Thank you to Sue Lyndon for hosting today's discussion!
Today we are discussing Warrior, the third book in Cara Bristol’s
Breeder series. I was sad to see the series come to an end, but I found the
conclusion of Warrior extremely satisfying and I especially liked seeing what
the characters from Breeder (book 1) and Terran (book 2) were up to. I enjoyed
all the books in this science fiction romance series, thought the world
building was incredible, and found the stories and characters very in-depth and
well-written. If you haven’t read the Breeder books yet, I highly recommend
them!
Warrior blurb:
Between war and duty, they
find love…
On a planet where women are chattel, Anika is to be delivered to become the mate of an Alpha Commander. Secretly in love with another, she is unable to accept the arrangement and flees. Bound by his duty, her lover Urazi intends to bring her back to fulfill her function. But war intervenes, and as their planet fights a desperate battle against a villainous despot, Anika and Urazi become united in their determination to save their people. But with their lives on the line, the love they share may become the biggest risk of all.
On a planet where women are chattel, Anika is to be delivered to become the mate of an Alpha Commander. Secretly in love with another, she is unable to accept the arrangement and flees. Bound by his duty, her lover Urazi intends to bring her back to fulfill her function. But war intervenes, and as their planet fights a desperate battle against a villainous despot, Anika and Urazi become united in their determination to save their people. But with their lives on the line, the love they share may become the biggest risk of all.
Questions:
1. Is science
fiction romance a genre you typically read? Or will you only venture into it if
an author you like publishes a book in this genre?
2. Anika runs away in the middle of a
war and risks her life because she is determined to choose her own fate rather
than accept a life as Commander Illian’s breeder, even though she would be much
safer with Illian. She doesn’t want to go through life as nothing more than a
breeder, and though she knows Commander Illian will protect her from the
threats posed by the war, she also doesn’t know what her life with him will be
like beyond that. If you were Anika, what would you have done in this
situation…run away or take your chances with Commander Illian?
3. Urazi has feelings for Anika and he’s
angry that she’s to be given to Commander Illian, but he doesn’t share these
thoughts with her because according to Protocol he can’t have her anyway. Only
an alpha can, and since Urazi is a beta, he doesn’t see how a future with Anika
is remotely possible. Have you ever wanted someone that for one reason or
another seemed unattainable at the time? How did it work out?
4. A lot of reviewers have said Warrior
is their favorite out of all the Breeder books. If you’ve read all the books in
this series, what do you think? Do you have a favorite between Breeder, Terran,
and Warrior? Why?
5. Warrior is the last book in Cara
Bristol’s Breeder series, but she has hinted about writing a spinoff series
with the children of the Breeder characters. I think this is a fantastic idea,
don’t you? (LOL sorry this isn’t really a question)
Hi Ladies, Thanks Sue and Celeste for hosting Cara's book.
ReplyDelete1. I love sci-fi. For a long time I was adamant that it wasn't sci-fi that I liked (it has this image with it, you know?) but I love it. It has a bad rep and so many people won't read it. Shame for them, they're missing some awesome stories!
2. What made her choice harder for me was that Ilian was a nice guy - or what I knew of him, he was one of the good guys. I was totally stressed reading some parts of this story and I'm not as brave or courageous as Anika! I might have stayed put.
3. I just want to say one thing on this - Urazi not standing up and speaking up at first made him feel beta to me and his actions throughout and especially at the end turned him into an Alpha. It was like you could see him even growing in physical stature. It was well done. To the question - I can't remember!! I think when you like someone and it's not returned, they're always out of reach!!
4. I loved Warrior as a story the best but Terran is my favorite because I just loved Marlix and Tara. they exploded off the page for me.
5. Yes!! She should definitely do that!!!! No pressure though... ;)
I'm so glad you saw the growth in Urazi, part of the story was about him recognizing his inner alpha, believing in himself, and being willing to take a stand and "man up." I hope readers caught that Marlix recognized Urazi's alphaness from the beginning. In both dining room scenes, Marlix was goading Urazi--trying to force him to stand up for Anika. He had no intention of sending Anika to Ilian--if Urazi was willing to fight for her.
DeleteThanks for stopping by, Natasha! Good answers.
DeleteI feel the same way as you about #2. From what we knew, Illian might not be so bad. I'm not sure I would have run away and straight into a war either
Before I actually started writing Warrior--when it was still a concept--I knew Anika would be the heroine. But I didn't know who the hero was. It was a toss-up between Urazi and Ilian. But when I realized that Urazi was a mis-assigned alpha and he needed to prove himself, that's when I knew I had the hero.
DeleteWhen I wrote Breeder, from the start, I envisioned a trilogy that would end in a "grand battle" of some sort. My Loose Id editor asked me if there would be five books--one for each Alpha. Duh. That did not occur to me! I did give it serious thought, but when I realized that two of the Alphas were diehard villains, five books wasn't going to work.
Who knows...maybe some day I'll do a stand-alone with Ilian. I also would like to write Zala's story. And Perce. Maybe Warrior isn't the end....
Thanks, Sue for the great questions, and thanks, Celeste, for this great forum.
ReplyDeleteMy pleasure!
Delete1. I read a lot of sci fi, so when there's romance and especially spanking in it, I'm in heaven.
ReplyDelete2. Honestly I would have probably wussed out and taken my chances with Commander Illian. But I really admired Anika for being so brave.
3. I too enjoyed seeing Urazi change from beta to alpha throughout the story. And yes, I once wanted someone I thought was totally unattainable - my husband, LOL! He was engaged to another woman for a few years before we started dating (obviously it didn't work out) but during this time (3 years!) I was bummed thinking that I'd never have a chance because up until the week before they broke up they seemed very happy.
