When I requested an advance reader copy of this short novel, I had no idea, nor was there any indication of the fact that this book was part of a series. My reason for requesting it was because I'd previously read, reviewed and thoroughly enjoyed two of Ms. Frank's energy vampire novels, Thirst and Hunger. Since I didn't research this novel before requesting it, I had no idea that it fell in the middle of books 1 and 2 in her Morphate series, but while the opening seemed abrupt, I had little trouble figuring out who was who and what had happened previously to the few main characters in this novel, and it was a very good, very intense read, which earned a 4.5-star rating from this reader.

The heroine is Dr. Jenesis DeBruehl (also known as Jen or Jena), a research scientist working for and with Dr. Eric Paulson on his Phoenix Project (which I later discovered was the title of the first novel in this series). She believes that she's working on creating a delivery system for a new medical serum intended to replace diseased cells with healthy ones, a laudable goal. But she hasn't a clue that her mad scientist boss is using human test subjects for this research, and submitting them to all sorts of physical and mental horrors, nor does she know that he's secretly altered the serum she believes was intended to heal into something completely different--something that turns these average humans into part-human, part-animal mutants, known as Morphates, who are huge, incredibly strong, semi-human/semi-beast/semi-vampire shifters who are indestructible and immortal, and who eventually escape the horrors of Paulson's lab, into a future world not really recognizable as present day America.

Seven years after Dr. Paulson's evil experiments were discovered, his unwitting and brilliant colleague, Dr. Jenesis DeBruehl has been criminally exonerated but professionally humiliated. Dr. Paulson's secret lab has been destroyed, and the Morphates have been put in charge of the Dark Cities, which were created as a way for society to wall off its worst criminals, thugs, and violent offenders. Now, the Morphates have been exiled and walled off in six of these Dark Cities, and tasked with cleaning up and governing them, and the hero, Kincaid Gregory, once a policeman, is now the Alpha Morphate in charge of Dark Philadelphia, He's built his own lab, and he's hired Dr. Jenesis for one specific reason--he admits that he wants her to discover a way to kill a Morphate. He and many of the other Morphates hate what they've become, but there's far more to this story than just Jen's research, as she and Kincaid soon begin to interact in ways neither character had ever expected.

This is a dark tale, one that includes more than a little graphic sex and violence, but it's also a truly gripping and addictive read. One of the things I most enjoy about this authors' work is the way she creates whole new worlds within her books, whole societies that have never before been imagined, and she does it so well that you can't help but be drawn into those worlds and relate to the characters within them. My only complaint about this short novel, is how abruptly it ends. I'm assuming that the nexy story will pick up right where this one ended, but I would have appreciated a bit of a preview of what's to come in that next novel. Frankly, I can't wait to read it.

As stated at the outset, I voluntarily read an advance reader copy of this novel. The opinions expressed are my own.

I didn't realise this was the second book in a series and I was totally lost as to what was going on. But I'm a fan of Ms Frank's writing so I'm going to hunt down the earlier books to read.

I voluntarily read an advanced review copy of this book

This book was really good I loved every second of it. The dynamics between the couple was great. I loved seeing how their conflict turned into something wonderful.

I liked the premise of this book and the characters, although the heroine was a little cringy. The author wove a fantastic tale. I am interested to read more books in this series.

Jaquelyn Frank's Morphate world is an intriguing one. True, the motivations behind the shadowy experiments creating human/animal hybrids remain murky, and it's a little hard to fathom a lot of what is going on, but there are big themes introduced -- though not always fully explored -- and enough subtlety of subtext that it is possible there is a lot more going on here than what meets the eye. What meets the eye, in this novella outing, is back story on the Morphates, as we meet Dr. Jenesis DeBruehl (yep, her name is a homophone for GENESIS) who originally invented the morphing process (so, it wasn't Zordon?), only to have her work corrupted by an evildoer bent on... something, we never really know. Seven years after being Tesla-ed, Jen meets Kincaid Gregory -- "Kin" -- a man who has been twisted by her experiments gone mad. This is their story.

It's good.

Ms. Frank exploded on my reading horizon with her Nightwalker series and her refreshing take on the fantastical world of vampires, demons and other manner of supernatural creatures. Since then she has written a diverse set of stories across diverse worlds not all of which have had the same appeal for me as her earlier stories do. Not too sure that the title matches this story unless it's about the red hot chemistry between the alpha and the scientist.....
This story is about fantastical creatures called the "Mophates" who have been created in a lab. In a dystopian world where certain cities have been abandoned and are now populated and controlled by Morphates to keep the rest of the country safe, Kincaid "Kin" Gregory is an alpha Morphate running dark Philadelphia. Once an upstanding cop before being experimented on, he now fights every moment of his life to hold on to control and remain some elements of his humanity. Can he reverse the biological changes to his body? Who better to help him in his quest but the geneticist who's research made him what he is.
Jenesis DeBruehl is a disillusioned scientist. Her brilliant research intended to save lives has been distorted and twisted into a travesty used to create immortal animal like creatures. She's spent seven years licking her wounds in private aching for a chance to redeem herself. Should she question a gift horse when it seems to give her everything she wants? Perhaps? since the lab she's now running is funded by Morphates most particularly alpha Kin Gregory who has his own angle of research he wants to push. There is a silver lining in that she has exclusive access to an alpha morphate as a research subject.
It's an interesting though far fetched plot line complete with a crazy scientist with dreams of grandeur. Not my cup of tea but probably has an audience that it appeals to.

