Quite an interesting sci-fi romance. Good writing and a totally likable female lead. Good job and hope to read more by this talented author.

Heat Factor: She has three clitorises! Uh… three clitori!
Character Chemistry: Graven is awkward and thoughtful and it’s pretty cute.
Plot: “I will heal you with my magic vagina!” Literally, not figuratively.
Overall: I had some qualms.

Before you start waggling your eyebrows at me, my qualms were not about Niva’s erogenous zones. I knew that this was going to be a crazy sex book because the subtitle is LITERALLY “kidnapped by an alien sex goddess.” And there is a lot of sex! The atmosphere on the planet makes people so horny that if they don’t orgasm every day they go insane! Niva has magical powers where her orgasms literally heal people!

I was fine with all of those things. Alien smut is ridiculous and fun and this certainly leaned into the whole “let’s bang with our alien anatomy” thing. Plus, I appreciated that the heroine was the alien, rather than the much more common alien hero.

I could even get behind the development of the romance, even though it’s almost entirely based on a three day sex escape, mainly because Graven is so adorably bad at words but so clearly feels that Niva’s desire is the most important thing. Example: as a literal sex goddess, Niva can decide when to orgasm. Her clients (who come to her for healing) dictate when that orgasm will happen. Graven insists that she orgasms when she wants to be ready to orgasm. This obviously stems from human/alien cultural differences, but reclaiming that power over her own sexuality is eye-opening for Niva, such that I could buy her special connection with Graven.

So what are my qualms? I felt weird about the portrayal of monogamy vs polyamory, and even weirder about the way Graven’s disability was handled. Let’s break it down.

Polyamory
Ok, so Niva’s a member of an alien species that is 100% polyamorous. Reminder: the planet’s atmosphere is an aphrodisiac. When you dig down into it, what that actually seems to mean is that sex and love or family are somewhat separated from each other. People have casual sex all the time - in public, in groups, for healing purposes, on vacation, etc, etc, etc. There are sex competitions where you are judged on form and style and number of orgasms! Much less is said about what family groups look like. Niva does have a close and loving relationship with her father (NOT LIKE THAT), but we don’t get a lot of insight about what the rest of a family group might look like. Towards the end of the book, Niva states explicitly that she hadn’t had sex in conjunction with love in a long time, which is what makes her connection to Graven so special.

Why is this a problem? Well, remember, that Niva uses sex therapeutically to heal people. Furthermore, this is not a job that just anyone can do, but rather can only be performed by a select few who inherit the sex magic gene. She is currently the only member of her species with this power. So her job is literally having sex with people in order to help them, which she thinks is pretty darn awesome.

However, the Ruling Council has decreed that she cannot have sex with humans - and here’s where things get a little uncomfortable for me. Humans, we are told, are instinctively monogamous, and if she has sex with one, she will be “brainwashed” into wanting monogamy as well, and that would be devastating from a religious/cultural/medical perspective, given her special status. Obviously, she initially scoffs at this, and also obviously, she and Graven have a monogamous relationship at the end of the book.

I feel weird about the whole humans are instinctively monogamous thing. But I also feel weird about the way that, in some ways, the characters are able to separate sex and love, but when it comes to the One True Love, sex and love are inherently intertwined and cannot be separated. And in this case, it also means upheaval for Niva’s work and culture. So there’s a definite statement here about what True Love means, and it’s a very narrow monogamous one.

Disability
Graven was experimented on by the Evil Empire before he arrived in Niva’s planet. In attempts to make a super soldier, his nerves were damaged to such an extent that he cannot feel anything. Like, his skin no longer has sensory receptors. He also is emotionally repressed (because torture), which Niva can sense because she can see emotions as auras.

So Niva kidnaps him not just because he’s a hot hunk of man meat that she wants to bone, but because she wants to heal him, physically and emotionally.

Ok, Niva’s a magical healer who might actually have the ability to restore Graven’s destroyed nerve endings. However, when it turns out that her healing magic doesn’t actually work as intended, things started to get a little uncomfortable for me. Basically, Niva can only restore feeling to parts of Graven’s body that are physically inside her vagina when she has an orgasm. Once the obvious candidates are taken care of, Niva continues to attempt to heal Graven, even over his objections that it won’t work, that he’s not going to have foot sex with her, that having feeling in his hands is enough of a gift, etc. But she keeps pushing and trying because it’s just so sad to her that he can’t feel hugs. And of course, at the end, she is able to heal him with a combination of her magic orgasms and the power of love. Now that he’s whole, they can truly be together!

Before I proceed, let me state that I am not an expert on disability rights or disability theory. And Graven does have an extreme condition that does not exist in current reality, as far as I know. However. This narrative that true love can physically fix a person erases people who do live with a disability and who are able to find love and acceptance just as they are. Just because Graven has a made up condition that precludes human connection doesn’t mean that this type of narrative doesn’t do harm.



