Cast in Steel, Carved in Stone. Ancient words he doesn’t understand define Mikkel’s existence. What he does understand is that his life depends on Yule, a planet that threatens to explode beneath his feet if he doesn’t produce an heir.
Cover art by Abigail Marie Murphy
In exchange for her world’s safety, Katrina consents to marry this stranger from Yule with a wardrobe more colorful than hers. She’s even willing to put up with his all-night meetings and dancing with tourists. But when Mikkel starts showing up battered and bruised, and she discovers he’s been consorting with spies, she has to intervene. Even if it means betraying her husband in the arms of a bandit with a wicked kiss she can’t forget.
Mikkel isn’t a diplomat, not even a good conversationalist, but he does control the one piece of real estate where Emperor Thane has consented to hold a peace conference. If he can keep Yule from blowing the delegates into tiny pieces, all Mikkel will have to worry about is how to tell his wife that he knows her secrets—and he loves her anyway.
Published by The Hard Shell Word Factory, and available in
trade paperback, Kindle and other electronic formats.
Reviews
4 Roses
” Both heroine and hero are strong characters well matched. Ms. Murphy’s Sci-Fi world comes to life amidst political conflicts, espionage, and well-developed world building. This reviewer, already a reader-fan, enjoys Ms. Murphy’s unique talent in building characters and worlds that quickly become very real. I would definitely recommend this newest book to both Sci-Fi and Romance readers!”
– Reviewed by KARI, August 2003, Love Romances
4-1/2 STARS
“This is an excellent science fiction romance. The secrets that build are marvelously created, and the richly crafted Yule world is vividly depicted. The characters’ interaction and the universe around them will keep you turning the pages.”
– Reviewed by Susan Mobley, Romantic Times Book Club
“Secrets, secrets, and more secrets could have been this novel’s title. Cast in Steel, Carved in Stone takes the reader to other worlds. It’s an enjoyable trip…the pace of the book speeds up to a suspenseful ending with a nice lead-in for the sequel, For the Emperor.”
– Reviewed by Pamela Skochinski, The Blue Iris Journal
“Cast in Steel, Carved in Stone is an enjoyable science fiction romance that brings two worlds to life so that the audience believes in Lexina and Yula[sic]. The cast is powerful, especially Mikkel, a Scarlet Pimpernel in space and Kat, a woman who knows what she wants and goes out to achieve her desires….fans will want to soar with this exhilarating journey in worlds far from this one.”
– Reviewed by Harriet Klausner (9/10) at the Blethers