Pearl's World of Romance - Reviews with a Passion: Enslave Me Sweetly

September 23, 2007

Enslave Me Sweetly - Gena Showalter

6:34 PM |

Eden Black walks among humans, protecting them from the murderous evil of other-worlders who abduct and enslave. And though she appears to be human herself, Eden is an alien, a Raka, distinguished by her golden hair and skin, and gifted with the ominous ability to kill without remorse -- and with total accuracy. That is, until the fateful night she has one shot to eliminate her target, a human slaver -- and misses.

"Failure" is not in Eden's vocabulary. Neither is "partner" -- but that's what she is forcibly assigned after recovering from her disastrous mission. A sexy, steely-nerved human agent, Lucius Adaire enjoys nothing more than sparking the fury -- and rousing the desire -- of the fiery female assassin too proud to admit defeat. Locked in an assignment they cannot afford to lose, Lucius and Eden find themselves bound in two high-stakes, heart-pounding games: the sensual web of kill or be killed, and the erotic dance of seduction.

Book 2 in the Alien Huntress-series can be read stand alone very well but I also understand why it’s connected to book 1. Showalter continues to pull you into a futuristic world that’s not only inhabited by humans but also by all sorts of otherworldly creatures like Rakas, Mecs, Morevvs (who happen to have a very special anatomic feature), Targons and many more.
This seems a lot to swallow but Showalter pours it all into a perfect mix of action-packed scenes and a fair amount of romance that you take it all in in one gulp. The plot at first seems a bit tame but then takes some unexpected and great turns keeping you intrigued to the very end.
And on top of that she creates heroins in this series you only wish you had half their courage and strength and not to mention some of their kicking ass-abilities.

Eden Black is one tough Raka, with nothing on her mind but her job: assassinating predatory other Otherworlders who break the earthly laws.
She is smart, cunning, strong, couragious and tough as nails with a sarcasm that cuts anyone off not strong enough to handle her. Oh...and did I mention she seriously kicks butt...There a quite a few action-filled fighting scenes in which she firmly stands her ground...
The hero Lucius, a human who is kind of a hitman for hire, unfortunately doesn’t really stand out in the book but I think this is because everything is viewed from Eden perspective, the book being written in first person. This causes Lucius to seem a less powerful character I suspect he actually is. Of course this is a logical consequence of books written in first person. The focus is mainly on the person through whom’s eyes you receive the story. It’s the reason I prefer books in third person but it’s a big plus for Showalter’s writing and storytelling abilities that I’ve enjoyed these books thoroughly inspite the form in which they were written.
Nonetheless, Lucius does a great job of teaching Eden that there’s more in life than the next target. And in the midst of all the inhuman, alien species it was nice to have a hot alpha human male.
The interactions between Eden and Lucius, be it combat-training, verbally fighting, seducing or otherwise are deliciously intense and witty. At first can't stand each other and attack each other with both fists and vicious sarcasm. But there is also immediate attraction, so the rejection soon changes to affection and even love.

Of the secondary characters I just loved Devyn (hope he’ll get his own book some day), the King of the planet Targon. He’s was tough, funny and endearing at the same time. Giving Eden a rough time but in the end proving to be a very honorable alien.

I know from Showalter’s website that Eden and Lucius will make an appearance in book 3 of the series and so will Mia (heroin from book 1) so I’m already looking forward to reading how everything will progress in this fascinating world of Alien Huntresses.

Quote:
Lucius: “Listen cookie,” he said, his voice rough, low as if his vocal cords had once been damaged. “The day I need you to save my ass is the day I’ll find me a new job. Maybe cloning flowers. Maybe walking robotic dogs. I’ll decide when the time comes.”

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