Scan barcode
eesh25's review against another edition
5.0
Dorian has always been one of the most interesting characters in this series. He lost his sister to a sociopathic, Psy serial killer and is scarred from that experience still. He's also a leopard changeling who's lantent, meaning he can't shift into a leopard. But he hasn't let his latent ability stop him from becoming, probably, the most lethal member of DarkRiver pack. He's a sniper, a hacker, he's great with knives and hand-to-hand combat, he's really fucking smart, and he even knows how to fly a fucking plane. He's awesome.
So you can understand why I was so excited to read his book. And thankfully, the other protagonist is also very interesting. Ashaya is an M-Psy (medical), one of the most brilliant scientists in the world and even though she's broken Silence, she has to pretend that she hasn't in order to survive, and to protect her son from the Psy council.
Dorian and the others manage to get her son, Keenan, away from the Psy and out of the PsyNet by faking his death, and Ashaya manages to escape on her own, but she's still connected to the PsyNet. Then there's the matter of her twin sister, Amara, who believes Ashaya to be her property and will kill anyone who threatens to take Ashaya away from her. She can also get into Ashaya's head (which is partially related to proximity) and wants to kill Keenan, so distance from her needs to be maintained.
Of course, Dorian doesn't know about Amara and her particular brand of crazy. He thinks that Ashaya is fully Silent and given the fact that his sister was killed by one just like her, he's disgusted by the attraction he feels toward her. He feels as if he's betraying his sister by feeling the way he does. And yet he can't not help Ashaya. He loves her son. He can see that she's likely working against the council to stop them from enslaving their own race. And despite how it looks, he feels as if maybe she's not truly Silent. Why else would she risk her life to save her son? He can't figure her out but he will keep trying until he does, especially if it leads to the discovery that she's a spy. Because then he'll kill her.
All this, Ashaya and Amara, the council being its usual self, Dorian and his many problems, and the fact that the world is getting closer and closer to war... it makes for a fast-paced, exciting, and very important read (for the series). I mean, even the puny humans seem to be stepping up their game (in the wrong way, of course).
A whole lot of shit is going down, and this is probably the best book in the series so far.
One last thing I wanna add. This book includes a new dynamic, thanks to Amara. Amara isn't evil. She was never conditioned into Silence because she never felt in the first place. Most of the things she does, even the horrifying ones, have a logical reason. Where Silence is unnatural, she isn't. She's a gray area, not good, not bad. And it's brilliant that Nalini Singh introduced this aspect of the world, of people, and did it so well.
Basically, I love Nalini Singh and this novel.
kathydavie's review against another edition
5.0
This is an interesting buildup on tensions between two of the three races occupying Earth. Singh makes a nice case for why emotion is essential for a healthy person and it's so much fun how she pushes this through the wolves and leopards.
whimsicalmeerkat's review against another edition
4.0
Ashaya's eyes sound so pretty. It was also generally a fun read.
allingoodtime's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I adore Dorian! Who doesn’t? At the beginning of this story, when Dorian and others in the DarkRiver pack are rescuing a young Psy child, my previous thoughts on Dorian are cemented. Changelings are all about the kids and the way little Keenan latches onto Dorian says a lot.
Ashaya is hard to understand at first. She’s in previous books and it’s unclear what her motivations are. No matter how much we are told she is an icy Psy, it was clear in the last book that her feelings toward her child are more than wanting to propagate her lineage. As things unfold in this book I learned to love Ashaya and ache for all she has lost and all she is trying to keep together.
Dorian and Ashaya are an odd couple even before some of Ashaya’s secrets come out, even more so after. Yet that mating bond is almost impossible to ignore. It always tickles me how much the “big, tough” Changelings are more attracted to their mates when they push back on their overbearing ways. Ashaya is no wilting flower and no matter how much she wishes she could give into her feelings for Dorian and her son she will not be swayed from her purpose to protect at all costs those she holds dear, even when it makes her look bad. She’s just as much of a protector as Dorian, just in a different way.
There are a few new Psy characters who are shown briefly who are part of the rebellion that I’m looking forward to seeing more. They were all quite intriguing with their abilities and the way they were helping Ashaya.
I found I missed the pack in this story. They are shown, but rarely all in one group. Of course, there is good reason to be wary of Ashaya and her real motivation. Yet once they started trusting her more, I hoped she would get to know some of the other Psy in the pack better. I found the absence noticeable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Torture, and Violence
booksbydann's review against another edition
4.0
Relectura: Le dejo las 4 estrellas.
Adoro la historia de Ashaya, Dorian y Keenan♥️
Adoro la historia de Ashaya, Dorian y Keenan♥️
chelseas96's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
girlwithhearteyes's review
5.0
5 stars!!!
I loved everything about this book, from the action-packed plot that kept me in suspense the whole way through, to the relationship between Ashaya and Dorian which really got me in the feels.
Ashaya was stuck in an impossible situation (she’s a Psy scientist who defected to save her son) and Dorian was drawn to both mother and son, even if he didn’t trust her. I loved this type of angst because it was rooted in how he misjudged her in the beginning, but by the end it felt like they really SAW each other. They were emotionally vulnerable and so attuned to each other’s feelings, and the “you hurt, I hurt” energy really got me. 🥺
The way Dorian seduced Ashaya’s mind before her body was also very, very sexy.
And just when I thought it couldn’t get better… the epilogue. My favourite part of the book, which bumped it from 4.75 stars to a solid 5.
HAPPY TEARS. 🥹
I loved everything about this book, from the action-packed plot that kept me in suspense the whole way through, to the relationship between Ashaya and Dorian which really got me in the feels.
Ashaya was stuck in an impossible situation (she’s a Psy scientist who defected to save her son) and Dorian was drawn to both mother and son, even if he didn’t trust her. I loved this type of angst because it was rooted in how he misjudged her in the beginning, but by the end it felt like they really SAW each other. They were emotionally vulnerable and so attuned to each other’s feelings, and the “you hurt, I hurt” energy really got me. 🥺
The way Dorian seduced Ashaya’s mind before her body was also very, very sexy.
And just when I thought it couldn’t get better… the epilogue. My favourite part of the book, which bumped it from 4.75 stars to a solid 5.
HAPPY TEARS. 🥹
coracarmack's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Reread
hsnails's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Started off with some of my favorite tropes; I'm a sucker for characters that die but come back. And I get it (kind of) twice in this book! Unfortunately the middle dragged. That being said, it ends with some awesome world building. I'm excited to see where it goes.
agirlandherlibrarian's review against another edition
4.0
My series review can be found here at my YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/dSjY3MgVTaY (released 4./11/21)
I read the first of this series and didn't gel with it, then my review listeners suggested I give it another try, and into this book, oh yes that worked! I am not fully entrenched in the psy-changeling world and yet another series to keep in my head all the nuances etc., The fact there's lots of different 'shifters' in this series is brilliant, rats, bears, wolves and jaguars and leopards and lynx! Most definitely a world that anybody would love to get involved in. Not as good as Singh's Archangel series, but most definitely worth your time.
I read the first of this series and didn't gel with it, then my review listeners suggested I give it another try, and into this book, oh yes that worked! I am not fully entrenched in the psy-changeling world and yet another series to keep in my head all the nuances etc., The fact there's lots of different 'shifters' in this series is brilliant, rats, bears, wolves and jaguars and leopards and lynx! Most definitely a world that anybody would love to get involved in. Not as good as Singh's Archangel series, but most definitely worth your time.