I’ve not read book 1 in this series, but since this is essentially a standalone short story, this was a good enough intro to the world as any.

Jenesis is a doctor who unwittingly helped to create a new breed of human. They’re indestructible and have elements of different types of animals. One thing they have in common - they were all tortured by an evil doctor who is currently MIA. While maybe not officially doing this for redemption, Jenesis takes a job in a lab run mostly by these new kinds of humans - morphates - and agrees to assist in research about their kind.

Kin is a leader of one such group of morphates. He was a cop before the unthinkable happened, but he knows he has to embrace what he’s become or it will eat him alive. He is, also, undeniably drawn to Jenesis. When he hired her to run his lab, he assumed she would be driven, but he never expected that they could get a relationship out of the deal. There’s some dirty, sexy times, some action, a little redemption, and a lot of paranormal wackiness that make this a really enjoyable quick read.

Can you say lost? I didn’t realize when I requested The Science of Pleasure that it was part of a series and unfortunately for me, this doesn’t work well as a standalone. I pieced most things together, but it was obvious I was missing huge chunks of backstory. With a Sci-Fi series, this can be and in this case was a big deal.

Kin was an alpha morphate, a person who became immortal because of a sick doctor looking for a cure for old age. With immortality came an inner beast that was violent, hard to control and destructive. A former cop, there wasn’t much left of the upstanding, moral man he used to be and he was a bit lost. As ruler over a “dark city” (whatever the eff that is) he had the fate of all the morphates under him in his hands. Unfortunately, he had no one he could trust to help ease his burdens.

Jena was a scientist who had lost her reputation years before during the mad scientist fallout. Like Kin, she was a bit of a mess herself because of her feelings of guilt for being, albeit unwittingly, part of the whole morphate disaster. My first impression of her was that she was super naive and kind of slow on the uptake and this never really improved.

One thing The Science of Pleasure did have was a combustible connection between Kin and Jena. But, when they finally gave in to their chemistry, it ended up feeling more violent than sexy. Seriously, all I could think was “Ouch!”.

I spent so much time in my futile attempt to piece the backstory together so I could make sense of things that I never succeeded in settling in and just enjoying it. The ending also felt extremely rushed leaving me with a vague unfinished business feeling. I do think if I’d had read the preceding books in the series I would have had a more enjoyable experience.

Rating: 3 Lost Stars

Thanks to the publisher for an ARC to read and give my honest opinion.

Dr. Jenesis DeBruehl enters the Dark Philadelphia morphate camp to help them learn how to coexist inside there skin, and study them. Her research is held responsible for creating them, and could lead to more answers for the morphates.
Kincaid Gregory is the alpha for Dark Philly, and one look at the prim research scientist makes him salivate. He needs her research to help them change back to human if at all possible but there's something about the little mix that puts his animal on edge in a raw primal way.

This is my first experience in the Morphates series and I am hooked. The sexy tension between Kin and the doc are steamy and the storyline was just worldbuilding at its best. Being a .5 novel, I just wished for some more character building. Kin and Jen were really the only two in the book besides some lab assistants and the dreaded bad guy Paulsen. I still enjoyed it and gave it four stars of entertainment!

In the name of paranormal readers everywhere…
The Science of Pleasure is a thrilling and fascinating read that brings life to a whole new world for readers to enjoy. Jenesis and Kin are two very strong characters with electrifying chemistry and that grab readers’ attention from the very beginning. The romance is full of tension and passion as these two fight their sizzling attraction and the relationship really doesn’t have great odds of working out due to the differences between them and the past. This fast paced story is full of intense and suspenseful events that keep readers glued to the pages as Jenesis and Kin try to work out their differences and take a dangerous gamble in a move against the evil Dr. Paulson.

Jax / Jacquelyn Frank has created a very intriguing world full of unique and fascinating characters that are similar to vampires but very different as well as having an overall sexy feel to the story. It takes place in a futuristic vision of our world which adds more spice to the story and adds to the believability of the characters and their overall existence. The only problem I had with this story, is that it was over too soon, but that’s okay, I will just have to read the next book – Dangerous as soon as I can.

We saw a snippet of Kin in book 1 (the Phoenix Project) and now, this is his story. 7 years after the events the world is a different place. But the secrets, challenges and threats still remain. Just how will one scientist change what happened? How will she make amends? And will the alpha of this pack accept the beast within that clamours for her presence?

