Beyond the Red

Received via Edelweiss and Sky Pony Press in exchange for an completely unbiased review.
Also posted on Silk & Serif

This book is simply amazing. Ignoring the obviously gorgeous cover, the lovely prose and fantastic world building, this novel will make the top of my 2016 favourite list because the story itself was quite simply awe inspiring. I'll definitely be buying this novel the next time I go to Chapters because not only will it look sexy on my shelves, but this author is worth supporting.

We follow the alien queen Kora who struggles with her recent rise to power following the death of her royal parents. Her bloodthirsty brother also has an eye for the throne and begins to secretly develop his own plans to usurp the throne through any means necessary. All the while Kora walks a thin line between a people who are displeased with her rulership and a court of former-friends who could be secretly supporting her brother's lust for power. When Eros finds his way into Kora's life she immediately hires the new slave as her protector against her brother's attempts on her life and throne.

Eros has lived his life as a despised half-breed his entire life, unable to be part of his human family and at risk of death should the alien royals learn of his heritage. He hides in the desert as a last vestige of a rebel human element that are largely peaceful and always mobile. When the royal army wipes out their camp in a night raid and kills Eros adoptive family his life is spared by the alien queen. Taken as a slave, Eros experiences pain and abuse at the hands of the royal guard until Kora offers him an usual deal: become her personal guard to protect her from her brother in return for the release of the last of his rebel camp who have also been taken as slaves. The duo attempt to navigate the seas of racial hate and political intrigue while attempting to tame the turbulent waves of a love neither has the luxury of exploring.


Beyond the Red is a unique sci-fi adventure packed with intrigue, political strife, action and star crossed love. I cried. I laughed. I read it in one sitting - without breaks - because it was just that engrossing. I haven't read anything remotely close to Beyond the Red in the past and it definitely kept me interested until the very end. Ava Jae develops a love story that transcends expectations with racial struggles and a political system that is deceptively complex. This novel is not just a new adult romance with plenty of feels: it is a story of coups, revolution and social change. I love novels with deeper and broader story lines beyond the romantic so I have already planned to pre-order book two.

Beyond the Red is literally a story of a city on the brink of collapse, a forbidden love and the beginning of a cultural revolution.

I think my favourite parts about this novel beyond the social upheaval and revolution was that the leading male character was not the stereotypical strong, confident man. Instead, Eros is deeply scarred and damaged from a life time as a mixed breed between human and alien. Eros is blessed and cursed to live with his mixed heritage, never really being part of either race but finding his place in their societies all the same. He reflects on his own inner emotional turmoil and often feels he is not worthy of kindness or love from others. Obviously, over time Eros begins to form alliances, friendships and a romantic relationship with our main cast, but he is always cautious and deeply affected by things that happen to him throughout the novel. The sensitive and damaged hero made this book all the more amazing because we see a male lead who organically grows into the man he needs to be to face his own history and demons in book two (which is going to be even more awesome than book one!).

Finally, the love story is far from insta-love which won me over a thousand times more than any "omigosh he's gorgeous" kind of love story. I have a soft spot for romance that takes a span of many novels or at least most of a novel to develop and Beyond the Red does not disappoint. I loved that Eros hated Kora at first but the pair bond through friendship and inevitability love. The emotional turmoil is so much more intense when the relationship takes awhile to get going and Jae is extremely talented in the art of love-creation dialogues. I didn't even realize how strongly I felt about either character or their burgeoning relationship until a certain heart wrenching scene near the end that made me bawl my eyes out in sympathy for Eros. Seriously, I bawled and I never cry over novels.

Without a doubt, Beyond the Red is a debut novel worth reading because it is simply beautiful. It's heart wrenching. It's exciting.

This novel will appeal to readers who enjoy science fiction, epic (but long forming) romances, tales of political intrigue and coups. I suggest reading this novel with tissue at hand and on a weekend since you won't be able to put this novel down. The reader must have a healthy respect for plot shits and grand revelations as well as a love for beautiful descriptive prose.

