BLACK STAR PRINCESS - Marteeka Karland

Black Star, Book 1

Changeling Press - www.changelingpress.com

ISBN (10): 1-59596-472-X

ISBN (13): 978-1-59596-472-4

January 2007

Erotic Sci-Fi Romance

The Vok’nair Empire and Asalian Coalition in Space - The Future

Nadira Greyson has studied for years to be given the opportunity to pilot a ship for the Vok’nair Empire. When she gets the position on the Black Star, a cyborg vessel, there are some that don’t approve. Captain Hom Barnus and others on the ship give Nadira the nickname Black Star Princess. Without her bodyguard, the second-in-command on the ship, Damon Singh, Nadira would be facing even more trouble from the others than she already is. But when an altercation with Asalian Slavers results in the Black Star losing a skirmish, Nadira faces a fate more precarious than anything she’s known so far. The commander of the Asalian Slavers and the Sword Breaker, Mikiel Anjoom, decides that Nadira could prove useful to him. Nadira is scared beyond belief; after all, it’s well known that the Empire never goes after anyone who fails them, and allowing the Black Star to be captured would certainly qualify as a huge failure.

Mikiel Anjoom is very impressed by the flying skills the pilot of the Black Star possesses. In fact, had there not been some connection made between his cyborg ship, the Sword Breaker, and the Black Star during the battle, Mikiel would have let the Black Star go to fight another day. The pilot has already destroyed one of his squadron’s ships, and there’s only so much acceptable risk. When he forces a meeting with the leadership of the Black Star, Mikiel is intrigued by Nadira. Not only is she an extremely talented pilot, she’s also strikingly attractive. Surely her talents could be put to better use by his people as a cyborg ship’s pilot. In fact, the Sword Breaker has not yet formed a bond with anyone and Nadira could be just the pilot it needs. Mikiel will just ignore the physical attraction he feels for Nadira, after all, he has many women available whenever he wants them and she’s much too innocent to be able to please an experienced man like himself.

It doesn’t take long for the sparks to start flying between Nadira and Mikiel. Can a loyal subject of the Vok’nair Empire and a man who was once held captive by that very same Empire find enough in common to build a future together?

BLACK STAR PRINCESS is a superb sci-fi read! With twists and turns you won’t see coming, and enough sexual heat to warm deep space, Marteeka Karland has created another great series. Nadira is basically an innocent, as the years of study to become a pilot precluded learning much about the opposite sex or having any real interactions with them. The feelings that Mikiel inspires are both disturbing and pleasurable. Mikiel finds the chemistry between him and Nadira to be a real pain in the butt. It’s imperative that Sword Breaker bond with a pilot soon and distracting Nadira in any way from her efforts to connect with the ship is simply unacceptable. Maybe once the bond is formed they could get to know one another better. Now he just has to resist the innocent temptress.

Nadira’s bodyguard, Damon Singh, is an interesting character. Protective and annoyed to no end that he’s forced to hand Nadira over to Mikiel, this is a man to be reckoned with as he won’t fade quietly into the woodwork. The other important secondary characters are the Black Star and the Sword Breaker. The existence of cyborg ships that are capable of having desires of their own and deciding who they’re going to bond with is a fascinating premise. There are surprises aplenty as the personalities of these ships come out.

I’ve never been disappointed by the imaginative Ms. Karland and the start to her new Black Star series is no exception. If you’re looking for a hot sci-fi read with a plot full of surprises, look no further. Stop by Changeling Press today and get your copy of BLACK STAR PRINCESS.

Lori Ann