Possessed

Raider Warlords of the Vandar, Book 1

By: Tana Stone

Narrated by: Addison Barnes, Marcio Catalano

Length: 6 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's summary

I sacrificed myself to save my sister’s ship. Now the raider warlord owns me.  

It was my own fault. I was the navigator of our ship, and I’m the one who led us straight into Vandar territory. 

We’d heard rumors about the Vandar raiders — everyone in the galaxy had. Terrifying and ruthless, they were a scourge on the Zagrath empire and destroyed everything in their path. 

Few had actually laid eyes on the Vandar or the notorious warlords who led their fleets of warships — and survived to talk about it. So, when the ruthless aliens boarded our ship intent on destroying it and killing the crew, I did the only thing I could do. 

I gave myself to the dark and menacing warlord. In exchange for allowing my sister’s ship passage out of the Vandar territory, I must share his bed and travel with his crew of deadly raiders. Even though the sight of the huge, battle-scarred alien terrifies me. 

But as I adjust to my new life on a savage warship, I discover that the dominant alien warrior wants more than just my body. He wants to possess my soul. And he’ll make a new deal with me to get it. 

Possessed is a full-length sci-fi romance novel with a HEA and no cheating. It features steamy scenes on a raider warship, alien horde space battles, and some serious enemies-to-lovers heat. 

If you like dominant and dangerous alien warriors, alien abduction to seduction romance, and hot scenes with a happily ever after, you’ll love Possessed, the first book in Tana Stone’s sci-fi romance Raider Warlords of the Vandar series. Each book can be listened to as a standalone.

©2020 Broadmoor Books (P)2021 Broadmoor Books

The absolute BEST Audio!

So I thoroughly enjoyed this story, Tana is a talented author and I’m so glad to have discovered her books; I’m hooked! But beyond the hot AF alpha male lead, the strong, smart female and perfect mix of action & sexy times, lemme talk about this in audio... I am picky yet still own over 150 dual narr titles and was an Escape fiend (oh, how I miss you Escape!). I’ve heard the dual narration switch chapters by POV, some have the respective genders speaking their lines intermittently; THIS ONE HAS BOTH formats seamlessly and it was the absolute BEST! The narrators were great, no doubt, but this style is priceless. I can’t wait til the next one is published and will be sad to have to go back to the “normal” way audiobooks are done, hint to all authors: please use THIS audio format! Thanks Tana, bravo.

Uncomfortable...

Several scenes were very cringy and rapey...also not a fan of tail fucking. Ick! Not a fan of either narrator. The male voice actor failed to "act". The female voice actress was a little easier to listen too but lacked any depth of emotion although to be fair the author didn't give her much to work with... The whole story lacked character building and scenes had a whiplash affect in that the character would be behaving one way and then in a few words reverse action with no inner dialogue explanation or any warning as too why they are behaving so indecisively. It just felt bipolar and rapey! I'm a little sick of audios where the male protagonist demands "You are mine! Say it!" then the female breathlessly agrees.

It's ok. Fell short from its potential.

I read so many PNR genres that I truly know what I like, love, or dislike in a story. This one wasn't exactly memorable; yet it was enjoyable while I was looking for a new series to binge. Having plot predictability is expected, to a degree, but if no creativity is used to push the boundaries, then it feels like an attempt to make quick money. I don't know if that's true here, it's just a general statement from many bad stories I've recently encountered.

To begin, the dual narrators were absolutely lovely! Unfortunately, the story did not pull me in to where I cared much about how their HEA would play out. I finished the story; but didn't bother with the epilogue after that ending. The last "scene' between the couple was just so over-the-top ridiculous that I laughed. The dialogue made it even more so! It really could have been romantic; but we get a cartoonish vibe of what love is probably like, even though neither character ever say that word!

I think one issue I had was there wasn't a meaningful struggle between the main characters. Yes, some struggle was present; but it wasn't enough to build a connection or sympathy.

This world's (universe's lol) backstory was fun & the alien species was interesting; yet the depth wasn't there. It felt so scant that only intimate scenes reminds you that the guy has a tail. I expected more characteristics to be mentioned by the FMC as she explored her new environment; but that never happened.

I could go on; but I have other books awaiting me in my library! In the end, I'd say this book is a decent choice for listening to while doing your daily chores or running errands. You don't need active listening for the story.
This is coming from someone with ADHD, so lol.

possessed.

