Book Review: Built 4 It by Daisy Harris

Title: Built 4 It
Series: Love Bots, Book 3
Author: Daisy Harris
Genre: Science-Fiction, M/M Romance
Sensuality Rating: Erotic
Source: NetGalley
Published: January 2012 by Ellora’s Cave

When a riot erupts in Built4’s stein-building lab, the alpha stein Kee drags a submissive young lab assistant into his cage. Kee’s been studying the human. Ben’s sad eyes and slender form call to Kee—urging him to equal parts lust and possessiveness.

Prisoner to the alpha, Ben surrenders to the stein’s fierce determination and gentle seductions. He’s long hated his job, feeling like a monster for following his boss’s orders, especially once he’s seen intelligence flickering in the alpha’s green eyes.

If Kee’s to escape, he needs Ben’s help to learn about the world outside the laboratory—a world full of people, sex and experiences Kee’s only beginning to discover. And guilt-ridden over the things he’s done, Ben can only forgive himself if the alpha forgives his sins first.

Reviewed By: J9

In a Nutshell: Not quite sure what to say about this strange novella as one of the leads seemed like a Cro-Magnon man, literally, not because he was a jerk.

The Set Up: Kee is a stein, a man fully grown in a lab but without real brain activity though possessing an ability to learn quickly. He’s been lusting after the human lab technician, Ben and once finally freed, he captures Ben. Ben gives in to the gentle giant and helps Kee adapt to life outside the laboratory.

Why I Read this Book: I recently enjoyed a forthcoming release from this author, From the Ashes, about a Latino firefighter who falls for a man he helped after his house burnt down and thought I’d give one of her backlist a try.

Mixed Results: You ever read a book and after you have no idea what just happened? Yeah, that here for me. This writer has a great imagination to create a world where steins are humans but without the intellectual abilities humans possess. The science-y (shaddap, I know it’s not a word!) part of this novella was certainly imaginative.

The romance however was just plain odd. Ben isn’t happy shipping out the steins for medical research or to their death but his attraction to Kee is a big leap. Kee starts as nearly a mindless body but learns through TV rudimentary human thought and speech. For me this made for a very strange romance with a tad of ick when the men became sexual. Even their discussion about their sex includes childish hand gestures from both Ben and Kee and the whole romance ended up forced, strange and slightly icky for me.

IMO: I have a new oddest book I ever read!

J9’s Rating: