Hey ForeverBookers,
How are you all today? I hope you’re well!
Last night I finished “Barbarian Lover” by Ruby Dixon, which I freaking ADORED! It’s perhaps my second favourite read of the year so far! It was soooooooo good.
5 STARS!
We’re back with our lovable aliens again, in this third book in the “Ice Planet Barbarians” series. This time we’re following Kira and Aehako! I really didn’t like Kira before I read her book, but now I love her. She’s like me in looks and personality. She’s quiet but stands up when she needs to! Aehako is my second favourite alien, if not my first. He’s kind and sees the humans as friends before anything else. Kira needs to get rid of a hearing device or communicator, as it’s called in the series. It’s connected to the Little Green Men aliens that put the women on Non-Hoth. She doesn’t want to be the reason they come back to get them, so she goes on a quest to remove it. Aehako, of course goes with her. As well as Harlow and Haeden. That’s the main plot point of the book - Kira finding who she truly is or was meant to be.
Kira has her issues, as she can’t have children. This series is about populating Non-Hoth, the planet on which the male aliens lived without many females before the first book, “Ice Planet Barbarians.” If Kira can’t procreate as she fears she can’t, does this mean the aliens will get rid of her? This fear takes up a good portion of the first part of the book. It’s only when Aehako gets beneath her layers that we see her true self emerge. I loved this. I love it when the main female character has issues to overcome and the romantic lead helps her to do so. Both Georgie and Liz, our female protagonists from the preceding two books are pregnant in Barbarian Lover, so that just adds pressure to Kira to do the same! Can she get pregnant some way?
I really like how these books have both the female and the male POV. It’s nice to see the same events from both sides.
I read Barbarian Lover for one readathon.
Reading Rivalry - Mean Girls - I’m a cool Mom - the plot revolves around having children!
Spoilers Below
“So, yeah. Josie hasn’t said, but she’s scared that someone’s going to figure out that she has an IUD and can’t get pregnant, and she doesn’t know how they’ll react. I can’t really blame her for trying to integrate herself.”
I say nothing. Josie has been working herself to the bone, learning how to tan, and weave, and everything else she can think of. I thought she just had nervous energy to channel. God. I truly am clueless. Of course she’s scared. We all are.
These alien men are interested in us because of what we represent. We’re wombs. We’re the chance for family. If we can’t give them that . . . at what point so they stop feeding us? Stop housing us?
Suddenly, the walls of the cave feel very narrow and enclosing. I breathe hard. “I . . . think I need to take a walk,” I tell Megan. I have to get out of here. I’m starting to feel trapped again. The walls feel as if they’re closing in on me. Have we traded one captivity for another?
What are they going to do when they find out I’m sterile? That when my appendix burst as a child, it infected my ovaries and I won’t ever have children?
What will happen to me then?”
This is significant because at the beginning of the book Kira is worried that she will be gotten rid of because as I said above, she can’t get pregnant. She had appendicitis as a child and lost the ability to have children then, or so she thinks anyway! Josie has an IUD, so will she be able to get pregnant in her book? You’ll need to read for yourself! I don’t know yet, either.
Kira doesn’t know what will happen to her when the alien males realise she won’t ever resonate for another male alien, as Georgie and Liz have done. Resonating is how the aliens know the time is right to procreate with their females. Will they get rid of her? Or kill her? Kira feels as if the walls are “closing in” around her, and that she doesn’t have long left! Kira is logical in that she thinks very literally. She thinks the women are just ‘wombs’ to the men, and that when they have what they want they’ll be gotten rid of. Is this the case? Georgie and Liz are currently pregnant so we don’t know what’s happened to a human woman that’s a mother yet! What will happen to her, when the men find out that she CAN’T have babies?
Aehako, our male lead is a fun, loud character. Unlike Raahosh or Vektal who were both rather broody with their females, he’s all about having fun and not caring about things until they happen. He’s concerned about Kira from his first line, though.
“I see Kira’s small form hurry out of the caves, and I automatically follow her, a predator stalking its prey.
She’s fascinated me since the beginning, this Kira. Ever since we rescued them from the black cave they were hiding in, I have been drawn to the human with the melancholy eyes and the strange device protruding from her ear. I thought perhaps that i would resonate to her, but my khui remains silent.
My cock, however, pays attention when she’s around. It comes to life when she brushes a lock of brown hair behind her small, perfect unadorned ear. It twitches in response when she gives one of her rare smiles to the other human women. And when she flushes and hurries away from me? It ignites the predator inside me.
I want to find her and grip her against me. Push her into the snow and fuck her until my name is on her lips.