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie TalesQuick & Dirty: Hands down the best book I have read this year so far! Beyond the Red is a fantastic science fiction novel filled with steamy romance, loveable characters, and tons of action. If you are a fantasy or science fiction fan you must pick up this book ASAP!Opening Sentence: My brother just killed me.The Review:Kora is an alien queen that rules people who depose her. She is the first female ruler in generations and her subjects would rather have her younger twin brother be king. But her brother is a tyrant and letting him rule would cause her people much suffering so instead of stepping down she does what is right for her people even though they don’t agree. There are riots and attempts on her life almost everyday and there is really no one she can trust. Her guards are loyal to her brother, as are most of the servants. If Kora is going to survive she is going to have to find someone she can trust to protect her at all cost. She never imagined that person would be a half-blood with mysterious origins.Eros is a rare half-blood. Both humans and aliens depose half-bloods, so the majority of the time they are killed at birth, but strangely Eros was not. He was abandoned when he was a baby and was raised by rebel humans in the desert. He had a loving family, but the rest of the humans merely tolerated him out of respect to his adoptive parents. When there is a raid on his village by an alien group, Eros is forced into slavery. He is offered a position as the personal guard to the queen, the woman who ordered the slaughter of his people. Eros agrees to serve Kora but he never expected to befriend her or eventually feel more for her.Kora is a very inspirational character and her story broke my heart. She has done everything she can to be a good queen but no matter how hard she tries it never seems to be enough. She is always surrounded by other people but she always feels lonely because there is no one she can truly trust to never betray her. But even though her life is far from perfect she never complains and she never gives up. I loved her spunky personality and she is definitely a girl that can take care of herself, which I really admired. She has a huge heart, but she is willing to make sacrifices when it is right for her people. I loved everything about Kora and I think she is an amazing character!Eros was one amazing guy and he pretty much captured my heart right from the start. He is smart, resourceful, good looking, and just a genuinely good person. As a character he goes through so much in a very short amount of time, and it amazed me how well he kept himself together through all the pain and emotions he was feeling. He wasn’t always the best at making rational decisions and he could sometimes be a jerk. But I thought his flaws made him more realistic and easier to relate to. His relationship with Kora was perfection. I loved how they first became friends and then slowly developed into something more. They have great chemistry and there was lots of great sexual tension between them. If you can’t tell, I am a huge Eros fan and he has quickly become one of my favorite book boys!Beyond the Red is a bloody masterpiece! I say that because the book is pretty violent and a little gory, but it was amazing. From the very first page, I was hooked and I literally couldn’t put it down. It is one of those stories that makes you ignore the rest of your responsibility’s so you can read (my kids might have watched too much TV for a few days due to this book ?)! The pacing was spot on, the romance was sexy, the world was captivating and the writing was phenomenal. One of my favorite things about this story was that it was told in dual point of view. It made the story feel more complete and it helped me fall in love with each character so much more! I really liked that it was a sci-fi story, but it read more like a fantasy. I personally haven’t read many books like that and I really enjoyed it. To me it felt and read a little bit more like a new adult book versus young adult, but I think fans of both age groups will enjoy it. But do to the content I wouldn’t recommend it to younger teens. The ending was left very open and I am DYING for a sequel, so hopefully it will happen! If you are a science fiction or fantasy fan you MUST read this book!Notable Scene:Something inside me breaks.A scream rips from my throat, but by the time the soldier turns and sees me, it’s too late—I slam my dagger into his neck. He drops, gurgling as I rip the blade away, whirling on the second solider and catching him in the throat.Lightning cracks across my eyes—I’m on my knees, Someone has a fistful of my hair and is yanking my head so far back that my spine might snap. My vision returns in a slow fade, and a second dark-skinned solider with sharp, angled markings who’s more muscle than a man-eating wildcat towers over me, my knife in his hand. Blood drips down my face and neck, soaking the scarf ties around my head, but I’m not sure whose it is. The soldier’s white uniform is soaked in red.FTC Advisory: Sky Pony Publishing provided me with a copy of Beyond the Red. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.