Very fun read. Although I wanted to give it 4.5 stars, I am rounding down to four only because two people in tight quarters is not exactly my comfort zone. Does it make me a closeted claustrophobic? *scratches head* lol

Good book, tho.

Want to mention: inconsistencies, contradictions, messed up narrative (not always sure in which timeline I was), cliches and various other wtf-ery waiting for you on every page and in every paragraph. But, yaoi novel, what did I expect. I went for something naive and low quality - a quicky, if you please - and I got it for about 60%.

And then BIG guns came out.

NOT A SPOILER, BUT A SERIOUS WARNING (this is all in the book, not my words, except for "wtf", so keep your finger off that "flag" button):

*

The book took a turn for pure brutality: brutal rape, brutal beatings, brutal murder, brutal zombies, brutal weres, brutal winter, just effing brutal all around with a bouquet of taboos thrown in just for the shocker. It includes consuming human flesh, tearing off limbs, sucking out brains and eyes, ripping out "bowels", fisting, tearing up assholes (literally, of course), dancing on the bloody floor and stomping through the guts, watersports, piss enemas, knotting, implied incest (why not go all the way, wtf?), bestiality and manimal sex/rape (shifted form). I am sure I missed a few juicy bits while rolling my eyes. Please, don't hold it against me.

1 star for the first 60-65%, which still contained a story. The rest - super-massive black hole.

Thank you for your time.

PS Must mention: one of the scenes in the book reminds me strongly ofPrisoner in the Viewfinder. Particularly the scene on the cruise ship with Michael Arbatov, his uncle Yuri and Akihito. A young blond photographer, a pure soul, raped and abused by bad Russian homophobic mobsters.

Peter is a stow-away on a boat. When the captain finds Peter, he throws him off the boat into the ocean. In the ocean, Peter meets Cuke, a sea-elf. Cuke saves Peter. They have great sex while surviving on a remote Caribbean Island. They make a baby. All is well. Good story.

*********************

On the plus side:

- Stranded/marooned/survival set-up. Robinson Crusoe, The Martian are my favorites. Definitely a plus.

- Gender-fluid sea-elf, interspecies. So, so cool! 'Cause Enemy Mine, people!!!! Three pluses in one :D

On the ...ahem ...other side:

CUKE, the sea-elf. Took me a few (dozen) pages to stop thinking about sea cucumbers :/ But only during the times when Peter and Cuke didn't have sex, cause:

- What century am I in? At first, for whatever reason, I assumed - present times. But then there are all kinds of mentions of a royal family. A historical, then? 75% into the book Cuke "heard the human surface craft land" - a sci-fi? Cause I have no clue what that "human surface craft" is - a Cessna? a space shuttle? an escape pod? a fisherman boat? a canoe? Noah's Arc? starship Enterprise? крейсер Аврора? what?

- What countr... forget country, what planet is Peter from? @.@ We are supposedly in the Caribbean. Yet Peter is an honest to god Prince. Peter and his brother Paul (names used exclusively by royals) are drinking alcohol at the tender age of 16 back home, wherever that is. Peter is also having all kinds of sex and making babies at that same age. Did Peter stow-awayed all the way from Luxembourg or United Kingdom? Belgium? No? Japan??

Here is a quiz for you.

Which country:
- still sports a royal family AND
- has the age of consent set at 16 AND
- has drinking age set at 16 (or possibly even younger)?
Don't know? Me neither. Must be a different planet.

- Star fruit. I read about it enough in the past day or so to be fed up with it for the next couple of years. Thank you very much *burp*.

Bottom line: Could have been a great story if executed better. 

1.5 stars.

This was neither a full blown sci-fi nor a romance.

Wait though!!!! I didn't mean it in a discouraging way.

This book is an in-between stage, a suspension if you will.

The story starts with the history of Bennett and Joss.
It's very sweet and I do feel for Joss in the end, even if he turns out to be stuck in his ways just like one of his beloved mummies - dead to the change. His rituals, his sacrifice, which I found heartbreaking and endearing at the same time, reflects vividly on his character and the state of his affairs with Bennett. He is done, he just won't admit it to himself and the world.

The middle of the book is a state of suspension.
Bennett is in between the worlds physically and metaphorically; between life and death, stuck on a planet run over by hostiles.
Bennett knows that Joss belongs in his past, but he's yet to do something about it when and if he gets back. His relationship with Flynn is uncertain, at best.
This part, tho, is where all the exciting sci-fi is. Not enough to please the majority of the genre fans (it seems), because it's not this book's true focus, but very satisfying at the same time.

There is no romance in the third part of the story either, despite all the feels between Flynn and Bennett. Bennett is still in transition. His old life is no more. His future, that depends on his health, is unpredictable at this point.
Flynn, however much in love, is too independent, with a very strong sense of purpose. His life is not his own, he will not resign and compromise his integrity. I love that about him. About both characters.

I don't think I am risking a spoiler: there is no HEA here, not even a HFN, the boys simply cannot be together at this stage of their lives. I hope very much that book three will tie everything together ...or book four. I am not picky :D Looking forward to it.

Maddening writing skills :)

Couldn't take it, after 40% started skipping pages like there is no tomorrow. Nothing happens in this book, only Rafe's "thinking".