Apr 18 2011
JOINT REVIEW: Kiss of Snow by Nalini Singh
Janine: I’ve been hankering for Nalini Singh’s Kiss of Snow ever since I realized Hawke would be paired with Sienna, and was so excited to receive the ARC that even though I was in the middle of two other books, I dropped them to read this one the day I got it. When I had finished, I emailed the other DA reviewers to see if anyone wanted to do a joint/conversational review. Happily, Shuzluva jumped at the chance to discuss it with me.
Shuzluva: I’m in the same boat as Janine; I was *trying* to read two other books (one successfully, the other? Not so much) and when I got this ARC I took a deep breath and plunged right in. I’m excited to discuss the book with Janine since we share the same love of the series but have definitely disagreed about certain books and characters.
Janine: But first, a plot summary. Kiss of Snow begins with Hawke, the alpha of the SnowDancer wolf changeling pack chastising two of his young soldiers for getting into a fight while on duty. Maria is contrite but Sienna challenges Hawke’s authority. Hawke disciplines both girls but simmering under the surface is the unwanted sexual tension between Sienna and Hawke.
Longtime readers of Singh’s Psy/Changeling series know that Sienna is a member of the Psy, a race of psychics linked through a neural network called the PsyNet. Through a protocol called Silence, the Psy repress all emotions, but Sienna’s family, the Laurens, defected from the PsyNet when Sienna was deemed by the one of the leaders on the Psy Council to be too powerful.
Rather than watch Sienna and her younger brother Toby and cousin Marlee die, Sienna’s two uncles, Walker and Judd, risked their lives and disengaged from the net, and the family survived by forming its own psychic network and finding asylum with Hawke’s wolf pack.
All that happened when Sienna was sixteen. Now she is nineteen, nearly twenty, and in love with Hawke, a man who once mistrusted all Psy because of the damage they inflicted on his loved ones years before. But Sienna’s fascination with Hawke only hurts her, because Hawke, although powerfully attracted to her, resists his feelings with all his strength.
Between Hawke and Sienna stands more than one conflict. Most prominent is the difference in their ages — Hawke’s age isn’t given in this book, but I believe he is in his thirties, while Sienna is nineteen.
In addition, there is the fact that when Hawke was just ten years old, he suffered an almost unbearable loss — Rissa, the girl who would have become his mate had she lived to adulthood, died. The wolf changelings only mate once in a lifetime, and Hawke knows he cannot mate again.
Finally, Sienna is a cardinal X-Psy, which means she possesses lethal and limitless power. But that very power threatens to consume her and perhaps even those in whose vicinity she lives, including her family and Hawke’s wolf pack. No X-Psy is known to have lived as long as Sienna, and although she herself remains in denial, Judd fears she does not have much time left.
For all those reasons, especially the age difference, Hawke is wary of Sienna’s appeal to him. He tries to tell himself that she is off-limits, but her friendship with the leopard changeling Kit gets under his skin. When Hawke’s sexual hunger begins to affect the teens in his pack, he knows he must sleep with someone, but he does not intend that it be Sienna.
Sienna, angry and hurt after realizing this, decides to move on and goes clubbing with friends. After her dancing nearly incites a fight at the club, Hawke collects her and dances with her in the moonlight. Because he can’t stand to free her to be with someone else, but knows that he cannot give her all she deserves — the profound connection of the mating bond – Hawke sends Sienna mixed signals.
Sienna is torn and confused, but eventually she understands that she needs to fight for Hawke, as she’s seen her packmates do for their mates.
Meanwhile, things are heating up in the war between the members of Pure Psy and the changelings, and the coming battle threatens not just Hawke and Sienna, but all they hold dear.
Interspersed between Sienna and Hawke’s romance is a quieter romantic relationship that unfolds between Sienna’s uncle, Walker Lauren, and Lara, the wolf changelings’ healer. Lara and Walker were close friends until one night a kiss changed that. Walker drew away from Lara and his rejection hurt her, but six months later, the two still miss each other.
Also woven in is a thread about Alice Eldridge, a scientist who wrote a dissertation on the X-Psy over a century earlier, before the implementation of Silence. Alice’s emails to her father appear at the end of some of the chapters, as Alice gets closer and closer to uncovering what may or may not be the solution that could save Sienna’s life.