But she resists me. It’s the human way, perhaps. I’ve made it quite clear I’m interested in this particular human, but she ignores my attempts to get her attention.”
This comes across as aggressive, as he refers to himself as a “predator stalking its prey,” but as we get to know Aehako, we learn just how soft and loving he can be, especially to Kira. He obviously loved her from the first moment he saw her. She “fascinated” him and he can’t get her out of his head. When he looks at her and sees her smile it makes him come alive, sexually. All he can think of is loving her physically but she ignores him, every chance she gets. She doesn’t want to trap him into a relationship because doesn’t want him to regret being with her and not having children.
The main plot, I’d say of Barbarian lover is Kira wanting or needing, should I say, the communicator device out of her ear. She can hear whenever a couple are resonating or making love and this disturbs her. Also, she knows that the Little Green Men aliens, or the evil aliens as I call them, the one’s that left the women on Non-Hoth are going to come back at some point and she wants to be rid of the device before then, before they can track her. Can she get it removed at the Elders’ Cave? You’ll have to read to find out for yourself! Kira wants to be the only one to go on this quest, as she doesn’t want to endanger anyone else’s life. She’s a quiet, caring female. She asks Vektal and Georgie, the leaders of the tribe and the humans if she can go, they say yes, but to take someone with her. While Kira doesn’t want to, Aehako of course steps up! I loved this! It’s always one of my favourite parts, when a man stands up for or helps a woman in this case his chosen mate, and they slowly but surely fall in love in the process, although Aehako clearly loved Kira when they met!
There’s a little love triangle in Babarian Lover, that I didn’t mind. Asha, one of the few female aliens, is in love with Aehako. He doesn’t have any interest in her whatsoever, however. They had a little bit of sex before the human women came to Non-Hoth but, since he’s only had eyes for Kira! Asha tries to get Aehako to like her…but when it’s clear he won’t or doesn’t what does she do? Asha is very selfish and spoiled, or at least that’s how she came across to me. She’s already mated. It’s just to someone she doesn’t love or want. Can Kira and Asha become friends by the end of Barbarian Lover or is there still resentment? You’ll need to read for yourself…
“Instead of being angry, Aehako throws back his big, horned head and roars with laughter. He clutches his sides, incredibly amused. I’m glad one of us is having fun at this little joke. I have no idea what I’m supposed to do here. “Take this back,” I say, pushing it toward him.
He raises a hand and shakes his head, still chuckling. “Ah no, it was meant for courting and I do intend to court you, my sad-eyed human. Keep it.” His eyebrows wiggle. “Unless you want to see the real thing?”
“I—what? No!” I sputter. “I don’t want to see your penis!”
“Are you sure? It’s quite a nice one. Look at how fine my gift is!” He gestures to the dildo. “I would give you so much pleasure with it. I’m quite good in the furs.”
“I don’t want to hear about your sexual prowess,” I hiss. I wrap the thing in the leathers again because I’ll be damned if I’m going to wave a big dildo through the entire cavern, and he doesn’t seem to be taking it back.”
This was a funny moment from “Barbarian Lover.” Aehako makes Kira a model of his cock. He intends to court her and he thinks the only way to do that is to give her a replica of his penis. She’s absolutely gobsmacked by this! I thought it was hilarious and cute, how he’s going to such lengths to interest her! She definitely became easier to like over the course of the novel. Before I started, I was wondering if I’d like her, based on what I’d read in “Ice Planet Barbarians” and “Barbarian Alien.” But in getting her point of view I could see WHY she is the way she is. That made her more likeable to me.
When they get to the elders’ cave, Harlow and Kira get to know each other a little better. We don’t get to know Harlow on a very deep level in this book, however in her book, whenever that comes, we’ll at least have a little introduction to her. IF she gets a book, (if you know you know)! We see that Harlow is quite scientific and interested in the ways of Non-Hoth.
While at the elders’ cave, Kira and Aehako make love for the first time! This was very sweet, and gentle. Aehako is in no rush as he knows that Kira is a virgin and so doesn’t want to hurt her. He wants her to enjoy their time together as much as him, if not more so, so he’s very delicate and patient. This is the thing I liked the most about Aehako. Although he wants what Vektal and Raahosh have, he’s in no rush to take it. He’s okay even if he has to wait a long time for Kira. He’ll do it because he loves her!
“Your hand is cold,” I tell him in a low voice.
For a moment, disappointment flickers across his normally laughing features. He starts to pull away, seeing my response as a decline of his attentions.
But I grip his hand, not willing to let it go. Instead I guide it under my soft leather shirt and place it against my warm stomach, my gaze meeting his.
