Cast in Steel, Carved in Stone

Author: Christine W. Murphy
Genre: Science Fiction
Reviewed by Pamela Skochinski

It was a marriage made in Yule, or at least contracted in Yule. A trade agreement that included a clause marrying the Mikkel, Son of the Supreme Ruler of Yule, to Sophia, younger sister of Chief Katheryna Ferris, CEO of Lexina Central. However, there’s one big hitch. There’s no bride-to-be.

Mikkel has arrived on Lexina to take home his bride. But, she’s fallen in love with Mikkel’s employee, Dag. And if that weren’t bad enough, Sophia is also pregnant.

Kat, normally calm and cool, is in a terrible bind. She can’t expect Mikkel to accept a pregnant bride. So, she takes a deep breath and hopes that with a little swift negotiation on her part, they can come to equitable terms. Her hopes of that are dashed when Kat meets Mikkel. What an ass! He’s spoiled rotten, whining, and flamboyant. What’s worse, he’s pigheaded; dead set on taking home a bride.

Complicating the plot is an interplanetary war, pitting the Tridens against the New Alliance. Lexina is in danger from the Tridens and Kat has worked out a protection plan with the Cartel, using the bride- price Mikkel was to pay. Without a bride, there is no money, and without money, Lexina could perish. Kat makes the ultimate sacrifice to save Lexina, she marries Mikkel and travels back with him to Yule, a neutral planet frequented by Tridens and New Alliance sympathizers alike. Yule may be neutral, but is Mikkel?

Once on Yule, Kat’s business sense is put into practice as she begins learning all about the things that make Yule tick. Too bad her husband isn’t so easy to figure out – but it quickly becomes evident that Mikkel isn’t quite what he seems. Kat’s intent to discover all his secrets, but she has a few of her own to hide! Foremost among them are the feelings stirred up by the kiss of a handsome, sexy stranger known only as the Hawk.

Secrets, secrets, and more secrets could have been this novel’s title. Cast in Steel, Carved in Stone takes the reader to other worlds. It’s an enjoyable trip, with an engaging although clichéd cast of characters. Mikkel, the playboy, and Katheryna, the ice princess, are well-drawn but many of the supporting cast of characters could be fleshed out a bit more. Bogging down the story line are all the secrets everyone is keeping, not only from each other, but from the reader. Towards the middle, secrets begin to be revealed to the reader and the character’s actions and motivations begin to ring true. With these revelations, the pace of the book speeds up to a suspenseful ending with a nice lead-in for the sequel, For the Emperor.

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