I’m anxious to hear what you thought of Kiss of Snow, Shuzluva. This book grabbed me by the throat and I spent every free minute reading it, even skipping dinner for hours because the story was so gripping.
Hawke and Sienna’s relationship has been building over the course of the series and this was the culmination not only of their unrequited feelings, but also of the first arc of the Psy/Changeling series itself, with hostilities between the series’ protagonists and the villains finally breaking out into war.
We were also treated to the birth of Luke and Sascha’s baby – and no, I’m not revealing the gender or name of the child in this review! Judd and the mysterious Ghost’s alliance took a very compelling turn, too, with the Ghost conflicted over whether to help Judd save Sienna when she could present a threat to his own plans.
For all those reasons I could hardly put this book down, and I was left reflecting on how well Nalini Singh builds her plot arcs and sets up her emotional payoffs. I think she is one of the genre’s best when it comes to plotting. This book was also, as you mentioned to me in an email, tightly written, and all of that made it a very satisfying read. I think it might be my new favorite in this series.
Shuzluva: First, thank you for the fantastic plot summary, Janine. I know I would have probably given something away that shouldn’t be discussed in a review, but my tendency is to overshare when I’m trying to make a point.
Janine: Thanks, but I’ve been known to give away spoilers too. I hope I haven’t done so in this instance.
Shuzluva: Regarding my immediate reaction to Kiss of Snow, I am in the same boat as you. I managed to read this book during every free minute I had and absolutely blew through it. That’s not to say this book is a light read. Things get hot and heavy in a number of ways and the reading is intense on both an intellectual and psychological level.
I actually found myself going back to re-read certain passages that had less to do with the emotional arc of the story and more to do with the nuts-and-bolts of Sienna’s designation, the movement towards open hostilities between the Psy and the Changelings (and humans), and certain tactical interactions between characters just to make sure I didn’t miss anything critical.
As I noted to you, the book is incredibly tight, with the primary story strongly interwoven with the secondary and tertiary plot lines so much so that no event or action seems extraneous or gratuitous.
Janine: Great point about the weaving of the plot lines. I loved the ways they impacted on one another.
Shuzluva: I have been fascinated by the progression of Hawke and Sienna’s relationship from the moment the two of them appeared on the page together way back when. While I don’t think of dogs as sensual creatures the same way as cats (and I’m a dog person, trust me), Hawke always appealed to me on a physical level, and from the very first, his antagonistic relationship with Sienna was a recipe for serious combustion. Their interactions are so hot that there were times I was sure my eyeballs were going to catch fire.
I have been driving myself crazy in terms of trying to figure out who the Ghost is. I have a pretty good idea, but I’m still not convinced. Judd Lauren’s alliance with him and their scenes are totally compelling. This will probably be one of my classic overshares: I cannot wait to see what happens next with the Psy Council and the repercussions it will have on the PsyNet.
One of the reasons this series works so well for me, and this book especially, is that the different characters appear without a hiccup in personality or voice. That is highlighted with the birth of Lucas and Sasha’s baby. The interactions between the SnowDancer and DarkRiver packs (and the reminders that they were once not allied with each other) were superbly done, and the focus shifted smoothly from one character to another and one situation to another. I know I’ve mentioned this before in my reviews of the Psy/Changeling series, but the characters are so well written that they each retain their individual personalities without becoming background wallpaper. With a cast that is now well over 50 characters, of which over half have been written about in significant detail, the ability to continue making all of them integral to the story is an accomplishment in and of itself.
Janine: Agreed, it is very impressive.
Shuzluva: Your use of “emotional payoff” hit the nail on the head. Kiss of Snow is a gripping read due to both the emotional and intellectual payoffs. For me, it’s definitely in the top three of the series.
Janine: It is easily up there for me as well. With regard to criticisms, I can find very few things to complain about. Singh has a tendency to use certain words and phrases a lot, but this is one of the things that give her writing style its vivid and distinctive quality which has grown on me over the course of the series.
