Book Reviews

Book Blurb

Strap yourself in and strap something on as you're transported across galaxies and lifetimes by Kiernan Kelly, Kage Alan, Angelia Sparrow, T.C. Blue and Shae Connor. Whether it's an interspecies pregnancy between two hormonal males, a swashbuckling group of pirates, or free gifts that talk, you'll soon learn why in space, no one can hear you cream. Open wide for BUTT PIRATES IN SPPAAACCCEEE!

 

Book Review

Needless to say, when I read an anthology entitled 'Butt Ninjas From Hell', I knew, I just knew, I had to discover if there were any other anthologies similar that I could read. That's how I ended up devouring and loving 'Butt Pirates in Space'. For someone like me, discovering science fiction, humor, sexiness, and good writing was a true joy.

What to Expect When Your Boyfriend is Expecting - by Shae Connor
If you've ever read reviews I've written or looked at my bookshelves on a popular online book club, then you'll already know that I absolutely adore male pregnancy, or mpreg, stories. There's something about it that…well, it does make me giggle, but the men are just so stinking cute. Both of them, to be exact. So when I opened up this book and realized the very first story was one of my favorite genres, I was over the moon and eagerly turning the pages.

Zeke is one of the first group of humans to come to Lalande, and as a biologist, Zeke comes with others to experience living on a completely different planet and within a different culture. He meets Zeph soon after and they've been living together for quite a while now. The Lalandians have the ability to impregnate or be impregnated, which Zeke knew, scientifically, although having Zeph tell him he is pregnant still comes as a bit of a surprise. Since this is the first instance of cross-breeding, Zeke and Zeph, mostly Zeph, are under the microscope from the moment they announce it. Unfortunately, their pregnancy has come to the attention of some privateers and now they must all work together to protect the baby from being kidnapped.

This was such a good story! Plus, I got a birth at the end which always makes me happy. Very enjoyable and fun!

Spacehunters: Master Elite and the Maternal Order of Loganites Beyond Uranus - by Kage Alan
This is an author who always tells a great tale and this story certainly lives up to my expectations. Especially since I was two pages in when I laughed so hard I snorted water out of my nose. Thank you, Kage, I should've remembered never to eat or drink anything while reading your works. And no, I'm not telling you what was so funny. You've got to read it yourself.

This is the hilarious story of Chace and Jayden, a couple of thieves cruising through space in the year 2220. This is a world where Tommy Hyperspacefiger designs clothes and everyone has an account on Facialanomalybook. (See why Kage Alan is becoming a favorite?) Apparently, the AGaykening occurred and war against all GLBT people and Filipinos happened. This left Chace and Jayden to get the heck away and begin their own life of crime, independently, of course. Although not in the original bodies they were born in. Heh. Now, Chace and Jayden spend a lot of time snarking at each other, which kind of reminds me of two people who've spent way too many years in close proximity. You know. Married.

Kage took a few names in vain (really, picking on J.P. Barnaby?), but this entire story simply had me laughing, mostly at the insanely outrageous dialogue between Chase and Jayden. It almost made me wonder what goes on inside the author's mind, but, on second thought, I don't think I really want to know. Needless to say, Chace and Jayden were not what I was expecting, the artifact they were stealing is, most definitely, not what I would consider valuable, but perhaps it will be in two hundred years.

As seems to be my habit lately, I bow to your talented writing, Kage Alan. But, from now on, I'm not drinking anything while reading your work. My nose hurts. A great addition to the book!

B'Utopia - by Kiernan Kelly
The opening scene of this story reminded me so much of the bar that Luke and Obi-Wan went to on Tatooine, that I could, literally, hear the music in my head. Rictor is a pirate with a two-headed parrot. *snort* He's stuck on a backwater planet waiting for cargo, scaring the natives. While waiting, his first mate brings him news of a disabled Terran trader frigate which StarMart seems to not be in a hurry to rescue. Huh. Well, they are pirates, after all.

Jarrick isn't very happy at the moment. His craptastic bosses put him on a seriously malfunctioning ship, which stands to reason since StarMart built it, and now they've been catapulted to the butt end of space and all their systems are going dead. So when he sees the pirate ship preparing to board, it gives Jarrick a number of options, most notably getting off the death trap he and his crew are stuck on. You can imagine that the first meeting between Rictor and Jarrick is rather tumultuous. Of course, the serious lust oozing out of their pores doesn't help the situation. It gets worse when Jarrick realizes that StarMart sent him and his crew way out here with a cargo of dirt and then blew up their ship. Luckily, they were on Rictor's ship when it happened. Now they just have to figure out why. And what they're going to do about it.

What a great story! I enjoyed it so much with its tongue-in-cheek references to a corporation that shall remain nameless. A wonderful addition to the book!

Free Gift With Purchase - by TC Blue
When Valmark agrees to a free gift with his purchase of two good-timers for his ship, he has no idea what's in store for him. When Valmark discovers that he's been gifted with a male, unbonded, exotic, he can't imagine anything worse. Well, until they begin to prod, that is. *snort*

Now, I was beginning to wonder what could be so bad about having a gorgeous, unbonded, male exotic staying in your quarters. Well, six weeks after Linde came aboard, Valmart discovered why his uncle, his captain, warned him this was going to be a disaster. It would appear that in the past several centuries there have only been nineteen unbonded, male exotics. Apparently, continued intimacy with one begins to change the other person. Not in bad ways, at all. The other person, in this case, Valmark, becomes smarter, gains a larger vocabulary and greater understanding of most topics. I'm thinking, what could be so bad about that?

This was quite an interesting contribution to this anthology. There were moments I'm not so sure I understood everything, but that's just me and not a reflection upon the writing. This was a very sexy read filled with adventure and romance.

Pride of the Rangers - by Angelia Sparrow
This contribution started off with a bang and just kept going. Lieutenant Cliff Cody is a Ranger and, in fact, was the pride of the Rangers until he made a grievous error on a mission and a lot of innocent people died. Stripped of everything, Cliff is sentenced to life terraforming a planet. But something told me there was a lot more going on behind the scenes.

After a vicious attack by other inmates, Cliff and Frank, a former Ranger Gunner, are manacled together. A week later the two of them escape the planet on a robo-barge. Which promptly gets boarded by pirates, one of whom is Frank's husband. Huh. Looks like Frank might've gone rogue or something which means the parameters of Cliff's undercover mission may have just changed.

An exciting, adventure filled addition, this story was the perfect ender. Intrigue, sex, romance, more sex, and a blazing finale. What more could I ask for?

 

 

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by MLR Press for the purpose of a review.

Additional Information

Format	ebook and print
Length	Anthology/5 Novellas/88000 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	26-April-2013
Price	$7.99 ebook, $14.99 paperback
Buy Link	http://www.mlrbooks.com/ShowBook.php?book=ANTHBUTT