Afterlight

Afterlight is a queer (MM) sci-fi human/alien romance with humour, heart, drama, betrayal, and also swords -- in space! 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️✨

When Sashen fled his human space cult to live among the aliens, he had dreams about what a life in space would mean. A decade later, he hasn't even been off-station, instead dancing in a marn den where he's paid to eavesdrop on gossip and provide companionship to paying clients. But when he receives word that the cult that he fled from is looking to bring him back, he's willing to put his life on the line to escape them, even if it means going on galactic television in a win-or-die-trying contest on blood-soaked sands.

Of course, Sashen needs to catch a ride to the distant arena first and as fate would have it, the shy alien who's been watching him dance for the past week -- Araxis of Creche Thiel -- is headed that way and has space to spare. Sashen is happy to have a ride and a cute distraction on the way to what he expects may be his imminent demise. What he can't anticipate as he heads off to his galactic broadcast debut is the gravitational pull he feels to Araxis. With the deadly tournament looming, Sashen will need to figure a way to escape his past, while also charting a way to the future he desperately wants.

Note: the short prologue is a transcript but the rest is prose 💞

TROPES & TAGS

Alien/human romance
Flirting through swordplay
Biting/marking
Caregiving
Reality TV -- in space!
Enthusiastic consent
So much tea
Alien genders (x 11!)
Non-human genitals
Capitalism (derogatory)
Idiots in love
Tender horny
They both fall first & they both fall hard

Afterlight is available as a free ebook from the author's website. It is also available in paperback at online retailers! ✨ Afterburn, Book Two, is already drafted and in edits and will be published in July 2026.