At least I think so. As promised, a few excerpts to share some of the aliens I feel in love with in books.
First, sheer force of personality makes Arion sexy…
From Shadow Fires by Catherine Spangler
Dorchester Publishing, 2004
He still stood there. His face was clearly recognizable, even though it had been more than four seasons since she’d seen it-just that one time; even though she’d never actually met any Leors. But she knew him. He had high, bold cheekbones; a powerful, square jaw; a prominent, wide forehead; all creating the frame for surprisingly sensual lips, a starkly-chiseled nose, and black-hole eyes so dark,no pupils were visible. No facial hair or eyebrows softened his chilling visage, no hair of any sort covered his gleaming head.
She’d always sensed the thoughts of those in her visions and his were no exception….
Determination, edged by desperate need and utter ruthlessness. Cold, logical analysis of obstacles to be overcome and the most direct methods of doing so, without compunction or mercy.
Again he looked directly at Jenna, and her heart battered against her chest. A staggering energy snaked between them, a treacherous snare. The command bridge faded from sight, and everything around them ceased to exist. No ship, no Shamara-only the two of them, in the vastness of the universe …
Next, in this excerpt we get the first hint that Nykyrian is going to be a tortured hero…
From Born of Night by Sherrilyn Kenyon
St. Martin’s Press, 2009
Nykyrian stepped out of the shadows so that the dim light highlighted the white blond hair that was braided down his back—an assassin’s mark of honor. His solid, flay black battle suit hugged every sharp curve of his well-muscled body. The outline of daggers were embroidered in dark blood red down the sleeves—the only external designation an assassin bore. Nykyrian’s daggers held a crown above each hilt, letting the universe know he was the most lethal of his kind. A command assassin of the first mark.
As always, Nykyrian was calm and watchful of the shadows as if expecting someone like him to come for him at any moment. Somber. Cold. Lethal. Traits that had been drilled into him as a child.
In this excerpt you see a hint that Rejar is all about pure sensuality…
From Rejar by Dara Joy
Dorchester Love Spell, 1997
Rejar acknowledged her reaction with a mischievous, cat like sweep of his tongue. Lilac shivered again.
“I don’t like you, Prince Nickolai.”
“But I like you, my Lilac.” His low, soft voice vibrated seductively against the hollow at the base of her throat before his mouth covered the vulnerable spot possessively. She tasted like hot sweet honey.
An unintelligible sound came out of her mouth that sounded like “Nnnnnn…”
Rejar knew exactly what it meant.
To warp things up, one of my very favorite heroes, Zainal. Really what made him sexy came before this excerpt but it was too long to include it here. So, I given you a bit of Kris’s thoughts about him. Even unconscious a hint of his appeal comes through…
From Freedom’s Landing by Anne McCaffrey
Ace, 1995
Keeping close to the brown rocks so nearly the shade of her own tanned skin, she crossed the remaining distance. She all but tripped over him as the wind puffed black smoke down among the rocks.
“Catteni!” she cried, furious as she bent to examine the unconscious man and recognized the gray and yellow uniform despite its tattered and black-smeared condition.
With a disdainful foot under his shoulder, she tried to turn him over. And couldn’t. The man might as well have been a boulder. She knelt and yanked his head around by the thick slate-gray hair which, in a Catteni, did not indicate age: they all had the same color hair. Maybe he was dead?
No such luck. He was breathing. A bruise mark on his temple showed one reason for his unconscious state. For a Catteni, he was almost good-looking. Most of them tended to have brutish, coarse features but this one had a straight, almost patrician nose, even if there was a lot more of it than an elephant would want to claim, and he had a wide well-shaped mouth.
Smart Girls love SciFi 
You know I’m an RS girl, Charlie, but I’m suddenly interested in Leors! And Catherine Spangler’s images are beautiful – attraction described as a “treacherous snare” is phenomenal, simply put, but says so much.
And Anne McCaffrey’s heroine’s spunk comes through loud and clear when she describes the poor injured hero. Great stuff.
Thanks for the excerpts – you’ll turn me into a SciFi girl yet.
LOL. I love RS too. A lot of the SFR I read is, at plot level, RS. Definetly, I think of the SFR that I write as RS.
Well, yes, aliens CAN be sexy. If they look human enough! But that’s what fiction is. A beautiful lie based on human myths and archetypes. It’s hard to see tentacles and multiple eyes doing that. Even mermaids have enough human features to make them sexy at times.
Many times there is the comparison to an acceptable animal. A cat or a wolf. Villains sometimes have features that are bug-like or snake-like, things that many readers fear. (Poor snakes always get a bad reputation).
Shape shifters are in a class by themselves.
An author’s job is to create a picture in the reader’s mind. An alien is sexy when his or her creator uses the appropriate words, the descriptors. If the descriptors hit close enough to a reader’s ideal, then the alien is sexy. If not, the reader rejects it.
I think your point that it is the author’s job to create the picture in the reader’s mind is a good one–and just as true for human heroes. If the author does their job well enough to convince you aliens exist, they should also be able to make the alien sexy, if they choose.
I think Ava had a great point the other day about vampires when she said it was their power that made them attractive. With paranormal and alien heroes you have a broader canvas.
And ultimately, it comes down to the relationship. Love is the sexiest thing of all.