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Alien Bonds

by Carmen Webster Buxton

Alien Bonds - Carmen Webster Buxton - Wakanreo
Editions:Paperback - First Edition: $ 12.49
ISBN: 978-0997989823
Size: 6.00 x 9.00 in
Pages: 387
Kindle - First Edition: $ 3.99
ISBN: 978-0-9979898-3-0

Alien Bonds is about two people, a human woman and a Wakanrean man, who meet on his world, Wakanreo, and instantly mate from a  biological reaction that occurs only in Wakanreans. But even though Dina goes home with Kuaron that night, she does not love him. You cannot love someone you don't know.  Over the next several months her feelings for him change, as do his for her. On one level, this is simply a love story. But the story also explores the culture and history of Wakanreo. It shows what a world would be like if looks didn't matter—if people had no choice in who they paired off with. and thus sex had nothing to do with morality.  How would this uncontrollable mating affect the societies that formed on this unique world? In human history, much of the stratification of society was achieved by people only marrying within their own social order. What if it wasn't possible to enforce that kind of discrimination?

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Published:
Publisher: Cracked Mirror Press
Editors:
Risa Stewart

Illustrators:
Najla Qamber

Cover Artists:
Najla Qamber

Genres:
Sci Fi, Sci Fi - Romance

Tags:
author - american, format - kindle, format - kindle unlimited, format - novel, format - novel <100K, format - paperback, where - non-Earth planet

Tropes: Interspecies Romance
Word Count: 128,000
Setting: Wakanreo (planet)
Languages Available: English
Series Type: Continuous / Same Characters
Tropes: Interspecies Romance
Word Count: 128,000
Setting: Wakanreo (planet)
Languages Available: English
Series Type: Continuous / Same Characters
Excerpt:
The Wakanrean stood in front of her. He glared down at her, his face contorted into a scowl, his amber eyes glowing with contempt.
“I beg your pardon.” Dina tried to keep the quaver out of her voice. “Do I know you?”
He was so close, she could feel the heat from his body. Either that, or the room had gotten suddenly warmer. Dina felt herself flush from head to foot.
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> He didn’t answer, but all at once it was as if his anger was a physical thing, an invisible mass, pushing against her. She stepped backward, stumbled, and almost fell.

She reached for the mezzanine railing behind her, and in the same instant, the Wakanrean grabbed her arm.
Dina froze, utterly baffled. The orientation had said clearly that Wakanreans would always avoid touching a Terran, and yet here was one not only touching her, but holding her firmly by the arm and helping her to stand.
The orientation had also failed to warn her that a Wakanrean’s touch was so warm it almost burned. Dina could feel a flush of heat on her arm where his hand still gripped it. She stood straighter and looked into his face. He had typical Wakanrean features—an arched nose, large round eyes, a wide mouth.
His expression changed as she watched. His anger faded to confusion. He looked almost stunned. His nostrils still flared, but from the way his eyes had opened wide, Dina knew he was surprised rather than angry.
Neither of them had taken a step since he took hold of her arm. Dina swallowed once, conscious of discreet glances and overt stares from those around them.
“I’m all right,” she said finally, wondering if she was speaking the truth. The dizziness had passed, but she still felt lightheaded. “Thank you, but you can let go now.”
He loosened his grip but didn’t release her for a few seconds. When he did, he brushed her bare arm with the back of his hand. Dina was amazed when it sent shivers of anticipation up her spine.
“This is unexpected.” His wonderfully resonant voice had a rich, warm timbre to it that made Dina’s shivers change from anticipation to yearning.
“Yes,” she said, unsure of what he meant, but afraid to give offense.
“Where do you live?”
“I have an apartment in the off-world sector,” she said, wondering why she was answering him. She fought the urge to close her eyes and just listen to that wonderful voice.
“My house is in the cliffs outside the city. Let’s go there instead.”
“All right.”

 

It took Dina a moment to realize that she had agreed to go home with him.
COLLAPSE
Reviews:on Kirkus Reviews:

Buxton offers an SF story about interplanetary love triumphing, despite the odds.

Dina Bellaire is a beautiful Terran scientist residing on the planet Wakanreo, immersed in an alien civilization in which her own people occupy a complex and controversial role. In Wakanrean culture, romantic relationships are formed through shahgunrah—a once-in-a-lifetime experience in which two participants are unified in a physical and psychological connection; if Wakanreans can’t find such a connection, they become ill. Terrans are capable of eliciting a similar passion in Wakanreans, called glashunrah, without experiencing its throes themselves. Both cultures believe that humans and Wakanreans can’t experience the reciprocal union of shahgunrah. However, Dina and a Wakanrean named Kuaron Du instantly feel an unusually passionate connection when they first meet, and soon, Dina is pregnant with twins. The shahgunrah they share gives rise to fear and discrimination that puts Dina’s life in danger. When the Wakanreans develop a vaccine that will remove Terrans’ ability to inspire glashunrah in Wakanrean people, Dina is compelled by lawto accept the treatment, even if it jeopardizes her shahgunrahai with Kauron Du. Fans of SF romance are certain to appreciate Buxton’s vivid, imaginative landscape, which she populates with thoughtful cultural elements and extensively detailed history. That said, this complex story is replete with political machinations and legal proceedings, which may not be to all readers’ tastes, and casual readers may feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of new terms and concepts, despite the included glossary. Still, readers will feel truly immersed in the religion, values, and technology of Wakanreo and appreciate the relevance of Buxton’s depiction of a couple fighting for their relationship in a climate of intolerance in this thought-provoking work.

A dense but often engrossing tale, grounded in a relatable love affair.

 Jennifer H. Ong on Amazon wrote:

Great read , you’ve got sci-fi , romance and even racism towards other alien races . After reading the blurb for this book I had to get it and it didn’t disappoint, Kuaron and Dina’s story was fascinating. This Author really knows how to draw you into her story and keep you there , I couldn’t stop reading it was so good !! I can’t wait to read book 2 , I’m crossing my fingers we get to see Jared again


About the Author

Carmen Webster Buxton spent her youth reading every book published by Ursula LeGuin, Robert Heinlein and Georgette Heyer. This combination of far-future worlds, alien cultures, and old-fashioned courting customs influenced her writing, especially in her ThreeCon series.

Carmen was born in Hawaii and experienced a peripatetic childhood, as her father was in the US Navy. Having raised two wonderful children, she now lives in Maryland with her husband Charlie, and a beagle named Cosmo. She writes science fiction (often including a romance, and mostly set in the far future), and the occasional fantasy.