Review: Upon the Threshold

Upon the Threshold
ménage lovers who enjoy primal aliens with a voracious sex drive @AprilZyonAuthor #bookreview 
Upon the Threshold by April Zyon

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
The Romance Review

As a fan of space opera, this story starts out well with the right conflict. Earthlings traveled to an uncharted part of the galaxy and decide to terraform an uninhabited world. Elisabeth Washington is one of the lucky few in this world, trying to make a better life. A life that doesn't repeat the follies of human greed and desire back on earth is the ultimate goal. Unfortunately for them, they build on a planet owned by the Droushan, a race who owns many of the planets in this galaxy. The Droushan have rules which anyone living on one of their planets must obey. This could mean a quick ejection back to Earth after all the hard work of terraforming this planet.

The concept to this story is good. It captures my attention. The characters are of moderate interest. I like Elisabeth even if she does start to become a bit annoying. Her milquetoast words and behaviour is at odds with how the character is presented. This becomes jarring at times and leads a reader to no longer root for Elisabeth. This is unfortunate as she is the main character to be enmeshed with the sexy Droushans--Kraven and Lukkis.

The world building in this story is minimal. One would hope, if this becomes a series, the next book would reveal more about the Droushan race. As it stands, there is too much left unexplained. There are also threads in this story which just peter out. This is odd because both are mentioned enough to make it seem an important conflict and yet, it just vanishes which leaves the story feeling unfinished or unedited. For example, Kraven's parents are a huge issue for his joining with Elisabeth. Yet it is never covered. One doesn't know if it just magically disappeared or if it will show up in a follow up book. A confrontation with a good resolution would satisfy the reader and bring a closed loop. Instead, the reader is not sure what happens and the ending becomes anticlimactic.

What saves this story for me is the sex. Yes, I can be bribed with erotic sex and this story does a decent job, specifically in the preparation for Elisabeth's joining with the two males. The primal sex included with Kraven's beast also keeps the heat going for me. The rituals required to prepare a mating is an erotic fantasy. Some of the preparation is dull and could have been edited out or down to a few sentences. Some of it should have been expanded upon, specifically the dilation of the anus with probes. That would have been delightfully humiliatingly erotic.

Overall, this space opera from a new-to-me author, Ms. Zyon, shows potential. Recommended for ménage lovers who enjoy primal aliens with a voracious sex drive.



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