First up is Ella Drake’s BRAIDED SILK (Liquid Silver Books). This novella keeps in tune with Future Tales, her twisted fairytale biopunk world that first appeared in JAQ’S HARP. Here’s the BRAIDED SILK blurb:Rapunzel was made with technologically advanced hair. As a trained Mother agent, Zel can't escape the DNA that makes her a pawn in corporate espionage. Kidnapped and held in a tower on Gothel Island, she falls prey to the sexual allure of her captor’s son, Langley, a man whose every tantalizing touch makes her forget she wasn’t born human.
Langley Gothel protests the existence of creations such as Zel, but when faced with losing her, he sees the truth: Life is precious, whether born, modified, or shaped in a Petri dish. He does the one thing he thought he'd never do. He has to give up Zel, or become a mod. But will that be enough go get them down from the floating islands and safely to ground?
If you build it, love will come.
Jonathan P. Quiverbotton freely admits he is fussy, punctual…and terribly lonely. All his attempts to build a companion have failed miserably. Desperate, he rents a man-of-all-work bot from a local factory, intent on uncovering its secrets.
When the manbot arrives, though, it bears a stunningly familiar face. The face of a notorious con man—with whom Jonathan once had a fleeting assignation.
Marcus isn’t quite certain why this doorstep seems so familiar, but once he lays eyes on Jonathan, memories flood back so strong only one thing matters. To convince Jonathan that he’s a changed man.
Raw sexual passion quickly forges a deep emotional bond, fueled by the knowledge that Marcus must soon return to the factory. Before their time ticks down, another man emerges from Marcus’s murky past, reminding him of his unfulfilled part in a blackmail scheme
Marcus wants no part of his old life, but refusal not only exposes Jonathan to danger, it puts him at the mercy of those who would use his illegal enhancements at the cost of his humanity.
Jonathan P. Quiverbotton freely admits he is fussy, punctual…and terribly lonely. All his attempts to build a companion have failed miserably. Desperate, he rents a man-of-all-work bot from a local factory, intent on uncovering its secrets.
When the manbot arrives, though, it bears a stunningly familiar face. The face of a notorious con man—with whom Jonathan once had a fleeting assignation.
Marcus isn’t quite certain why this doorstep seems so familiar, but once he lays eyes on Jonathan, memories flood back so strong only one thing matters. To convince Jonathan that he’s a changed man.
Raw sexual passion quickly forges a deep emotional bond, fueled by the knowledge that Marcus must soon return to the factory. Before their time ticks down, another man emerges from Marcus’s murky past, reminding him of his unfulfilled part in a blackmail scheme
Marcus wants no part of his old life, but refusal not only exposes Jonathan to danger, it puts him at the mercy of those who would use his illegal enhancements at the cost of his humanity.
And wow, what lovely covers! Both of these books show that we can go anywhere in science fiction romance.
Joyfully yours,