"This futuristic romance boasts a unique approach to the mating game."
Prince Tarrant-Arragon, is a Great Djinn and the next
god-Emperor of Tigron. As such it is his duty to produce
heirs but pure Djinn have become rare, and his choices for a
bride limited. However there is one woman, related though
only half Djinn, who would make a suitable wife. The girl's
Earthling mother had named her Djinni-vera, or true royal
Djinn. It was for her that he was winging his way to Earth,
for a traditional abduction followed by a quick consummation. Problems with his plan become apparent almost immediately
when he hears the surveillance tapes on which Djinni
declares him to be a heartless brute both in and out of bed!
To top it off the girl is a Saurian Knight pledged to his
great enemy the Saurian Dragon (who he is unaware is also
her father) and honor bound to kill him or herself rather
than be taken by him. Naturally he could not now reveal his
identity until he had her bedded and wedded. Djinni has been betrothed to her cousin Djetthro-Jason since
she had been five, which was the last time she'd seen him.
She had had no trouble keeping herself pure for him which he
waited for her to grow up. Her grandmother who had long ago
fled her own Emperor husband had filled her with horror
stories of the sex act. She'd had dreams of forced
submission which she'd captured in paintings hoping to
indicate without words her fears to her future lover. Talk about a challenge! Let the game begin. Tarrant-Arragon resorts to trickery from the start claiming
to be a fellow Knight. Djinni has the psi ability and can
read minds, a trait lost in his own Djinn line, but the
prince has learned to block such probes and easily passes
the three tests she gives him to verify his status. Which is
why she finds herself in his hired vehicle, her wine
drugged, a pawn rather than a valiant Knight. But
Djinni-vera isn't about to go down without a fight. Though
still not willing to reveal his identity, and who can blame
him when she is constantly praying for his impotency, he
lets her know in no uncertain terms that he plans to make
her his own at the first opportunity. What puzzles him is
why she is so terrified of such a pleasurable honor. But his
Earth liaison, the self-tagged Grievious, convinces him that
because she is half Earthling he needs to woo her, which he
does in his own clumsy way. Naturally her goal is to remain
pure for her secret fiancé whom she calls simply J-J and she
counters his every move until banking on her honest he
maneuvers her into concessions. Yes, though it hadn't been important and he'd not expected
to, he'd fallen in love with his Queen. He'd tied her up
right and tight when he'd tricked her into saying her
marriage vows with him, telling her it was love poetry, but
he wanted her to be in love with him before the official
ceremony. Though Djinni intends to stay true to her
childhood betrothal it becomes increasingly hard to resist
this infuriating but endearing suitor she's dubbed "Tigger." Help comes from an interesting quarter. Now known as Tarra
the fortune telling madam of the pleasure planet Eurydyce
and secretly the Sarian Knight known as Salamander, his
mother had once been the Tigron queen, Tarragonia-Marrietta,
She had fled her sex crazed husband and appalling son years
ago. Now it appears that her son has experienced the rut
rage which fortunately his beloved had blocked in the most
appropriate way. He needs his mother's expertise since he
truly doesn't want to force himself on the woman he loves.
Seeing that he has changed she aids him in his quest. Somehow in spite of his tricks, Djinni falls in love with
her "Tigger" but she believes him to be of the An'Koori and
though making love with him is sweet, she is still
determined to marry her betrothed and perpetuate her race.
How to break this situation to both men? Tarrant-Arragon is determined to discover the identity of
the mysterious J-J, who he now believes might be a Djinn and
a legitimate contender for the thrown as well. Little does
he suspect that his very best friend, Commander Jason, is
the traitor in his midst. Parallel to their game, the Saurian Dragon has a plot of his
own to eliminate the male Djinn of the court and seize the
thrown. Who will win this royal game of intrigue and be the
first to claim checkmate? I'll leave you to guess but
suffice it to say that Tarrant-Arragon has on more trick up
his sleeve and the next tale INSUFFIENT MATING MATERIAL is
the story of Martia-Djulia and Djetthro-Jason. FORCED MATE along with the prequel MATING NET has set the
stage for exceptional world building, interesting characters
and a unique approach to mating. The chess match continues!
Reviewed by Leslie Tramposch
Posted September 30, 2008
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