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Aurora Blazing (Consortium Rebellion #2)
Jessie Mihalik
Genre: Science Fiction | Space Opera | Romance
Published: October 2019 (Harper Voyager)
Audience: Adult
Source: Library
Bianca von Hasenberg did her duty for High House von Hasenberg and ended up trapped in a terrible marriage. When her husband dies unexpectedly and leaves her a happy widow, she vows never to marry again. Instead, she uses her connections to save other young women. Information is power and Bianca has a network that would be the envy of the ’verse—if anyone knew about it.
After an attack, Bianca’s oldest brother, the House von Hasenberg heir, disappears from Earth without a trace. Determined to find him, Bianca leaves against orders. When she refuses to return, her father sends Ian Bishop, the director of House von Hasenberg security, to haul her home like a recalcitrant child.
Bianca leads Ian on a merry chase across the universe, but when their paths finally collide, she persuades him that they would be far more successful at finding her brother if they worked together. She will do anything to save her sibling, even if it means spending time alone on a small ship with the handsome, infuriating man who once broke her heart.
As clues lead them deep into rival House Rockhurst territory, Bianca must decide if she can trust Ian with the one piece of information that could destroy her completely. . .
I fell in love with Jessie Mihalik’s writing in Polaris Rising last year and could hardly wait for Bianca’s story. Mihalik has carefully crafted a complex universe filled with political intrigue, layered characters, and sizzling romances. Readers are whisked around the universe as she tries to evade Ian and save her brother.
I think I loved Bianca even more than Ada (Polaris Rising) which surprised me! From the beginning, it is clear that Bianca is a complex, strong heroine. She is talented and capable but stops just short of being that obnoxious infallible heroine that only lives to kick ass. Bianca’s talents lay in hacking and information sourcing but her exploits are no less exciting and adrenaline inducing. Add in a traumatic back story and you have a heroine that is easy to love and respect.
Best of all, we were treated to a delicious slow-burn, almost enemies-to-lovers type romance with Ian. This isn’t anywhere near as steamy as the first book, but I ate it up. Grumpy, love-struck Ian makes my heart flutter. I wish we had a chance to see more of Bianca and Ian together, but the brisk pace and action definitely prevented that. Even so, with tensions continuing to rise between the Consortium houses, I am on the edge of my seat to see how the war shakes out.
I think it may be possible to read Aurora Blazing as a stand-alone but, honestly, to get the full impact of the intricacy of the Consortium, I recommend starting with Polaris Rising. Overall, Mihalik is definitely a force to be reckoned with in the space opera wing of science fiction. I’m really looking forward to the release of |Chaos Reigning| later this month!
Side note: Reading Aurora Blazing has made it clear to me that I desperately want to read a ton in space mashup of regency romance and space opera so if anyone knows of something like that PLEASE let me know. And if not, let’s hop to it authors!
About the Author
Author of Polaris Rising, a romantic science fiction novel out now from Harper Voyager. For a peek at the first three chapters, visit my website. Aurora Blazing, the second book in the series, arrives in October! The first chapter is available!
Jessie Mihalik has a degree in Computer Science and a love of all things geeky. A software engineer by trade, Jessie now writes full time from her home in Texas. When she’s not writing, she can be found playing co-op video games with her husband, trying out new board games, or reading books pulled from her overflowing bookshelves.
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I haven’t read Aurora Blazing yet but I really liked Polaris Rising when I read it last year. I’m very excited to get to this one, great review!
Loved your review. 🙂 I have heard a lot about both the books, but still haven’t had the chance to read them. Hopefully, will read them soon.
Thank you! It really is one of my favorite space operas to date ☺️ I hope you enjoy them when you get to them!