Leann Ryans has a new Omegaverse book out, and this one has set the trope on its head, in the very best way. I love what she has done with Hired For Heat.
So, normally in MF Omegaverse books, Alphas are on top of the world, Betas are somewhere in the middle, and Omegas are prized, held to be the lowest of the low, or socked away for breeding purposes. But that’s not what is going on with this world. In this world, Betas are running the show. As soon as a male presents as an Alpha, he is taken away from his family and sent to a special school and then onto a couple of places. He could go to a work camp, or he could become a stud, which is really the best outcome for him. The camps range in quality, some of them being barely better than prisons, while there are others which are much better. Then, there are the breeding houses for the Alphas chosen to be studs.
In this society, Omega women can either lock themselves into a safe room for their heat, or they can go to a breeding house and hire a stud to tend them. The Alphas are given guards for their teeth so they can’t bite them to form a bond, and they are given contraceptives, unless the Omega wants to be bred. In the days leading up to her heat, the woman can go and look at the available studs and pick one to help her. Then, when she goes into heat, she goes back to the center, gets locked into a room, and her stud is sent into her.
There is actually one more, even better, outcome for Alphas, and that’s to find an Omega who will bond them and they can be mates. It doesn’t happen often, and every Alpha kind of dreams about it, but it does, on occasion happen.
So into this world Sandra and Austin were born. Austin was in a camp and he learned to be a carpenter. He had plans for his life. Then he went to The Haven, the best house in the city. He got in trouble on his first day there, and ended up in the restricted hall.
Sandra is a designer who works with the top builders. She designs buildings and is damn good at it. She’s never had an Alpha help her through her heat, and she’s decided that it’s just about time she should. So, she goes to The Haven, and then she sees Austin. There’s just something about him that draws her to him, no matter what the Beta woman in charge of The Haven says. She knows that he will be the perfect Alpha to tend her through her heat.
I love, love, love, love this take on the Omegaverse. It is, quite literally, completely unique to anything else I’ve ever read in the O-verse, MM, MF, or anything else. It’s fantastic. I mean, not only are the Alphas not in charge, they are completely locked away, and basically don’t have any rights unless they are bonded to an Omega. They are trained to be useful to Omegas, even if they have additional skills. The Betas are the ones making the rules. Omegas can be successful and powerful, but they are still fighting the stigma of their dynamic, but nothing like what the Alphas are dealing with.
I’m really looking forward to seeing more in this world, because I think that it’s ripe for all kinds of interesting stories. I think Leann is going to do just as a great a job with them too.
OMG, the bureaucracy. That was so ridiculous, just so insane to get all that to handle something that should’ve been so much easier and much simpler, let alone much more personal and intimate.
OK, that’s all I have to say about this one. Go check it out! Happy reading!
PS, don’t forget about the party on Saturday! Leann will be there, giving you the chance to win ebooks!
In Between the Pages 