Betrothed to the Yeti by Marilyn Barr is a Trick or Treat Bonanza pick #monsterromance #giveaway
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  • N. N. Light
    • Oct 16, 2023
    • 6 min read

Betrothed to the Yeti by Marilyn Barr is a Trick or Treat Bonanza pick #monsterromance #giveaway



Title: Betrothed to the Yeti


Author: Marilyn Barr


Genre: Monster Romance


Book Blurb:


Will Jaya’s bitterness unleash the darkness in Pabu’s soul, or will their love save the village of corrupted Alpha from self-destruction?


Jaya, human colonist on Enceladus, Moon of Saturn, 2700 AD As the third daughter of a beggar, my prospects at the Alpha’s betrothal ceremony range from horrific to nightmarish. Sometimes I wonder if I should have taken matters into my own hands…like my eldest sister, Nima. Her fate rests in her baby bump. Where I sleep tonight depends on the mercy of the Seer, and what the colony Leaders voted to do with me. Will I be chained in the brothel or somewhere more terrifying? Do I dare wish for a life far away from Alpha? Pabu, Enceladus Yeti deemed the Protector of Humans After generations of loneliness, I summoned the courage to request a companion in the villages’ tithes. I yearn for the relationship I had with the first Earthlings to land on this snowy wasteland, the ones who taught me the language and ways of humans. Jaya is an ill-tempered shell of those jovial humans. She says she’s my bride, but will my darkness take her claim as an invitation to consume her? How long can I hide my baser instincts when my fondness for her grows by the day and her angry suit of armor melts faster than snow…

Excerpt:


She blows into my home like a snowstorm, throwing fabric left and right as she makes her way to the heating hearth. The female human brings a long-necked herbivore, which she releases into my space. I’m not prepared for my private space to be invaded. They better not scat all over my rooms. The female makes a gesture at the altar I built at the nameless Seer’s request. What does the raising of her middle finger mean? Is this her gesture of piety, like the Seer’s wild arm swinging?


I asked the Seer to bring one of the tamed pack animals they call ‘wildebeests.’ Is the small herbivore in my home the replacement or do I dare to keep the human female too? No, a human is too much trouble to defend and maintain. Wildebeests have long necks to eat the lichen buried in the snow and long horns to defend themselves. The beasts are self-sufficient friends. Such a companion could carry me home when a hunt gets out of hand…like the last hunt.


Droplets of blood decorate the floor of my first level living space, but I don’t clean them. What’s the point when I’m still leaking? My gut twisted at attacking the group of three cats the humans call ‘tigers’ at once. The cats had never banded together before and were advancing on the mines to prey on the working humans. I refuse to let the savage beasts of this planet eat my only entertainment!


From my spot in the shadows, I have the perfect view of the female and her blasted ‘goat’, as the humans call them. They ignore the two cushioned chairs I placed in the warmth in favor of the hard, unforgiving floor. Without her furry layers, she’s as small and delicate as the portraits I received from her ancestors. I’m torn between studying her and retreating upstairs to gaze upon the portraits. Her limbs are longer than the ancestor humans—adaptation to the difference in gravity between Earth and Enceladus. The little human’s neck is longer too.


My feet suction to the floor as her delicate fingers comb the fur of the goat. The pair cuddle in front of the glowing crystals, watching the decomposition of the radiation, and the binding of the atoms. Will she sit there for the millennium it will take for the fusion to run out of fuel?


What is she doing? I can’t see because the goat is in the way! Oh, how I have longed to be this close to a human again! Has it been a hundred years? Two hundred? To have one of their voices address me and to ask them about all the strange things they do in the villages. Will she teach me the dances of Gamma or the juggling songs of Delta?


