Book Review: Hearts of Ishira

I just finished reading Hearts of Ishira, a sci-fi romance of epic proportions. First of all, I have to give kudos to Bethany Aan for the sweetest dedication EVER to her husband. Made me wish she was my wife. I'll admit, science fiction's not really my thing. I prefer the classics, Arthur C. Clarke, 2001 Space Odyssey type stuff. But there were enough other elements in Hearts of Ishira to make it a compelling read for me. 1. Sexy cat-men. Once I got used to the furry aspect of the men on this planet, it was pretty cool. Stroking their backs to emit a growly purr…Yummy. 2. Empaths. The female MC and one of the male MCs were empaths, able to read minds and feelings. Admit it, it's every girls' dream to have a mate who can read her mind. 3. Boy to girl ratio. With 3-4 men for every woman in this book, it made for some pretty steamy ménage scenes. Hip Hip Hooray! 4. Busted out social norms. This is the beauty of sci-fi, fantasy, and paranormal: you get to make the rules. Ms. Aan made some beautiful rules in this book. The species of men colonizing the planet that Ri's spaceship crash-landed on preferred the older, wiser, curvier women to the twenty-something sticks that accompanied her. The valued women and family above all else in their society, and they all worked together as a team. No politicking. 5. A great antagonist… 6. While reading this book, I did some serious reminiscing to back when I first discovered Jane M. Aul's Clan of the Cave Bear series. Back at home, Ri had been a weirdo for knitting, crotcheing, and spinning her own yarn. On the new planet, her textile crafts were an asset, and she and the men created tools for her to use in her creations. 7. The female lead was intrepid, spunky, and idealistic, without being naïve, which I liked a lot. 8. Lots and lots of great sex 9. Witty dialogue. There was only one aspect of the book that I didn't like, and would be remiss if I didn't share it in the review. The POV shifts were jarring at times, sometimes switching within a paragraph. It seemed to get better as the novel went on or maybe my brain just got used to it. I can see the challenges in writing multiple POVs from empaths, "She could tell he sensed…" but it was distracting to me. Overall though, this was an intense read. It was action packed, and had great pacing. If I didn't have kids and a husband constantly demanding food and attention, I would have definitely read it faster. I will keep these characters in my thoughts for a while.