What to say? First off, i can understand fantasy some paranormal a little biting some marking even these vampire blood drinking stories if i buy it and know it's not the old fashion historical romances way back in the day then i expect it to be a little out there but, Tails? tail sex? i kept imagining a dog raping the poor woman! that was down right gross and the tail is used way to much so much i had to skip forward often yuk! second, the heman bull, ( YOU'RE MINE SAY IT) not once not twice pretty much every time he is with her is that a insecurity thing with big bad warlords? The female main character has 0 mind of her own and is pretty much just a sex thing that has no say so and is ok with that she never adds a thing to this book it's like she is just there on his ship to have when he wants sex, they never do say they love each other. unless i missed it?? last, why does the male narrator sound like a robot talking when he speaks? this narrator has a deep nice voice but talks with no emotions it sounds just like he is reading a line and every word is slowww. I did buy the second book but it was before i knew and the second book is a lot better with more action less tail sadly still the robotic speach witch is a same because the male narrator does have a deep rich voice but he does not know how to bring these stories to life nor can he switch from one male to another they all sound like him and it sounds like he is talking to himself all the time.

Why would anyone want a man who has sex with prostitutes?

Sadly, the H seems to like visiting the space brothels. I would expect, even in space, that a brother would be full of basically trafficked sex workers, just like here on earth. I guess I feel like the kind of guy who would happily turn a blind eye on that kind of enslavement for his personal gratification isn’t going to take the moral high ground in anything. Also, can you imagine the space diseases he would be catching in such a place? I just can’t get into a romantic story with this guy.

I guess my career as a health educator has really jaded me. Would any woman on earth want to have sex or a relationship with a man who frequents prostitutes and brothels? Yucky. I don’t care how many abs he has if his junk is rotting off from space herpes.

The h is a mousey useless wretch. And a virgin…always a virgin. She’s not allowed to wear pants and must “cover herself” so other men cannot see her…sound familiar? There is nothing sexy about the Taliban. Also, women are not property.

A more cringeworthy pair I cannot imagine.

I cannot move on to the fantasy space opera HEA when I have no respect for either character.

Not a surprise - DNF and will return.

Enjoyed! Just missing one thing.

*Spoiler!!!*
This book surprised me. I didn't expect it to be so enjoyable. I guess because the characters seemed pretty believable and multi-dimensional. no one is one note. I would have liked a more rewarding ending (I'm a fan of a pair conceiving and even more of a fan of getting a look at them as parents, and this did not have that for me.) So I was a little disappointed. But glad I bought and listened.

The Best Narration

I like having two narrators! It made your story so much better. Your back story built an interesting culture & narrative! I would have liked more steamy as the Roxie & Aster got to know each other, but it was good as it was too. I would recommend this to anyone who loves alpha lovers who need a mate! Yum!

Very enjoyable

With few exceptions I usually don’t enjoy female narrator but Addison Barnes is one of the exceptions; with this story both narrators did a fantastic job. Story plot was sweet and uncomplicated, looking forward to the next one in the series. These kind of stories are right up my alley yes well worth the credit, I like low drama but entertaining.

Awesome

I can't wait for the rest of the series to be recorded. Until then I will read them on my kindle. Amazing narration. Awesome story.Well writen. Highly recommend. Fans of this genre will not be disappointed.

Great narration and a Good story

I am really enjoying this series! the narration is really great and the story is fun. I wish it was longer but honestly the story was fairly well paced as it is.

Recommended 😊

Great book. Plot of the story is interesting and exciting. There's no time for boredom in it. Maybe the love story should have more twists and protagonist could be less submissive but in overall this book is worth of the time and bring a lot of fun.

Enjoyed listening

Astrid sacrificed herself to Kratos a Vandar war lord to save her Sister. She wasn’t sure what would happen once she was on the Vandar ship but she wasn’t prepared for the feelings she had for Kratos. Really enjoyed this book and I loved the narration , I’m looking forward to listening to more of the series.

Brilliant first in series

Astrid makes a navigational error which means her sisters ship is now in Vandar space. Vandar are like space Vikings.
Astrid offers her self to the Rass the commander of the Vandar in exchange for letting her sister and her ship go free.
Kratos does not understand why he wants Astrid but he breaks all the traditions of his people by bringing a woman on his ship
This is a great read. I look forward to listening and reading more by this author. The choice of narrators is excellent.