We are not alone. In the year 2050 mankind’s never-ending quest for proof life exists in the universe is answered—in the form of massive spaceships that appear without warning above the capitals of all major nations. The name of their planet is Tah’Nar—and it is dying. The United States sets up a lottery system, and each young man between the ages of twenty-three and twenty-eight is assigned a number. Once a year, for the next five years, numbers will be drawn and a new set of one thousand males will be collected. The media coined the expression ‘The Harvest’ for when the Tah’Narian’s collect these young men.
Genres: Sci-fi romance, Mpreg Romance
Tropes: Forced proximity, forced DNA change, aliens
Themes: Alien abduction
The stories are not standalone. They need to be read in order.
Captain Keyno Landium Shou is a Tah’Narian starship captain who has been granted the right to take a mate, any mate, he wants during the last harvest on Earth. Dale was seventeen when the aliens first appeared. His parents assumed he’d be safe since the final collection would be done before he turned twenty-three. He didn’t fall within the guidelines established, so they took for granted he had nothing to fear.
They were wrong.
REVIEW
I liked this book but it didn't wow me. There were some things that didn't sit well with me. Everything was almost too easy, even when Dale was fighting at the beginning, it didn't last long. It was like the conflict was there just because it was supposed to be, not because it was actually needed. My thought is that this could have been a great enemies to lovers situation but it fell flat. I liked the overall premise, I just thought it could have been more.
Overall, the characters were well written and they make you want to continue with the next book, just to see what happens and how they deal with their eventual young. Lots of potential and promise, just not what I thought it would be.
Excerpt from The Harvest: Taken
I was seventeen when the aliens first appeared, so my parents assumed I was safe. The final collection would occur before I turned twenty-three. I didn’t fall within the guidelines the aliens had established, so I thought I had nothing to fear.
I was wrong.
Exactly one week before my twenty-third birthday, an extraction team showed up to collect me. My parents were distraught, and I fought them, but nothing stopped them from taking me. Somebody somewhere had made a terrible mistake. But no one would listen to me.
“I’m not supposed to be collected!” Men in SWAT gear dragged me to a waiting van. One of the aliens stood off to the side, watching. I dug my feet into the ground, trying to halt the parade of their progress. Two human soldiers were beside me, trying to secure my arms behind my back, but I kept twisting and jerking, frantic to break their hold on me. “Listen to me! I’m only twenty-two years old.”
“Son of a bitch, stop jumping around, you little fag,” the man to the right of me hissed as he grabbed at my wrist and twisted.
“Fuck!” I yelled as pain radiated up my arm. I managed to get my other arm free long enough to get in a good solid shot at the asshole who was currently trying to twist my hand off. I busted his nose. Anger boiled in his eyes as he whipped his arm back to strike me.
Before the blow could land, the Tah’Narian with the extraction team jerked the man away from me by the front of his shirt. Another human took his team member’s place immediately, but my focus was on the alien, not the other man holding my arm.
The alien lifted the human completely off the ground and shook him like a rag doll, snapping his head back and forth. The Tah’Narian's low growls sent shivers up my spine as he spoke to the team member. And his strength was astounding. The man the alien lifted wasn’t a small guy, by any means, and he lifted him with one hand. Then he tossed the guy to the ground, pointed at me and babbled something I couldn’t understand.
“I… I… okay. I won’t touch him again.” The team member stumbled back to the van, never looking back at me.
Good God, the extraction team and that alien could somehow understand each other. Momentarily distracted, I didn’t have time to react when another team member handcuffed both my arms tightly behind me. Someone on each side held me tightly, determined to march me to that waiting van.
“Let go of me, dammit!”
“Stop fighting, kid. You can’t win against five of us.” The new guard fastened a second set of cuffs higher on my forearms. “Plus there’s that alien, too. You just saw his strength. The more you fight, the harder this is going to be.”
I slumped in their arms, the fight draining out of me. “What did it say?”
“Basically, that you’ve been chosen by one of them,” one of the guys from the team leaned down and whispered to me. “I’m sorry, kid. Never heard of something like this happening. No more talking, or they’ll gag you next.”
Horrified, I hung in their arms as they dragged me to a waiting van. I desperately wanted to ask him what he meant about being chosen, but after his warning, I was afraid to say anything. What the hell was going on, and why were the rules being changed all of a sudden? These aliens weren’t supposed to be able to pick and choose. That defeated the whole purpose of having a lottery system.
