Base Zero by A.G. Wilde
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
SAM
Base Zero
When the monsters came, I lost all hope.
None of us expected we would get help.
That we would be saved…
And that help would come from a most unlikely source.
The Vullan are huge. Scary.
They look like demons…yet, they saved us.
They saved me.
But the fight isn’t over yet. We’re still being invaded.
Destroyed.
I have to focus on surviving and helping the Vullan save my planet…my race.
There is no space for any other thoughts.
So why do the eyes of a certain demon catch my gaze?
And why doesn’t his attention make me want to flee?
GA’VAR
The little female is tenacious but that does not erase that fact that she is…little.
Smaller than the others.
Too small for bonding. That alone should dissuade me.
Yet, she draws my attention.
And when she sticks out that tiny pink tongue of hers right at me, I know I cannot stop the wheels she set in motion.
Whether she likes it or not, I want her even if I must not have her.
When the scourge that has invaded her planet come to get her, my decision is easy.
They will not take what is mine.
Food Runs Low, but the Chemistry Runs Hot
The following ratings are out of 5:
Romance: 💙💛💚💜
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Chemistry: 🧪🧪🧪🧪
Story/Plot: 📕📗📘📙📔
World building: 🌏🌍🌎🌏🌍
Character development: 😋🙂😁😎🥰
Narrator(s): 🎙🎙🎙🎙🎙
Narration type: Dual Narration
Character Backgrounds and Plot Summary
Sam is one of the humans rescued by the Vullan after the Gryken invasion nearly destroyed Earth. Now living underground with the Vullan, she is trying to figure out how she can contribute to everyone’s survival. Her background in horticulture makes her especially aware of their dwindling food supplies, but being underground leaves her wondering what practical use her skills can have. I liked that this gave Sam something to worry about beyond simply surviving. She wants to be useful, and that made her feel grounded in the middle of such a bizarre situation.
Ga’var has been watching Sam, and she cannot understand why. From his perspective, she is unusually small and should not be suitable for bonding, yet he is clearly drawn to her. I particularly enjoyed the contrast between Sam wondering why this intimidating alien keeps staring at her and Ga’var already struggling with feelings he believes he should not have.
Things really shift when Sam and Ga’var go above ground looking for food. A massive Gryken orb arrives, triggering a landslide that traps them and forces them into hiding together. Being isolated from the others gives them time to actually interact without everyone else around, and the danger outside makes their growing attraction feel even more intense. At the same time, the larger story continues moving forward as we learn more about the Gryken, the Vullan, and the war that has devastated both of their worlds.
Highlights and Limitations
The forced-proximity section after the landslide was probably my favorite part. Sam and Ga’var are suddenly dealing with immediate survival while also having to confront the attraction that has been building between them. I liked watching Sam’s curiosity about Ga’var gradually turn into something much more personal.
I also appreciated that Sam’s horticulture background was not simply mentioned and forgotten. Her concern about food shortages gives her a meaningful place within the underground community, especially when resources are becoming increasingly scarce. The story also expands the larger conflict with the Gryken instead of treating the romance as completely separate from the invasion.
The biggest thing I noticed was that some of the story beats felt familiar after the first book.
Though I felt this installment was more balanced and easier to connect with than the first. Personally, I did not mind the similarities as much because I was invested in seeing where the Vullan and Gryken conflict was heading. I did wish there had been a little more time devoted to developing Sam and Ga’var’s relationship outside of the immediate attraction, because I enjoyed their quieter interactions and wanted more of them.
And yes, the spice is definitely present. The intimate scenes are explicit and fit the alien-romance setup, but the thing that kept me listening was the combination of those scenes with the survival story rather than the spice alone. The published listing also identifies the book as containing graphic violence, dark themes, and sexual content.
Narration
Macie Miller and Marcus Rayne narrate the audiobook, which runs about 7 hours and 22 minutes. I liked having separate voices for Sam and Ga’var because it made their perspectives easier to follow, particularly when the story shifts between Sam’s uncertainty and Ga’var’s much more possessive thoughts.
Macie Miller brought out Sam’s vulnerability without making her seem helpless, which worked well for a character who is trying to find her place in an underground survival community. Marcus Rayne gave Ga’var the deeper, intimidating presence I expected from one of the Vullan, while still allowing his more protective side to come through. Their performances helped keep the romance and action balanced.
Final Opinion
I enjoyed Base Zero as a continuation of the Captured Earth series. Sam’s determination to contribute, Ga’var’s fascination with her despite believing she is too small for bonding, and their time trapped together after the Gryken attack gave the romance plenty of tension. I especially liked that the story did not completely abandon the larger invasion plot once the romance took center stage.
For me, the best parts were the scenes where Sam and Ga’var were forced to rely on each other while hiding from the Gryken. Those moments made their relationship feel more tangible, while the continued revelations about the Vullan and Gryken kept me interested in the bigger story and the action when the Gryken come calling was so exciting. It is definitely an audiobook I would recommend to anyone who enjoys alien romance with danger, forced proximity, explicit spice, and an ongoing apocalyptic storyline.
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