What price will humans pay to own starhearts?
Starheart is a fast paced space opera with romantic tension woven through the action. It sits in the Ptorix Empire universe and can be read on its own.
About the book
Freighter captain Jess Sondijk thinks she has her life under control until Confederacy Admiral Hudson orders her ship boarded and has her hauled in for interrogation. The questions she’s buried for years claw their way back. Was her husband’s death really an accident?
Hudson is hunting bigger prey. Someone is trading with the alien Ptorix and offering a prize so great they’re willing to part with their sacred starhearts, the jewels they call the windows of the soul.
When friends and family are abducted and bodies start to fall, Jess’ personal search for the truth meshes with Hudson’s determination to stop crimes so appalling he’s prepared to risk his own career to end them.
Together they’re dragged into a fight neither of them asked for. How much are they willing to lose to make things right?
(Starheart is set in the same universe as the Iron Admiral but the events occur a little before the Iron Admiral books)
If you’re wondering whether Starheart is your kind of read, this will help.
This book is for you if:
• You enjoy science fiction that tackles dark, serious themes without flinching or sensationalising them.
• You like strong, principled women who survive, endure, and choose their own path forward.
• You appreciate stories where power, exploitation, and abuse are confronted head-on, not brushed aside.
• You’re drawn to slow-burn romance built on protection, trust, and earned emotional connection.
• You want heroes who act because it’s right, not because it’s easy.
• You like space opera where justice has a cost and moral choices matter.
• You prefer story-driven tension over cheap shock or gratuitous content.
• You like romance where intimacy is part of the story, not constant on-page sex for its own sake.
This book may not be for you if:
• You’re looking for light, escapist science fiction without moral weight.
• You’re uncomfortable with themes of slavery, trafficking, and systemic abuse, even when handled responsibly.
• You want romance without darkness, danger, or ethical complexity.
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Space Opera/ Science Fiction Romance. Features non-humanoid aliens and some non-specific sex scenes. There’s action adventure and politics.
FAQ
Genre and details
• Space opera with a romance arc
• Action, political tension, and mystery
• Alien contact and high stakes
• Focus on character and consequences
Is this the first book in the series
No. Starheart is part of the Ptorix Empire universe, but it stands alone. You can start here without reading the other books.
Who are the Ptorix
An alien species with their own culture, beliefs, and politics. They consider starhearts sacred, the vessels of their souls, so anyone trading them is breaking the deepest taboos. Read more about them here.
What are starhearts
Starhearts are formed on worlds that resemble Enceladus, one of Saturn’s moons. An alien life form that emits radiation is trapped in a silicon lava and spewed onto the surface of the moon by volcanic activity. They are highly prized by the Ptorix, who call them the windows of the soul. They are rarely traded with Humans.
Is there romance
Yes. The pull between Jess and Hudson grows out of danger, distrust, and the choices they have to make. The relationship is woven through the action rather than taking it over.
Is there sex
There are intimate moments. The focus is on emotion, character, and the cost of trust, not on graphic detail.
Is this hard science fiction
The story pays attention to science and consequence, but it’s space opera
What themes does the book explore
Power. Trust. Grief. Duty versus desire. How far people will go to protect the people they love, and what happens when sacred beliefs collide with human greed.
What formats is it available in
Ebook and paperback. Audiobook status depends on future plans.
Tropes and elements
• Calculating admiral, stubborn freighter captain
• Greed
• Murder, smuggling, and political treachery
• Slow burn attraction while the galaxy teeters
• Ordinary people caught in big power games
• Slavery
Reader praise
“What really gives this story (and others in the Ptorix Empire series) some solid depth is the well developed background. The politics, the economics and the cultural tensions between the various human and alien groups have been properly thought through, as has the resulting effects on the individual characters. It all makes for a very satisfying story which I completely enjoyed.“