Earth has become a post-apocalyptic water world, filled with violence and shadowy intrigue. Human and supernatural beings once thought fantasy lived on the slopes of the Alps, in floating cities and even in the old cities beneath the waves. The Empire and its corrupt Emperor rule over everyone. And everything...

John Carver has been Nalina Bradwell's protector for seven years. Secretly in love with her, he slept in an outbuilding beneath her bedroom, where he could be close should she need his sword for protection. Many nights he listened to her grunting Neo-Puritan husband have sex with her while the man demanded she lie board-stiff and soundless beneath him. And it's nearly torn out Carver's heart.

Born a tiger shapeshifter, Nalina hides her sensual nature. Having once hungered, however naïve, to become one of the Emperor's concubines, she still yearns for sexual freedom. The Emperor has always desired her. When he destroys her home and murders her father and husband to have her, she knows her only chance of escape lies with Carver - mercenary, vampire and cold-blooded killer. Many people fear Carver, but not Nalina. As they flee for their lives, she finds passion, tenderness and love in his devoted arms. But with a locator necklace embedded in her flesh and a traitor working secretly against them, how far will they be able to run before Imperial forces find them? And what then? Nalina knows Carver will do anything to protect her. Even if it costs him his life.

Written in the first person from Nalina's point of view, Empire 1: After the Fall by Cat Marsters is an intense and absorbing story that draws the reader in on page one of the prologue. Ms. Marsters cleverly combines her futuristic setting with vampire and shapeshifter themes for a high action-adventure that slows down only long enough to blend in several highly arousing sex scenes. While penning an exceptionally explicit read containing ménage, anal play and male/male interaction, Ms. Marsters eloquently intertwines the thread of love through Nalina and Carver's erotic sexcapades. I smiled through their tender wordplay, alternately cheered and cried through their highs and lows and ranted out loud against a thoroughly despicable villain. I even had a good laugh over a shameless pair of pleasure bots with overly large "air bags" and truly shameful names.

Nalina is more than her sexual desires. She's smart, courageous and entirely devoted to Carver. With a roadmap of scars as proof of a perilous and hard-fought past, Carver is the quintessential tortured hero. He loves Nalina with every aspect of his being and is willing to go to whatever lengths required to protect her. Although he can be brutally violent, he showers Nalina with gentle affection. A romance reader couldn't ask for a more appealing hero.

Ms. Marster's blend of non-stop action, raw emotion, sizzling hot sex and a tad bit of humor makes Empire 1: After the Fall a very enjoyable read indeed.

Reviewed by: Merrylee