This book is a really easy read. It is full of stream, which makes the story doesn't have much depth at all. Whatever is happening in the background isn't really clear, since it is all blured into sex. However, if you like a erotic novel which is easy to read I would recommend this book

5/5 ⭐
4/5 🌶️

Chills. I got literal chills while finishing this book. I absolutely loved it and really hope Hanna gives us more Cal and Mara.

Did I see the "twist" coming? Yes. But it was also implied in the book blurb, so I'm not sure why it's a complaint from some people. Even though I saw it coming it still had me internally jumping like a wild person and it had me so engrossed for those last few chapters. I couldn't wait to find out what she was going to do with the knowledge she'd been searching for.

I just love Mara and how she held herself during this journey. She wasn't going to be pushed over despite wanting to believe in the people that she trusted. She listened to those little whispers and went and found out on her own what she needed to know. I really loved the sěx positivity in this book too. I loved that she was a courtesan and that that wasn't a big deal. I really loved how her and Cal's relationship progressed too; it wasn't quite enemies-to-lovers, but definitely had that feeling and the vibe was perfectly angsty.

I want more. I need more. Please Hanna, bring them back. I wanna watch the anarchy and uprising and everything in between.

“She’d seen a pair of (raptors) on the way down-the grey blue wings blending into the sky like brushstrokes on a canvas.”

Thank you to Net Galley and the Publisher for my advanced readers copy of Queen of Dust by H.E. Dare.

I really enjoyed this book. The beginning was confusing and I wasn’t sure what was happening in the first chapter, but after that everything stated to make sense. I liked the way the author described the scenery, it was very poetic when she talked about the planet they were on. I also loved the dialogue in this book. The banter between our two main characters was witty and clever.
Overall it was a very enjoyable read. I would recommend it to everyone who likes to read romance, enemies to lovers, and strong well written characters.

I DNF’d this book. I don’t like (non-poly) romances where one or more protagonists start the story in relationships that aren’t endgame. Even though the ethics of the novel would deem it normal/appropriate, from a story perspective, I just don’t like have to see one relationship fall apart before another gets built up.

On paper this book had everything I could want in a sci-fi romance, but the delivery was just so off. For a book about a courtesan, the sex scenes were oddly dry and passionless. There was just no joy, no oomph, and it was weird to read.
Another major issue I had with this book is that almost all of the sexual encounters are non-consensual (I know there are readers who will argue with me about that, but so be it). Cal is employed by Mara‘s boyfriend, a very powerful man, who upon first meeting him orders Cal and Mara to have sex. Despite a token attempt by Mara at obtaining consent, it’s not good. And then Cal is assigned to Mara as her bodyguard and bedmate. All of this creates a power dynamic that ensures Cal cannot refuse, therefore everything is non-consensual.
Sorry, but this book was just a big miss for me.

Thank you to NetGalley & Carina Press for this advance reader copy. All opinions are my own.

Mara, the last Balti Temptress, is finally returning to her home planet 20 years after the Dern dropped the P-bomb(poison bomb) that wiped out her planet, she remembers nothing of her life on Balti, she was 6 and had a head injury when she was rescued and taken away in a shuttle to avoid the gas. Calvy is an Eleven, meaning he is the only unplanned for child in his people who are all born for a purpose, so while he is Dern royalty he is basically ignored by everyone. So when Mara's "friend" buys his contract and then makes him her bodyguard, Mara does not take it well.
This was an interesting idea but a bit of a flat execution for me, neither character was fleshed out enough for me to really be concerned about anything that happened to them and I knew how it would end before she even got to her home planet.
I believe this is the authors first attempt at steamy sci-fi, at least under this name, and I'll give her props for a good idea and will give her next steamy sci-fi a read to see what she's learned because an Anastasia/bodyguard retelling was a super interesting place to start.

Thanks to NetGalley and Carina Press for an advance opportunity to review.

There is a lot goin on here in a fairly short book! With twenty pages to go I didn't see how it would be resolved without a cliffhanger.

