Mermen in space. Murder. And Minali.Sven’s life is going swimmingly. After landing a job as the leader of the Mer community in the Colony, life couldn’t be more perfect. Until a dead body turns up in Sven’s fish tank, making him the prime suspect in a murder investigation, and his life fishtails out of control. Sven is in over his head this time. Now with Violet the succubus and a Human piranha … Human piranha called Minali on his tail, the other Mer are ready to throw him to the sharks.
Can he find the real murderer and prove his innocence before it’s too late?
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Although this is a stand-alone book, I think it would be more enjoyable to read after Halcyon: An Alien Scifi Romance (Colony: Aqua series Book 1). Book 2 starts a few weeks after the end of Halcyon. The same characters are here, in the Colony. There is a murder. Sven Grun, a merman, is trying to keep the Mers from fighting each other and be a good leader. Detective Minali Burman, human, just out of a relationship with a philanderer and abuser, and now finished with her drug bust case, gets assigned a murder investigation with Constable Violet Love, a succubus, as her partner. Sven is seriously attracted to Minali, but she considers him her chief suspect. However, she can’t get his body out of her dreams. And then they meet in the (bare) flesh for an intense sexual experience (actually eight!). A fascinating mystery solved, combined with hot sex, and happy climactic ending – I couldn’t ask for more!
The Colony is an attempt to reconcile humans and the alien Titans. The war is over, but negative feelings abound on both sides. The Colony is half human and half Titan. Those who agree to settle there are given a large cash incentive.
Sven is the leader of the Mer community in the Colony, but he didn’t expect he would be expected to soothe every Mer’s hurt feelings. He’s rethinking the “honor.” But when a dead body is found in the fish tank, he’s got real problems.
Minali is the detective who comes to investigate. And Sven is attracted to her. However, Minali is human and Sven is Titan. And Sven is a “person of interest.” Could things get more complicated?
Take a vacation from your own problems, and let Demelza Carlton immerse you in an alien culture with sapients very much like us. Oh, and Sven and Minali are hot together! Enjoy!
Minali starts out the story a bigot. But she eventually learns that different doesn’t mean bad. Too bad that many elected officials, IRL, haven’t figured that out. A good story overall. Not a fan of the cover.
After a bitter race war, an experimental “complex” sees humans and “Titans” living together, but prejudices remain an relations aren’t always entirely cordial. When a woman’s body is found in a fish tank in a seafood store Detective Minali has to confront her own preconceptions while searching for the killer and dealing with her attraction to the sexy store owner, a Mer who also happens to be the leader of the Mer community on the colony.
I really enjoyed this story. It’s a fairly light-hearted police murder mystery with great world building that shares its setting and a handful of characters with Halcyon, Book 1 of the series. There’s a little sex, a little witty repartee, some serious reflection on living together in a multi-race setting and a decent murder mystery with a couple of surprise twists at the end.
It’s a great short novel, perfect for a summer afternoon when you can’t get to the beach to enjoy all that cool water and buff water-folk bodies.
Murder as a matchmaking technique? I’m not sure that it will catch on, although the fairy godmother in this tale did manage to bring her princely charge together with his beloved. The author is playing with some very twisted and original ideas of how fairy tales should go on. Please continue, Ms. Carlton – I am definitely interested in the next book.
5 stars
I had previously read book 1 and enjoyed it, so I didn’t hesitate to buy Fishtail. I was not disappointed for even a second. Action, romance, twists and turns (and flips) and interesting characters made this a great read. I would have to say I devoured it and I loved it. I was reading snippets to my wife (trying to avoid spoilers), both sharing parts that tickled me, and whetting her appetite to read the series.
I will be watching, anxiously, for the next story from Demelza.