The Cold Between by Elizabeth Bonesteel (Central Corps #1)
Released: March 8, 2016
Science Fiction (no hea)
Harper Voyager

Reviewed by Mandi

I don’t read a ton of Sci-Fi but I’m always open to trying a new series. I picked up this book one night and read the first 100 pages and I was totally engaged. Elena is an engineer who is on a short break on a colony – and much out of character, picks up a hottie mctottie at a bar one night. This hottie is named Trey, and he is a space pirate. Oh yeah. Well, a retired space pirate who now follows his passion of cooking. They have a very passionate night together – not even falling asleep. That’s right – this space pirate can go all…night….long.

The next morning, Trey goes to work, and discovers someone horribly murdered right outside of his workplace. Trey is arrested (framed) for this murder – and is dragged to jail. Elena gets wind of this – the murdered man was her crew mate (annnnd former lover) and she is devastated. But she also knows there is no way Trey is guilty as he was with her all night. Elena runs to clear his name- and then they go on the hunt for the real killer.

Also coming into play is Elena’s commander, Greg Foster. Greg’s mother died twenty-five years ago on a ship and something is super fishy about it. Greg has always smelled a cover-up, and now with Danny being murdered, Trey blamed and other things going on, they all get thrown into a conspiracy that runs deep. Also throw in the fact that Greg is in love with Elena, things get very messy.

Now – we need to pause for a minute my dear romance lovers. I received this book from the publicist, the blurb caught my attention and like I said, the first 100 pages were amazing. I went to bed that night excited to pick up the book again. The next morning, Smart Bitches posted a review of this book, and it was noted by them that this book does not have a HEA. This made me sad! There is such passion between Trey and Elena to start this book, I couldn’t believe it was going to end without a HEA. But it does. Trey and Elena do fall in love….they are both alive at the end of the book and they love each other. But they don’t go flying into the stars together. Damn it.

Since I still really liked the story and characters, I finished the book even knowing this. The story is pretty good. There are definitely some slower moments as they investigate the murder – things slow down quite a bit. It became a little tedious. However, the author gives us some really fun characters. Elena is super bad ass. She is fiercely independent, breaks rules, and can definitely take care of herself:

“You are outgunned, Commander Shaw,” he pointed out.

“You’re assuming that I care about that, too.”

“They will kill you, I assure you.”

“And I assure you,” she told him, “that I will blow your fucking head off before I hit the ground.”

Trey is blamed of a lot – he has killed in the past so his innocence is questioned vigorously. He is hated by many, so that makes his journey in this book interesting. And then Greg is a man who is unhappily married, and grumpy and for all of his surly attitude and lashing out, I liked him.

I think the author does a nice job with making this Sci-Fi world not overly complicated. She puts more emphasis on the characters than on making it a huge world. It felt like a romantic suspense, which isn’t a bad thing.  Did I want Trey and Elena to end up together? Yes – I feel a bit jilted out of that romance. But Greg is in the wings and maybe she will have an eventual HEA with him? We will have to see.

Grade:B-

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