My arm is numb from how I wedged myself in the entryway of my kitchen. When my doors burst open, I thought I only needed a hiding place to gain the element of surprise. My focus was on which Yeti from my former tribe visited and why. Certainly, none of the tigers, wild dogs, or herbivores could figure out how to turn a handle. After watching the courageous invader settle as if she owns the place, my body cramps with the need to move. If I can shift my shoulder…


“Who’s there?” The female snaps as she rotates her body to scan my home. Her fingers continue their rhythmic strokes, so the trusting goat doesn’t stir. Unarmed and alone, she glares into the shadows. “Come out and show yourself! No need to stalk your prey. Your dinner was paid for and delivered by Alpha’s finest.”


The deep roots of her courage resonate in her strong, clear voice. She thinks she’s food and yet, she stares down the shadows. I would eat the goat, the fabric, or the glowing crystals before I would eat a human. Not only are their tiny bones a pain to remove, but alive they have proved to be an endless source of amusement.


The crystal’s beams dance as they reflect off her dark hair. The strands fan over her shoulders as her head swivels to guess my location. I’m struck by the power in her stare when her gaze finds me. Large eyes with a golden hoop inside like a hidden treasure nestled in a white blanket dominate her face. Her nose and chin point with accusation. So alien to the round-featured, fuzzy creatures native to this planet. Her lips pull into a snarl to bare her ridiculously tiny teeth. Her goat has a more imposing set of fangs. The human’s glare is softened by the pink flesh framing it. How soft are her furless cheeks? As tender as they look?


“Pabu,” I call from my spot. With a deep inhale, I step one leg from behind the door. My kinked shoulder screams as I roll it and blood rushes down my arm. The pins and needles cease their stabbing when I flex my claw in front of my nose. “I am Pabu, and this is my home. You have—”


Her scream is not only loud enough to wake every wolf and tiger living within miles, but maybe the dead ones, too.


Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):







If you could dress up as anything or anyone this Halloween, what or who would it be and why?


Usually, my husband and I leave the costume design up to my teenage son. We have dressed up as the Swedish Chef and his shrimpies, characters from Scooby-Doo, mini-Santa and his parent-sized elves, and Cruella with two Dalmatians. This year he is reaching into our family’s culture, and a game from his favorite show, to dress us up as yodelers and a St. Bernard. We’ve had a dog-centric theme for the last few years because my son wants a dog. Our rescue cats and I have vetoed the idea.


Explain why your featured book is a treat to read:


Betrothed to the Yeti’s journey of healing is a treat for those who love the hurt/comfort trope in romance. Jaya’s life in the space colony of Alpha has been one of suffering until her betrothal is sold to pay her father’s debts. Pabu the Alien Yeti has protected the human villages from the other aliens for trinkets but has never asked for a companion before. He looks forward to learning the dances, songs, and rituals from the happier villages. He gets the ultimate Halloween trick when Alpha sends him a half-starved, bitter Jaya and her alien-goat Huang. The pair balance each other’s personalities and hind common ground within Pabu’s temple. Will they find their happily ever after or return to alpha for revenge?


Giveaway –


One lucky reader will win a $75 Amazon gift card



Open internationally.


Runs October 1 – 31


Drawing will be held on November 1.



Author Biography:


Marilyn Barr lives in the wilds of Kentucky with her husband, son, and rescue cats. She has nine books with The Wild Rose Press in multiple romance subgenres from sweet, new adult romance to erotic, fantasy romance. She loves to place monstrous characters with hearts of gold in historical romances and her historical, paranormal romances have won the Crowned Heart Award, 2nd place in National Excellence in Story Telling (NEST) Contest, Imadjinn Award for Best Paranormal Romance, and Grand Finalist for the InD’Tale Magazine’s RONE Award. When engaging in the real world, you can find her with the Kentuckiana Romance Writers, volunteering with her son’s Special Olympics teams, or dancing around her kitchen. She is a sucker (haha) for cheesy horror movies, Italian food, punk music, black cats, bad puns, and all things witchy. For the latest Strawberry news and witchy tips, join her newsletter at www.marilynbarr.com


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