cover image Calamity

Calamity

Constance Fay. Bramble, $18.99 trade paper (320p) ISBN 978-1-250-33041-3

Fay’s unputdownable debut, the first in a sci-fi romance series, is packed to the brim with heat, heart, and humor. Temperance Reed was banished from her highly influential family for refusing to cooperate with her “warhead” brother’s cruel business tactics. She finds a new home among the scrappy crew of the scouting ship Quest—until her affair with the captain ends in betrayal and he announces his intention to sell the ship. Temperance throws caution, and all her money, to the wind to buy it and keep her found family together, but that means they can’t say no when someone from the Escajeda family, one of the galaxy’s most powerful, wants to hire them. The job is simple: travel to the planet Herschel Two to scout a valuable mineral that could revolutionize space travel. The catch is that Arcadio Escajeda will be coming along as the crew’s new “head of security” (read: a spy for his family). Temperance bristles at his presence while Arcadio delights in getting under her skin, but they have to put their differences aside to survive. Fay enriches the enemies-to-lovers romance with meticulous worldbuilding and lovable, larger-than-life characters. The space hijinks and tantalizing mystery make this a gift for any romance lover who’s also a Firefly fan.(Nov.)