I'm relaunching SHADES OF EMPIRE as science fiction romance

My novel SHADES OF EMPIRE is definitely a space opera, and the original cover reflects that part of the story. The action starts on the planet Gaulle, home of the Gaullian Empire, which is ruled by a despotic emperor. It continues on board a somewhat shady merchant starship, aptly named The Queen Bee. Occasionally the characters visit some remote planets with very loose laws. 

cover art by Danielle Fine

However, inside this rather dark space opera are three separate love stories: one involves the woman who owns and commands the Queen Bee; the second happens to a young soldier charged with treason against the empire; and the third occurs when an aristocrat on Gaulle tries to help his younger sister, a co-conspirator of the young soldier. Each of these three find someone as a result of their circumstances or actions. As part of the relaunch, I commissioned a new cover, which I think manages to incorporate both the space opera and the romance sides to the story. Also as part of the relaunch, I have enrolled this book in Kindle Unlimited. 

A word to readers: as I mentioned, this book is dark, by far the darkest story I have written. The other characters are generally good—even sometimes heroic—but the villains are twisted, terrible, and often cruel. Be warned!  Here's part of what SFBook Reviews said about this book:

"Set within the same universe as the authors previous novel Tribes, Shades of Empire follows the ex-soldier Alexander Napier, merchant starship captain Madeline Pallestrino and a host of other colourful characters.... While there are a number of romantic elements to the plot there are some much more serious aspects at play... in the wrong hands [these themes] could prove a story-breaker; luckily we are in good hands and the author manages everything in an intelligent and effective manner without once coming across as gratuitous or over the top. Some of the scenes are nevertheless a little graphic and as such this isn't suited to the younger reader, or indeed those who don't like to read about that sort of thing.

So it's not a book for everyone however it is a very well crafted tale that blends some really creative characters into a multi-threaded plot without losing the reader anywhere and the way these are all brought together is excellent."