Kate Steele

This book is composed of five novellas, each featuring a different Maleri. They are a special sect of an alien race (humanoid, of course) who must mate with a same-sex partner to keep their telepathic gifts from driving them insane. The bond is metaphysical, and usually instantaneous. Convincing their human mates of that is another matter entirely! Enjoyable, light-hearted gay romance with hot sex.

"Mate Hunt" - The first novella introduces the author's mythology with a few paragraphs and a show more hot threesome! The stage is set for the hot sex that will follow in every story. Col must finally seek a mate, and he goes to Earth to do so. Matthew isn't ready to accept who he is, and at first withdraws from Col. But this is romance, and they get their happily ever after. Oh, and more hot sex.

"Double Trouble" - As often happens in this kind of series, this second entry has loose ties to the first. In the first, Col bonded to Matt. Now, we meet Matt's brother Eric who has chosen to travel to an alien world in hopes of a new life. What he finds are two of the hottest men he's ever seen, twin brothers who are desined for him. Though enjoyable, this novella is pretty much just hot sex, albeit with some unique men, and a loose plot. It is the weakest of the 5 stories, and though the brothers don't have sex with each other, it was a little too close to incest for my taste. But worth reading.

"Between Love and Law" - This novella really demonstrates the potential of the Maleri series. There is still a lot of hot sex, but the backstory has more meat to it. Chase is director of the Taskin City Security Bureau. He is also Maleri, and his bond has reacted to Caz. Caz is a chameleon, and a thief. Chase knows Caz is being forced to break the law by a powerful person. Can Chase convince Caz to trust him enough to let him help? More angst, a more detailed plot and more of the trademark steamy sex.

"Ride 'Em Cowboy" - This is my favorite of the novellas because of a good story and an interesting hero. In the previous entries, the Maleri was always confident and self-assured. But in this tale we have Zebian. He's a computer geek who's not very good with people. He is sent to Earth to research ranching for use on another world. He knows nothing about such a life, and though he isn't used to the physical labor, he doesn't give up. Jace is rancher tasked with teaching the new greenhorn about ranching. He soon finds himself attracted to young Zeb and teaching him other things. Zeb must return to his home world though, not fully aware of the bond he formed with Jace. But a Maleri needs his mate to keep him sane...

"Redemption" - The second best of the series. Jor has been exiled from the Maleri. He refuses to take a mate who would share such disgrace with him. But, a Maleri must mate or he faces a painful death. Dane is a human man once mated to a Maleri. When his mate died, Dane nearly joined him; the loss of that psychic bond nearly drove him to suicide. When Dane finds himself coming to the aid of Jor, he at first denies the bond that forms. He feels that he's betraying his former mate. Jor wants nothing to do with the bond either. These two must overcome their grief and pain to accept a new love they both desperately need. This is much more of a love story than the other novellas. Very tender.

Overall, I highly recommend this series and hope the author writes more novellas about this intriguing, and highly erotic, race. My only gripe - I hate the cheesy CGI cover. Those are fine for e-books, but a print book should have more quality put into such an important marketing feature. "Never judge a book by it's cover" is good, but rarely followed advice. CGI people look fake, and this is no exception. And, if they had to choose one of the e-book covers, Redemption would have been a better choice. show less

I really enjoyed Steel’s novel “Male of the Species,” so I was excited when I saw she had another gay werewolf romance out. This story was a bit darker though, and consequently more reserved. In Species, the alpha male protagonist starts forming his own pack and the hot sex gets going almost immediately and never really stops. Altered Hearts opens with a sex scene, but it is far from romantic and ends with terror – Rio is a hustler who picks up the wrong man one night. A sadistic show more alpha werewolf viciously turns him. There is no other sex until near the end when the romance is consummated. However, I found the waiting enhanced the romance.

Steel walked a fine line with this story. It would have been very easy for the sadness and depression to overwhelm the romance. The story opens with the attack and then (thankfully) jumps immediately to the rescue. So, readers are spared too many details of Rio’s torment. And while Rio was badly abused, he wasn’t broken. After Mick saves him, Rio flatly refuses to go with him! In addition to revealing Rio’s resilience, this also sets the stage for the angst that keeps the couple at odds. Mick sees Rio as a victim that should not be taken advantage of, and Rio sees Mick as the mate he truly is. The scene with Mick’s brother, where Mick finally understands this, is particularly touching. The sex between Mick and Rio wasn’t as frequent as other romances, but it was very well done. Rio has been abused, and he must work through repressed fears with Mick. The subplot with Rio’s father and running away was excellent, and really added a lot to the novel.

I did enjoy this novel a great deal and would have given it five stars, but for one thing. The world-building was lacking somewhat. When Rio transforms before his father, he's shocked but not in a "OMG that's not real" way. The scene led me to believe that werewolves are "out" in the world, but Steele never really says for certain. Also, Mick is part of a paranormal law enforcement-type agency but we never learn anything more. If this were clearly the first in a series, then this would not be a problem. But, there is no indication there will be a sequel, though I would certainly buy it and hope there will be. However, I will add that Steele hasn't simply written a normal romance and thrown some paranormal in it to ride the craze. Though the world-building could be richer, the werewolf aspect is developed. Shapeshifting is integral to the plot, and presents additional issues for Rio and Mick to resolve.

Overall, this was a very good romance and well worth reading - especially if you enjoy paranormal romance/werewolves. Highly recommended. show less

The second best of the series (IMHO). Jor has been exiled from the Maleri. He refuses to take a mate who would share such disgrace with him. But, a Maleri must mate or he faces a painful death. Dane is a human man once mated to a Maleri. When his mate died, Dane nearly joined him; the loss of that psychic bond nearly drove him insane. When Dane finds himself coming to the aid of Jor, he at first denies the bond that forms. He feels that he's betraying his former mate. Jor wants nothing to do show more with the bond either. These two must overcome their grief and pain to accept a new love they both desperately need.

This is much more of a love story than the other novellas. Very enjoyable, definitely recommended. show less

A very well done western romance! Dean is the new vet in a small town. Eight years ago he suffered a horrible betrayal by his first lover. Since then he has refused to let anyone into his heart again. Scott is a handsome rancher who is tired of casual dating and wants a deeper relationship. He has his eye on Dean, and is determined to bring the man out of his shell.

Steele has written a simple, but very elegant romance. Though there is a minor plot revolving around a "watcher" who is obsessed show more with Dean, the main focus is Scott's attempt to woo Dean. The story has some excellent sex scenes, with special care taken of the fact that Dean is much less experienced than Scott. Those scenes are tender and quite touching. However, the men spend as much time together out of the bedroom as in, actually learning about one another and building trust. The characters are likeable, realistic and hot (this is romance, after all). Highly recommended. show less