Friday, August 5, 2016

Review: Trapped (Condemned #1) by Alison Aimes

Trapped by Alison Aimes

Trapped (Condemned #1) by Alison Aimes
Purchase link: Amazon

My rating: star star star star

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Trapped by Alison Aimes

Wow! What an adrenalin filled space adventure Alison Aimes has written in Trapped.

Trapped is exactly the kind of story I love. It's sci-fi and romantic suspense rolled into one, with lots of action and adventure, an alpha male hero and a kickass heroine.

Bella is an amazing heroine. 673's (we find out his name later in the book but I won't spoil it for you) nickname for her is very appropriate. Fighter Girl. Yes, she really is a fighter girl. Bella is a survivor. She's survived harsh conditions on Earth and she made a deal with 673 after her shuttle crashes on Dragath25 to survive - for protection for her and her fellow colleagues. Yes, there's sex in exchange for protection at the beginning of the story, but that changes as the story progresses and Bella gets to know 673 better, when she discovers the man beneath the convict. The thing with Bella is, she's stubborn as heck. It should have driven me crazy, but it didn't. She never did what she was told, even when it was dangerous and she could get into trouble and those sorts of heroines usually drive me bonkers. Bella didn't. I think at the heart of it, it was the core of this fighter girl that I loved so much. She was as much of a protector as 673 was. She made a deal with 673 to protect her colleagues and then as she got to know 673, her actions drove her to help and protect him too. And she wasn't stupid. (Stupid heroines drive me bonkers too!!) She never unwittingly got herself into trouble and then needed rescuing. She simply helped, even when she was out-gunned and outnumbered. Her bravery, resourcefulness and resilience were incredible characteristics which made me love her.

Ah, 673! You're just a gorgeous hunk of complicatedness, aren't you? I adored 673. I held my breath right through the story waiting to hear how he landed on Dragath25, and Ms Aimes showed us glimpses of it, teasing us along the way. If there was ever a time in my reading where I wanted to know why an innocent man was condemned to life on Dragath25 as a criminal, it was 673. In the beginning, he tells Bella to call him Convict because that's what he claims he is. Instead Bella calls him a hero for rescuing her and her colleagues and protecting them. The urge to protect and care is strong in 673. It also doesn't hurt that he's a big, gorgeous hunk of deliciousness. I've got an image of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in my head when I picture 673. Especially, imagine The Rock as he was in The Scorpion King, or as Hobbs in Fast and Furious. There's this scene in Fast and Furious 7 where Hobbs arrives and someone (I can't remember who) asks him "did you bring the cavalry?" and he responds "I am the cavalry!" Yeah, that's 673. He's like Hobbs in F&F7. A one man, lean, mean, killing machine ... only of the bad guys, of course, with Bella, he's strong, gentle and protective. My Steve reads romances for #MANVIEW and he likes his heroes confident, men who know themselves and what they want. I think he will like 673.

The whole time I was reading Trapped, I felt there was a real Lord of the Flies / Survivor feel to it. You'll understand what I mean when you read it, and if you have read the book or watched the reality TV show. There's a lot of carnage in Trapped. Ms Aimes put in a lot of violence and action in the story. It's expected considering they land on a penal planet inhabited with convicted criminals who were too dangerous to be left on Earth. Again, back to the whole Lord of the Flies / Survivor references. I remember reading Lord of the Flies in high school and being shocked by the devolution of the characters and the violence that ensued. Trapped is like that too. If you have a weak stomach and can't stand the violence, you may want to take it easy with this story. You've got to read it, of course, I highly recommend it, but pace yourself. :-)

All that said, this is a great story. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I kinda knew I would but I'm glad to have experienced it. I can't wait for Ava's story next. I hope it comes out soon.

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Alison Aimes

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4 comments:

  1. It is a long time since I have read a Sci-Fi romance I read a lot of Australian author Angela Verdenius and really enjoyed them maybe I should try some again ? because this one sounds good

    Have Fun
    Helen

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    1. You really do need to. Sci fi romance is one of my favorite romance sub genres. This one is particular was excellent.

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  2. They sound fantastic! Love finding characters that have such spirit and fight in them. Yummy cover too!

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    Replies
    1. The characters in this book were excellent. I loved them both.

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