Polaris Rising came on my radar thanks to Instagram Cannonballer Lanezabel recommending it. I put it on my suggestion list for the Cannonball book exchange and special thank you to Bothari43 for gifting it!
Polaris Rising has a classic space opera set up, three powerful ruling houses over see the Royal Consortium. Each house is always on the hunt for ways to exploit the others and gain greater control of the galaxy. House members are used as political pieces and accorded extraordinary protections due to the power houses wield. It also has a slow burning romance between a royal house member and a wanted criminal.
Lady Ada von Hasenberg is the 5th born child, and to her father, Ada’s only use is in arranging a favorable marriage for house von Hasenberg. But Ada refuses to bow to a destiny that has her marrying a man she doesn’t desire so she escapes before her betrothal can be made official. Despite an ever growing bounty on her head for her safe return, Ada has managed to elude capture for the past two years but then her luck runs out.
Captured by mercenaries was bad, being locked in a cell with the handsome Marcus Loch, Devil of Fornax Zero, was not ideal, but her not officially betrothed, Richard Rockhurst, coming to claim her from the mercenaries was the worst. Ada conspires with Loch and together they steal Richard’s ship, only to discover that house Rockhurst has been keeping technology secrets from the other houses, and Richard is willing to kill, or worse force Ada to marry him, to protect the secret. Realizing the implications of the tech, Ada is determined to get it to her family as quickly as space travel will allow.
This was a fun read. I enjoyed Ada’s no nonsense, can do attitude (which she backs up with intelligence and hard earned skill), and her love of pants with pockets. Ada is used to working alone but sparks immediately start smoldering between her and Loch, and the two seem hopeless to the pull of each other. If we could award half stars, I would have rated Polaris Rising 3 1/2. It doesn’t quite make it to a 4 star book for me because after finishing I can’t recall WHY Ada is so wild about Loch, besides his being handsome and admiring his abilities. Her actions speak to the depths of her feeling for Loch, especially at the end, but I can’t list the qualities of him that she finds so attractive. However, I would recommend it for those who would like more romance in their science fiction.