When Intergalactic Navy Captain Nathaniel Hawkins goes undercover to investigate the theft of an IN weapons stash, the mission raises painful memories from his past. Using a title he fled nearly two decades earlier, Nate once again becomes the earl of Deverell, heir to the duke of Hawthorne, in order to navigate the ins and outs of a Regency world. But planet Regelence - where young lords are supposed to remain pure until marriage - has a few surprises for Nate, not the least of which is his attraction to Prince Aiden.
A talented artist, Prince Aiden Townsend isn't interested in politics and the machinations of society gentlemen, and he adamantly rejects the idea of marriage and a consort. Aiden wants the freedom to pursue his art and determine his own future. But the arrival of the dashing and mysterious Deverell awakens feelings of passion and longing the young prince can't deny.
As Nate uncovers a conspiracy reaching far beyond the stolen weapons, his future is irrevocably altered by the temptations of a life he never thought he could have. Drawn into the web of intrigue, Aiden is in danger of losing his life...and his heart.
First Edition published by Samhain Publishing Ltd., June 2007
Narrator: Joseph Morton
Listening Length: 8 hours and 21 minutes
Well if that wasn’t a tasty morsel, I don’t know what is!
I’m not sure if I would’ve necessarily immediately picked this up to read, but given the opportunity to listen to the audio of the newly released revised edition, this was quite the best way to get my feet wet because I ended up really really liking this futuristic sci-fi novel with quasi-historic undertones. Confused yet? Don't be. This world is in a galaxy far far away and branches of societies have deemed over many generations as to how they want their culture to be. Here in this realm, it’s Regency values.
As per the blurb, military man Nathaniel Hawkins, is tasked to go undercover to find a missing stash of weapons. Nate’s forced to resume his former identity of heir to a dukedom so he can re-enter society on the planet Regelence. There, Nate is the honored guest of king Steven, his consort Raleigh, and their 5 sons. One son in particular distractingly catches Nate’s eye, and he can hardly contain himself as he quickly falls for the young spirited Aiden, in and amongst trying to solve a crime.
For audio enthusiasts, be forwarded that if you want a production, you're not going to get it here. Joseph Morton does a straightforward narration with no character distinction, and though I felt his overall performance was decent, I had to pay really really close attention where multiple rewinds slowed me down, so much so I bought the book to supplement my listen. I think these days as audios are gaining more and more popular momentum, one with varied voices is what’s mostly desired and expected, and unfortunately this did not have that. As always, my motto is to sample hard before buying to minimize those pesky surprises and disappointments.
So obviously, this was a win for me. I love sci-fi, I love space operas, I love military and espionage. This too, had all the historical elements of propriety and subverting the rules that I like but none of the anxiety of being in the closet because on Regelence, society is paternalistic and genetically manipulated for all the MM goodness. I just went with this interesting fantastical setup and enjoyed myself immensely. Throw in some fun funny mostly involving Nate’s adopted son Trouble, plus the prospect of the other princes’ potential love connections, and it also doesn’t hurt one bit at all that this had an abundance of hot sexual tension as well as some very very nice smexy! Uh huh.
Granted, this didn't conclude with a definitive wrap up to the main mystery so that may irk some readers. However, because of the above reasons, no doubt I’ll be delving into book 2 soon!!
Thank you to the author/publisher for the audio in exchange for an honest review.
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