Christine Myers

 

Koha’vek

The cold didn’t bother me anymore. I’d gotten used to it in the months since I left the Mesaarkan base. I’ve spent a lot of time outdoors in the cold.

I moved through the forest with the silence of a predator. With each step, my heavy boots barely whispered against the pine-needle-covered Earth. It was late winter, and snow dusted the ground in thin layers, not deep enough to slow me down but enough to cover my trail behind me. I was glad for that because I knew hunters could still come looking for me.

Since I left my old life behind, the wilderness has become a sanctuary. The solitude has been good for my battered soul. Up here, deep in the ridges of the Medicine Bow mountain range. My routine of survival was honest and straightforward. I hunted mule deer and elk with a bow, and I only killed what I needed, but no more. The mountain streams were fresh and clear and I drank from any that I came upon.

Early in my wanderings, I found an abandoned mountain hideaway half buried under snow and vines. I rebuilt it stone by stone, log by log. Sometimes, the roof leaked during heavy storms, but I patched it the best I could. If I forgot to check the flue, the fireplace sent smoke into the living area. It was nowhere near as nice as my home on Mesaark, but it was mine.

I was on constant alert for anyone looking for me, but so far, no one seemed to be. Occasionally, patrols would fly overhead, and I would hide so they wouldn’t see me. My hearing is exceptional. I could hear them miles away and hide before they came close enough to spot me.

I don’t know whether I was surprised and disappointed that my people never came to look for me. I believe the patrols flying overhead were cyborgs looking for our base to find the missing people. I kept my weapons charged and stayed alert. These were habits I’d learned early in my military career, an occupation that was chosen for me against my will.

I still had my stolen flyer, but I dared not take it out from the old barn where I hid it in my house. I’d dare not take it out because it carried the greatest risk of being discovered by the wrong people.

I came to the edge of a clearing and stood crouched between the snow-covered cedars. The deer was still ahead, small, healthy, and alert. It sniffed the wind, its ears twitching.

I raise my bow, notched a narrow and true back the bow string, feeling my muscles tighten as I poised, waiting for the precise moment to launch the arrow.

Then the wind shifted. A new scent entered my nostrils. I knew that scent well. Human blood. It was coppery and fresh and my nostrils flared in recognition.

A twig snapped as I rose to my full height. The deer bolted at the sound as I turned toward the scent. By the strength, I could tell it wasn’t far. I followed the trail, dirt and snow slipping under my feet as I descended down a slope lined with jagged rocks and broken branches.

At the bottom lay a woman by a rock and a tree that apparently stopped to descent into the ravine. Her long, dark hair was tangled with dirt and leaves. Her clothes were torn and damp. Blood dripped on the snow from a gash on her temple. Her ankle looked swollen

I looked around her. She had no pack, no supplies, and I wondered how she even got here.

Note: Kohavek is the Mesaarkan deserter first introduced in Raven Blackwood Cyborg Guardian. This is a work in progress with a projected release later this summer. Kohavek is a monster romance.

Koha’vek’s Story Begins

Note: I introduced Koha’vek in my newest release, Raven Blackwood Cyborg Guardian. Here are the opening paragraphs of the work in progress:

Koha’vek Draal

The cries and screams echoed down the sterile halls of the research lab in the bowels of the Mesaarkan base, so many raw with panic and pain. I stood at my post, my claws tightening around the edge of the metal door frame, willing my body to stay still even as my soul twisted with revulsion. Another captive human was punished for some real or imagined infringement. My people crushed so many human spirits for infringements, long past, and thoroughly avenged.

I didn’t know the name of the young woman sobbing at the medical bay two doors down the corridor. I didn’t need to. I had new human captives to catalog, monitor their vitals, and administer injections designed to keep them compliant. My superiors called it mercy.

I called it what it was: slavery.

Turning away from the corridor, I scanned the dimly lit chamber. Rows of containment cells line the walls, each one housing a frightened human. Most of them were quiet now. Fear and despair had done what the sedatives had not. The stench of unwashed bodies, chemical restraint, and metallic despair hung in the air.

I never wanted to be here.

I was a historian once—before the draft, and before the war, and the aftermath when they sent me to Earth. I spent my youth studying ancient Mesaarkan architecture, collecting oral histories, and deciphering ancient codes etched into stone tablets. Now, I watched over broken humans with a scanner in one hand and a stun baton in the other.

A child whimpered in the cell next to me, and I glanced down. A small boy, no more than seven, pressed his hands against a transparent barrier, his eyes wide and hollow. Tears stained his cheeks. Perhaps he cried for his mother, who’d been ripped from him too soon.

“Go to sleep, little one. No one will hurt you while I’m here.” I spoke in the human tongue, though I knew there was little I could say to bring comfort.

Footsteps echo behind me, sharp, heavy, and imperious.

Subcommander Gar’hako stepped into view, his bulk barely contained by his uniform. “Draal,” he barked. “Why have you not finished sedating these test subjects?”

I rose slowly. “I have dosed the children, and I am checking their vitals.”

