Starquest I—3 books in one

Starquest I
Author: Kate Douglas
Series Connection: Starquest—first three stories
ISBN: 9-7818-436-0795-3
Genre: Futurist/Time Travel/Science Fiction

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Description: Lionheart —Mara Armand, director of a foundation for the protection and study of humans with extrasensory abilities, has made telepathic contact with an alien starship captain orbiting the earth. After weeks of nightly telepathic visits with Captain Sander, Mara develops an intimate mental relationship with her unseen alien lover. She experiences his need, his passion, and his sensual touch, but it is a bittersweet relationship for the laws of the Explorers forbid them to ever meet.

An accident in space changes everything and Mara and Sander are given the chance they never thought they'd have. Threatened by World Federation troops from without and jealous hatred from within, their survival now depends on the strength of their bond and a ragtag army of young Sensitives willing to risk their lives for an alien starship captain.

Night of the Cat—Jenna Lang is ready for a change, but traveling to a future earth and landing in the middle of a rebellion between Sensitives and the World Federation was not on her list. A sensual encounter with a ferocious but intriguing Lion of Mirat is something Jenna could never have imagined.

Is Garan her ultimate sexual fantasy come true, the one love she has always dreamed of...or is he both?

Pride of Imar—Sheyna of Pride Imar makes the journey to earth because she knows she can help the rebels. She immediately goes to work with Malachi Franklin, the Rebellion's healer, but their work is interrupted when both of them are captured by the leader of the World Federation. Sheyna and Malachi discover that a powerful bond exists between them during these trying times. However, once they are freed by Rebellion forces, they must determine whether the bond they feel is one borne of love or necessity.

My View: Originally sold as separate e-books, it is nice to be able to get these books all-inclusive in a two-book set, instead of five books. Sit back and imagine an alien race similar in looks to that of Lion complete with a tail, except they stand on two feet instead of four. This alien race has come to earth at a time when rather than be curios about those from other planets earthlings are terrified. They have a kill first and ask questions later mentality.

This future time is where the first book in the Starquest series takes us. For the most part this is a pretty good series. The author takes us to a place where only the imagination can go. If I had to have a complaint it would be that there was a lot more sex than I would have liked to see and not enough information about where these aliens came from. That is really the beauty of offering a look at an alien race.

The author spends a lot of time explaining the aliens' looks and not enough on who they are and what they believe. One of the things about sci fi books is that anything is possible. Falling in love and finding an alien that looks like a lion and has a tail may seem odd to the reader, but perfectly natural to the characters. That's the best past of the genre. This book reminds me of the old Star Trek and Star Wars series in a way. The creators were forever creating characters that were almost like human but not exactly.

Those who like sci-fi will enjoy this series and getting to meet the lion-like creatures. Book one sets the scene for the books to come, as well as does a nice job on setting up the reasons for the war that ensues. Book two, by far the best out of the three books, develops a nice relationship between the hero and the heroine, and I like getting the chance to go to the alien's home world. Book three isn't my favorite. A little too much abuse of the female heroine for my taste, but a nice ending to the three part series.