Review – ‘Untouchable Lover’ by Rosalie Redd

Blurb 

King Noeh wants to live his single life, fight his enemy, and honor his goddess by winning the war over Earth’s most precious resource—water. Bonding to a female shifter is not part of the plan, not until his goddess insists he take a queen by the next full moon or lose his crown. When he rescues a beautiful female from the enemy’s grasp, a forbidden attraction blooms, and he must decide between his kingdom and his heart.

Melissa hunts for a new place she can call home, one far away from her controlling master who vowed to make her his concubine. Captured by the enemy and tortured to near death, she’s rescued by a brooding, handsome king. When her master shows up at the king’s underground Keep, the tension escalates. She struggles to keep the honorable king at arm’s length, but she can’t ignore the compelling desire he ignites in her soul.

Review 

The first book in The Warriors of Lemuria series is awesome.

First a little background… the planet of Lemuria is in grave danger. The gods of the world (and the people on the surface) desperately need water, so the gods are looking at other planets to colonize. The goddess Alora found the planet Earth and wants to make peaceful contact with the people of the planet and barter for water. A rival god, Zedron, wants to enslave the planet instead. The council of the gods decide to let both Alora and Zedron wage war, and the winner will choose what to do with the planet. They both pick their warriors from the races that live on Lemuria and send them to Earth to battle it out. After around 20,000 Earth years (1 Lemurian year), the war is coming to an end, but there’s no definitive winner yet.

On Earth, Melissa is a Dren, a descendant from the Panthera race (panther shape-shifters). After she’s kidnapped and tortured by the evil Gossums, she’s rescued by the Stiyaha warriors and taken to their underground fortress, the Keep. There’s an instant connection between her and her rescuer, Noeh, the king of the Stiyahas, but she’s still mourning the loss of her mate and son.

Noeh is a stoic, cold warrior and lives his life to serve his people. He refuses to take a mate, a queen, but after his Goddess, Alora, decrees he must or lose his crown, he has no other choice but to chose from the few Stiyaha females in the Keep. Or so he thinks. His attraction to Melissa confuses him, but he’s determined to do his duty to his people, not to his heart.

Melissa and Noeh are amazing and very likable characters. The chemistry between them sizzled. They both have baggage and a painful past, but they’re able to grow and move on once they start trusting and opening up to each other. Their romance and love bloomed out of mutual respect.

The side characters added a lot of depth to the story. I especially liked Saar, Gaetan, Ginnia, and Bet. Even Demir, one of the bad guys, is super hot and intriguing. His story is next and I would love to read it.

The writing is tight and snappy with very few typos, which I find refreshing. I really enjoyed the story and the universe the author created.

5 Stars

Disclaimer – I volunteered to read and review this book. I received an ebook copy through the author’s newsletter. I am not paid or compensated in any way, shape, or form for this review. I will not change or alter this review for any reason unless at my discretion.