“That doesn’t explain why you’re behind.”

I clenched my jaw, knowing nothing I could say would appease him. “Because this is inhumane. They are suffering, if not physically, mentally.”

Gar’hako’s yellow eyes narrowed. “Their suffering is of no consequence after what their kind did to our kind. You dishonor your bloodline. A Draal does not question orders. These creatures are cargo.”

I didn’t flinch. “They are alive – thinking, feeling, sentient beings.”

Gar’hako stepped closer, his voice low and full of menace. He clearly had no respect for me, but in that, we were equal because I had no respect for him. “One more failure, Draal, and I’ll send you to the breeding labs on Shekhar Station. Let’s see how softer ideals are after watching a few mating experiments.”

My claws itched to extend. I wanted just to rip him apart, but my instinct for self-preservation allowed me to keep the impulse in check.

“Yes, Sub-Commander,” I said coldly.

Gar’hako grunted and strode away.

I stood still for a long moment after he disappeared, my chest heaving with restrained fury. I hated that man. He would have me executed if he knew what I was thinking, I realized. The scanner slightly shook in my hand before I set it down, forcing myself into a calmer state.

That was the moment I knew I finally had enough. I had waited, hoped, endured—but Gar’hako finally crossed the line. Everything about him and this place was wrong.

I would not stay here and watch another child’s spirit crushed or a human female used in ways I wished I could unsee. That night, I went back to my quarters after my shift and packed up everything I thought I might need to survive.

To Be Continued…

I’m thrilled to finally share that Raven Blackwood: Cyborg Guardian is now available for preorder!

If you love steamy, fast-paced cyborg romances with heart, heat, and edge-of-your-seat action, this is the one you’ve been waiting for.

Raven Blackwood was built for war—silent, lethal, unstoppable. But when he meets Hannah Lawrence, the woman fate designed for him, everything changes.
Their connection is instant. Fierce. Physical. Unbreakable.

In a broken town where danger waits around every corner, Raven is ready to burn the world down to keep Hannah safe—and she’s just stubborn enough to fight right beside him. Their passion threatens to ignite faster than either of them can control, even as enemies close in from every side.

In Raven Blackwood: Cyborg Guardian, you’ll find:
🔥 A brooding, battle-hardened cyborg who falls hard
🔥 A heroine who knows her worth and fights for it
🔥 Instant, undeniable chemistry
🔥 Protective instincts, possessive love, and all the tension you crave
🔥 High-stakes rescues, found family, and rebellion against corruption
🔥 Passion that refuses to be tamed

🖤 Preorder your copy today and get ready to fall headfirst into Raven and Hannah’s wild, dangerous, unforgettable love story!

👉https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F6CCQ6Z4

The heat is rising—and Raven and Hannah’s story will warm your heart.
Release Day is almost here—don’t miss it!

Thank you for being part of this amazing journey. Your support means everything.

In recent years, the term romantasy—a blend of romance and fantasy—has taken the book world by storm. But for authors like me, who blend romance with science fiction, where do our stories fit?

I’d like to introduce you to a term I’ve embraced: sci-fi romantasy.

It’s a fusion of science fiction, immersive world building, and powerful, emotional romance. It’s a place where you’ll find protective cyborg heroes, post-apocalyptic survival, and soul-deep connections. If you’ve ever read one of my cyborg protector novels or alien romance novellas, then you’ve already stepped into the world of sci-fi romantasy—and I’m so glad you’re here.

🧬 What Makes a Story Sci-Fi Romantasy?

Sci-fi romantasy is a genre that blends science fiction themes with deeply emotional romance, wrapped in an immersive, often gritty world.

Here’s what you’ll usually find in a sci-fi romantasy novel:

• Science Fiction Elements: Cyborgs, alien species, futuristic tech, post-apocalyptic settings, hovercycles, nanites, AI, cloning, or off-world colonies.
• Romance at the Core: A slow-burn love story or fated mates dynamic that drives the emotional heart of the book.
• High-Stakes World Building: Survival, rebellion, corrupt leaders, and bleak or war-torn landscapes that force characters to rely on each other—and often change them forever.
• Emotional Transformation: The romance is healing, redemptive, and helps both characters find a reason to keep going.

In other words, it’s a genre for readers who want both the heart and the heat, both the action and the intimacy.

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💖 Why I Write Sci-Fi Romantasy

I’ve always been drawn to stories set in broken worlds—places where the rules of society have collapsed, where survival isn’t guaranteed, and where danger lurks around every corner. Or a dystopian world like Aledus where people with psychic abilities are treated as second class citizens who can lose their freedom for even minor infringements.

But within those bleak settings, I see the perfect backdrop for something powerful: love that endures.

For me, romance isn’t an afterthought. It’s the core of the story. It’s what gives my cyborg heroes a reason to fight. It’s what keeps my alien warriors grounded. And it’s what lets my heroines believe in something again—even when the world around them has fallen apart.

In every book I write, I explore themes of:

• Hope after hardship
• Second chances
• Protective devotion
• Found family
• And the idea that love, even in the harshest circumstances, can be transformative.