Gender roles are a bit on the traditional side in certain regards in these books, too. The male protagonists are almost always dominant and lethal, while the women, though emotionally strong, shy away from killing. We hear about the maternal contributions of submissive females, but the submissive males don’t get much positive attention.
Some of the Psy/Changeling books I’ve liked best have been those where that hero/heroine dynamic is a little less conservative, such as Branded by Fire, with its sexually experienced heroine, or Play of Passion with its older heroine/younger hero matchup. But even though this book doesn’t fit that description, I enjoyed it so tremendously that I was only very slightly bothered by the fact that Hawke outmatched Sienna in many ways. More on the reasons why in a minute.
What about you, Shuzluva? Did this book have any drawbacks for you?
Shuzluva: I agree with you about the traditional gender roles in this series. The lack of a positive submissive male model was highlighted in Play of Passion, and I was definitely bothered by it as well as another plot point that had to do with gender roles in the same book. I know we discussed it in an email exchange, and while I loved Play of Passion, that particular point still sticks in my craw. If anyone would like to discuss it with me (I know I’m being somewhat vague here, but I don’t want to give away plot points that are well into a book) feel free to mention it in the comments.
In this particular book, the gender roles were in no way reversed, but perhaps better balanced due to Sienna’s abilities. You mentioned the males of the series being lethal, but Hawke admits he takes no pleasure in killing, which made that particular aspect of their relationship an easy read for me. I did have a bit of a struggle with the age gap between Hawke and Sienna (even though it’s unclear as to exactly what their age difference is), and frankly I wish that Sienna had just a couple more years on her. I’ll discuss that below.
Janine: Yes, let’s discuss the way Singh handled the age difference. As I read this book I compared it to Julie Anne Long’s What I Did for a Duke, where there was a similar age difference between the characters. The Long book had a more realistic treatment of that type of conflict, with the heroine at first dismissing the hero as much older, and only coming of age during the course of that story. Genevieve’s immaturity was an integral obstacle to the romance in that book.
By contrast, Singh chose to present Sienna very differently. Despite her youth and her sexual inexperience, Sienna lived through some horrors in childhood, and those things forced her to grow up early so that she is in some ways as strong and emotionally mature as Hawke.
I think it is perhaps a less true-to-life depiction because I believe that in real life someone who lived through the kind of abuse Sienna endured as a child would come out more damaged, and not necessarily strong enough to handle Hawke with all his possessiveness, dominant instincts.
But putting aside that caveat, I have to say that I really enjoyed the relationship between the two of them and didn’t care much that it wasn’t entirely realistic.
I loved that Sienna was vulnerable, but not as much as she was when she first arrived on SnowDancer land. I loved that she was mature enough to understand what was driving Hawke, while still being young enough to go clubbing in sexy jeans and dance on top of the bar when she thought he’d be sleeping with someone else.
And I loved that Hawke was so thrown by his feelings for her, so conflicted as to acting on them. I know that there are many readers who dislike big age differences, and often I do too. I also feel Singh walked a tightrope here, because Hawke would probably be too much for most thirty year old women, let alone a nineteen year old.
But ultimately this aspect of the book worked for me because Hawke wasn’t waiting for Sienna to grow up so he could jump her bones – he struggled as hard as he could to stay away from her, and only gave in when he realized how impossible that was for both of them.
Hawke’s internal struggle made it clear that his control over the situation had shattered, and in a strange way that shifted the balance of power between him and Sienna, so that despite the age and rank difference, to say nothing of his dominant alpha personality and greater sexual experience, there was a feeling of the two of them being on equal ground. He was in some ways just as powerless in the face of his need for Sienna as she felt with him early on in the book.
Shuzluva: You laid out Sienna and Hawke’s issues beautifully here. I think my greatest struggle was reconciling the Sienna I was reading on the page with her chronological age. On an emotional level she didn’t read like a 19 year old, especially a 19 year old that had been Silent for the majority of her life. I definitely had some trouble with this, and I realize that some of it has to do with my own view of age differences and maturity. And it bothered me as well that we don’t know how old Hawke is. I think it’s another indication of “it shouldn’t matter”, but it must for me because I’m thinking about it.
