Publisher: Carina Press
Publish Date: May 9th
How I got this book: NetGalley
Falling in love is easy; staying alive long enough to enjoy it just might be impossible.
Javan Rhodes, the hard-drinking, disreputable captain of space freighter The Kypris, took a mission to save himself from hitting the bottom of the food chain. Transporting Sola, a beautiful young aristocrat, from Earth to an unknown destination on the outer rim of the colonies is lucrative, but also highly illegal.
As tough as it is to evade both the law and the lawless, the hardest part of the job is not falling in love with his irresistible cargo. Just as he decides that he will never be able to hand her over to the warlord she must marry, he discovers that Sola has been playing a very dangerous game—one that could not only cost them their lives, but could also affect the balance of power in an increasingly dangerous universe.
*Blurb from Goodreads*
It’s no secret that I love a good Sci Fi Romance, especially one set in space with epic battles and fun plot twists. When I saw new author Diane Dooley’s new release, I knew I had to get it. While I wasn’t absolutely blown away, I was pretty impressed by this debut book.
Captain Rhodes is looking to forward to his newest mission, taking one of the Earth’s equivalent of royalty and transport her to a far unknown location. His only rule is to not ask questions, and after one look at Sola, Rhodes knows he is going to have a hard time keeping him hands to himself, as well as his questions.
As the two set off on a journey to the outer worlds, they begin to care deeply for each other, but when Sola reveals her big secret, they two have much bigger problems then their mutual desire for each other. Next thing they know they are being hunted far and wide. When everything is finally laid out on the table, will they be able to move past their many obstacles and just be together?
There were a lot of things I enjoyed about this book, mainly the world building. I really liked the differences in social class, and how both Rhodes and Sola dealt with the issues surrounding them. The conflict within the world itself, especially surrounding The Dictator and the quest for absolute power was fun and exciting to read about. While the plot seemed to drag in certain places, other times it would pick up and run, taking me on a journey I’ll never forget.
At first the romance between Rhodes and Sola didn’t work for me, mainly because Rhodes fell instantly “in love” with Sola, and usually that is just one of those things that irks me. However, as the romance progressed I did find myself enjoying it more, getting pulled into the passion between them. Plus, when Sola reveals her big secret, I liked the way Rhodes handled it, especially given the severity of her deception.
One of my favorite part of Sci Fi Romance books is that the plot is constantly twisting and turning, things are never exactly as they seem, and sometimes the bad guys are really good. Blue Galaxy has some great twists that I didn’t seem coming, and totally loved. While the blurb hints that there is more going on with Sola than meets the eye, I was completely stunned at her revelation. It was fun and unexpected and a great turning point in the story.
More and more I’m seeing short stories without chapters, and while I might be the only one, it really kinda bugs me when they are left out. While the lack of chapters doesn’t exactly take anything away from the story, it’s just weird… Blue Galaxy is shorter, only about 60 pages or so, but the story itself is told in a great way, wraps up everything nicely and left me wanting more. I do hope that Dooley will continue to write in the genre: her style is engaging, her voice is fun and her world is exciting.
All in all, I give Blue Galaxy a B-