Genre: Sci-Fi
LGBTQ+ Category: Gay
Reviewer: Xanthe, Paranormal Romance Guild
Get It At Amazon | Universal Buy Link
About The Book
With the planet on the brink of erupting and his memories gone, can Commander Damon Wild find his way back home?
Commander Damon Wild is not having a good day. Being shot down on a remote planet by the Siwu pirates and then losing his memories is enough to make a good man desperate. When his situation becomes worse—a planetary eruption—Damon knows he must do something. A small scientific outpost at the centre of a caldera offers something he had only dreamt about, hope.
Captain Zaveid L’eau offers Damon a place to recover and space to find himself once more. The attractive captain distracts him from his troubles, and it is enough. Damon can see light at the end of the tunnel and Zaveid is the one lighting the way.
With a volcano on the brink of exploding and pirates constantly nipping at his heels, Damon doesn’t have time for peace.
The pirates are breathing down their necks and a massive eruption destroying everything, Damon must learn to trust Zaveid with his heart and that no matter the circumstances, love will give them the strength to defeat all enemies, including their own self-doubt.
Calamity is the fourth book of the StarStation series, featuring amnesiac heroes, long-suffering captains, and a race against time. Because of the unique circumstances of this book, one does not need to read the previous books, but it is better to get the whole picture.
The Review
I can’t believe this is my first time reading a book by Toshi Drake! I was so sure I had already enjoyed one of their science fiction stories, but I guess not? Calamity is an intense place to start.
Commander Damon Wild crash lands onto a planet after being attacked in space and and knocked off course. It happens at one of the most inopportune times, as the planet’s volcanoes are becoming extremely active. Upon landing, he sustains injuries that lead to amnesia. Luckily, he encounters Zaveid L’eau, captain of the outpost that has been monitoring activity on planet, who endeavours to keep an eye on the wilful commander whilst also running the outpost and keeping his people safe as the planet erupts around them.
We dive into the action straight away, with Damon’s ship heading towards an unknown planet. My heart went out to him throughout the book as he struggled with amnesia, but with so much going on around him and the possibility of the whole planet exploding, he pushes any possible memories or connections to his past away so he can focus on surviving and helping. That doesn’t stop him from having moments of panic and anxiety when things push through, but most of the time Zaveid is there to calm him and support him through it.
They have quite the tumultuous relationship. Damon is often frustrated, as Zaveid wants him to take it easy due to his injuries and subsequent run ins with pirates looking to take Damon away with them. Zaveid also doesn’t help his case with his overbearing nature, but there are also many sweet moments, and it becomes clear how much Damon is coming to mean to him in such a short time. Intense events build intense emotions and it’s something that they share in and bond over together.
I like that Zaveid doesn’t look down on Damon, and how he uses the skills that Damon subconsciously knows to pull him away from upsetting moments and make use of him to help the team.
There is a lot going on here – the volcanic eruptions are causing panic amongst the wildlife, and the pirates who are there purely to capture Damon throw another wrench into the works.
The writing is well paced, building the tension right from the start, and keeping both the characters – and readers – on their toes throughout. The author is an excellent worldbuilder too – I found it so easy to imagine the landscape and events happening around the characters, and I felt the intensity of everything that Damon experiences, physically, mentally and emotionally.
In the end, we’re left with a bit of a cliff hanger that leaves us wanting to know what’s coming next.
I really enjoyed reading this overall. It has made me want to go back and read the series from the beginning, though this one can absolutely be read as a standalone.
4 stars.
The Reviewer
Hello all, my name is Xanthe and I am excited to be a reviewer for the PRG.
I read a lot, every night for at least 4-5 hours and I love to get lost in the world that an author has created. The best ones leave you wanting more and at a loss for words to describe just how good it is but I’ll try my best.
I live in a small town in South West England, just me and my dog Bonnie. I work part time in administration and really enjoy my job and the people I work with which I am very aware is not always the case!
I’ll read pretty much any sub genre within the mm genre. Since discovering it a few years ago, I rarely read anything else. One thing I won’t touch is horror, a definite no no for me!
Never ask me what my favourite anything is as I’ll have to give you a list of about ten or twenty things. How am I able to pick one food, book or film out of so many that I love?!
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