Being the only female on a ship full of hot dragon warriors would be a dream come true for most women. Stacy If it weren’t for all the wounded pouring into her med-center, Stacy might enjoy the novelty of being surrounded by so many admiring dragon males. Even a heads up when a battle was brewing would help. However their taciturn captain left much to be desired when it came to communication. Just when she was primed to give him a piece of her mind, he offered himself for scourging in punishment for his oversight. The poignant reminder of the abuse he’d suffered at the hands of his former queen melted away her anger. When her guard was down, she had to admit that big, scarred captain was attractive. Guarding her heart from him was going to be a nearly impossible task. Meric Draconian queens were deceitful, vicious and thought nothing of digging their claws into a warrior when least expected. Having been a breeder for ten long solars, Meric knew their ways well. Draconian females were hosts for parasites that fed on the pain of others. They’d lull a male into a false sense of security before unleashing horrible physical and emotional abuse. Humans were unlike the queens he’d known. They seemed open, outgoing and almost innocent compared to Draconian queens. There was no arguing that they were clever and intelligent beings, but Meric harbored reservations about their true motivations. He’d guard himself until he was sure they weren’t simply more skilled at deception. Especially the lovely healer who had insisted upon joining his crew. Meric knew that he spent far too much time thinking of the fair human female. It took all his discipline as a warrior not to follow her with his eyes and come running when she needed assistance. He refused to allow himself to become enamored with another cruel female, albeit it one wrapped in a beautiful package.

Every now and then, when all the planets are in proper alignment, fate smiles on one lone warrior... Hope Earth is no longer able to support human life and trying to scratch out a meager existence is nearly impossible. Hope is reluctantly forced to sign up for the intergalactic brides program. Just as she’s getting desperate, she finds a tolerable species willing to purchase her contract... Because nothing is ever that easy, her ship gets hit by raiders and Hope can’t manage keep her big mouth shut when their alien captors begin tormenting one of the younger women. Jettisoned into space, her one and only chance at survival, is in the hands of a Draconian warrior... Larok Larok is a lone sentinel, standing guard for his mother ship. When he comes across a frail human queen, his world tilts out of alignment. Saving her means a nasty death if his vicious Draconian queen finds out he rescued her. Risking his own life is one thing, but risking the life of his entire family and small son is another! Snagging the beautiful human out of harm’s way results in battling against the Draconian fleet, destroying a planet and stealing a wormhole device that's their only chance at escape. Larok finds himself forced to reach his hand into the dragon’s mouth, desperate to pull victory from the jaws of defeat. By the time it’s all finished, he will either die in the glorious battle of a lifetime, or end up mated to the most attractive human female in the galaxy!

Abducted from Earth and now I’m being sold… Cassandra... Stranded and alone in a sector of space ruled by vicious queens, I’m losing hope of ever finding freedom. After being abducted, all I wanted was to escape from the aquatic species trying to sell me on the open market. They feed me cold slop every day, rough me up when I don’t do what they want, and keep me in a cage with standing room only... One day, somehow, I’m going to turn the tables and I’ll put them in this same dirty cage. Making that happen is all I think about, because thinking about my life on Earth is too painful. They snatched me right when everything was going to hell in hand-basket! Humans had finally organized to fight against the environmental disasters making the planet uninhabitable. I was pulling core samples on a mountain top when the aliens came for me. As it is, Earth needs me much more than the horrible aquatics intent on using me to line their pockets! Mathadar... Being one of millions of warriors in the Draconian fleet makes me insignificant and dispensable. Our Queens don’t value our contributions and see us as expendable. I’ve lost my father and my brothers have been assigned throughout the fleet. I’m alone, another faceless warrior for the cause... All that changes when I see an alien Queen being auctioned in the city square. It makes my blood boil to see her with her hands tied above her head and her clothing ripped, exposing her pale, ripe body. When she struggles to escape, I imagine her moving on top of me in the same way. May the goddess forgive me for such deviant thoughts about the delicate and helpless Queen... When her eyes lock with mine and she calls to me, nothing in the verse will keep me from coming to her rescue. Not even the fury of my own chain of command will keep me from her! She is going to be mine!

Celestial Mates?Romancing the Galaxy? Human Heather Sanchez and the cyborg captain, MX409, have been working together for weeks?and he?s driving her crazy. She doesn?t have time to absorb the sudden epiphany that her annoyance springs from an attraction to the stubborn cyborg?an attraction that?s clearly mutual?before they discover a secret synth base that could be the key to defeating their enemy forever. They have to act quickly to avoid the amassing synthetic army, and if they aren?t successful, it means doom for humans and cyborgs. Her thoughts should be solely on survival, not on anticipating claiming MX as her mate. Can a human woman find true love with a cyborg captain while fighting a massive army of synthetics? Find out in this latest installment in the Celestial Mates (and Cybernetic Hearts) series, brought to you by USA Today bestselling author Kit Tunstall, writing as Aurelia Skye. This story can be read as a standalone, but the overall story arc is strengthened by reading each in order. Search Terms: science fiction romance, cyborg romance, cyborgs, military romance, futuristic romance, dystopian romance, fated mates, celestial mates ÿ

There have always been mail-order brides in America—but we haven’t always thought about them in the same ways. In Buying a Bride, Marcia A. Zug starts with the so-called “Tobacco Wives” of the Jamestown colony and moves all the way forward to today’s modern same-sex mail-order grooms to explore the advantages and disadvantages of mail-order marriage. It’s a history of deception, physical abuse, and failed unions. It’s also the story of how mail-order marriage can offer women surprising and empowering opportunities. Drawing on a forgotten trove of colorful mail-order marriage court cases, Zug explores the many troubling legal issues that arise in mail-order marriage: domestic abuse and murder, breach of contract, fraud (especially relating to immigration), and human trafficking and prostitution. She tells the story of how mail-order marriage lost the benign reputation it enjoyed in the Civil War era to become more and more reviled over time, and she argues compellingly that it does not entirely deserve its current reputation. While it is a common misperception that women turn to mail-order marriage as a desperate last resort, most mail-order brides are enticed rather than coerced. Since the first mail-order brides arrived on American shores in 1619, mail-order marriage has enabled women to improve both their marital prospects and their legal, political, and social freedoms. Buying A Bride uncovers this history and shows us how mail-order marriage empowers women and should be protected and even encouraged.