CIA Operative Sasha Taylor lives a life of international intrigue, at least when he's not being studied by aliens. Greys have been taking him and performing operations on him ever since he was a small boy. When he was ten, they introduced him to five-year-old Catherine Madison. From then on, the two children were studied both separately and together. When they were old enough, they procreated. Their memories of these times together were fuzzy, but as they grew up, their recollections of the other grew more vivid and lasting.

Following his capture and torture on a mission gone wrong, Sasha is in Las Vegas for rest and relaxation. Cath is there with her fiancé to speak at a UFO convention. Their handlers never intended for them to meet in their everyday lives, much less get married on a drunken whim.

The next morning, both are shocked to wake up wed. While they're still trying to figure out the curious bond between them and whether or not they should get a quick divorce, they end up on a tour bus to Area 51 with Cath's UFO friends and ex-fiancé. Curiously, Sean looks familiar to Sasha, but not in a good way. When Cath's handlers swoop in and grab her, Sasha decides that what he wants isn't a divorce. He wants Cath back, but first he has to find her, which will take all his CIA connections and clandestine know-how to accomplish.

And that's just the beginning of the perils they'll face as they flee competing government agencies in league with different alien species to develop viable alien-human hybrids. Will government forces separate Sasha and Cath forever? Or will this brave couple be able to escape their unconscionable tormenters, taking with them the most precious pieces of their shared past? Their children.

Penny Ash has written a fast-paced, alternately action-packed and humorous story in Pale Fire. This book has enough intrigue and ups and downs to keep the reader furiously advancing pages to the very end. Sasha and Cath are extremely likeable and believably real, each flawed, yet strong and capable. Early on, before things get seriously tense, the non-stop banter between them had me chuckling out loud. As the story progresses and the tender bond between them grows strong, the sensuality in their lovemaking and the care they take of each other is truly heartwarming. I especially loved how easily and comfortably Sasha took to fatherhood. All in all, I can honestly say that I've never enjoyed rooting more for a hero and heroine as I did these two!

Written in the first person, Penny Ash will WOW you with Pale Fire. It has a truly heartfelt and sigh-worthy ending. Although it's complete as a standalone story, I've heard that Ms. Ash is working on a sequel. With most of the villains still on the loose, some dangling threads and a couple characters who deserve their own happy endings, I can't wait to see where she will take this storyline next.

Reviewed by: Merrylee