The Lasaran by Dianne Duvall

Sci fi romance 
Publication date: 04/21/2020
Kindle Unlimited: No
Cliffhanger: No

So, if you've checked out any of our Friday "best of" book lists you'll probably  notice the name Dianne Duvall there pretty often. I'm a HUGE fan of her paranormal romance Immortal Guardians series, and when I heard she was branching out into sci fi romance, I was beyond thrilled. Now that I've read her debut story in this new category of romance, I'm happy to report that I got exactly what I was expecting from this one: a thrilling, action-packed, sometimes funny romance that happens to include a hot dude from space.  

Plot overview: Our space hero, Taelon, travels to Earth in search of his sister, Ami, who went missing years before. He's promptly captured by the government and experimented on at the same time that human psychic, Lisa, is also being held against her will. Together, the escape and go out in search of Ami.

Trope bingo: This is a sci fi, slow-burn, space romance that includes a surprise pregnancy (not the kind you normally find in romances, either).  

I didn't know going in that this was the first book in a spin-off of the Immortal Guardians series. Ami is the heroine in one of my favorite books in that series, Night Reigns. But the beauty of this book is that if you've read the Immortal Guardians series, you'll be thrilled to see your favorite characters again, and if you haven't read it, you won't be lost. The author has done a great job of making this a book that can stand on its own. (Although I still recommend that you read the Immortal Guardians series because its AWESOME.) So, fans of paranormal romance will love it, and fans of sci fi romance will love it.

I liked the heroine, Lisa, because she was smart and kind-hearted, but the real star of this series for me was Taelon. He was a cinnamon roll hero of the HIGHEST order.  He was never anything but sweet and considerate towards Lisa. He's pretty much the antidote to all the manwhore, bully, alphaholes you find in romance these days.  Badass in a fight and hot in bed, but a real gentleman everywhere else. I liked him A LOT. 

Secondary characters here are all pretty awesome, too. That's something that this author does better than almost anyone else in Romancelandia. She creates secondary characters that don't take too much attention away from the main characters, but that are still so interesting that you can't WAIT to see what happens when they get their own stories. (Note to author: I'm absolutely DYING to read Eliana's story and find out more about those sexy space pirates. If these books could be published faster, I'd be super grateful. Please and thanks.) 

Some folks might complain about instalove. Did Taelon and Lisa fall for each other quickly? Yep. Do I care? Nope. This a man and woman who were tortured in a military facility. They developed a psychic bond to survive and saved each other's lives a few times over. It didn't really trip my bullshit meter too much when they fell in love quickly. The kind of crap they went through is bound to make you develop some intense feelings quicker than would be considered normal in, say, a contemporary romance or new adult romance. This is a story about psychics, immortals, and aliens. "Unrealistic" isn't something I'm terribly concerned with here. 

So, long-story-short, this is a sweet, sexy, space romance that I highly recommend (but read Immortal Guardians first. Trust me. You'll thank me later.)  

Does this book contribute to or help crush the romance stigma?
Dianne Duvall: Kicking the crap out of the romance stigma since 2011.