Review: One of the best Science Fiction Romances I've read in a LONG time
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 10 25, 2013
Sci-fi romance is a delicate mix of science fiction and romance. If the mix isn't done correctly, you may have more romance than sci-fi or more sci-fi than romance (meh, that's okay). BUT, when the right author comes along (in this case Cara Bristol) and synthesizes world-building, complex social structures, passion, and love...it is distilled in an amalgamation showing us the "true power" of science fiction romance - I love this genre so much because it has the capacity to transport us to new worlds, to challenge how we see people, other societies, and by holding a mirror to ourselves it allows us to explore our relationships and how love can change us (Whew, long sentence).Another reviewer mentioned Bristol's `courage of the storytelling'. YES! There were many times when I was reading (even in the beginning) when I wanted to turn away, it was uncomfortable for me to `see' this society, to be THERE! among the breeders, alphas, and betas, but I was compelled to read on to find out what was going to happen next. This is a violent world for women (on Parseon and on Earth) and Bristol doesn't soften it for readers or place things behind `closed doors'. When we are told this is the way things are, these are the rules of society (Protocol), how many us would question and fight for change? That question is the mirror I took away from this story. What made me uncomfortable in the beginning of the book was how complacent everyone was to these atrocities. And what compels a leader (an Alpha and on top of the hierarchy) to risk everything for change?Bristol holds a magnifying class to gender hierarchy distorting this society to grotesque proportions, yet simultaneously (and masterfully, I might add) building this `forbidden' relationship between Dak and Omra.Every thread in this story is tightly woven - there is not one scene (violent, erotic, or otherwise) or character that is unessential to plot or conflict - to build a tale that challenges the reader (and has personally changed me for the better)....and isn't THAT what good sci-fi romance is supposed to do? YES!