Janine: We agree on both these points. I wished Hawke’s age had been given in the book because I wanted to know exactly how many years separated him from Sienna’s, and I also felt that Sienna’s maturity wasn’t entirely realistic. But despite these issues, I enjoyed the conflicted, combustive chemistry between the main characters so much that I was willing to throw my reservations to the wind and fly with the story.
Shuzluva: What saved this for me was Sienna’s very age-appropriate reactions to Hawke (read: going clubbing in sexy gear to get him jealous) and her ability to slice down to the heart of the matter whether it was dealing with her own fears and feelings or Hawke’s. Sienna’s direct approach to the deepest emotional conflict was refreshing and her down and dirty confrontation with Hawke rang so true that I could almost hear the bells going off.
Janine: Terrific points about Sienna. How did you feel about Lara and Walker? That subplot didn’t grab my attention right away because at first their dynamic seemed a bit too similar to Hawke and Sienna’s, with Walker sending Lara push-pull signals and Lara being hurt by them, but once Walker started to open up to Lara, that relationship developed in a different direction from the Hawke and Sienna storyline and I started caring about them too.
Shuzluva: From Walker and Lara’s first interaction I knew we were going to be treated to a secondary romantic subplot. I admit that I mentally groaned when Walker began with the hot/cold crap and Lara acted wounded by his withdrawal. But I was curious about the one Lauren family member that seemed to be the least well drawn. I am thankful that Walker and Lara’s relationship went very differently than I had assumed (damn assumptions) and am now a huge Walker fan.
Janine: On another note, I really enjoyed the interactions between Judd and the Ghost. The Ghost remains as enigmatic as ever, and his actions in this book have made me even more interested in him than I was before. I hope he gets his own book eventually, and the same goes for Vasic and Aden from Judd’s Arrow squad.
Shuzluva: I mentioned my fascination with the Ghost above, and the confusion behind his loyalties and actions. With Hawke finishing his romantic arc, I find that I’m hopeful we will get another Psy-driven book (*cough* Kaleb *cough*) versus another SnowDancer / DarkRiver one.
Janine: Sounds good to me. There are some falcon changelings waiting for their turn, too.
It’s time to grade Kiss of Snow. I very rarely give A range grades to books unless I love the prose as much as I do the characters, and while I care about plot, which is one of Singh’s greatest strengths as a writer, it isn’t usually my highest priority as a reader or a reviewer.
Still, this book was such a roller coaster ride — with great pacing, emotional scenes that made me cry, happy moments that brought a goofy smile to my face, and scorching hot love scenes — that I can’t give it less than an A-.
Shuzluva: I am on the opposite end of the spectrum. If a book has an amazing plot and characters that are only likeable, I’m likely to give it a higher grade than if the reverse were true.
Beyond plot, I feel that a lot of components seamlessly came together in Kiss of Snow and the book provides emotional as well as intellectual rewards that are not solely dependent upon the main characters. And all the sexin’ didn’t suck either. Kiss of Snow gets an A from me.
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Apr 18, 2011 @ 12:41:26
I adore Singh’s Archangel series, but I just can’t seem to get into this one. I’ve tried three different books and they were all DNF for me. Can this one be read on its own, or will I be hopelessly lost if I pick it up and try again?
Apr 18, 2011 @ 13:28:13
@TKF: It’s hard for me to answer the question since I’ve read all the books in order. Just this weekend I was talking with a friend who said she tried to start this series with book #3 but couldn’t, but is now going back and reading them from the very beginning, and finding it much easier to understand what’s going on in book 3 this time around.
So I would recommend starting with book #1, Slave to Sensation, although personally it’s probably my least favorite among them. I think it’s really worth reading them in order, because of the ongoing storyline about the Psy Council and the politics of this world, which gets quite intricate.
If you absolutely cannot get into book 1, though, and really want to try this one, then it might be worth it to see if it grabs you better.
Apr 18, 2011 @ 14:26:53
I really liked this one too. I think Singh does such a great job with the sexual tension. There was a point I got a bit frustrated with the waiting – I felt like if Hawke’s phone rang one more time at an inopportune moment I was going to lose it. But at the same time, the teasing was fun.
I’ve heard lots of people say they are worried about the age difference but I didn’t have a problem with it throughout the story. I liked the Walker and Lara romance but I think Judd’s stuff made the supporting role for me.