THE SCIENCE OF PLEASURE is the second instalment in Jacquelyn Frank’s multi-genre adult, sci-fi/paranormal/urban fantasy/ post apocalyptic Morphate romance series focusing on a scientific experiment known as the Phoenix Project that resulted in a hybrid human known as the Morphate. This is scientist Dr. Jenesis DeBruehl, and alpha Kincaid ‘Kin’ Gregory’s story line. THE SCIENCE OF PLEASURE can be read as a stand alone but I recommend reading book one The Phoenix Project for backstory and history. Kincaid Gregory is Nick Gregory’s brother (The Phoenix Project).

NOTE: The Science of Pleasure was originally released in the 2013 anthology The Pleasure Project.

Told form dual third person perspectives (Jenesis and Kincaid) THE SCIENCE OF PLEASURE fast forwards the series seven years in that the government has disbanded the scientific research that resulted in a catastrophic experiment by a man hoping to create a more powerful being. Genetic experimentation into cellular death and recovery known as the Phoenix Project was headed by Dr Jenesis DeBruehl, but unbeknownst to our heroine, the results were used by her mentor, Dr. Eric Paulson, to create a hybrid army of immortal beings. Enter Alpha leader, and former police officer Kincaid Gregory, and the man with whom Jenesis will fall in love.

Jenesis DeBruehl was caught up in the disaster that destroyed so many lives. Her life ruined, and her reputation shattered, seven years later our heroine finds herself working for the very people, beings, she helped to create. Kincaid Gregory is more beast than man but meeting the woman who discovered the cellular tag that delivers specified cellular mutation commands pulls at the primal longing of a male for his mate. Hoping to take down Dr. Eric Paulson, Kincaid and Jenesis put together a plan, a plan that wasn’t as well thought out as our couple had hoped.

The initial relationship between Jenesis and Kincaid is caustic and acerbic as Kincaid struggles with the knowledge that the woman with whom he would fall in love is the very woman responsible for the mutation that destroyed so many lives. The $ex scenes are aggressive, erotic and intense-Kincaid’s beast is animalistic in his taking of our story line heroine.

THE SCIENCE OF PLEASURE is an intriguing, imaginative and intoxicating tale of the potential for the human race to destroy itself through scientific discovery. The premise is dramatic and intense; the characters are spirited, charismatic and animated; the romance is fated by passion and need.

Copy supplied by Netgalley

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A good quick read. Jenesis and Kincaid are likable leads. The insta-love was silly considering their past connection, but at least the book has the excuse of being short, so there isn’t enough time for them to build a connection. Good world building and time was spent giving on the villain, so he’s not just evil for evil’s sake. I will be continuing to read this series.

This book is a novella that takes place between books 1 and 2 in the Morphate series. I would recommend reading book 1 so you understand the things that are talked about in this book. This one is about Dr. Jenesis DeBruehl and Kincaid Gregory. Jenesis was a doctor who worked under Dr. Eric Paulson on the Phoenix Project, never knowing that he was using human test subjects and changing them in such significant ways. Kin was one of the people that was changed and is now an Alpha of one of the Dark Cities. And he has hired Jenesis to run his lab, not realizing exactly how much his life will change or how hers will change as well.

I really enjoyed this book. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was because I wish it was longer than it was! Kin has deep issues after what happened to him and his family. Some he has worked through and some he hadn't yet. But when he meets Jenesis everything changes for not only him but for her also. They are the perfect offset to each other. Everything they believe in, once they actually talk, seems to coincide with each other. And I love how even as a human she still tries to protect the big, bad Alpha! Great read! I am hoping this series will continue and it is definitely a different take on "shifters"!

Riveting!!!, I simply couldn't put it down! Loved the concept and I absolutely can not wait to see how Franklin develops the series. I think this is going to generate a big following. The storyline is different and so compelling. I'm so excited for what will come next.

Ms. Frank never fails to delight. The Science of Pleasure is a good solid story. I liked the story concept and Ms. Frank did a great follow-through. Enjoyed

When I realised this was the second book in the Morphate series I went and bought The Phoenix Project book one to ensure I didn’t miss anything and I am glad I did. I enjoyed this story it is intriguing and engaging and reminded me why I love reading this author, but I do feel I enjoyed it more because I took the time to read book 1. The characters and the storyline are well developed and I really do think this series will be a hit with reader of this genre.

This was an interesting book.but apparently it has a prequel. I might have liked it better if I had known that. Or maybe not. This is a very short story and does not give you much time to get a feeling for the characters. It also ends rather abruptly, and left me feeling like I missed part of the book.

This is the wrong book please fix it is Jax not the correct title. Please fix!!! I really want to read the book that is in the description.

I seriously hate realising that I’ve missed the first book in a series, and with this particular story, I felt I was missing some crucial background information. But, that said, I did enjoy that overall concept of the series and will definitely go back and read book one.

The story is action-packed, with ingenious world building and interesting and well-developed characters portrayals. Naturally, as with any Frank novel/novella, the heat factor is off the charts with combustible passion and chemistry. Once I go back to the beginning, I’m sure I will be looking for more of this series.

Thank you to Netgalley for approving my ARC copy of this book.