Very much on erotic romance end of the romance spectrum. Mara and Calvy get to know each other through sex and the opening scenes are pretty in your face. Mara is a rare survivor of the poisoning of her planet's atmosphere and Calvy an extra child of an enemy civilization's ruler. We also get glimpses of two other civilizations. There is fast and slow interstellar travel. There's so much worldbuilding in this story without feeling it ovewhelms the romance.

Recommend.

Something in the atmosphere reminds me Claire Kent's Hold.

I had a really difficult time getting into this book and the whole plotline with the male character's lack of consent not being addressed made this not a great read for me.

I had a hard time connecting with this book and plot and I can't place my finger on the exact moment I really just started to dislike it but the lack of consent really pushed it over the edge for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and H.E. Dare, and Carina Press for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 3.25 stars, rounding to 3 for NG
Format: ebook

This is a romance, first and foremost, with a sci-fi element. I thought the characters were very likeable, but I was a tad confused at the start of the book with the flashbacks to earlier in the day when Mara and Calvy meet on the tram. There is so much thrown at you at once that I had to read the first four chapters about three times to understand what was going on. After that hump, the read was way more seamless.

What I liked: I liked how well I was able to connect with the characters. Mara and Calvy's relationship felt real, and we saw them develop as the story went on. I also thought the pacing worked well here - sometimes I hate when the timeline jumps forward a few months, but it worked well for this story. Also enjoyed how little Liam was in it lol.

What I didn't like: The double standard that Mara could use Calvy for her pleasure, but he couldn't use her for his bc.... double standards ofc. The mood and overall vibe would have been way different if the roles were reversed. Come on, it was basically SA - and I don't like that. Consent is consent, regardless of an "order". I also thought the book wrapped up too quickly, but I could see this turning into a series down the line as there's way more to touch on with Liam and the revolution. I also thought the world building could be a tad stronger. It almost felt like a cop out that this was sci-fi as nothing really *happened*. Liam leaves Mara, she falls in love with Calvy, realizes her heritage, and decides to do something about it. These exact chain of events could have happened on planet Earth. Again, maybe we'll see more if the series continues, but the sci-fi element of the story needs way more developing to make it stay interesting. Finally, I wish we got one last scene with Calvy and Mara but again maybe that's coming.

This book is for you if: you like spice, romance, connections between characters, and a sprinkle of sci-fi. if you're going into this expecting full blown sci-fi and world building with some character development, you'll be extremely disappointed. this is very character heavy and medium plot.

Steamy sci-fi excellence, I couldn’t put this one down! The world building was great and it was balanced perfectly alongside the romance. The side characters were also very fun.

💫 Queen of Dust ARC Review 💫

In Queen of Dust, we meet Mara, an orphaned refugee who is trying to get back to her home planet, and Calvy, the man from an enemy culture who is chosen to be her bodyguard.

I’m not gonna lie. This book definitely started out oddly for me and it didn’t really improve from there. Without any spoilers, I think the events that happened in the first few chapters were demeaning and unnecessary to the rest of the story and it didn’t improve for me from there. For someone who talked about how their culture is so open and without boundaries, Mara consistently openly mocked Calvy for coming from a culture that was more modest without actually knowing him at all. It made me dislike Mara as a character and I actually felt bad for Calvy. He deserved better. He deserved better than to be a pawn in someone else’s sexual manipulation.

As the story progressed, I didn’t feel like this improved. Considering Calvy was ordered to “be available” whenever Mara physically needed him, the lack of consent was just too big of a red flag for me to ignore. It wasn’t even a gray area or subtly implied, it was just ignored entirely. Mara uses Calvy whenever it suits her and it just feels slimy and not a natural development in their relationship. I think overall this book had a lot of potential but the shallowness and selfishness of the female MC made it hard for me to encourage their relationship as being healthy and consensual (and note: there were NO trigger warnings included with my copy of this book which was unfortunate)

Overall the world building was enough to make this a 2 star read for me, but it wasn’t the epic sci-fi romance I was hoping it would be. Two flames for spice - yes it was plentiful, but the ick factor of manipulation and lack of consent prevents me from rating this higher.