4. I can't pick a favorite!
5. Yes, of course! :)
HI, I've not read any of the series so can’t really comment. I’m just lurking, but don’t worry about spoilers – I know how to advert my eyes.
ReplyDeleteI am a long time reader of science fiction, but new to the idea of romance in sci fi. Being an engineer, I usually go for the techno-geeky stuff.
I didn't pick up Warrior to read because I wanted to start at the beginning, but haven’t done it yet.
Thanks for stopping by and commenting. I hope you'll give the series a try.
DeleteThanks for stopping by, Mark!
DeleteFrom the comments it looks like it is important to start from the beginning.
Delete1. I adore sci-fi romance. It's probably my favorite genre.
ReplyDelete2. This is hard. I've had a crush on Illian since Breeder. :) Without having met Illian--and with Urazi throwing mixed signals--I would probably have gone to Illian to feel things out. Then if it was horrible I'd run away from there.
3. Twice. Once in high school, my boyfriend's parents sent him to military school across the country. They wouldn't tell me what happened to him so it was a week before I found which school he was at. He was able to come home eventually and we were together for our junior year. We went our separate ways by senior year, but are still friends to this day.
The second time was with my husband who had a long term girlfriend when we met. I only had to wait two months before he broke up with her. (holy cow Sue, 3 years!!)
4. Eek! I love them all but I'd go with Breeder. Omra and Dak's discovery of emotion was so raw and gritty. And so beautiful and new.
5. I'm on board. :)
Oh wow! Your number 2 surprises me--that you had a crush on Ilian since Breeder. I didn't think I said that much about him. (But it's always the quiet ones...). I think the emotion in Breeder was very powerful. My favorite scene in Breeder was the bathtub one when Dak tells her he has regard for her.
DeleteOf all the leaders he was written the most positively. He stayed with me. I have a weird thing for random secondary characters. I was surprised when you announced Marlix was book two, because I thought it would be Ilian. Then when I read Terran, I thought it was going to be Anika and Ilian. LOL- I'm now just going to stop trying to guess who you're going to write about next. And I'm going to stop holding out for Ilian getting a book. :)
DeleteI have a few favorite scene but the dinner scene when Marlix and Urazi are over and Dak's beta is still around. Dak gets angry on Omra's behalf and he's angry at himself and doesn't understand why he cares.
Thanks for stopping by, Aubrey. I didn't remember much about Illian from previous books but I didn't remember anything bad about him either. It would be nice to find out what happens to him and if he ever finds love (or regard, lol) for someone...hint hint, Cara. :)
DeleteI just made some comments and they disappeared. I don't know why this happens. Maybe ill try later. Laurel
ReplyDeleteOh no! Sorry to hear that. That's frustrating. That's happened to me--I type out a long comment and it gets vaporized.
DeleteI have this same problem when I comment on blogs too, Laurel. It's frustrating. Thanks for stopping by though!
DeleteI love the entire concept of this series, bought them and now I need to read them. Okay, everybody, stop writing fabulous books until I get caught up. Deal? Thought not. Sigh.
ReplyDelete1. I do read sci-fi. Heinlein is one of my favorite authors because several of his heroes were patriarchs who didn't hesitate to spank when they thought it was necessary. So, of course, the plotline made the Breeder series a "must buy." for me.
2. If I was already in love with someone, being "given away" to another would be hard for me to accept. I doubt I'm as brave as Anika, and finding myself vulnerable in the middle of a war would definitely have me freaking, so I think I might appear to go along with the "plan" while secretly working things out with my lover for me to escape. My problem would be having to convince my new "owner" that I couldn't mate with him for some reason. I suspect, given the protectiveness and possessiveness of the alpha men in the Breeder series, that would be a challenge.
3. Yes, I was once attracted to another man and it didn't work out because I was married. Nothing happened, but I had a strong physical reaction to him for some reason, must have been pheromones. I did everything I could to avoid him for three years, then, as luck would have it, he was hired into our department. We eventually became friends and the intense attraction I had for him slowly waned into a comfortable friendship. He was funny, attractive, sexy and not an American citizen. He eventually returned to his home country and we lost contact. It's the only time I've ever been truly tempted, but I love my husband and would never hurt him or our marriage in that way.
4. Can't answer which is my favorite, but the fact Cara is considering writing a couple more books makes me happy.
5. Yes, I think it's a fabulous idea, though I suspect I'm going to want Illian to have his own book. He sounds like a nice guy who deserves to find happiness in his own story.
Thanks Sue for the great discussion and questions, and Cara, I'm really glad you took a chance on this series. I so look forward to reading it.
Oh Heinlein – the progressive thinking advocator of corporal punishment! A few years ago I saw a movie loosely based on one of his books and it even contained the scene with the Space Command General admonishing a female Major – over his knee.
DeleteThanks for reviving those memories.
I wanted to add one thing about Anika being brave enough to run away during wartime--she has grown throughout each book and has suffered great tragedy in each one. I won't mention what those tragedies are since you haven't read it. By the time Warrior happens, she has enough and has decided to stand up for herself.
DeleteI love Science fiction! The concept of a different kind of world is very appealing to me. The romance that can be part of that world especially for the spanking/ BDSM genre is compelling.
ReplyDeleteI would never ever wish to marry someone not of my choice especially if I loved another. I liked to think I would be brave enough to run away.
As to wanting another man....no. Reading engages my fantasies.
I have not read the series yet, but I will. Just have so many books to read I want to do them justice!
I always like spin-offs, so I would be for that!
Hope you'll give the Breeder series a try, Minelle. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteI loved this series, but Warrior was definitely my favorite!
ReplyDeleteI would have run away also - if I were brave enough. hmmm.
I like to read all different kinds of genres, and will follow an author I like into a different one. :)
I can't wait to see what happens with the spin offs. Sounds great!
Awesome questions!
:)