When we last saw star-crossed lovers Kora (dethroned alien queen of the Sepharon) and half-alien, half human Eros (poised to inherit the Sepharon kingdom) in Beyond the Red (2016), both were facing difficult battles. Now Eros must save his nephew (the only member of his family who escaped a massacre of the rebel nomad tribe), while Kora's in danger of being executed for treason and is still committed to seeing Eros gain his rightful inheritance. There's also the issue of who is to rule the Sepharon, and punishment of Kora's traitorous twin brother, Dima t to mention the fierce attraction between Eros and Kora. Alternating chapters from Kora and Eros are action-packed, with hooks and surprises advancing and complicating an already intricate, deliciously Machiavellian plot. Although this sequel won't stand alone, fans will happily grab this cinematic sci-fi romance and anxiously await the final title in the trilogy.

The revelation of Eros' parentage in Beyond the Red (2016) leads to political intrigues and a change in his relationship with Kora.Half-human, half-Sepharon Eros, the son and heir to the Sira, is less concerned with the Sepharon than taking care of his 13-year-old human nephew, Mal, who struggles with partial blindness from the earlier attempted nanite genocide. Eros decides to take Mal to the Sepharon city Asheron to beg for medical treatment. In chapters that alternate in Kora's voice, it's revealed that to abort that genocide, all nanites were disabled, severely setting back Sepharon technology and destabilizing their civilization. Now an Emergency Council has been called to decide a new Sira, and Kora needs Eros to return and fight for his place. Her holding pattern is finally disrupted by charismatic Deimos, and the two go to find Eros—who has found human rebels who want him to become Sira, help take down the government, and bring equality to the two species. Padded exposition, endless cast introductions (including similarly named characters), and Sepharon words draw out the first act. The fun starts once Eros makes a play for the throne in earnest, a plotline with surprises. While the romance between him and Kora fizzles, he gains a new one that grows out of a friendship—and Kora gains a storyline separate from him. Most characters of either species are brown-skinned, and there's positive LGBTQ representation. The ending sets up the trilogy closer. Distracting alien language and languid first act aside, an improvement on the first outing. (Science fiction. 13-17)