Apr 18, 2011 @ 15:01:15
shuzluva: i am curious: what was the “plot point” in play of passion that bothered you? any chance that it might be drew “growing in dominance” to potentially surpass indigo? if so, i agree that it was bothersome. it felt like an add-on — as though some editor with an eye on revenues decided that the romance-reading audience couldn’t deal with a male lead that was submissive/junior to the female lead.
i admit that i have high expectations for kiss of snow, and hope that there are no similar disappointments. any light you can shed on that? (if there are, it might help lower my expectations for the book — which would be a good thing because, frankly, i don’t think any book could possibly live up to them.)
Apr 18, 2011 @ 15:20:49
I tried book one. Couldn’t finish it. Tried books two and three. Couldn’t finish them either. And it’s bumming me out, considering how much I just ADORE the Archangel books, and how much everyone else seems to love this series. That’s why I was wondering if this stood alone enough for me to just try it, but it sounds like it doesn’t. I find it super annoying when I actively WANT to love a book/series and just don’t.
Apr 18, 2011 @ 15:57:16
@Mandi: Judd is easily one of the most fascinating characters in this series for me, perhaps even the most fascinating. He steals the show whenever he is on. I thought the scenes in Blaze of Memory where he helped the little boy were the best parts of that book.
Apr 18, 2011 @ 16:03:12
@TKF: I know what you mean, it is so frustrating when everyone loves a book and I can’t get into it.
I actually find the Psy/Changeling series more consistent for me than the angel series. I loved Angel’s Blood but found Archangel’s Kiss really off-putting with all the violence against children (especially in Elena’s flashbacks).
Having said that, I do think Singh’s writing has improved since Slave to Sensation and it is possible that Kiss of Snow would work better for you. I wouldn’t say that it doesn’t stand on its own, just that that’s hard for me to gauge because I have read all ten books in order.
Maybe Shuzluva and others who have read Kiss of Snow can offer their opinions on whether they think Kiss of Snow can be read out of order?
Apr 18, 2011 @ 17:27:09
Thanks ladies for a fantastic review….now I’m craving the book even more. For the ladies above, I started this series somewhere in the middle, and then read both backwards and forwards (anything I could get my hands on really). I regretted not getting to read them in order, as the history really builds from book to book, but this really is a worthwhile series to stick with.
Apr 18, 2011 @ 19:20:01
I would say this book can be read as a stand alone for Sienna and Hawke’s romance. Might be a bit confusing with the Psy council stuff..but I think it would do well by itself.
Apr 18, 2011 @ 19:49:31
@Janine: My only problem with the Archangel books is that they’ve been having the SAME fight for three books. Zero growth. But I can’t stop reading, LOL! Really glad she’s moving on to the Seven.
Apr 18, 2011 @ 21:11:03
I was going to ask the same question about Kiss of Snow, how it read as a standalone book. I have book 1 from the library at the moment so I might just start there.
Apr 18, 2011 @ 21:39:58
The response to Singh has certainly got my attention. I’m just so NOT into this sub-genre right now. I did buy the first book, Slave to Sensation a long time ago when Jane first pimped it. I’ll read it one day. I did try the first Archangel book because I thought/still do think that cover is awesome but that was a no go.
Apr 19, 2011 @ 01:07:43
So I noticed that one of the winners of the Kiss of Snow giveaway is “Erika”. I can’t believe someone with my name won a copy. I am soooo jealous! I can’t wait to read this book. I love Hawke. I can’t wait to see him in action!!!
Apr 19, 2011 @ 06:21:18
Thank you so much for the wonderful review. I really can’t wait to read the story!
About the age difference, I have to admit that I’m a little bothered by it, but considering Nate and Tammy’s story was so wonderful, I’m not too worried about it.
On traditional roles, I’ll have to disagree with you girls. I like traditional roles and don’t have much interest reading about a submissive male. I think I’ve met enough if them in real life thank you very much. I enjoy reading about non-dominant heroines much more. Of course, I don’t like them weak, but I hate it when they pull the “I don’t need your protection although everyone in our social circle can kill me with one finger” act. It’s pure stupidity.
