Awesome book and extremely well written, better than many SciFi romances I have read. Not an especially deep book but great for fans of Susan Grant. I read this one as a stand alone but could tell there were other stories about background characters but the one does end in a HEA no cliffhangers.

Lovely Romance by a wonderful Author!

Surprisingly awesome read! I was a little apprehensive about the intergalactic angle, but everything worked out great! I absolutely loved Klark and Jemm! I enjoyed seeing Jemm slowly make her way up the ladder and exert her "girl power" in the best ways possible, and Klark inner person grow. I'm definitely going to go read the prequel series to this now! Leaving reviews on Goodreads, and Amazon and iTunes when it goes live on the 26th.

I adore Susan Grant's novels. I've always had a fondness for the SF romances, since reading Johanna Lindsey at an impressionable age. The romance in her stories plays a more central role than that of Linnea Sinclair, for example, but she has the same level of ridiculously detailed alien cultures and worlds, and I am forever in awe of them. If you liked Sherrilyn Kenyon's League novels you will ADORE Susan Grant.

This novel did not disappoint AT ALL. I would have liked a family tree/book chart, as I'm pretty sure this book was linked to others of hers, but it was still completely stand alone.

t has been a long five-year wait for the start of a new series by Grant. It is a very good story with great characters. One, Prince Klark, is a carry over from her Star series and another, Jemm Ave, is brand new. I loved how Klark was trying to bring honor to his family after his actions in a previous book did the reverse. Jemm is perfect in the role of a very strong woman who is working hard to help her family. The world building is very good and back-story for Jemm is spot on. My only complaint - It has been a long time since I read the Star series and the back-story for Klark is based on that series and I had forgotten a lot about what he did. It does work as a stand-alone and has numerous hooks for future books set in the Star World Frontier.

Champion of Baresh is the first book by Susan Grant that I have ever read. When I read the synopsis I was immediately intrigued. I needed to know more so when I got the chance to read it early I got to it as soon as I could. I was not disappointed this book was wonderful!

In this book we mainly follow Klark and Jemm, I loved these two together I love the whole trainer and trainee relationship between them in the book . I found that the romance between them was perfect for the story I shipped these two together so very hard lol . I was absolutely thrilled with where we left them at the end of this book . There relationship was very unique , as they spent more time around each other you began to see them open up to each other, learn from each other and in the end fall in love. I loved the world building in this book as I learned more about the worlds, the setting and the traditions I was so very fascinated and I love that Susan Grant found away to explain it all in away that it did not come off so complex that it was confusing and sometimes in science fiction this tends to happened.I loved that Jemm was this amazing female Bajha player in competition that is so male dominated I was rooting for her all the way through this book.

Champion of Baresh By Susan Grant was Fun , Sexy , Thrilling , Emotional , Heartwarming and just a pleasure to read . Between the cast of character , the unique settings and entertaining plot Susan grant has not only created an amazing story but a fantastic science fiction novel .I am definitely look forward to seeing what Susan Grant will write next

From the first page to the last there's much about this book that left me giddy with its virtually angst-free romance between apparent opposites and exhilarating action scenes set amidst class and gender distinctions. Some of the themes are familiar but Ms. Grant put a fresh spin on them which added to my overall enjoyment and I didn't want it to end.

Jemm's grown up on a harsh world where her people are considered amongst the lowest class. A lack of food, medical care, and a family torn apart by the death of her father and her brother's wife has her dreaming of a way out. With so much oppression and feelings of hopelessness she clings to those moments of joy that playing bajha with her father's encouragement bring her and plans to use her talents to make a better life for them all despite the adversity. Long held beliefs of a woman's role casts a shadow over her dreams though and leads to her hiding her sexuality at first in order to play. When she meets Prince Klark though keeping her secret becomes even harder as their connection becomes more palpable with its increasing sexual tensions once he discovers the truth. Twists and turns take them on a heartwarming and uplifting journey that leads to radical change across the universe in an ultimately rousing conclusion. Jemm's a delightful heroine, strong-willed and loyal. She has a big heart, an open mind, and her joy in playing bajha is infectious. She dreams big and her belief in herself and her dream had me cheering. She's a bit rough around the edges with her constant cursing but it made her all the more likable. She brought joy to Klark's stale life and together they made a formidable match.

