Book Review: Razor's Traitorous Heart (The Alliance #2) by S.E. Smith

Razor's Traitorous Heart (The Alliance #2)
by S.E. Smith

Paperback, 310 pages
Published June 12th 2014 by CreateSpace
Kali Parks is a shadow in the war between two factions that are fighting to gain control of Chicago. Born and raised on the streets, she stands as a silent sentinel at her brother’s side as he battles to gain control. She will do whatever it takes to bring peace to those she has pledged her life to protect, including fighting against the creatures that came to their world almost six years before.

Razor, a councilman for the Alliance, has been sent to oversee the remaining Trivator troops on Earth and make sure the transition for the induction of Earth into the Alliance goes smoothly. He is the one the Alliance calls when they have a situation that needs to be resolved once and for all. His reputation for dealing with difficult rebels is renowned. He asks no questions and takes no prisoners. His job is to eliminate all threats to the Alliance.

He finds himself torn between duty and something he is unfamiliar with, his heart. When a shadow warrior saves his life and disappears, he discovers his world is no longer as cut and dry as he thought. The more he learns, the more he discovers he is not immune to the warrior’s passionate desire to fight to protect her people.

Forced by duty to settle the conflict, he must decide between the Alliance and his own desire to claim the unwilling warrior. When the conflict escalates, he does the only thing he can; he makes a pact with one of the factions in exchange for a prize that will surely cause a battle of a different kind – the one for his traitorous heart.

Will he be able to claim her before she escapes from him again? Or worse, will she sacrifice her life to protect those she loves before he can?

Razor's Traitorous Heart is book two in The Alliance series. In this installment we are introduced to and follow the story of Razor, a brutal Trivator Alliance councilmen, and Kali, the sister and head of security for her brother, the leader of one of the rebel Earth factions in Chicago. On route to one of the final areas of conflict in Chicago, Razor's transport vehicle is shot down. Kali being in the immediate area jumps right on in to see if there are any survivors not realizing one is an alien until she is already there. She makes the decision to rescue Razor anyway and off we go.

This second installment in the series and once again it does not have some of the world building or back-story this reader is hungry for including answers about what the Alliance really is and what prompts them to determine that Earth needs to be brought under the control of the Alliance. However the story is well written and there is a little more action to get the readers blood pumping that is wonderfully written and great fun. 

The story focuses on the primary characters' romance with some new twists and turns revealing treachery, greed, as well as brutality and heartache. The ending events of book one do become intertwined with this telling so the reader is not left hanging with unresolved questions and this flows well into the telling of this tale with the ending very satisfying. 

While there is a little more meat to this tale than was served up with book one, Hunter's Claim, once again it is more romance with a scifi bent and the story's primary focus is on the interaction between the two primary characters, their budding relationship, and struggles. The story continues to meet the needs of readers hunger for sensual story driven smexy, which is also well done. 

Overall I enjoyed Razor's Traitorous Heart and continue to look forward future installments and reading the peripheral character's stories. I also have hope that eventually my questions regarding the Alliance and Earth as we have been introduced to it will be answered. I would recommend this book to romance fans that enjoy a bit of a scifi twist to the tale and some sensual smexy going on. I received this book with a request for my honest review without any compensation whatsoever, other than the joy of reading a new book.

review: Hunter's Claim (The Alliance #1)

4 Sheep

DeniseZ

About the Author:
Website-Facebook-Twitter
Goodreads-Newsletter
S. E. Smith is a USA Today Best Selling Author and has been ranked in the top 100 Authors on Amazon with 12 books at one time in Amazon's Top 100 Best Sellers in multiple genres. A prolific author with books in science fiction romance and fantasy romance, her books are full of action and adventure and focuses on the relationships and the unusual situations her characters find themselves. Susan invites you to come take a journey to romance that takes you to new worlds.

Book Review: Hunter's Claim (The Alliance #1) by S.E. Smith

Hunter's Claim (The Alliance #1)
by S.E. Smithebook, 236 pages
Published January 10th 2014 
Jesse Sampson and her two younger sisters have lived a hard life on the streets of Seattle, Washington for the past several years.

Four years before, the Earth received its first visitors from space causing mass fear.

Alone in a world gone mad with just her sisters, she has learned to use the darkness and the remains of the city to survive and keep what was left of her family alive. She has seen the savage side of human nature and finds they are not much different from the aliens who conquered Earth.

The Trivators have taken control of Earth to prevent the humans from destroying it in their fear.

A world of warriors, they are sent out by the Alliance of Star Systems to seek out new worlds. Their mission is first contact. They are to establish communications with the leaders of the new worlds they find and bring them into the Alliance.

Any resistance is to be quickly subdued to prevent unnecessary death of the inhabitants of the new worlds they find. Their payment comes from the success of their mission.

Hunter is what he is called. A hunter, one of the elite clans of the Trivators who seek out those who resist. His abilities to track, capture and eliminate those who try to harm any warrior is renowned.

He finds the tables turned when he becomes the one captured by a group of ruthless humans. Hunter is shocked when a strange human female risks her life to help him escape only to disappear into the ruins of the city.

He now has a new mission, finding the female who saved his life. He is determined to find her before she is damaged by others of her kind.

What he finds is a reward beyond comprehension to a Trivator warrior, a family.

Can he convince Jesse that he can give her and her younger sisters a better life on his world? Or will fear keep her from accepting what he has to offer?

Amazon-B&N-Kobo-Smashwords

Book Trailer

Hunter's Claim is the first installment in The Alliance, a new syfy / romance series. We are introduced to Jesse who is struggling to keep her sisters and herself alive in the face of raging apocalyptic devastation following the arrival of Trivator forces who have taken over control of the Earth. On a scouting run for food and supplies Jesse stumbles upon a hiding place that is subsequently breached by humans who happen to have an alien captive; Hunter. On hearing their plans for Hunter from her hiding space Jesse cannot stand by and not help him and off we go - the adventure begins.

We are introduced to some of the different cultural norms for the Trivator race, but there is not really a lot of world building going on as far as why all of the events unfolding occur, which for this reader kept this book from being a five sheep read. The writing is comfortable and entertaining with some really great characters even though the story is more like an installment focusing on specific characters in a long running series rather than a first book that introduces the reader to this world at the time of the events. I found myself crying at the moments of tragedy, grinning at the humor, and overall this is a great little story. While Hunter's Claim is not really a deep read or syfy experience, other than the twist of the alien characters and invasion of the Earth, it is an enjoyable tale of romance with a new little twist. There is also some sensual smexy going on that is story driven and well done for those who enjoy a little heat.

Overall I enjoyed the story and look forward to finding out more about the world as the saga unfolds, as well as reading the stories of the various adventures of the primary characters we have been introduced to including Jesse's sisters and their corresponding warrior adventures. I would recommend Hunter's Claim to those who enjoy a lighter romance with a bit of adventure, as well as a syfy twist thrown in the mix. I received this book with a request for my honest review without any compensation whatsoever, other than the joy of reading a new book.

4 sweet romantic sheep

DeniseZ

About the Author:
Website-Facebook-Twitter
Goodreads-Newsletter
S. E. Smith is a USA Today Best Selling Author and has been ranked in the top 100 Authors on Amazon with 12 books at one time in Amazon's Top 100 Best Sellers in multiple genres. A prolific author with books in science fiction romance and fantasy romance, her books are full of action and adventure and focuses on the relationships and the unusual situations her characters find themselves. Susan invites you to come take a journey to romance that takes you to new worlds.