Bramble's inaugural debut is equal parts steamy interstellar romance and sci-fi adventure, perfect for fans of Firefly and Ilona Andrews.
She’s got a ramshackle spaceship, a misfit crew, and a big problem with its sexy newest member…
Temperance Reed, banished from the wealthy and dangerous Fifteen Families, just wants to keep her crew together after their feckless captain ran off with the intern. But she’s drowning in debt and revolutionary new engine technology is about to make her beloved ship obsolete.
Enter Arcadio Escajeda. Second child of the terrifying Escajeda Family, he’s the thorn in Temper’s side as they’re sent off on a scouting mission on the backwater desert planet of Herschel 2. They throw sparks every time they meet but Temper’s suspicions of his ulterior motives only serve to fuel the flames between them.
Despite volcanic eruptions, secret cultists, and deadly galactic fighters, the greatest threat on this mission may be to Temper’s heart.
She’s got a ramshackle spaceship, a misfit crew, and a big problem with its sexy newest member…
Temperance Reed, banished from the wealthy and dangerous Fifteen Families, just wants to keep her crew together after their feckless captain ran off with the intern. But she’s drowning in debt and revolutionary new engine technology is about to make her beloved ship obsolete.
Enter Arcadio Escajeda. Second child of the terrifying Escajeda Family, he’s the thorn in Temper’s side as they’re sent off on a scouting mission on the backwater desert planet of Herschel 2. They throw sparks every time they meet but Temper’s suspicions of his ulterior motives only serve to fuel the flames between them.
Despite volcanic eruptions, secret cultists, and deadly galactic fighters, the greatest threat on this mission may be to Temper’s heart.
Title: Calamity (Uncharted Hearts #1)
Author: Constance Fay
Publisher: Bramble
Expected Publication Date: 11/14/23
Review:
Thank you to Bramble for providing me with an early copy of this book to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed her are my own.
Science fiction, romance, blasters, and spaceship fun! Temper is an outcast, thrown out of her family for being a traitor. She takes to scouting to make her way in the world. But when she agrees to a job for one of the Five families, she gets into more than she bargained for and learns family is not just those to who you are blood related.
I really enjoy a good science fiction book. A book where the world is built with reality in mind. Thrown in some fast paced action scenes and a hot romance and you've got yourself a fun filled story. I love the world Fay has built with the families who rule. It reminded me of the mafia: think Godfather. But the families are not the only ones who can come out on top. Give me a rag tag group of misfits who can fight their way to the top, even with all the sticky predicaments they get into, and you've reeled me right in. Think Spaceballs, but in a book!
Temeperance is a prickly sort. She's no nonsense and doesn't seem to care what others think of her. She's worried about her crew and making sure they survive. Sometimes to the detriment of herself. I like her selflessness, though at times I wanted to bonk her in the head. She put herself in so many situations where she was sure to die but got lucky on more than one occasion. Arcadio was a nice character but I really didn't feel like I knew him. We see him through Temper's eyes, so of course he's this hot guy who she just cannot believe would be interested in her. But I didn't get as much of his personality as I would have liked. Frederick is someone I know we'll see in the future. He appears as a total jerk, who just could not possibly be redeemable. But I feel like I'll see more of him in future books of this series and my mind may change. Overall, I wish I could have gotten more fleshed out characters in this book. Having the story told from just Temper's POV limited that a bit for me.
The romance was a fast burn. It was a little too fast for me, to be honest. I needed more connection with the characters. It's not insta-love, perse, but it straddles that line. The MMC is too easily won over by Temper and I just didn't feel like it was totally really. But the sexy scenes, which I honestly wasn't totally expecting, were smexy and gave good fodder.
The pacing was good. It leant to a quick read. I wanted to see exactly where the book would go. But I did figure out early on there was no way this story would totally play out in this book. I'm interested to see what future books in this series bring.
For an author and her first full length book, I found this one truly enjoyable. It was witty and charming. I loved how the FMC spoke directly to the reader, as if she were sitting right in front of you telling her story. I rather enjoyed it.
I will say I did get lost in some of the action scenes. They seemed to be a little all over the place for me. Describing so much I was left wondering what exactly I was supposed to be seeing.
If you're looking for a fun, outer space adventure with some hot romance and characters who will win you over, pick this one up and give it a go!
Author:
Constance Fay writes space romance novels and genre fiction short stories. Her short fiction can be found in the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, Catscast podcast, and other publications. She has a background in medical device R&D and lives in Colorado with a cat who edits all her work first.
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