"Barry's Best sounds there's a new Queen of Sci-Fi Romance"
C.J. Barry blasted on the scene with Unearthed. In the
short time she has been published, her talent has
catapulted her to the top. She is a beautiful writer, that
excels on so many levels. Her Sci-Fi romances play on par
with Indiana Jones in space. She gives you cultures that
are rich in lore and history, full of perils and monsters,
and with strong female heroines who can stand toe-to-toe
with their men and fight without flinching. Sprinkled
amongst these heart stopping, edge-of-seat adventures is a
delicious humor that really sets her above the pack.
Unchained, her first book has been re-released, joining her
Unearthed, Unleashed, Unraveled and now her newest, and
likely strongest tale, Unmasked. Quade's name was whispered
through out the quadrant, they called him Laghato - the
liberator. For the past decade Quade has lived the life of
a space pirate, robbing from the rich and giving to the
poor. A true Robin Hood, he is working in a desperate race
to fight slavery. He uses the money he gets from his
robbing to pay for medication used to reclaim the memories
of the slave zombies - people stolen against their will,
their brain's fried so they obey their masters. Underneath
this valiant crusade is a fight to find his mother and
sister who were taken years ago. He will not give up until
he finds them. When he seizes the ship of Torrie Masters,
the youngest child of the rich Masters shipping family, he
gets more than he bargained for. Torrie Masters is a beautiful redhead with a spirit to
match. The instant she looks into Quade's masked face, she
knows she will not let him best her. But he does -
temporarily - seizing her shipment. Torrie gives her word
she won't send the galactic police on his trail in return
for him not killing her. Only she didn't promise not to
track him down herself. She does, and with her tiny light-
beam computer NOD, she traces him to a warehouse. However,
she is caught by the black-marketers, and they plan on
sending her to the slave auctions. Quade uses her shipment
of illegal meds to buy her from them. Torrie is not happy,
for she doesn't really comprehend the danger that Quade
saved her from. Quade insists he has to go back to steal
the meds, since they are needed to save the slaves he sends
through Slipstream. He insists Torrie go with him, since
she, and only she, can track the shipment through Nod. She and Quade do just that. Only as they are racing toward
the ship, under fire, Quade is stopped by a sad woman
calling Laghato. She gives him her two tiny daughters to
save. Torrie is almost ready to leave Quade behind,
believing him a pirate and a slaver. Only the look in his
eyes as he holds the two children stops her from leaving
him. Soon Torrie learns there is a lot more to the mysterious
pirate, learns how her family is involved with the problem
of illegal shipments connected to the slavery. Thus she
begins a taught fight on the side of people who cannot
defend themselves, at the side of the dangerous man she is
falling in love with. I love each of Barry's books, all earning a spot on my
Keeper Shelf. But this one, pulls at the heart as the
others have not. It's a stronger, blacker tale that keeps
you spellbound from start to finish and aching when you put
it down. I have seen one or two reader comment her tales
are fun, but they are not powerful enough to push her to
the top of the very talented pack of Sci-Fi Romance
readers. Stand back - Barry makes you eat those words! Applause for this gutsy tale that steals your heart. And
that is not an UNderstatement!! Barry's best, simply her
best! Posted May 25, 2005
Reviewed by Deborah Macgillivray
Posted January 3, 2007
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**2005 PEARL NOMINEE - BEST FUTURISTIC ROMANCE** A MAN OF MANY MASKS ... To the merchants he plunders, he is the Ghost Rider of the
Dead Zone. To sector law enforcement, he is a wanted space
pirate. To the slaves he rescues, he is the savior laghato.
To one determined female captain, Qaade Deter is serious
trouble. Torrie Masters had heard of the legendary raider, but she
never expected to encounter him, especially on her maiden
voyage for her family's shipping business. Nor would she
have expected that beneath his black mask lurked an enticing
man destined to challenge her in ways she can't shoot
herself out of. But a great threat has emerged, one that leaves Qaade no
choice but to join forces with the woman he believed was his
enemy. A woman with a warrior's spirit—now entrusted with
the fate of thousands, one pirate's impossible dream, and
the power to leave him...UNMASKED.
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