Blurb:
Two very different civilizations—one bathed in bright sunlight and the other veiled in shadow.
Bad decisions, declining resources, and a king on the brink of madness force Prince Varo Kutchif, third son of the royal family and a starship captain, to attempt the impossible: barter for Black Phospolrock, an energy source the mysterious Helkan Kingdom has in abundance. Varo opens a line of communication with Adlar, an intriguing Helkan who seems to reciprocate Varo’s interest. He hopes so, because if negotiations collapse, Varo has orders to attack.
The Helkans preside over a planet shrouded in perpetual darkness. Several species have tried to exploit its natural resources through trade with them, but all have failed. Adlar Mondur is the older brother to the Helkan ruler. An assassin of the highest order, he’ll do anything to protect his king and his people—including tracking down the Yesri prince who crash-lands on their planet, leaving an ugly scar across its untouched beauty.
Thus begins a journey where two men from disparate civilizations grow from enemies to lovers.
Excerpt:
"STARS-CURSED PLANET"
Snarling, Varo placed in his private bridge office, jerking his luxurious cowlarium-hide desk chair around, he flopped down. Long white-blond hair fell over his shoulder. Irritated, he shoved it out of the way. He should've braided it this morning, but he'd gotten up late.
He rested his chin on his knuckles and stared out the port window into the unrelieved darkness that was space, scowling. Planet Helkan what his focus-with its permanent, swirling cloud cover that ore times than not denied their in-depth scans.
Its classification was that of a Darkrealm planet. Thanks to the cloud cover playing peekaboo, only filtered light got through. As such, its ecosystem either didn't require much sunlight to live, or its flora photosynthesized nonvisible light. No one knew much about the planet's race since they didn't travel off-planet much. The ones who did were said to be reserved, unfriendly, and uncommunicative. Cold, even.
Author bio:
M.A. Church is a true Southern belle who spent many years in the elementary education sector. Now she spends her days lost in fantasy worlds, arguing with hardheaded aliens on far-off planets, herding her numerous shifters, or trying to tempt her country boys away from their fishing poles.
Going... going... going...GONE! Another grand-slam home run for M.A. Church!! In Enemy Hands rates right up there with her Harvest series which, in my opinion, is her best work.
I've read a lot of SciFi novels, not all of which were romance, and I have to say I've never read a story with this kind of plot. They were usually time travel or space battle. I really, really loved the plot. It's amazing. M.A. keeps you guessing on what's gonna happen next. It has more twists and turns than a bag of curly fries.
M.A.'s amazing depiction of Helkan makes me want to visit as much as I want to visit Pandora. To talk about the planet would require spoilers.
The main characters, although are enemies, are extremely complex and likable. It would be difficult to choose sides between Adlar, older brother of the king of Helkan, and Varo, prince of the planet Yesri. What happens when the two enemies come face to face? You'll just have to read In Enemy Hands to find out.
If anyone had the chance to read In Enemy Hands when it was being posted on her blog, even though it was really good, this is awesomely awesome.
I would love to give it a 100, but unfortunately, the scale only goes to 5, so 5 it is. After reading the reviews on Amazon and Barnes & Noble, I'd be surprised if readers didn't rush out and buy it.
Well done, M.A., very well done.
Buy links:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
DreamSpinner Press
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