A Minx for Ryek & Holden: Tallean Mercenaries, Book 5 by Lynnea Lee

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

They will never take what is OURS!

Little human Angie escaped the Dominion three years ago. Now they’re here to take her back. But the Dominion will never succeed, because she’s OURS! We know Angie is our mate. It’s not a matter of if the mating bond will form, it’s a matter of when. She thinks she can avoid us. But there’s nowhere for her to run, nowhere for her to hide.

Together, we are stronger. And we will stop at nothing to protect our colony, our home, and our mate.

The Dominion is breathing down our necks…and all I can focus on is the fiercely protective alien warrior charged with defending our colony. I’ve lusted after Ryek for years, and now he tells me I’m his. One huge he is my ex’s best friend. The worst part? Holden and I are still friends with benefits, and I still secretly love him.

When Ryek and Holden reveal they both want to share me, I’m floored. Suddenly, I have not one, but two, growly and possessive aliens demanding my attention. And they tell me they won’t stop until I am theirs.

A Minx for Ryek & Holden

Double the Alien Heroes, Double the Fun

The following ratings are out of 5:
Romance: ❤️💙💚💛
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Chemistry: 🧪🧪🧪🧪
Story/Plot: 📕📗📙📘📔
World building: 🌏🌍🌎🌏
Character development: 😋😉😎🤯
Narration: 🎙🎙🎙🎙🎙
Narration Type: Dual Narration

Characters and Plot Summary

Angie has spent far too long surviving on her own, always expecting to be let down or abandoned. She was a law student who was making her way through Law school as a stripper, when she was abducted from earth and sold to a mean master. She eventually escaped and made her way to Reka 5 where humans could be free. There she met Holden, a guard on Reka 5, and they got along well and couldn’t seem to stay away from each other, but Angie wanted her man to have a mating bond and Holden, though he loved Angie and told her she was his, had not felt the bond with her. She had tried dating others, but none had been as good as Holden.

Ryek is the director of the colony, he and Holden are best friends. There has recently been threats from the Dominion against the colony. They are tasked with teaching the colonists to fight and Angie is in Holden’s group. He thinks she will distract him too much, so he asks Ryek to train Angie. Ryek was also attracted to Angie and didn’t want to poach her from his friend but had been waiting for the two to finally finish with each other so he could make a play for her. He tells Holden that if he gets close to Angie, he wouldn’t only train her. The two of them find that though they both feel jealousy when they think of Angie with other males, they don’t feel that way about each other.

Angie finds herself caught between two fiercely protective warriors who are determined to keep her safe. What I appreciated most was that the relationship did not instantly solve Angie’s trust issues. She questions their motives, pushes back when they try to shield her, and slowly learns that these two males genuinely want a future with her. The danger surrounding Angie keeps the story moving, with several tense escape sequences and confrontations that force all three characters to rely on each other instead of hiding behind old emotional walls.

Highlights and Limitations

My favorite part of the book was watching Ryek and Holden balance each other. Ryek tends to be more direct and impulsive, while Holden often brings a steadier, more thoughtful perspective. That contrast made even the quieter conversations feel meaningful because Angie was not simply falling for one hero, she was learning how each of them loved differently. One scene that really stood out was when Angie finally stopped trying to handle everything alone and accepted their help during a dangerous situation. It felt earned because the story had taken the time to show why trusting anyone was so difficult for her.

I also enjoyed the lighter moments between the three of them. The teasing and growing affection helped break up the action and made the relationship feel believable rather than rushed.

If I had one criticism, I would have liked a little more time spent on Angie’s emotional recovery after some of the more intense events. The action keeps the pacing fast, which is exciting, but I found myself wanting another quiet scene or two where everyone could process what had happened before moving on.

Narration

Troy Duran continues to be an excellent fit for the Tallean Mercenaries series. His deep voice gives Ryek and Holden distinct personalities without making either one sound exaggerated. He also does a good job conveying Angie’s vulnerability and determination through his pacing and tone, even though he is performing every role himself. During the action scenes he kept the tension high, while the romantic moments felt warm instead of overly dramatic. His consistent performance has become one of the reasons I keep coming back to this series in audio format.

Final Thoughts

This ended up being one of the stronger entries in the series for me because the romance and the suspense felt well balanced. I cared about all three main characters, and by the end I genuinely wanted to see them find the peaceful future they had been fighting for. The combination of dangerous missions, emotional healing, and a satisfying why choose romance kept me invested from beginning to end. If you enjoy protective alien heroes, capable heroines who slowly learn to trust, and a romance built through shared challenges instead of instant attraction, I think this audiobook is well worth picking up.

Blog|Goodreads|Facebook|Instagram|Pinterest|BookBub



View all my reviews