because Ekkatt wants a future with Mari, he will try to find this place so they can build a life together.
Julia Barrett really takes some chances with Captured, her science fiction romance. Mainly, because Mari is thought of as food. Her eventual love interest, Ekkatt even thinks of her like that at first, as well as the belief she’s a mindless animal. This is a major hurdle, but because Mari is a strong, smart and quick thinking, she’s able to save her life and change Ekkatt’s opinion, who comes to many new conclusions because of the way Mari is able to stand up for herself.
It took me a while for Ekkatt to grow on me because he is the type who goes along with the status quo. As soon as Mari gets under his skin, that’s when he really makes an impression. He is a bit innocent in his thinking as he tries to understand Mari. He has always assumed things were one way. It takes the redheaded Mari to open his eyes. Ekkatt then must grapple with breaking the rules he lives by, as well as his growing feelings for a creature that goes against everything he’s been taught. Once he’s willing to embrace these feelings, his love for Mari is wonderful. Mari introduces him to new ways of loving such as mouth kissing and using her mouth to pleasure other body parts Ekkatt was never aware of before. These scenes smolder in their intensity.
Ekkatt and Mari’s quest for a Utopian society becomes a very important part of Captured and one that you hope they both find before a certain enemy comes upon them and destroys their new found happiness.
Captured has an almost erotic feel to it, and Ekkatt and Mari’s love for one another is very believable and emotional. Julia Barrett has written a nice sold romance.
January 30, 2010
First thing I have to say is: I so love science fiction! I really adore this genre with all those little techy things in the mix with great action and a bit of romance or even erotica. I always enjoy reading about the social problem in foreign societies as a mirror of our own- present or past. In my opinion, we grab these things better when we have a little distance to the ones that are accused. And isn't it a nice way when the accused are sexy big men with long silky blue-black hair and yellow feline eyes? Very nice way in my opinion.
The book starts a bit alarmingly. We wake up together with Mari in a room full of naked woman in cages, not only human ones but many different species, and two hunky men watching over them. First thing I thought was: OMG not the Stockholm syndrome again! But after that I thought: isn't it greedy to have a whole ship of sex-slaves? But as it shows it's not the way my dirty mind pictured it. The women aren't kidnapped to being raped, their even worse future is being sold on the meat market. Yep, you read that right! There are species enjoying nothing more than a human steak. So ick!!!! But okay, we need a bad party in this book. Even worse for me was the attitude of the "smugglers"(who are vegetarians by the way- love that part). They think humans are nothing more than animals without any feelings and higher cognitive functions. You feel charmed already?
So how does it work out that Mari fells in love with one of them? Ekkatt isn't like the most of his species. He sees from the first minute after Mari woke up on the ship that she is different than all the other women he has transported. She's brave and totally able to form coherent sentences and to argument with logic. Why is that so surprisingly for him? Because no women ever before woke up on a transport.
Mari is a real strong heroine. She doesn't cower even in her severe situation and tries to be brave enough to live through it all. Her will to live is unbreakable and she sees her chance in the handsome Ekkatt. She notices that he isn't convinced of her being a stupid animal. So she grabs all her wit and courage to make him free her or at least help her.
Ekkatt's character is unbelievable open for someone being raised in such a society. He is headstrong and has a pure moral attitude towards life no matter the species. As soon as he realizes what the authorities plan to do to Mari he has to do something to prevent this. This decision is a really big one and if someone catches him he will be punished by death. But nothing will sway him from this point.
These two have seriously chemistry going on and I'm again surprised that luckily the aliens fit us anatomically. LOL I enjoyed reading about these two. Their interactions are lovely and they are both so concerned for each others- that just melted my heart. The way Mari showed Ekkatt what kissing is was adorable. I loved that Ms. Barrett also include a language barrier between our couple. The way Mari described some words to Ekkatt was just hilarious.
As you may have noticed, I really liked this book but 2 things were a bit of a letdown for me. First, there was a revelation from Mari's near personal past I found a bit too much. I thought this(Sorry I can't say what) would influence her decisions differently but I can accept that as a minor fault. The bigger problem for me was the ending. It was kind of abrupt and I still had so many open questions. It was a bit unsatisfying to end this book at exactly this point. But I hope we will get a second book in this world that will hopefully answer my questions.
After all I recommend this book to all of you with at least a small interest in science fiction with the right amount of social struggles and a hot romance in the mix.
The book starts a bit alarmingly. We wake up together with Mari in a room full of naked woman in cages, not only human ones but many different species, and two hunky men watching over them. First thing I thought was: OMG not the Stockholm syndrome again! But after that I thought: isn't it greedy to have a whole ship of sex-slaves? But as it shows it's not the way my dirty mind pictured it. The women aren't kidnapped to being raped, their even worse future is being sold on the meat market. Yep, you read that right! There are species enjoying nothing more than a human steak. So ick!!!! But okay, we need a bad party in this book. Even worse for me was the attitude of the "smugglers"(who are vegetarians by the way- love that part). They think humans are nothing more than animals without any feelings and higher cognitive functions. You feel charmed already?
So how does it work out that Mari fells in love with one of them? Ekkatt isn't like the most of his species. He sees from the first minute after Mari woke up on the ship that she is different than all the other women he has transported. She's brave and totally able to form coherent sentences and to argument with logic. Why is that so surprisingly for him? Because no women ever before woke up on a transport.
Mari is a real strong heroine. She doesn't cower even in her severe situation and tries to be brave enough to live through it all. Her will to live is unbreakable and she sees her chance in the handsome Ekkatt. She notices that he isn't convinced of her being a stupid animal. So she grabs all her wit and courage to make him free her or at least help her.
Ekkatt's character is unbelievable open for someone being raised in such a society. He is headstrong and has a pure moral attitude towards life no matter the species. As soon as he realizes what the authorities plan to do to Mari he has to do something to prevent this. This decision is a really big one and if someone catches him he will be punished by death. But nothing will sway him from this point.
These two have seriously chemistry going on and I'm again surprised that luckily the aliens fit us anatomically. LOL I enjoyed reading about these two. Their interactions are lovely and they are both so concerned for each others- that just melted my heart. The way Mari showed Ekkatt what kissing is was adorable. I loved that Ms. Barrett also include a language barrier between our couple. The way Mari described some words to Ekkatt was just hilarious.
As you may have noticed, I really liked this book but 2 things were a bit of a letdown for me. First, there was a revelation from Mari's near personal past I found a bit too much. I thought this(Sorry I can't say what) would influence her decisions differently but I can accept that as a minor fault. The bigger problem for me was the ending. It was kind of abrupt and I still had so many open questions. It was a bit unsatisfying to end this book at exactly this point. But I hope we will get a second book in this world that will hopefully answer my questions.
After all I recommend this book to all of you with at least a small interest in science fiction with the right amount of social struggles and a hot romance in the mix.
March 24, 2018
I liked Ekkatt so I gave it 3 stars. Anyway, I thought the story was way less exciting than the sinopsis suggested. Also, I don’t like unnecessarily difficult heroines (it’s actually the thing I hate the most and an all too common device to create “tension”), but that doesn’t mean I like it when things are patched up so easily as if nothing happened, especially not in books (I get that movies are a bit time restricted so sometimes they get a pass). I’m a tolerant person and I don’t hold grudges but I think the heroine here was too unrealistically fast to forgive and forget.
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