🛠️ How Sci-Fi Romantasy Is Different from Traditional Sci-Fi Romance

There’s absolutely a place for traditional sci-fi romance, especially stories that focus on space travel, intergalactic politics, or high-tech intrigue. But sci-fi romantasy leans more into:

• Character-driven emotion
• Romance-first storytelling
• Magical-feeling tech or soul bond dynamics
• Strong tropes like fated mates, enemies to lovers, or “grumpy cyborg falls for sunshine heroine”

Readers of romantasy—like Fourth Wing, A Court of Thorns and Roses, or From Blood and Ash—often love sci-fi romantasy because the vibe is similar. The main difference? We trade dragons for drones, fae courts for corrupt post-apocalyptic towns, and spellcasters for genetically engineered soldiers.

🌌 What Kind of Stories Will You Find in Sci-Fi Romantasy?

In my books, you’ll find:

• A war-hardened cyborg with broken nanites learning to love again
• A single mother hiding from danger who discovers her mate is more machine than man
• A monstrous alien who saves a woman from a snowstorm and keeps her safe in his hidden mountain shelter
• Post-apocalyptic towns ruled by fear—and the cyborgs brave enough to bring them down
• Space Opera with battle tested aliens and humans who rescue abductees

Each story is deeply romantic, sometimes gritty, and always emotionally satisfying. The world may be falling apart, but the bond between my characters is unshakable.

❤️ Who Is Sci-Fi Romantasy For?

This genre is perfect for readers who crave:

• Romance with protective, wounded heroes
• Fated mates or soul-deep connections
• Found family and emotional healing arcs
• Danger, survival, and suspense with a romantic payoff
• Stories that mix grit and tenderness in equal measure

If you love the emotional depth of fantasy romance but prefer your dragons swapped for cyborgs and your swords replaced with tech—sci-fi romantasy is for you.

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🚀 Final Thoughts

Genres are always evolving. Readers today are hungry for stories that break traditional boundaries and give them layered, emotionally rich experiences. Sci-fi romantasy does just that—blending action, romance, and world building in a way that feels immersive, heartfelt, and deeply satisfying.

If you’ve been reading my books—whether it’s a story about a cybernetic soldier finding his mate, or a hulking alien protector falling for a fierce human woman—you’ve already found this genre.

I’m proud to write sci-fi romantasy.
And I hope you love reading it as much as I love creating it.

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💬 Let’s Talk!

Do you love sci-fi romantasy? Have a favorite book, trope, or hero? I’d love to hear from you! Drop your thoughts in the comments or reply to this blog post via email or pop into my Facebook group. Let’s nerd out about love and nanites together.

Facebook Group

Returning to Kindle Unlimited

After a year of trying to sell my books wide through platforms like Smashwords and Kobo, I’ve made the decision to return them exclusively to Kindle Unlimited. The majority of readers I polled through my newsletter told me they either read my books on KU or purchased them outright.

Why Selling Wide Didn’t Work for Me

Selling directly also didn’t work as I’d hoped, even with professional delivery via BookFunnel. As a result, I’ve decided to close my Payhip shop for ebooks, though a limited number of signed paperbacks will still be available. My free ebooks will remain accessible on multiple platforms.

The Risk of Relying on One Platform

Going wide seemed like a smart move at the time. Many authors advocate for diversifying sales channels to avoid relying solely on Amazon, especially given the risk of account cancellations—even over minor, fixable mistakes. However, in my case, sales across multiple outlets were minimal. Without page reads or consistent income, I found myself questioning if it was all worth it.

Writing for My Loyal Readers

For a moment, I considered giving up. But writing is too much a part of who I am to walk away. My books have never gone viral, nor have I had a “bestseller,” and I’ve made peace with the fact that I probably never will. Instead, I choose to write for the small but loyal audience that enjoys my work—and for myself.

The Joy of Cover Design and Self-Editing

Aside from writing, my next favorite thing is designing book covers. While they may not be as polished as those created by professional designers, I take pride in how they reflect my stories. Over the years, I’ve improved both in cover design and self-editing, using tools like Grammarly®, the read-aloud function in Word, and feedback from a couple of trusted beta readers.

The Struggles of Dictation Software

Dictation has also become a necessity for me due to repetitive stress syndrome after years of transcription and data entry work. I trained the Windows 10 speech recognition program to understand my voice, but since upgrading to Windows 11, I’ve been pushed to try their “improved” speech tool. Unfortunately, it insists on capitalizing the first word of every phrase as if I’m starting a new sentence—an unnecessary frustration.

Sticking with What Works

Rather than retrain an entirely new system, I’ve stuck with the old speech recognition program. Windows 11 keeps threatening to remove it, but I’ve taken steps to prevent that from happening. Worst case? I’ll switch back to my Windows 10 computer just for dictation. I’m not giving up my speech recognition program without a fight!

Still Writing, Still Creating

At the end of the day, this indie author journey hasn’t been easy, but I’m still here, still writing, and still creating—because that’s what I love to do.