The Choosing (The Pruxnae #2)

Loved this story though at times it was a bit slow at least in the beginning. I have to say though that once the pace quickens it gets fast and furious. Ziri is a great character. She is strong and yet very vulnerable and sweet. She is able to adapt to her fast changing life when she is kidnapped from her home world of Tersi and finds herself being flown across the galaxy to another place by one very large and apparently very sweet and determined alien, Ryn of the Pruxnae. He is unable to communicate with her in the beginning and that alone is a major hurtle in his attempts to teach her about what is in store for her when they reach his home world. He is determined to teach the operation of his ship and to train her to fight. Now that would make me a little uneasy to say the least. I think the authors idea to have the female kidnapped is interesting but what I really thought was brilliant was the idea that while she is kidnapped to be a bride to the Pruxnae she still has a chance to decide who will be her mate. What I thought was beyond brilliant was that in order to make that choice she had to fight for the male of her choice with his family to reach him on the day of choosing. I mean we are talking and all out physical battle to claim a mate after being taken against your will. It\’s a brilliant concept and the story she weaves to bring the abductee to that point is great. I think you will really like this one.

OK, I hemmed and hawed before getting this book. I really enjoy a GOOD story like this if it is a GOOD one. And this one didn\’t disappoint. I say that because I have read a few with a similar story about a woman being kidnapped by an alien to be his bride. So many of those that I have read have been disappointing to me. The reason is because it was more like it was sex with a story written around it. Not this one, although there will be sex later on in the book, it was not overboard detailed. It had a good story with main characters I connected with and good secondary people as well. I thought the world building and culture was pretty good too. There was romance, friendships and evil aliens as expected too. The \” Sweepers\” were well drawn, creepy and lethal. The fight scenes were good in this book, and not just with the Sweepers. Plenty of action for those wanting that as well. The Choosing event and things leading up to it were different and I didn\’t know exactly what to expect. I think one of the things that made this book even more likable to me was the sweetness that Ryn showed at times towards Ziri. Oh yeah and the cuddling. Also that he wasn\’t afraid to let her use some of her strengths as long as they didn\’t help her escape him. The emotions in the book came through really well. Even as a friendship between Ziri and Ryn starts to develop, the insecurities and fears were able to understand clearly. I liked Ryn\’s second family and how loving his family was. There is an excerpt of another book in the series called, \”Alien Mine\”. On a side note, I wonder if there will be a book about Ryn\’s sister, Tyelu in the future?

It is the way of his adopted people to pay a bride price and kidnap the female of your choice from other planets. Then it\’s up to the female to decide if you are the man for her by fighting for you at the Choosing. This is the basis for the story, The Choosing. Ry has been working hard to save up the standard bride price, taking every hard job he could find all while building a home and a flock to support the family he\’s always dreamed of. Ziri has always wanted a husband who loves her and children to care for. It took her a while, but she finally found a job at a bookstore that makes her happy, but she still longs for love. Ryn has been spying on Ziri for a while and decides that she will make a fine mate. He kidnaps her, transports to his ship, and then he has to convince Ziri that he is the man for her. What was to be a slow journey back to his home turns into an adventure of a lifetime. Can Ryn show Ziri how good it can be? Can he protect her and provide for her? Will she ever forgive him for kidnapping her and taking her away from the only life she\’s ever known? This story is so well thought out, I feel like I understand exactly how Ziri feels. But I can also emphasize with Ryn, and that\’s the very real dilemma. Wonderful storytelling and deep characters make for a satisfying HEA. Can\’t recommend this author enough. This is my first time reading the work of this author but it definitely won\’t be the last.

This is the second book in the Pruxnae series and I am loving this series! The installment follows the character Ryn amid Alna as he chooses his bride to be from the planet of Tersi. Usually I am not a fan of stories that include bride stealing but in this story the women are revered and given a choice in the end, a limited one, but still a choice. That is enough to pacify me, ha ha ha. This is a romance but it is entrenched in the science fiction genre and it has all the right elements. Aliens, life aboard a space craft, space travel, and world building. I enjoyed the characters of Ryn and Ziri, they both have their strengths and weaknesses and I loved watching them create a relationship in such strenuous circumstances. The antagonists of this series, the Sweepers, were seriously nasty alien creatures and that was awesome! The romance was sweet on Ryns end. He was a great character and give me more of him. Ziris character was captured so she spent most of her time fighting her attraction but she got to be a bit annoying. She spent more time than I would have thought trying to decide if she could love him. He was amazing, considerate, and sincereI know I could love him, lol. I did enjoy this story even if some elements feel a bit flat for me. I am eagerly looking forward to the next book in this series and I cant wait to see where things go with the Pruxnae race. Maybe we will finally learn why women are in such short supply.

I really liked this. I liked the sic-fi element and, call it silly, but the way that the \’bad guy\’ aliens weren\’t some type of reptilian species, as I find is the case in a lot of books I read. Not that that\’s a bad thing, just that this was a refreshing change. But what I like the most was the slow burning romance. I enjoyed the way that the characters got to know each other and developed an easy-going relationship before they actually did anything overtly sexual. I liked how Ziri didn\’t instantly forgive the loss of her life on her home planet, and also how she was unsure of her feelings despite how I, as the reader, wanted it to go. It just made it more realistic to me, as much as a sic-fi fantasy can be. And I like Ryn character as much as I liked Ziri\’s. He was sweet without being too soft. And manly without being too aggressive. His personality made him an attractive character without needing the description of how handsome he was. All-in-all, I found this to be a good read. Not too long and not too short. The scenes were descriptive but didn\’t go into so much detail that it got old. And the love was a sweet, slow burn that blossomed into something realistic and warm to read.

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