Review - Malena MCD by Beryll Brackhaus and Osiris BrackHaus

Mauve is a ‘pet,’ a genetically engineered sex slave, and not a fancy one, either. His genes didn't produce quite what the breeders hoped for, so he ended up in the bargain bin. He's had a succession of brutal, uncaring owners from the underbelly of Malicorn society who used him and passed him on when they became bored. His latest master has been shot dead, along with his gang of thugs, and so Mauve is now ‘evidence’ in the investigation. One of the officers investigating the case, Alexej, doesn't like the idea of keeping Mauve in the cells of the evidence locker and wants to take him home instead. His wife and partner, Andrea, reluctantly agrees, and Mauve's eyes are opened to a different world.

This novel is set in the same future Virasana Empire as the Sir Yaden series but can be read as a stand-alone. However, if you've read The Pet and His Duke, you'll have a better understanding of pets and the planet Malicorn. This book was quite a page-turner. It gets off to a fast start and just keeps going.

The story is related entirely in the first person by Mauve. There are quite a few allusions to the abuse he has suffered from past owners, but thankfully not many details. He's definitely a survivor and probably much smarter than people, especially his owners, give him credit for. We get a very clear appreciation for the shock it is for him to be seen as a person rather than an object.

We get to know Alexej and Andrea through Mauve's eyes. Their behavior towards him endears the pair to the young man almost from the start. They are heroes in his eyes, and Alexej definitely pushes all his genetically engineered buttons designed to make him want to give sexual pleasure. It makes Mauve want to make himself useful to them so they will be his new masters once the investigation is concluded.

The investigation into the death of Mauve's owner is the driver of the story. It's something of a homage to classic television police dramas, with heroic cops chasing down bad guys. Mauve has seen his fair share of cop shows, so his observations about the difference between “real life” and the shows provides some humorous commentary.

“Malena MCD” is available from Smashwords or Amazon.