I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. We disclose this in accordance with 16 CFR §255.

This review is also available at The Smut Report. (Mid July)

I've read all the previous books in this series and so I knew what to expect from the book - which is very sex-positive - but of all the previous books, this felt the most formulaic? I loved Niva - it's great to have a strong, sexy female lead who knows what she wants and goes after it. I was less interested in the male lead and his story, but hers was fantastic. I struggled with the fact that such a sex-positive community had suddenly imposed such restrictive rules on Niva and it felt like we went through the motions of unpacking and dismantling that. It was still highly enjoyable but I just felt like something was missing this time around.

Included as a top pick in bimonthly July New Releases post, which highlights and promotes upcoming releases of the month (link attached).

Wow, what an amazing read. I started "Forbidden Desire" and legit could not put it down which is exactly what you want from a good romance. Niva and Graven were so beautiful together and I thoroughly enjoyed watching the stoic, unemotional Graven slowly beginning to regain his emotions and feelings with Niva's help.

This was one of my first alien romances and I found that now my expectations might be too high for others as I love this book! The stakes were high, this being one of the books where I couldn't guess which way it was going to go even when I was nearly finished!

The only problem I had with this book was how much Niva loved being polygamous in her relationships and doing a complete 180 because of Graven. The points that were made for this happening made sense and was done in a way that didn't make me angry or feel like Graven was forcing her to be monogamous, but I still found myself feeling a little... upset at how adamant she was about loving being polygamous and then suddenly wanting to only be monogamous with Graven. Other than that though, I found myself thoroughly enjoying this book!

If you have a thing for sexy aliens, tortured heroes, and a beautiful love story, this is the book for you!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my free ecopy in exchange for my honest review. I didn’t realize this was part of a series. Luckily I didn’t need to read the others to play catch up, I found this book intriguing. Alien and a human fall in love was an interesting love story. Niva as a sex goddess healed people through sex. Which I found unbelievable. Graven was the human she wanted to help from his physical and emotional pain. It felt that the sex between them was overly done. I didn’t understand the love they felt. It felt more like lust than love. I felt the ending to be rushed.

If you've read the previous books, the beginning of this book shouldn't be a surprise (sex games!). I appreciated that we very quickly see that Niva sees her role to help (as well as she likes sex) and that she is annoyed with the limits and control being imposed on her. While I would not have bought a HEA with her continuing to have sex on command, I also would not have bought that she magically did a 180 on how she had been raised. I found her evolution and struggle to be believable. While I found some of her ways of 'healing' Graven to be just completely over the top, it was an interesting plot device and constructed well. Interestingly, I don't find much of the sex in this series to be especially hot, creative, but in many cases it's more clinical and their emotional growth is the much more nuanced part.

Niva is a sex goddess. Well at least to her people. She has powers to heal her people and others but there are always limits. Graven is a human among the rebellion that has captured her attention. It wouldn’t be bad enough that they were different species but well his aura is different.

Niva knows she can heal him but Graven is hiding secrets and those secrets are not good for anyone. A second retreat, hidden agendas, and prejudices are all against them. When lives are on the line and their love is gonna have to battle everything against them. It is a very sexy steamy book with some action and very good to read. Enjoyed it a lot.

This book wasn’t as good as the others. I thought there would be more when it came to Gavin and his sensory issues. Plus, too many things were rushed and neatly tightened up like the council issue at the end, and the thing that happened with Gravin’s father...sorry but no matter the past, there are always feelings he will have to cope with because that is his father. Regrets and what ifs. And honestly, for all that to be pushed aside after having sex with someone for 3 days!! No, I didn’t buy into it. The character development was super shallow and rushed.

Forbidden desire is the 4th book in a series. It's the first i have read, but there were no missing pieces without reading the previous three. With that being said, I loved this so much that I am going to read the others. I hope this series continues after this book as well.

I was really excited about the concept of this book! A free-love, polyamorous society who pride themselves on consent and freedom? love it! Plus the heroine is curvy and an honest to goodness sex goddess. She is smart and confident - and very fun. She is also forbidden from having sex with humans after her cousin (and the former sex God of the planet left with a human.

Graven is a super soldier whose ability to feel touch has been removed as part of the enhancement process. His father is evil and determined to crush the human rebellion. He deserted his father's forces when they left the planet after the last interaction with the rebels. He is fascinated by Niva and drawn to her.

There is definitely a lot of sex in this book - but I didn't find all of it particularly erotic. Some of it definitely was - but I think the sheer number of sex scenes started to desensitize me to it! The story was great and unique tho!

I've read almost all the books in this series and so was happy to receive a galley of this one.
The book gives you enough back story that you can read it as a stand alone so you don't have to have read the previous ones though it is best to read the entire series.
The storyline was easy to follow and delivered a satisfying HEA.

