A few months back, I was doing some research on a literary contest I was looking to enter. It was my first writing contest and I was a bit hesitant, but I was curious to see how the first 5000 words of my urban fantasy WIP would be received by a group of judges. It is scary to send your baby out there, especially before it is complete. Heck, it’s scary even once it’s complete and ready to be sold.
The point is, I wondered who the winners were for the previous year and whether or not they’d published those stories. I looked up the three finalists in the Paranormal/UF/SFR/FR category. Out of all three, only one really caught my attention: E J Frost. As I read through her blog and learned about her books, I felt compelled to pick up one of her novels. What drew me to Snowburn was the fact that it was a sci-fi romance. I’d never actually read that subgenre of romance, but I knew I liked sci-fi in general. Plus, I’d recently finished reading Morning Star by Pierce Brown, the 3rd book in his sci-fi Red Rising series and was on a serious book hangover. (I need a whole new post dedicated just to the Red Rising saga. We’ll go back to that at some point.)
Anyway, I was thrilled to have found a mashup between two of my favorite genres, so I set out on my quest to discover this new author and purchased the book.
Snowburn begins a far-future, sci-fi/romance series set on the Deep Frontier.
Blurb
I’m the biggest monster on the planet.
Hale Hauser is a Company killer. Perfectly engineered, highly trained, superbly effective. But when ordered to assassinate his own kind, Hale rebels, and the Company buries him in a hole so deep that no one has ever escaped.
After escaping, Hale hides on Kuseros, a backwater Colony on the Deep Frontier. He begins a new life as Sandringham Snow, pilot and smuggler. Hired by Kez, a local runner, to retrieve a box of black-market glands, Hale follows her through the maze of strange loyalties and twisted customs of Kuseros’ underground gangs. In payment, he takes the one thing only a woman can give him, and discovers the one thing his new life is missing.
But Kez has a secret, which will threaten them both. To protect her, Hale must unleash the monster. Can he control the killer inside long enough to discover the truth before it destroys them? Or will he lose everything just as he’s found it?
—
I loved Snowburn from beginning to end. It was fascinating on many different levels. First, most romances I’ve read have been from the female point of view. This was told strictly from Hale’s point of view, and what was most interesting was that while some authors might struggle writing first person from the opposite sex, Ms. Frost expertly teased out Hale’s personality and flawlessly brought forth his voice.
The writing was edgy and dark. This is not your typical roses and champagne type of romance. Nope. This was gritty and dirty, extremely sexy and scorching hot. While romance was at the core, there was so much story, you could easily forget you were reading a romance novel. The book is replete with expansive world building, tons of awesome geeky talk, and loads of interesting characters.
Unfortunately, the sequel to Snowburn is not out yet, but thankfully E J Frost had another book out to hold me over. Neon Blue is the first book in her fantasy series.
Blurb
My name is Tsara Elizabeth Faa, and I have a demon problem. A very serious demon problem. My ex-best friend has summoned an incubus, and left me to deal with him. Now he’s after my soul.
Thing is, the more time I spend with him, the more I want to give it to him.
—
I love a well-crafted supernatural romance and this one had me reading until the wee hours of the night. It is a serious page-turner. I’ve read the typical vampire, werewolf, and fae romance books, but this was something completely different. Reading about a sexy demon had me feeling a bit naughty, all while still having fun laughs. Tsara and Jou are crazy entertaining, endearing at times (yes, even demons have a sweet side it seems) and oh boy, the sex is wicked hot. I’m dying for the second book Blood Yellow, but that one is not yet released—which is a real bummer 🙁 I need answers!
I’ve enjoyed getting to know E J Frost, her books, and her writing style. I can’t rave enough about it. I am so happy I stumbled upon her work and am anxiously waiting for the sequels to her books.
If you’re interested in learning more about this author and her work, visit her website and follow her on social media.
Website: http://www.ejfrost.co.uk/
Blog: http://ejfrostuk.livejournal.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ejfrostuk
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ejfrostuk