Slow-burn sci-fi, psychological tension, survival, corporate horror, character-focused. Best Ranks: #1 in Forensics #3 in Science Fiction-Space & Serious #4 in Coworkers #5 in Galaxy & Corporate #10 in Romantasy 90% Scifi - 10% Romance ⋆ ✦ ⋆ Forensic Biologist Dr. Lark Whitmore is part of a survey team sent to planet M51-VCS‑6‑N1 one month ahead of a group of new residents. At first, the mission seems simple: study the land, catalog resources, identify profit regions, and ensure a smooth landing for those who will follow. But as the team explores breathtaking landscapes and discovers alien wonders, cracks begin to show. The planet is unpredictable, the corporation is profit-driven, and this dream "paradise" is far more hostile than anyone imagined. Stuck together under an impossible deadline, the researchers clash, compromise, and realize that trust-and perhaps something more-may be the only thing keeping them sane. A story of exploration, corporate greed, and moral compromise, where the frontier is beautiful, dangerous, and unforgettable. ⋆ ✦ ⋆ Themes and TWs: ememies to lovers (disagreeing corporate coworkers to lovers?), corporate greed and politics, death, gore, horror/thriller elements, allergies/anaphylaxis, suffocation, electrocution, gunshot, combat/military, forensics ⋆ ✦ ⋆ Spotify Soundtrack of the story here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/14bq79tdthiO1gfQaiXNHi?si=820afb9cfd1d42f6 The cover of this book is a section of one of the Hubble Space Telescope's photos of the Whirlpool Galaxy M51