I loved that the heroine was a take charge plus sized goddess and that the hero was just in awe of her.
Her desire to use her powers to fix him and their attraction meant that every time they were on the page together, they sizzled.
They had a lot of chemistry!
Graven's back story is pretty complex but Niva's only desire is to help him overcome these difficulties and heal the broken parts of him.

There is something that I did not like about it and that was how the romance changed lifestyle significantly.
I won't give too much away but that left a bad taste in my mouth.

Overall it was a light fun read.
**spoiler review will be on Goodreads*

While Forbidden Desire is the fourth book in the Planet of Desire series, it is the first one I've read. It absolutely can be read as a stand alone.

I was hoping that a book subtitled "Kidnapped by an Alien Sex Goddess" would be a fun romp. And it is. But it's also more poignant and emotional than I had expected.

Niva is the titular alien sex goddess. She has the power to heal through sexual encounters, and also the power to destroy. She can have sex with anyone she wants, as long as they're not human. Graven is an enhanced human super soldier on the run from, well, everyone. He has no sense of touch and his feelings are deeply repressed as well, due to the experiments that were performed on him.

At the center, this is a story about bodily autonomy - Niva demanding the right to choose who her partner is, human or not, and Graven regaining the control that was taken away from him as a child. It's also about loyalty and duty and making hard choices. And there's also a lot of steamy sex. Like, a lot a lot.

I wasn't sure what to expect when I started this, but I am delighted. I now own the rest of the series and look forward to reading it.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

I haven't read erotica in a long time. I almost never read science fiction. I'm so glad I chose to read this one! It has all the explicit sex scenes that you'd expect from this genre. If that's not your thing, best not read this one. I rather enjoy a good, steamy read!

I really enjoyed this story. Niva, a sex goddess, can heal people by having sex with them. She has made it her mission to heal Graven, a human that cannot physically feel anything. The thing is, she is forbidden to have sex with humans. Forbidden love is the best, isn't it?

The author does a fantastic job of not making this only about the sex scenes, even though they are super hot, but gives us a great story about two characters that struggle to find themselves while they are finding each other. I don't like fluffy romance and there is nothing fluffy about this.

I didn't realize that this book is #4 in a series. Even so, I was able to read and enjoy it without being lost or feeling like something is missing. I have bought the other three books and will be reading them now.

I gave this book 4 stars and would recommend it for any fans of smokin' hot alien erotica!

This was my very first Alien romance book ever & I LOVED every single page!! I can’t wait to go back to read the others in this series! This book was so sexy, steamy, & emotional! Niva is an alien sex goddess who heals others through sex and climaxes. She loves helping & healing her people. Niva also has special fighting powers. Graven is our broken hero who has escaped his evil fathers ranks. Graven doesn’t have any feeling on his skin from being experimented with. When Niva finds out that Graven is in need of healing she is determined to heal him no matter what costs! These two have some really hot sexy times together but they also learn from each other! I wholeheartedly enjoy watching Niva & Graven learn about love and the sacrifices they are willing to take! These two deserved an HEA!! I highly recommend reading this book! You don’t have to read the others to enjoy this book!

I'm a little confused as to why I keep reading these books, as they're not really my style (I don't usually go for erotica). But I've read the first three and requested it on impulse. Don't get me wrong, the book is well written and I think perfect for previous fans of the series, I just need to remind myself that they're not my cup of tea.

I thought it was just okay. Maybe if the main female stayed poly in her relationship I might've liked it better.

This was an interesting plot. A sex goddess from another world who is trying to heal a human who can feel nothing on his skin...interested? It is a quick fun read with fun characters and some very steamy scenes.
I enjoyed it and would read books by this author in the future.
Thank You to NetGalley and the publisher for this book in exchange for an honest review.

Alien sex goddess! Virgin hero! This book has it all at least if you’ve read other Lovett space and alien romances. This alien romance is different than most because the heroine is the Alien and super into sex and the hero is the virgin. Within this culture sex is a healing method so that’s also something different and these aliens abhor monogamy to the point that the heroine can’t even say the word. Honestly you have to come into his book knowing it’s going to be a bonkers read. It’s pure escapist erotic fun!

5 hot stars 🌟 for a totally bananas plot - Forbidden Desire - Kidnapped by an Alien Sex Goddess by Robin Lovett.

I'd classify this as an alien erotic romance about female bodily autonomy, and choice about the heroines' body and actions. It's sex positive and empowering as well as body positive - she 'owns' her full body and is totally worshipped, for her abilities to heal others with sex.
It's also about actively embracing people who are different and don’t judge them by appearances or simply because they are from a different culture.
While this is deliciously sexy, super hot (Hello sex arena and sex games) its also feminist, playful, fun, empowering, deep, emotional, and sports some excellent laugh out loud scenes.

It’s 4th in a series but, in my opinion, can be read as stand-alone.

I’ve binged on the first books of the series in one go last year and am super happy to have a fourth book as part of the series.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher Entangled: Scorched for granting me an advance copy of this book. The review here represents my own opinion.