BOOK 2
Book Title: The Harvest: Journey’s End
Cover Artist: Alicia Nordwell
Length: 310 pages
Release Date: January 1, 2015
This book does not end on a cliffhanger. The spinoff books follow.
Adapting is a word Dale Michaels has become familiar with. As he settles into his new life with the Tah’Narian starship captain Keyno, Dale has adapted to life with an alien, space travel, and having his body mutated so he can carry a young. He’s closed the chapter on his old life.
Living on Tah’Nar, Dale has a loving mate and good friends. He’s helped cement peace with the Onfre. Sure, being double-dosed during his harvest led to some serious drama, but that’s over. Dale’s happy.
But life is never that simple.
Even though Dale loves Keyno, he still struggles with the way the Tah’Narians harvest young males as mates. Dale finds himself hijacked by his own body, courtesy of his extra dose of Tah’Narian DNA. Then there’s the devastating secret his mate, Keyno, has hid all this time. And if all that isn’t enough, outside forces threaten to rip Dale’s hard-won peace apart as well.
Join Dale for a non-stop adventure and a love that crosses several worlds and transcends space.
REVIEW
I thought this one was smoother than the first. I enjoyed it and am looking forward to continuing with the spin-off series as a lot of time went into adding little hints for that series and it's just enough to make you want more. I thought some parts could have had a little more oomph to them, but overall, it was well done. The characters were even better written in this one and it makes you want to continue with this world rather than just feeling obligated because of how much set-up there is.
For a sequel, it does its job and appeases the questions left over from the first book.
BOOK 3
Book Title: Bound by Fate-The Harvest Young (The Next Generation #1)
Length: 205 pages
Release Date: May 15, 2016
It is a standalone story and ends on a cliffhanger for the next couple in the series.
Half human and half Tah’Narian, Szin doesn’t fit with either race. His appearance is mainly human, but he’s able to have a young. Unfortunately, that’s his only Tah’Narian characteristic. He’s smaller and weaker than other young.
Szin’s eighteenth birthday has passed and time’s running out. He has to stop his childhood friend, Takeo, from making the worst mistake of his life: claiming Szin as a mate. Takeo deserves an equal who’s as fierce as he is, something Szin most certainly is not.
Since before Takeo was born, he’s known Szin was his. Nothing and no one, not even Szin, is going to stand in the way of claiming his mate. He understands Szin feels he isn’t good enough, and he’ll do anything to convince Szin otherwise. Including taking drastic measures to ensure his mate listens.
Takeo is the ultimate blend of human, Tah’Narian, and Onfrevian DNA. He’s pure predator, and his sights are set on his mate.
REVIEW
I enjoyed this book. I think the blurb is a little misleading, but overall, I liked the way this book came together. We already know all the pairings based on the previous book, but watching the young grown and falling in love is fun.
Szin is the more human of all the young. He doesn't feel comparable to his twin and their friends, which makes me sad for him as he shows over and over again that he might look human, but he is Tah'Narian all the way.
Takeo is human, Tah'Narian, and Onfrevian. He's very much like his parents in all aspects and proves it over and over. It's a little OTTP if I'm being honest, but overall I liked him and thought he was good for Szin.
While this book is purely about the romance between Szin and Takeo, I am looking forward to the rest of the series. It'll be interesting to see how similar and different the young are from their parents and how they deal with what comes their way.
BOOK 4
Book Title: Bound by Destiny - The Harvest Young (Next Generation #2)
Length: 295 pages
Release Date: October 1, 2017
It is not a standalone story and ends on a cliffhanger for the next couple in the series.
Destiny brought them together even before they were born.
Raiden Shou, a fierce and loving Tah’Narian warrior, has everything he ever wanted. A loving mate, a highly sought-after position as Chief Helmsman of the Unity, and now the possibility of a young in the near future. But destiny never promised life would be easy.
A chance encounter with the Ne Reyn goes horribly wrong, an enemy from the past makes a reappearance, and egos flare out of control. A rejection turns lethal during a trip to Quai to collect mates for the Tah’Narian Volunteer Program. Jealousies threaten to destroy Raiden’s perfect life.
A plot is hatched, and Raiden’s mate, Dayo Kwen, is kidnapped during a mission. Time is running out as estrus looms on the horizon for Dayo. Once it strikes, Dayo knows his body will betray him. He’s alone, scared, and surrounded by enemies. Can help from the most unlikely sources change the course he’s set on? Will Raiden and Dayo overcome the obstacles they face? Only their belief that destiny bound them together can save them.
REVIEW
This kicks off the main plot for this series and is much more exciting than the previous one. Raiden and Dayo are already together and have a novella of them falling in love and mating, but you don't need to read it in order to understand this book as they explore their relationship and how the plot affects them.
