Title: Zercy
Series: Nira Chronicles #2
Author: Kora Knight
Publisher: Amazon Link
Genre: Sci-fi
LGBTQ+ Category: M/M Romance
Pages: 672
Blurb:
Emergency landing. Uncharted planet. Erotic captivity of epic proportions. Right when Captain Alec Hamlin thinks it can’t get any crazier, his team is sold to their captors’ mighty sovereign. King Zercy of the Kríe. Ruler of the planet’s most formidable species. Man, is he imposing. So regal and larger than life. And way too savagely handsome for Alec’s liking. From the first moment he laid eyes on him, he knew the Kríe was trouble, knew he needed to steer clear of him at all costs. But when Zercy chooses Alec to be his personal pet, all plans to dodge the male fall by the wayside. Alec is forced to spend each evening in the alluring king’s company, each night bound to the seductive king’s bed.
Wholly at his mercy. Utterly defenseless, in his own mind and most especially his restless body. His struggle is real. Because the more Alec gets to know Zercy, the more he realizes two things. The Kríe king is damaged—unstable, not right, making him unpredictable and highly dangerous. But he is also innately kind beneath the raging storm that torments him. Kind and genuine, with a sad but beautiful soul. Something Alec fights with all he is, not to acknowledge. He can’t fall for Zercy. Zercy is the enemy. The captor of both Alec and his team. Which means Alec needs to get them out of there, before it’s too late. Before emotions overthrow logic and take control of the wheel. If only his body didn’t crave Zercy so fiercely, and his heart didn’t want him just as badly.
With Search and Rescue due any day, and Alec’s team getting antsy, Alec is forced to make a decision. He can’t have it both ways. Is he the captain of his men, bound to obligation, or is he a man in love with a Kríe?
Review by Maz
Zercy takes place after the events of Krie Captivity, so if you haven’t had a chance to read that, I recommend doing so.
The story opens a year after the events of Krie Captivity, with a new crew racing to Nira following a distress beacon. Once Garrett and his men get into Nira’s skies, they’re immediately taken down by some of the brutal creatures that inhabit the world and stranded. Right away, Garrett’s crew is face to face with the familiar Krie from the first book, which means you know exactly where they’re being taken to: King Zercy.
Flashing back to a year previous, Alec, Noah and the other members of the original team are dealing with their new home inside King Zercy’s castle. Hopeless, betrayed and nervous of what’s in store, the team do their best to stay vigilant but the King seems to have an immediate fascination with their captain, Alec.
The Krie are sex fanatics and damn proud of it. It seems that most of their culture surrounds their easy, do what feels good attitude towards casual sex, since it’s known pretty early on that procreation isn’t the name of the game for such activities. I was originally apprehensive how the relationship between King Zercy and his “pets” were going to be like since the men were sold off as novelties and treated as such. Knight does well in addressing right away that Zercy has no desire to force anyone into anything, even though he’s confused as hell as to why none of this odd little humans want to have any fun. The culture clash of the wild, debauched Krie and the otherwise straight and confused humans is great for building the sexual tension.
Alec and Zercy’s rocky start slowly unfolds into a wonderful, surprisingly sweet romance. Despite the differences in societal norms, Alec’s wavering sexuality, and Zercy’s political issues, their slow burn relationship blooms into one I deeply enjoyed. Since this is an alien world, the sex scenes were unique and spiced with otherworldly delights. Knight has a wildly dirty imagination and each new tool, toy, or other enhancements brought to the bedroom is a wild ride.
Along with the raunchy and fun side of the world of Nira, Knight has crafted a very vivid, beautiful world with its own ecosystem, language, and races. The Krie aren’t the only sentient inhabitants of Nira, and the growing stress between Krie and Tohri looms in the background. The story does well to balance the romance between Alec and Zercy with the other cogs in the plot, namely the Krie’s fragile survival against the Tohri, Garrett’s inbound rescue team and their run in with Alec’s captors.
For those who like some exciting, alien spiced sex with their enemies to lovers trope, I highly recommend this series. The story was fun, the characters are wonderful and well rounded, and Nira is a fascinating world to fall into. I can’t wait to dive into book three as soon as it comes out.
Maz is a long time m/m romance and sci-fi enthusiast who always has her nose buried in a book. When she’s not reading about love and adventures, she enjoys writing, paleontology and all things geeky.