Wednesday, September 14, 2022

SciFi/Fantasy/Romance Book Review: Ashwin by Kit Rocha

 



Ashwin is the first novel in Kit Rocha's post apocalyptic self-published series "Gideon's Riders".  The series is a spinoff of Rocha's prior erotic romance series "Beyond", which I loved and have previously reviewed on this blog.  That series followed the O'Kanes in Sector Four as they fell into love (in pairs, trios, and in one-case, a foursome), dealt with the corrupt puritan city that their sector surrounded, and fought for freedom to love and eventually ended in revolution.  It also had a ton of sex and sexy moments, as you'd imagine from erotic romance fiction, and was incredibly good in those moments.


This series is more tame by comparison - there are still sex scenes but significantly less and a bit less steamy, although they're still likely to be pretty R rated and hot as hell.  Here we follow characters in Sector One, which is a kind of theocratic government (but not a puritan one or oppressive one), and the riders of its leader Gideon as they fight for the health and love of their peoples.  And Ashwin is a pretty enjoyable first installment, dealing with supersoldier Ashwin Malhotra, a man who is supposedly unstoppable and without emotions, and the woman he can't keep his mind off of, Doctor Kora Bellamy.  Readers of the Beyond series will undoubtedly enjoy this.  Readers who are new to this universe may also find it enjoyable, although I think they'll love it a slight bit less without the context of the original series. 

---------------------------------------------Plot Summary----------------------------------------------------
Ashwin Malhotra is a Makhai supersoldier - genetically engineered by the Base to be the perfect, unfeeling soldier, capable of dealing with and killing well armed men in bunches all on his own.  But during the recent unrest around Eden, in which the Sectors rose up and formented revolution, Ashwin found himself with one unexpected weakness: feelings for Dr. Kora Bellamy, an incredibly capable healer who somehow makes him feel things he absolutely shouldn't.  Ashwin spent months after the revolution being tortuously re-calibrated by the Base to feel no more emotions, so that he could once again go on missions without fear of distractions.  And the latest of those missions is to infiltrate Gideon's Riders, the holy warriors that work for Gideon Reos, the leader of the religion-based Sector One. 

But Ashwin's plans fall into pieces when he discovers that Sector One is the current location of Kora's whereabouts, where Kora has used her healing skills to save as many people as possible and has even somehow become an honorary member of the royal family.  Kora has thought for months that Ashwin was dead, and his reappearance reignites the feelings she had for him, feelings she knows should be impossible...for Makhai soldiers can't love, can they?  And yet neither Ashwin and Kora can stay away from each other, even as things get more and more dangerous, and Ashwin's mission means he might wind up on the opposite side of Kora and her new friends and family.

And then there are the secrets Ashwin has long known, secrets about his and Kora's pasts, ones which could destroy them and any chance they have of an impossible love...
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The Beyond books introduced us to Ashwin Malhotra, impossibly unstoppable supersoldier who traded dangerous favors with the protagonists....one of which was to keep him away from the woman (Kora) he loved before he did something that would destroy them both.  But Ashwin and Kora were side characters - and very minor side characters (especially Kora) amidst the romantic groupings in Sector Four, the Sector controlled by Dallas O'Kane and his alcohol-brewing Empire, a group who was devoted to the freedoms of its people to live, love, and find pleasure however they so wanted. Sector One, this book's setting was portrayed in that series as one ruled over by a benevolent theocracy under Gideon Rios...albeit a theocracy that was once corruptly ruled over by Gideon's grandfather, who styled himself a Prophet.   


That both is and isn't what Sector One is revealed to be in this book - yes its ruling society is based upon a belief in God, but Gideon is a benevolent figure who'd rather not have the leadership mantle, and who genuinely wants the best for all those under his charge...and whose nature and willingness to believe in the good in everyone inspires such fierce devotion in his riders.*  Into this setting is thrust Kora and Ashwin, two people from a very different background - the Base, where military order requires absolute obedience even when those orders involve inflicting or at least not preventing pain.  For Kora, this is a home, a family, where she can do what she wants - help others - and the only thing missing is the man she fell in love with; for Ashwin, it's a confusing place where they seemingly are carefree while still somewhat disciplined, where they seem to bet on love and caring even when faced with potential death.  

*The book acknowledges that such power could easily turn corrupt and dangerous, nicely enough, suggesting that this is not exactly a form of government Kit Rocha endorses, but I digress*

And its in this setting that Kora and Ashwin's romance happens, as Ashwin tries to infiltrate the Riders (who are very well aware that that's his true objective and are betting Ashwin's love of Kora will make his inflitration actually genuine) and Kora tries to deal with the emotions and feelings she thought once would never go anywhere.  For Ashwin, these are emotions he's been taught he should never have, that he should suffer pain to burn out, and that he would be "Destabilizing" should he start to feel.  For Kora, Ashwin is a man she should be able to desire but can never have, because he obviously would place his mission above all else and would never admit to having feelings or a sense of humor.  And yet the attraction and feelings between the two become too much for them to fight forever, leading to the sparks you know are coming.


It's a hot and really well done romance, as you might imagine, even if the final conflict between Kora and Ashwin that needs to be resolved for their happiness is a bit well - it works and is foreshadowed well, but is kind of too minor to really believe it would break them up forever as the book tries to play it as.  The sex scenes are nowhere near as frequent (or as involved or Orgy based) as in the Beyond series - this is more in Romance than Erotic Romance I would say - but they're still very good, and all in all, this is a really enjoyable and fun romance.  Definitely recommended.  

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