Due to my rating, I will not be highlighting this book on my Instagram page or other social media platforms

Romance tropes: bodyguard, amnesia, forced proximity, just one bed

Recommended for fans of The Drift by Susan Hayes and Ruby Duvall’s The Dark Court.

This was surprisingly good! Mara is the last of the Balti, a race whose near extermination was engineered by geopolitical machinations for the sake of their planet’s natural resources. Her rich boyfriend leaves her to rediscover her missing past while he goes to Do Business and informs her to use her bodyguard, Calvy for personal pleasure—a key tenet of Balti theology/sociocultural practices.

The world-building was interesting, and there’s plenty left to be fleshed out in future installments. It reminded me a bit of The Drift, which I also enjoy. I think QOD lost its steam a bit toward the 75% mark, but it finished strong.

The story came in hot, and I was fanning myself for Calvy and Mara’s first few escapades, but overall the scenes could have used more description and a thesaurus.

My thanks to NetGalley and Carina Press for a free ARC.

Queen of Dust absolutely exceeded my expectations! Erotic scifi romance, set in space, rival political factions to lovers, bodygaurd + anastasia vibes, with insane amounts of pining and angst! Just an incredible mix with smart prose, great dialogue and a perfect pace.

A reluctant and misunderstood royal is now a stoic virtuous soldier demoted and tasked as bodyguard to an infamously last-of-her-kind Balti Temptress (think high class courtesan without the transaction). They are returning to her decimated planet while her lover (the owner of Tony Stark like conglomerate) makes deals on other planets. He has tasked them to enjoy themselves. And they do. But not without sniping and bantering and hurting and loving one another in the process. It's deliciously angsty and frustrating. The political machinations are wrapped up in an anti-capitalist sentiment that hits just right. There is a freight train of hot smut from page one. And the ONLY thing I would change is a longer denouement, as I would have liked their ultimate triumph and HEA to bask a little bit longer (and could have used one last sex scene).

Queen of Dust is easily going to be on all of the best romances lists of 2023. I couldn't put it down.

If you like steamy, forbidden romance with sci-fi elements this one is for you.

This was such an exciting story, a bodyguard romance in a space traveling setting, count me in!

I loved Mara and Cal, seeing how their characters came together was everything I had hoped for. There's so much tension and intensity between them and the banter was so fun to read. They also have to come into themselves, find their place but I liked how they never lost confidence through the journey.

There is a lot of world and character building having to explain the politics and the background of the planet Balti and the Dern but H.E Dare has a great writing style which kept me engaged and able to follow along easily.

This was my first read from this author but it won't be my last, highly recommend picking this one up.

Special thank you to NetGalley, Carina Press and H.E Dare for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley, Carina Press and H.E Dare for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was very well written and had a storyline that was easy to follow. The history of Mara and Calvy was interesting and hers was fun to try to piece together everything. I could tell I hated Liam’s character from the very beginning so the end didn’t surprise me at all. I didn’t expect so much smut in the book so I think that took me back a bit. But otherwise it was a really good read, just dragged on in some bits and I lost interest about half way through, but it picked up near the end.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Carina Press for giving me an ARC of this book for an honest review.

This story was exactly what I needed. I’m a huge fan of sci-fi romance and this author is new to me. However, I’m fairly impressed how much I loved this!

The main female character is Mara Leanor, a last of her kind temptress from the planet Balti. Right from the first page I thought she was a likable heroine. We learn she has a partner Liam (he sucks) but then we get to know Calvy D’Alsiern, the bodyguard of Mara.

Calvy is a captain from the enemy civilization who took over Mara's planet. They have an insta attraction but because of friction and differences between them, there’s some hesitance.

The tension and steamy scenes (and I do mean steamy) were delicious. I loved watching a forbidden romance of two supposed enemies succumb to their feelings for each other. It was fun to experience!

The things I like was the world-building, which wasn’t overbearing or confusing. I also thought there was decent side characters. The best part was the steam and the least was I thought the ending wasn’t my favorite. But I’d still recommend this!