That’s the reason why the Psy Changeling series is so great. Even if the heroines do tell their guys not to protect them, it’s truly because they could have held their own. And that’s exactly why, although I still read it, the Archangel series couldn’t make it to my favorite series list. I really can’t stand Elena when she keep refusing protection from Raphael and kept arguing about it when she’s almost like a twig compares to the people who wants to kill her… I mean, even Raphael isn’t as strong as some of those people for god’s sake! Maybe she will be strong someday, but right now, every time I read about her bitching about the protection, I just want to shake her and tell her to stop being so stupid. Anyway, I should stop ranting… hahaha
My point is, I absolutely agree with you two that this is a wonderful series, but I would like to see more submissive, but strong-willed heroines. In particular, I’m interested in that SnowDancer lieutenant’s submissive mate. :D :D
Apr 19, 2011 @ 10:04:57
@meredith: sorry for the late response; I was caught up in Passover madness over the past few days. You’ve hit the nail on the head: the “growing in dominance” BOTHERED me. Yes, all caps here. I felt it was totally unnecessary and undermined Indy’s strength.
Regarding this book; there isn’t the same issue. Don’t hesitate here!
Apr 19, 2011 @ 18:45:03
Great review, can’t wait to read the book.
In the Brenna/Judd story, I think Hawke says that he is in his early thirties.
; )
Apr 19, 2011 @ 20:51:15
hes 32 to be exact. ;)
Apr 20, 2011 @ 03:33:38
Thank you for the great review.
@Shuzluva: Drew’s “growing dominance” is exactly what bothered me too. For me, the underlying traditional gender roles in Nalini Singh’s Psy/Changeling series became most obvious in Play of Passion (growing dominance; disastrous relationship of Indigo’s aunt and her less dominant partner).
@Kooritsuki: What bothered me here is that the traditional power balance (less powerful female role) was maintained: Drew was in no way weak, they could protect each other etc. but throughout the story he was younger and less dominant than Indigo or on the same level, and then this “add on”, it really annoyed me. [Refusing protection or help from the stronger partner annoys me too, but for me there has to be a balance - a positive example are Anna and Charles in Patricia Briggs' Alpha and Omega series]
The absence of positive submissive male role models and the handling of the maternal/submissive female roles also seem ambivalent and incongruent in terms of world building to me: There are some confusing remarks concerning submissive/maternal females, for example in Branded by Fire.
Otherwise I enjoy this series a lot and think Singh does an excellent job with world building and juggling all those characters.
However, perhaps I only notice the gender role issue because I think about it a lot anyway and because I re-read this series on a regular basis.
Apr 20, 2011 @ 12:09:55
@Heike M.:
I don’t think that’s the case because I know that Shuzluva, Jennie and I notice them as well. I agree it’s somewhat incongruous in terms of the worldbuilding to have positive portrayals of dominant males, dominant females, and submissive females but none of submissive males. It’s just something I’m willing to overlook because I enjoy other aspects of the series so much.
Apr 20, 2011 @ 22:33:06
I’ve read all the books in the Psy/Changeling series and is eager to read Kiss of Snow! My favorite thus far would have to be Caressed by Ice (Judd and Brenna’s story). I would definitely buy the hardcover copy of this book!
Apr 21, 2011 @ 03:39:14
@Janine: …positive portrayals of dominant males, dominant females, and submissive females but none of submissive males.
I actually see that submissive females are portrayed ambivalently, especially submissive females in general(sometimes positive sometimes deprecative, eg. in Branded by Fire), while specific characters are mostly pictured in a positive way. I think this is an interesting point in respect to traditional gender roles in this series but I haven’t thought it through completely…
It’s just something I’m willing to overlook because I enjoy other aspects of the series so much. Me too, at least up to now…
Apr 21, 2011 @ 15:57:30
@Heike M.: I hear you on the submissive females not always being portrayed in a way that’s 100% positive. What I meant is that we have seen positive examples of submissive females, such as Tamsin and if I’m not mistaken, Indigo’s mother (?), but we haven’t seen a submissive male character that was portrayed in a strongly positive light.
