Title: Paradise 21
Series: A New Dawn, Book #1
Author: Aubrie Dionne
Publisher: Entangled Publishing (August 2011)
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Description: Aries has lived her entire life aboard mankind's last hope, the New Dawn, a spaceship traveling toward a planet where mankind can begin anew- a planet that won't be reached in Aries' lifetime. As one of the last genetically desirable women in the universe,she must marry her designated genetic match and produce the next generation for this centuries long voyage.
But Aries has other plans.
When her desperate escape from the New Dawn strands her on a desert planet, Aries discovers rumors about pirates - humans who have escaped her before its demise - are true. Handsome, genetically imperfect Striker possess the freedom Aries' envies, and the two connect on a level she never thought possible. But pursued by her match from above and hunted by the planet's native inhabitants, Aries quickly learns freedom will come at a hefty price.
The life of the man she loves.
Review: In Aubrie Dionne’s Paradise 21, the chance for freedom resides where the heart is.
Aries is a Lifer, residing on the New Dawn and bound by whatever fate test scores and a computer cook up for her. Longing for a life of her own, she escapes to Sahara 354, a land of eternal day, sandworms, lizard-people, and a smoking hot space pirate named Striker. When her betrothed-to-be lands on the planet in search for her, Aries may have to give up her long-lost freedom for the man she loves.
Paradise 21 is beautifully written. Each word sings on the page and lends importance to the plot, setting, and characters. Ms. Dionne brings to life new worlds from cold, deep space to the desert planet and its strange inhabitants. We feel the heat and the isolation within the universe. As a science fiction novel, Paradise 21 explodes with action-packed drama; as a romance novel, it oozes with sweet romance. The strongest part of this novel resides within the characters. They are flawed and wonderful. Their issues and how they overcome them moves the plot forward. There is never a dull moment! Each character shows growth in who they are, although some characters never change, like people. Ms. Dionne yanks the reader into the worlds she creates and doesn’t let them up for air until the last page. Best of all, Paradise 21 reminds us freedom is sacred, sacrifice involves love, and every creature is important.
Aubrie Dionne’s Paradise 21 catapults me into outer space where anything is possible, but most of all love, and I love this novel and highly recommend it.