I’d characterize this as an R-rated mashup of the movies The Bodyguard, with a sprinkle of Disney’s Anastasia and a dash of dark romance, all happening within a sci-fi setting. While the steamy romance between our main female lead and her bodyguard/protector definitely make up the majority of the storyline, there actually is quite a bit of political world-building and plotline within Queen of Dust. Unfortunately, I really didn’t care about the plot movement, and the sci-fi elements extend only as far as the background of a very Earth-like world. The actual romance felt pretty dragged out, and our main female lead’s incredibly selfish choices made it difficult to root for her and a HEA - making the romantic conflicts more eye-roll worthy than tension building. I also think the “reveal” at the end could also be seen from a galaxy away.

I’ll be passing on the next in the series, and would recommend The Consortium Rebellion by Jessie Mihalik or T.A. White's Rules of Redemption instead for storylines with less spice, but more believable sci-fi elements and real romantic tension.

I voluntarily obtained a digital version of this book free from Netgalley and Carina Press in exchange for an honest review!

Special thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC of this book for an honest review.

Ugh, this story was just a joy bomb of steam upon steam upon steam upon space travel, and I was so here for it.

I'm such a huge fan of this author. Her debut, All the Best Nights – written under Hanna Earnest – is a spectacular rockstar romance that I'm obsessed with and have reread a million times, which is why I was so excited to get to read her new venture into sci-fi romance.

The main female character in Queen of Dust is Mara Leanor, a badass, mysterious, confident temptress from the planet Balti, the last of her kind. She has a very controlling, off-putting partner, Liam, and is on her way back to Balti for the first time since she was a kid.

When Liam leaves her to go off on a months-long mission, he makes sure that she has a bodyguard who she can seek pleasure from when she needs it – the bodyguard happens to be Calvy D’Aldiern, a captain from the enemy civilization who took over Mara's planet.

On his end, Calvy has to make sure he doesn't let Mara break down his walls as their relationship progresses, since he has to prove he can keep his head down in order to get back to his unit.

The tension between Mara and Calvy was so delicious to read – they had friction from the very beginning and refused to succumb to their feelings for each other (emotionally, at least). Watching them being put through the wringer and fighting their feelings was so fun.

I was a little scared that the romance would get lost amidst all the world-building, but the central storyline never strayed from Mara and Cal and their dynamic. There was so much steam, intensity and tension and banter, I literally read this in one sitting!

This was a really unique and quick sci-fi x romance read! I enjoyed following Mara and Cal as they navigated their new dynamic as the last-living Balti Temptress and the enemy captain/guard assigned to protect her. The push and pull between these two as they both try to ignore their need for one another was definitely fun to read. I also really liked the addition of side characters like Dannos, Haper, and Iola. Seeing how these characters came together to work together against (view spoiler) was really heartwarming given their dynamics at the beginning of the novel.

Although this is a pretty character-heavy story, there's still an alluring world built into this universe with its fair share of political schemes. H.E. Dare presented the politics of the Dern, of Balti as a planet, and more and a very clear manner. It was super easy for me as a reader to follow along and understand the politics of these groups. Thus, I think readers, even ones who don't enjoy sci-fi, will still really enjoy Queen of Dust!

This book starts off with the spice right away and it doesn’t let up. If you like your Fantasy Romance books extra spicy, then pick this book up.

I enjoyed that this book wasn’t all spice, but that the storyline was actually good too. Mara is back on her home planet but doesn’t remember anything about it. She’s trying to find familiarity there. As the description hints, it’s definitely Anastasia influenced with regards to her story (I’m sure you can deduce what that might be based on the description, but I’ll avoid spoilers).

Mara’s (Boyfriend? Lover? Partner?) sets off on a quest that keeps him gone for months but leaves a bodyguard behind that Mara is to seek pleasure from when she desires it. The bodyguard happens to be from a civilization that took Mara’s planet from her people so there’s political strife and hard feelings there.

When Mara starts falling for the bodyguard she struggles with this because of his identity and of course her traveling partner. How does it end? Pick it up and find out.