To See the Sun by Kelly Jensen Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: August 13, 2018
Length: Print - 243 pages. Ebook - 295 pages.
Subgenre: Science fiction, western
Reader warnings: past and present violence, and references to past abuse.
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Riptide Publishing: https://riptidepublishing.com/titles/to-see-the-sun
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/829052
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/to-see-the-sun-kelly-jensen/1128691285?ean=2940162126768
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iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/to-see-the-sun/id1383776817?mt=11
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/See-Sun-Kelly-Jensen/dp/162649830X/
Survival is hard enough in the outer colonies-what chance does love have?
Life can be harsh and lonely in the outer colonies, but miner-turned-farmer Abraham Bauer is living his dream, cultivating crops that will one day turn the unforgiving world of Alkirak into paradise. He wants more, though. A companion-someone quiet like him. Someone to share his days, his bed, and his heart.
Gael Sonnen has never seen the sky, let alone the sun. He's spent his whole life locked in the undercity beneath Zhemosen, running from one desperate situation to another. For a chance to get out, he'll do just about anything-even travel to the far end of the galaxy as a mail-order husband. But no plan of Gael's has ever gone smoothly, and his new start on Alkirak is no exception. Things go wrong from the moment he steps off the shuttle.
Although Gael arrives with unexpected complications, Abraham is prepared to make their relationship work-until Gael's past catches up with them, threatening Abraham's livelihood, the freedom Gael gave everything for, and the love neither man ever hoped to find.
Bram tapped his guests on the shoulder. They both turned, the visible portion of their faces bright and happy beneath the tinted plastic of their masks. Bram nodded toward the rover and then pointed for extra emphasis. The temperature had probably risen ten degrees in the last minute.
Gael turned back toward the sun, which seemed to have doubled in size. It bobbed low in the yellow sky, a bright pulse of heat and radiation. He spread his thin arms and tilted his head back. His curls were damp, clinging to the back of his neck, and hanging over his ears. Sweat beaded his skin.
"Gael," Bram said.
He turned at his name, expression not at all chagrined. Then he took Aavi's hand and tugged her back to the rover. As soon as the canopy sealed, he yanked the mask off and turned a shy smile toward Bram.
"That was amazing. It's so big! So huge. And the heat! My skin went all prickly. It was like standing in front of a radiator, but bigger." He gave a cracked laugh. "I sound like such an idiot, but you can't imagine. You just can't."
Gael glanced at Aavi, grinned, and turned back. His cheeks were a dusky rose-whether from the heat or excitement, Bram couldn't tell. He did know that he'd never seen anyone quite this happy, and incandescent with it. Beautifully happy. His gray eyes wide, his full lips curved. Pleasure evident in every line, every pore.
Gael touched Bram's arm, the pressure of his fingers light, almost nonexistent. "Thank you for this. It's a gift, and I'll remember it for the rest of my life."
Holy hands, what was he to do with that? All he'd done was show them a sunrise. Who made such a big deal over something so mundane? But nothing about this situation was average or expected-and Bram was starting to think he should have been more prepared for that. For the unexpected.
Gael was still giving him a worshipful look.
Not sure what to say, Bram gave a stiff nod before turning his eyes frontward and powering up the rover.
If aliens ever do land on Earth, Kelly will not be prepared, despite having read over a hundred stories of the apocalypse. Still, she will pack her precious books into a box and carry them with her as she strives to survive. It's what bibliophiles do.
Kelly is the author of a number of novels, novellas and short stories, including the Chaos Station series, co-written with Jenn Burke. Some of what she writes is speculative in nature, but mostly it's just about a guy losing his socks and/or burning dinner. Because life isn't all conquering aliens and mountain peaks. Sometimes finding a happy ever after is all the adventure we need.