I’m letting him know that I want to go on. That I want more of this. More of him. That I’m living for today.
A low groan rumbles through my translator, and he leans forward pressing his ridged forehead against my smooth one. “You will undo all of my good intentions, Kira.”
“I didn’t know you had good ones,” I tell him, feeling breathless and a little flirty. This isn’t me, to be a tease. But I like pushing my boundaries with him.
And I love his response.
His fingers stroke my stomach under my shirt, and it feels ticklish. I squirm a bit, and when his nose nudges mine and then his mouth brushes against my lips, I open up for him, accepting his kiss. I want to point out to him that he hasn’t mentioned his good intentions, but they suddenly seem unimportant. I just want more caresses. More touching.
Aehako’s hand strokes over my ribs and then moves up my shirt, to caress the globe of my breast. I suck in a breath, realizing just how big his hand is. My boob must be positively tiny to him. I think of the big, strong women of his tribe. I’m still a little frail from weeks of starving and captivity. My boobs certainly aren’t what they used to be, and they weren’t super impressive then either.
But his fingers trace the curve of one breast and he kisses my lower lip, sucking gently on it. Jesus. For a man that didn’t know how to kiss until yesterday, he’s pretty darn good at it. “You are beautiful, Kira. As delicate as a scythe-beak.”
The compliment strikes me as a strange one, and a nervous giggle escapes my throat as I picture a killer toucan. Not a sexy mental image. “What’s a scythe-beak?”
“Shhh,” he says. “It isn’t important.” His thumb brushes over my nipple again, and then circles it.”
This moment is before they go to the Elders’ Cave. Kira clearly wants Aehako then, but she’s too scared to tell him that. Kira always things negatively about herself. She’s not like Liz or Georgie who were both confident with their men. I loved seeing Kira and Aehako flirt in the above scene. It just made me even more excited to read when they DO make love for the first time, later in the book!
Because Kira is barren, she won’t resonate, so Aehako and her choose to be mates! This hasn’t been done before. It’s only later in the novel that we see that they are truly destined for one another and ARE actual mates.
“My cock feels like a throbbing brand, so tightly sheathed in her wet warmth, but I dare not move until she is ready for me again.
When she gives a small sigh at my latest kiss, I drag my cock slowly out of her, and then stroke it in again. She stiffens but doesn’t mention the pain. Her gaze is on me, her eyes trusting, and my heart breaks with the beauty of her. She is beyond lovely, my mate. Lovely, and soft, and sweet, and giving. “You have my heart, Kira.” I tell her again, and nuzzle her throat.
I stroke in again, careful to gauge her reaction, and when she remains relaxed against me, I shift my weight to one side and caress her breast, teasing the peak until the tip is hard and aching, and she is moaning and wiggling against me.
“Everything feels so different with you inside me,” she says, and she sounds breathless and full of wonder.
“Still hurt?”
“I don’t think so.” She bites her lip and looks up at me. “Do something and I’ll let you know.”
Do something? I will do everything to her. I knot my hand in her hair again, anchoring her against me, and stroke deep.
She gasps. “That felt . . .” Her startled eyes flick to mine.
“Good?” I can practically feel my chest puffing out with pride.
“Do it again?” Her voice is small and timid, but she arches her back, pressing her body against me.
I do, and she gasps again. Her cunt seems to tighten around me, and when she quivers, I feel it through every span of her body.”
Aehako wants everything to be perfect for Kira. He doesn’t want her in pain as this is her first sexual experience, as I said above. There were lots of scenes that like this that I loved in the second half of the novel!
Back to the main non-romantic plot, Kira needs to face the Little Green Men. She’s the only one who can! She gets taken by them, and separated from Aehako. This was heartbreaking, because I just love them together. I was willing for them to be back together as soon as they could be. When does this happen? You’ll need to read for yourself! Kira actually thinks for herself, unlike Georgie or Liz seemed to when around their men. Vektal and Raahosh both have very dominating personalities, I feel. Aehako is easier to like and to know. Kira can have her own thoughts as well as respecting his. It was nice to see an equal relationship between the humans and the sa-khui alien tribe for once.
In the end, do Kira and Aehako get their happily ever after? Or are they destined for disaster? You’ll have to read for yourself!
Ice Planet Honeymoon - Aehako and Kira
This was very CUTE! I don’t believe I read the Ice Planet Honeymoon’s for Georgie and Vektal or Liz and Raahosh so I might have to do that soon! But Kira and Aehako’s centres on their kit, and how they both worry about it.
Overall, I bloody LOVED “Barbarian Lover” sooooooo much!!!!! It was everything I wanted in a novel and more. It’ll definitely be a top novel of the year!
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