Reviewed by Becca
TITLE: Alpha’s Embrace
SERIES: The Omega’s Misfits #3
AUTHOR: Wendy Rathbone
PUBLISHER: Eye Scry
LENGTH: 205 pages
RELEASE DATE: April 12, 2020
BLURB:
I am Misha.
My name was given to me at birth by the doctor who delivered me. I have never known my parents. I live in a ten by ten space with one window, a sink and toilet, a bed and a locked door. Once a day I’m taken to an outdoor exercise area. I am allowed a limited access tablet and tutored online by computer programs. I have one friend I talk to through a tiny crack in the wall. His name is Cedric and he has trouble keeping himself quiet. When he isn’t talking to me about monsters and demons, he screams all the time.
Why is my life so isolated and depressing? Because I am a Sylph. Sylphs are the byproduct of illegal Omega to Omega matings. We are all beautiful, but 99.9% are born insane. The rarest of Sylphs, like me, show no outward signs of madness or brain damage, but we live in institutions because we cannot be trusted.
All of us Sylphs who have lived long enough to pass through puberty have hypersexual disorder which makes life even more difficult for us, let alone our keepers. It is like something Alphas call the Burn, a mating urge Alphas experience once every couple of months.
But we’re Sylphs, not Alphas, and this Burn thing? We experience it all the time. It’s a huge problem and why we are kept isolated. Most of us don’t survive through our teens because of it.
One day, a handsome Alpha comes to interview and study me. He calls himself the Chief of Staff but his real name is Geo. Like magic, I fall in love with him instantly. I do everything I can to seduce him. He will have none of it because touch between an Alpha and a Sylph is taboo. But I have plans. No matter what, I intend to bond him and make him mine. Forever.
REVIEW:
I have a hard time with stories like this, because even though this is fictional, it is a great reminder that things like this happen in the real world. When someone is not up to society’s standard or different, they are treated below dirt, beaten, raped, locked up, and so much more. And it’s so unfair. And this is one of those stories. I know it’s supposed to be an HEA, but for me it almost feels like an HFN. Because of the risks that are there. But I will hope for an HEA for the rest of their lives.
Misha has only known the walls of the colony and the little bit of the world surrounding it in the short time he gets outside every day. He gets to have tv and internet and dreams of worlds beyond. But one thing he will never be, is free. Misha is a slyph, a product of an omega/omega relationship. A being that constantly lives in a state of alpha burn, constantly wanting to obtain an orgasm. Most don’t live til puberty or much after. In fact, Misha is pretty much the oldest one known. And although Misha feels the burn every day, he’s learned and taught himself control. He can’t help who he is but he can control his body and mind and what he does. But the minute he meets the new ‘king’, or Chief of Staff, Geo, things change. He wants Geo as he’s never wanted anything or anyone ever. And even though Geo hides it better, he feels Geo wants him too. But the problem is, their relationship, if they had one, would be illegal. NO one is allowed to mate or be with slyphs. Slyphs are considered dangerous and most are. But what if. Seeing as Misha is different….what if?
I hate in most stories how omegas are treated. But I love them so much because time and time again they prove how much stronger they really are. But for slyphs, beings like Misha, they are treated even worse. And while some of it is understandable, to a point, it still can be cruel as this story shows. And what I love about Geo, is he didn’t take one single thing for granted or at someone’s word. He checked everything out. Wanted to know why things were the way they were. Why someone like Misha, who is a model slyph, can’t be allowed to have more freedoms. Why certain slyphs are constantly checked on or things handled a certain way. And because of it, things started to change. In a good way. At least Geo thought so. But things have a way of backfiring sometimes. And sometimes, fate seems to step in and take over. And everyone has to scramble to make things right or better. It’s hard. So many things are at risk. But if done right, could work out very well.
I can’t really go on about too much more or I will give too much away. It’s a good story, please don’t misunderstand me. And in the end, I’m glad of what happened. But the in between is a tough story.
RATING:
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