Name Before the Masses Tour & Giveaway for Ulterior Motives by Chandra Ryan

Join Chandra Ryan on her Name Before the Masses Tour for Ulterior Motives from August 12 – September 30, 2013, presented by Goddess Fish Promotions.  Please leave a comment or question for Chandra to let her know you stopped by.  You can enter her tour wide giveaway by filling out the Rafflecopter form below.  You can also follow her tour here. 

Ulterior Motives

by Chandra Ryan

Universal Defiance,     Book 1 

Publisher: Ellora's Cave Publishing, Inc.

Release Date: July 3, 2013

Genre: Sci/Fi - Futuristic Romance

Length: 78 Pages

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Book Description: 

Universal Defiance, Book One

On a rural settler planet, Kat must resort to putting out an ad to find a husband. She doesn’t expect to find love—that’s a dream in these parts—just a partner to help work her ranch. Then the devastatingly handsome Jasper answers her ad and turns her on in ways she never dreamed possible. Too bad he’s not who he says he is.

Jasper doesn’t know what he’s getting into when he ventures undercover to investigate a legal claim against Kat’s ranch. But after a toe-curling night under her roof and in her bed, he’s willing to do anything to stay there. He can’t say no to the tough-as-nails businesswoman who makes his body come alive.

When people start getting hurt, though, both Kat and Jasper have to decide how valuable one piece of land is. And the ranch that brought them together might be the very thing standing between them. 

Buy Links:  Ellora's Cave │Amazon │ B&N │ ARe │ Kobo 

Excerpt :

“Excuse me, sir.” Her calm words broke through the chaos of the port station and gained his undivided attention. This close to him, staring into his rich, brown eyes, her stomach began to churn with nerves. She quickly pushed through the sensation, though. She didn’t have the time for silliness. And it was the height of absurdity for her to be uncomfortable around her soon-to-be husband. “I’m Katarina Maxim. My friends call me Kat.”

She held her hand out to him in casual greeting as she tried not to fidget. She’d debated how to greet him as she’d driven to the station. A kiss seemed rather forward. But she did want him to feel welcomed. A handshake seemed like the best idea at the time. Now, as she waited for him to take her hand, she started second-guessing herself.

“Katarina, that’s a lovely name.”

She noted that he’d called her Katarina but tried not to let that color her first impression of him. She didn’t hate the name nor did she hate being called by it. It just didn’t fit her. Not anymore. Katarina sounded soft, delicate—refined, even. Like she’d been before her family had moved here. She could only hope that he didn’t see her as any of those things. If he did, he would be sorely disappointment when he got to know her better. “Kat. Only my mother called me by my full name,” she pressed.

“Kat it is.” His smile seemed genuine but his palm was as soft as new leather when he finally took hers. If he stayed, that would change. This planet demanded calluses and blisters. Her hands were proof of that.

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Being from a rather nomadic family, Chandra Ryan loves to travel and meet people. But she’s found that sometimes, like when you’re stuck inside because of a good old-fashioned Southwestern heat wave, you have to make do. Fortunately for her and her loving family, who don’t like seeing her suffer from cabin fever, she’s found creating new people and places equally as fascinating. Also, you’re a lot less likely to spill your ice tea.

Web site: www.ChandraRyan.com

Twitter: @ChandraRyan

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chandra.ryan

My Review

A fan of science fiction or futuristic romance, I was intrigued by the concept of off world ranching in the future.  Looking forward to Chandra Ryan’s Ulterior Motives, the first book in her new Universal Defiance series, I was both pleased and a little disappointed.  A little different than my usual type of review, I’m going to break down what does and doesn’t work for me in this book.

What Works:

The characters – I liked both Kat and Jasper.  I found Kat a hard working woman determined to be a successful rancher and looking for someone who could be both her partner and husband.  While she’s not looking for a hot romance, she does want to have a real marriage that works.  While Jasper initially arrives at Kat’s ranch under false pretenses, he’s hard working, believes in people having a fair chance and intends to help Kat with a problem she wasn’t aware of.  He’s also easy on the eyes and I totally understood why Kat was attracted to him.

The Romance – Both lonely and sensing the other has something they need, Kat and Jasper are immediately attracted to each other and their quick romance works.  They have plenty of chemistry in and out of the bedroom.

The Conflict – The reason Jasper has come to Kat’s ranch “under cover” is pretty important to the story and the mystery of who is behind the problem is very well done.  I was seriously surprised when the “villain” was revealed.

What Doesn’t Work:

The Sci/Fi-Futuristic World Building – I think part of the problem with the world building was the short length of this book.  I really feel that if the story had been expanded that Ms. Ryan could have really given her story more depth.  There was almost no development of the “off world” part of the story, it really could have taken place anywhere ….. including modern day Montana.  I was also a little disappointed that the animals were regular animals, I was looking forward to some kind of exotic non-Earth type animal, but alas they were just regular cows.

The supporting cast – we only meet a couple of people in the story besides Kat and Jasper.  I think it would have been nice to meet more people so that we could get a feel for this newly developed planet.

Overall, I did enjoy this book and look forward to seeing where Ms. Ryan takes us next.  If you’re looking for a quick lunch time off world escape, give this one a try.

My Rating:  4 out of 5 Stars

FTC Disclosure:  I received a complimentary copy of this book as a part of a book tour in exchange for fair and honest review.  I received no additional compensation for my opinion of the reading material provided. 

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