Planet of the Veils

Planet of the Veils was really two stories in one book. The first is about Cassintra and Belous, two star-crossed lovers destined to part. Belous and Cassintra are royalty that have been contracted to marry. Belous is king, and Cassintra his chosen match. They fell in love during their courtship, and managed to consummate their marriage before the ceremony. During the ceremony, Blaine, Belous’s brother, manages to kill him and take the throne, and now in the eyes of the law Cassintra is now his. Little does he know that Cassintra has a secret, and she’s not about to share it with him…

In the second part of the story, Belayla has been commanded to marry the despot king called Blaine. She thinks she’s got it all figured out, and has made a contract with him that is designed to keep her from having to go to bed with the disgusting man. When a rebel called Norquar shows up on her wedding day and takes over the kingdom, by law she now becomes his property. In order to keep her safe while he stabilizes the planet, Norquar sends her to a planet known for training virgins to please their husbands, Planet of the Veils. If he’d only known what really went on there…

I really liked the story line; it had a lot of potential. I felt that there wasn’t a lot of transition between scenes, so the story didn’t flow very well for me. I liked the characters in the story and how they interact, I thought they were really well rounded and likeable and I cared about what happened to them. Cassintra was an interesting character that ends up having a hard life, but deals with it with class. Belayla started out as a strong woman who knows what she wants and how to get it, but ended up forgiving Norquar and giving in a little too easily for her personality at the beginning. There is some bondage and forced sex in this story, but it is definitely an integral part of the story that helps it along. I enjoyed reading Planet of the Veils, and hope to see more from Sultry Summers.

Reviewed by: Julia