Tuesday, January 16, 2024

The Scoop On Writing THE XENON ADVANTAGE

I must’ve been in the mood for an ethical dilemma. I felt drawn to write a science fiction romance, and all I could think about is what if a group of explorers from Earth were sent to a distant planet for purposes of colonization. What if their government, SolSpace, insisted the planet was uninhabited, however as the explorers approach, they receive disturbing evidence to the contrary. What’s a morally ethical leader to do? Throw in a psychic beauty, an aggressive male from Earth, and a lovesick alien, and voilà, you have THE XENON ADVANTAGE!

OUT OF HER ELEMENT

Naressa, a native of the Earth colony on Alpheratz 3, is chosen at the last minute be the communications officer on an exploratory mission to a planet in the Southern Cross sector. Her hidden ability to receive and translate alien thoughts is the reason for this decision. Now aboard the Nautilus, she’s met with hostility... and something else... by Kurt Stone, the starship’s CO who is annoyed that she replaced his on-again-off-again lover. She also receives messages from a powerful... and amorous alien leader, Mavolian, telling her to “come to him.” Naressa has no interest in forming a love connection with anyone, however Mavolian is determined and Kurt is smitten by her. Will she be able to give up her freedom for the boundaries of love?

OUT OF HIS ELEMENT

Years ago, Kurt Stone left the endless routine of his homestead in the Greater Dakotas for the excitement and danger of interstellar space. He excels at his job and pursues his goal of obtaining a captaincy. On a treacherous mission to explore a uninhabited planet, Acrux 4--a twin of Earth--he meets an unusual female, Naressa, native to an Earth colony that has an excessive amount of the element Xenon in its atmosphere. As it turns out, Acrux 4 also is abundant in Xenon. As Kurt fights his attraction to her, he has to endure watching as the powerful alien leader, Mavolian, makes a play for Naressa. Can Kurt set his jealously aside and convince her to be with him for always?

A dangerous interstellar assignment to colonize a nonterrestrial world forces Naressa to butt heads with a powerful alien leader and a stubborn Terran crewmember.

 Amazon.com and Smashwords.com

The print copy is on Amazon.com

THE XENON ADVANTAGE is now available at Amazon, Smashwords, with the Print edition on Amazon.com

Here are some wonderful reviews:

* Ms. Knight poses an interesting dilemma in THE XENON ADVANTAGE, her latest science fiction romance novel. A prosperous Earth is determined to expand to other planets. A near-duplicate, uninhabited world is discovered, and SolSpace sends an exploratory ship, the Nautilus, to pave the way for future colonization. But wait, is the planet truly without intelligent lifeforms? Is SolSpace secretly aware that the planet is inhabited, and sends a starship anyway? What about the ship’s crew, do they know what awaits them on Acrux 4? The intrepid Nautilus crew must deal with gut-wrenching wormholes and powerful, hostile aliens, in addition to circumventing the differences between Earth natives and Earth colonies around the solar system, as well as a telepathic native from an Earth colony on the distant planet Alpheratz 3--Naressa. Far from her distant home for the first time, Naressa has her hands full dealing with an amorous alien leader and a jealous Earth commander, along with the trials and tribulations of life aboard a tin can ship. Definitely a 5 star read!--Twist On Romance Reviews

* 5 Stars! What in the world is a Xenon Advantage and how can I get it? The easiest way is to read THE XENON ADVANTAGE and enjoy your journey into the vast expanse of interstellar space. Be sure to wear your “blocking cap” to ensure complete privacy! I loved watching our heroine, Naressa, learn how to not only handle her crewmates’ inappropriate thoughts when she doesn’t have her blocking cap on, but also how she grows into the mature woman she’s destined to become. A thoroughly enjoyable read!--Decatur Reviews.

This book is part of the Fascinating Sci-Fi line.

Here’s a real life tidbit. Naressa has an affinity for animals and likes to quiet down the research animals aboard the starship Nautilus. She intuits that Betty the bunny is upset so she removes the animal from its cage and holds Betty in her lap. Then Kurt comes across her.

Quickly... and gracefully getting to her feet, Naressa moved over to a nearby cage, released its lock, and then put the rabbit back with its fellow inmates.

“Okay, Betty, in you go, back with your bunny friends.” Naressa patted the rabbit and then turned to him. 

Glad to get out of his crouching position, Kurt wasn’t as graceful--not by half. He watched her for a second, knowing, somehow instinctively, that she was feeling troubled.

Her seductive scent weaved its way into his soul. He took a step closer. “What’s this all about, Naressa?”

Her breathing rate must’ve increased for the rise and fall of her breasts under her uniform mesmerized him. Was her rapid breathing due to his presence beside her?

“I... I knew Betty was upset. I came down here to soothe her.”

That was a far-fetched statement. Hell, all the rabbits were probably “upset.”

My experience with a bunny was quite different. I was around ten years old and I visited a friend who’d received a cute, full-sized bunny for Easter. We were out on her lawn, me sitting there with legs bent under me. I petted--gently petted, I might add--the bunny, and all of a sudden it sank its front teeth into my thigh! Oh dear, there was a bit of blood. Yep, I thought bunnies weren’t meat eaters! Needless to say, I quickly got up and had nothing more to do with my friend’s Easter bunny! :))

I hope you enjoy Naressa and Kurt’s out-of-this-world story!

Susanne Marie Knight

http://www.susanneknight.com

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