Klark grew up knowing his role as The Spare to his brother's one day ascending to the throne. It's his role to protect his brother and keep their family line honorable. That belief led to a horrible decision that hurt his family and bruised his relationship with them, as well as landing him on house arrest. With his sentence ended he's sworn to himself that he'll bring honor to their family name and make them proud of him once again. For so long he's lived a meaningless life of frivolity, never finding something meaningful to him, until he formed a bajha team. Having them win the championship is his main goal and is what brings him to dirty and dangerous Baresh and the unforgettable bajha player who's like nothing he's ever seen before. He's in awe of her the minute he meets her, drawn to her wholeheartedly, despite knowing nothing about her. Discovering her true gender creates new drama but it also opens his heart to feelings of love he's always denied before. She brings happiness to his structured life, giving him moments of carefree fun. Soon, he too is dreaming....dreaming of a future with her despite the odds and familial expectations. Theirs is a joyous relationship full of laughter and smiles, along with steamy encounters that are both sensual and playful. Klark may have started off a bit standoffish and a bit lost, but meeting Jemm had him focusing on a future with her, a future that has him a part of many big changes. His heart was hidden early on but with each word and deed directed at Jemm he became a true romantic. He fought for her on every level, reminding her that she was so much more than the downtrodden existence she came from and it left me in love with him.

This was a well-paced story for the most part with only a bit of lag in the middle as Jemm and Klark were training and getting to know more about each other. The main characters were strong-willed with personalities that were immensely appealing with a romance that had me smiling and cheering. The secondary characters were a colorful bunch, from Jemm's heartbroken brother Nico to her fellow bajha teammates and their brotherly and playful interactions with her, and they added much enjoyment to the story and plenty of fodder for more stories set in this universe in the future. Baresh is vividly depicted, warts and all, and shows the true strength of Jemm to rise above its bleakness. The sport of bajha is similar to fencing and Ms. Grant's depiction of it is an exhilarating one full of pulse-pounding scenes that had me feeling like a part of the sweaty action and became a driving force for change across many levels. Fans of sci-fi will find this an entertaining and satisfying read that once again shows Ms. Grant to be the queen of this genre and I look forward to revisiting this world soon!

I loved this book, not totally sure I understood the sport (in my head it was a bit like blindfolded fencing) but I really enjoyed the story that revolved around it. Heavy on story with a bit of spice thrown in, totally appreciated on my part

The best way I can describe this book is as an out of this galaxy Cinderella story. This book was very well written with some amazing characters. Author Susan Grant is an amazing storyteller with the ability to describe everything so vividly that I feel like I am not just reading the story. The Champion of Baresh is about Jemm, a woman struggling to provide for her family on a very poor planet working as a transporter. Jemm’s father was a professional Bajha player who trained his daughter in the sport he loved so much, which she seems to have a natural affinity and skill for. The only problem is that this sport is only for men, and any female caught playing will be punished harshly.

Bajha is an extremely popular sport that is played consistently at local bars on her planet. The players are paid according to who lasts the longest. So it is with shock, fear and excitement that Jemm beats the long standing champion while she is disguised as a boy. This win turns her world upside down as she now juggles her daily work schedule and the games that she must compete in. Jemm also needs to contend with the attention of Prince Klark, a member of the Vedla royal family, and owner of one of the popular professional Bajha teams when her prowess at this game is brought to his attention.

This story is about breaking down barriers, dreaming big and making them come true, and of course falling in love.

From the first page, this book kept me engaged. Strong characters, a fast-paced plot and rich world-building are just a few of the reasons I give this book 5 stars.

I love how Susan develops strong female characters that aren't one-dimensional. The heroes have flaws and the villains have a little something in each of them that we can all identify with. It fleshes each individual out into believable characters, and enhances the tension and resolution within the story arc.

Very well done!.