A bounty hunter who happens to be a dragon chases down demonic ne’er-do-wells in this erotic fantasy romance.
Wright, the author of Lucifer’s Daughter (2019), sets his tale in a world where legendary magical beings, appalled by environmental destruction, have emerged from hiding to put mankind in its place. As a result, humans are a marginalized underclass on the bottom rung of a society riven by class and ethnic conflict, featuring thuggish goblin gangsters, elf sex workers, and a ruling elite of bigoted fairies under the cruel Queen Velocity. Policing things is Sin, a San Francisco bounty hunter who looks like a 5-foot-3-inch, redheaded, green-skinned, attractive human woman, but she’s also a tough-talking dragon with unobtrusive wings, a 9mm handgun for when talking won’t do, and a relatively good heart, which is rare among “supernaturals.” Velocity hires Sin and her partner, Sebastian, a 6-inch-tall imp, to investigate the case of a murdered werewolf found in a sealed chamber. Their sleuthing leads to the succubus Aezriane, who enters the dreams of men to collect their semen; she does so by means so pleasurable that they don’t mind much when she offs them afterward. The paranormal investigators also uncover a plot to breed a race of superdemons and overthrow fairy supremacism. Complicating the case is Sin’s affair with Velocity’s son Fallon and the presence of Fallon’s fiancee, Rose, a haughty noble-fairy who tags along. Wright’s yarn feels a bit like a reboot of Buffy the Vampire Slayer as written by Mickey Spillane, with lots of grungy atmosphere, brutal but piquant characters, a beguiling femme fatale, and punchy dialogue, as when Sebastian says, “Oh gross. Dog meat. We could have gone to a nice place that served cat or even human.” Sin also gets explicit sex scenes—“I rode from one orgasm to another screaming out each one as he wrapped his arms around me, refusing to let me escape from the crests that racked my body”—in which her blithe wantonness clashes somewhat with her usual hard-boiled, wisecracking cynicism. However, Wright’s skillful prose and storytelling hold things together to deliver an imaginative page-turner.A rollicking blend of noir detective story and offbeat erotica with a twist of magic. –Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
Pub Date: July 14, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-08-038384-9
Page Count: 221
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2020
Review Program: KIRKUS INDIE
Categories: FANTASY & SCI-FI ROMANCE | PARANORMAL ROMANCE | ROMANCE
Humans have been overthrown by supernatural beings for nearly destroying Mother Earth. The hierarchy of supers has created a planet where humans are commodities to be used as slaves and food, but Queen Velocity, a vicious and cruel fairy, doesn’t just want to enforce her will on humans. She hates any creature – orc, vamp, were, or goblin – who undermines her authority, and the best way to bring these beings to heel is Sin, the toughest bounty hunter on the planet.
Sin wants gold, as much as she can get. Besides pride, it’s the only thing dragons like her value. Her kind are rare in the “fae” world, but they are the strongest and toughest creatures in the kingdom, and even though she hates the queen, she is well paid for her unique skill set. Being a dragon, she has enough strength in her tiny, humanlike body to do serious damage to most supers, but her newest bounty may prove too much even for her.
A mysterious, vanishing creature has killed an alpha Were and the king of the vamps after stealing the very essence of her victims. Even with the help of her partner Sebastian, an imp with advanced magical skill, Sin fears she’ll disappoint the queen, a typically lethal predicament. Being paired with Queen Velocity’s super-hot son Fallon is not helping her concentration, and the closer they get to the killer, Sin realizes she must risk her life to face the creature who turns dreams to nightmares.
Lustful Sin is the first in a new supernatural series with exceptional world-building. It combines the common conventions of crypto creatures like vampires and werewolves but shows them in a new light. In this world, humans are–or were–the monsters, and the traditional monsters are now minding the store. All human conveniences like cars and electricity have been banished, and in their place are magic and might. Even the gun Sin carries is a monitored commodity given only by special permission of the Fairy Council. Darkened cities ruled by orcs and goblins create an apocalyptic world different than those typically seen in an “end of times” novel and create a frightening, intense mood lightened by the comic interaction of Sebastian and Sin.
Sin’s fortitude and determination are stars of the novel. Though Sin is a powerful, rare super, she must bow to the will of the fairies, who look down on all other supers. This ruling-class has created many enemies, including the creature who is murdering other supers for revenge. In spite of the crushing power of the fairies, however, Sin refuses to be anything less than herself. Ruled by her love of gold and her dragon pride, she usually does as she pleases, much to the disapproval of her partner and her great-grandfather (many times over) Igmun who is an advisor to the queen.
Pride won’t let her give up on seemingly impossible challenges even an ancient vamp on a kamikaze mission. Though she knows her pride will probably be her downfall, she won’t allow any creature to insult her dragon heritage and live to tell about it. This pride also keeps her from becoming Fallon’s mistress though it would mean a cushy existence “out of the gutter” that is her current life. But this hard-as-nails attitude hides a much softer heart. Sin saves Sadie, a half-breed fairy who is the forced pet of the vamps, from her life of perpetual servitude. She also often retaliates against supers who hurt humans, leading to a bounty on Sin’s own life, and when she has the choice to join the human resistance against the tyrannical fairy rule, she realizes it is her destiny no matter the cost.
This highly erotic adventure features a strong female protagonist with a warm heart and an HBIC attitude. Lovers of all things supernatural and sizzling will not be able to put it down. [Editor’s Note: This is a five-alarm adult read. This is not a YA read.] – Chanticleer Book Review
LUSTFUL SIN From the Bounty Hunter series , Vol. 1
BY ROBERT WRIGHT JR. ‧ RELEASE DATE: JULY 14, 2019