There's danger, excitement, adventure, everything you want in this type of story. I was very much invested and worried when the action happened as it mirrored far too close to what happened in Tah'Narian history. It sets up the next book as well and while it has a slight cliffhanger, there is a HEA for Dayo and Raiden.
I think the author found their stride in this book and once the setup for the rest of the series the plot and romance go hand and hand and neither overpowers the other. It's exciting and will keep you on your toes.
BOOK 5
Book Title: Bound by Love - The Harvest Young (The Next Generation 3)
Length: 294 pages
Release Date: June 21, 2020
It is not a standalone story but does not end on a cliffhanger.
Years of peace are shattered with a devastating strike against the very heart of Tah’Nar, and war threatens once more.
Prince Hamza Shou: Young to King Duran and King Consort Jolak. Grief stricken. Angry. Vengeful. Screams of the dying stalk his waking moments. Death surrounds him even as he plots. He’s losing himself to the darkness and growing colder to those around him, including Neo. Brought together by some universal force and bound by love even before they were born, heartache tests the ties that bind them.
Dr. Neo Kere: Young to Doc and John. Sorrowful. Worried. Overwhelmed. He’s seen males draw their final breath. What doctor hasn’t? However, his experiences didn’t prepare him for wholesale murder. The last gasps of the dying stalk him too. But he took an oath to preserve life, and he doesn’t want the death of innocents on his conscience. And now his oath is being tested by the very male he loves—his mate, Hamza.
Or will the same mistake be made again?
Extinction once hunted the Tah’Narians. Now they threaten the Ne Reyn with the same fate. Can Neo change the destructive path Hamza treads before the darkness swallows him? Or is it too late?
REVIEW
Difficult choices are made in this book and the plot kicks up. Hamza and Neo have a lot on their shoulders.
History is doomed to repeat itself unless Neo can convince Hamza to think through his choices. This book is the most emotional of the series and you'll go through all the emotions with the characters. It's stressful and will keep you glued to your device as you pray the road these characters take isn't one to disaster.
While I enjoyed this book the most it disappoints me that it took so long to get to this point in the series. The tension has mounted and it keeps you interested. It makes you fall in love with the characters, feel for them. You'll want to hug and shake the characters at the same time.
BOOK 6
Book Title: Bound by War-The Harvest Young (The Next Generation 4)
Length: 75 000 words
Release Date: June 21, 2022
It is not a standalone story, but it is the finale in the series.
Laken Fihk has no idea his destiny waits for him on the Unity, a Tah’Narian starship. But all it takes is one look at the incapacitated male, and Laken knows that’s his fated mate. Which is a problem, because the severely beaten, bloody, and unconscious male is the Blishue warrior named Torin. The species is considered sadistic, cruel, and without mercy—bloodthirsty monsters who kill without regard.
No one, absolutely no one, is going to be happy if Laken claims Torin as his.
Torin, member of the Blishue House of Dorntok, has found his mate and nothing will stop him from claiming Laken. So what if he has Tah’Narians doubting his honor, Ne Reynians wanting to kill him, and a battle brewing that could jeopardize all he holds dear? War has bound them together, and nothing can break them apart. He and Laken will overcome all obstacles to find a love that could last a lifetime. No matter what.
Destiny doesn’t make mistakes.
Trigger Warnings: violence, mention of past sexual abuse and rape, flashbacks
REVIEW
This book pairs two unlikely characters together and makes it so the characters we know and love have to learn how to keep an open mind. When you fall in love with your enemy what do you do?
This book isn't as tense or stressful as the previous, but you get the sense of danger. For a finale it's good. Not everything I would want out of this series based on how much I liked the previous and hoped it kept up, but it does its job.
Overall I thought this series was fun and glad I continued with it. It's fun and each book is a quick read you can get through in an afternoon. If you're looking for a series to get lost in then this is the one you want to pick up.
About the Author
M.A. Church is a true Southern belle who spent many years in the elementary education sector. Now she spends her days lost in fantasy worlds, arguing with hard-headed aliens on far-off planets, herding her numerous shifters, or trying to tempt her country boys away from their fishing poles. It’s a full time job, but hey, someone’s gotta do it!
When not writing, she’s exploring the latest M/M novel to hit the market or watching her beloved Steelers. That’s if she’s not on the back porch tending to the demanding wildlife. The ducks are very outspoken. She’s married to her high school sweetheart, and they have two grown children.
She is a member of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.
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