Hunting Astrid by Thea Landen is a short, hot, and sweet erotic science-fiction novella.
Astrid Carlisle is incredibly intelligent, highly successful and very lonely. She is the responsible for developing and monitoring the simulation testing program for Satera industries’ elite mercenary force. However, working on Zeta-16, a distant and isolated space station, means the dating pool is certainly not deep enough to dive into. Thus, she resigns herself to focus all of her attention on her career, until that attention becomes focused on one of the latest applicants. Applicants are tested via an extremely realistic virtual simulation and while monitoring their performance, one applicant definitely stands out for Astrid. When Astrid inadvertently catches her gaze after the simulation is over, she is mesmerized.
Tabitha Knox joined the Central United Space Marines to support her struggling family after their parents were killed in an accident. She completed her tour, tacked on a few extra years, and was now looking for a more lucrative job in the private sector. Satera Industries offered more than generous compensation for someone with her skillset, if she can make it past their unique screening process.
A chance encounter on the train with the alluring applicant, who seems equally as interested in her, leaves Astrid yearning for more. But she is not interested in a quick fling. So she proposes a new test to see just how serious Tabitha’s intentions are, a high stakes game of hide and seek in the simulator. If Tabitha wins, she will land her dream job and more importantly, Astrid’s surrender. Proving her worth as a partner is going to be more rigorous than proving her skills as a mercenary.
Pros And My Favourite Parts
I really enjoyed the premise of this story. A virtual game of capture the flag, only the flag is the woman you are interested in, and the prize is your dream job and a night with your dream woman? Sign me up! It sounds like an amazing first date and one of the best ‘how we met’ stories going. As if applying for your dream job isn’t stressful enough, imagine having a crush on the woman responsible for assessing you. And then imagine not only having to pass the tests she has created for job applicants, but even more tests just to get a date. Now that is pressure.
Cons And Heads Up
This novella is a teaser in more ways than one. It will get you hot and bothered, but it’s also short, providing only a quick glimpse into an awesome world. Being a fan of the world building prevalent in most science fiction and fantasy books, I would definitely have loved to see more of this one.
The Conclusion
This is a fast and enjoyable read with a lot of heat and a pretty cool setting. It has some creative and immersive science fiction elements but isn’t science heavy. The story is more focused on the characters and their chemistry, and the chemistry is sizzling.
Excerpt from Hunting Astrid by Thea Landen
Before she located any identifying markers, an applicant near the center of the semi-circle that had formed removed their helmet. Jet black hair bounced down to her shoulders, and she shook out the glossy waves as she tucked the headset under one are. Her full lips pressed into a straight line as she listened to Lily’s comments, her expression revealing nothing about how she felt about the events inside the simulation.
Damn, she’s gorgeous. Astrid stopped herself from staring for too long and ducked her head to pretend to read notes off her tablet. She snuck another glance upward and saw the red stripe on the woman’s helmet, denoting her as the player who had completed the mission and won. Impressive…
“And now my colleague can fill you in on some parts of the timeline of the coming days.”
The end of Lily’s portion of the closing remarks snapped her out of her private thoughts, and she lifted her chin. “Thank you. I apologize for not being here to greet you earlier today, but I assure you, I paid close attention to everything else that has transpired since you entered the simulation.”
The woman in front turned her attention toward her, fixing her in her gaze with ice-blue eyes. Astrid’s heart skipped a beat, but she continued with the presentation. “You’ll be scored on a number of factors based on what we observed and what your equipment registered. We like to be thorough here, so this may take some time.” She looked over the room, trying not to squirm under a certain person’s inquisitive stare.
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Bits and Bobs
- ASIN number: B08MWVLHRX
- Publisher: Decadent Publishing
- Thea Landen Online
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