Having said that, one of the things I appreciated very much about Kiss of Snow is that Sienna’s destructive powers were actually stronger than Hawke’s.
Apr 24, 2011 @ 12:35:50
There’s an exact copy of this review on below website.
http://arkvalwebworks.com/entertainment/review-kiss-of-snow-by-nalini-singh-and-giveaway.html
Apr 24, 2011 @ 12:50:13
@hope: Thanks for letting us know. I’ll look into it.
Apr 24, 2011 @ 17:37:51
@hope This site is one of a multitude of sites that appears to be scraping content from us and others. Some just scrape the RSS feed. This one, though, is reposting the entirety of the content.
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May 29, 2011 @ 03:10:24
thanks for the great review, can’t wait for my copy to arrive.
Well for the age difference – in Caressed by Ice (page 297) there is a scene with Brenna where he says “I’m only 32…” – since Sienna was 17 in that book …tada! They got 15 years between them.
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Jun 02, 2011 @ 11:04:38
Just read it and loved it, though I feel like I could’ve used a bit more closure. I was just expecting a little more answers I think.
About those submissive males, wasn’t the Librarian Sienna talked to one? Or did I misread that, since I devoured the book more than I read it.
Jun 04, 2011 @ 02:29:08
I really enjoyed the book but I found myself conflicted when it came to writing my review. I didn’t want to read any other reviews until I’d read the book myself and got my thoughts down on paper, so that’s why I’m late to the party.
I didn’t like the “I can’t mate with you because my mate died as a child” thing. I didn’t like it when it was mentioned in previous books and I didn’t like it here. And, I didn’t buy how it was resolved. It seemed contrived to me.
I did think the age difference (I think Hawke is 35 in this book) was well handled but was, conversely and contrarily, frustrated by the initial push/pull of the relationship. The scene when they were dancing in the moonlight was so romantic but then it stopped and the next page was the next day – so, they stopped dancing and just went home? I suspect I was supposed to be frustrated by this – Singh is a master at building the tension isn’t she? Once they actually gave in and began their relationship however, that’s when the book hit its stride for me – the how of their relationship – how Sienna handled (and she did!) her Alpha Wolf was fascinating to me.
I really enjoyed the Walker/Lara pairing too but I felt there was a bit of an barrier at the beginning of their relationship which wasn’t really explored – which made me think it wasn’t a real barrier.
I also really enjoyed the scenes with Sascha and Lucas and their new baby! :)
I enjoyed it but it was only a B/B+ for me. Caressed by Ice is still my favourite, closely followed by Play of Passion.
Jun 04, 2011 @ 08:00:35
@Kaetrin – Caressed by Ice is a definite must read in the series. I love the Arrows. I think Slave to Sensation is still my favourite of all the books, though. Ironically Play of Passion is one of my least favorites (along with the Shine book). I never felt that Drew was the equal to India and that her, not softening, but something, always felt uncomfortable to me. I did not feel that way with Mercy and Riley.
Jun 09, 2011 @ 14:41:34
I didn’t want to read a review until I could get to this (Magic Slays had first dibs), but excellent review! This will go onto my favorites for this series. My only dissatisfaction, was the handling of the war. We still don’t have much on Pure Psy. Is Henry dead? There seemed to be a big focus on Ming realizing that Sienna was alive, & that seemed to be pushed to the background.
With only a few books left i and only a novella to come next before Riaz gets his HEA next june, I expected little more ground gained. The romance was an A, but the plot movement a C+ for me.
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Jun 11, 2011 @ 20:00:22
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Jul 12, 2011 @ 12:39:54
Jul 12, 2011 @ 12:41:06
@TKF: and @Hannah I also haven’t been able to get into the series, after barely finishing the first book a couple of years ago after loving Angels’ Blood. But I picked this one up and REALLY enjoyed it to an enormous degree (to the point that I was compelled to read reviews to see if people agreed with me.) Granted, I did skim a bit over the evil-Psy-plotting passages, but still was able to understand everything that was going on with the two romances and most of the Changeling stuff, which is the vast majority of the book. If you’re morally opposed to skimming, I’d even say it’d be worth it to read up online a bit about the world before diving into the book.
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Jul 16, 2011 @ 11:21:24
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