C2’s review of Shield of Winter (Psy/Changeling Series, Book 16) by Nalini Singh
Paranormal Romance published by Berkley 3 Jun 14
Ah faithful reader, you know I love Nalini Singh’s Psy/Changeling series and have said before that it is one of the best continuing series out there. The world-building gets better and better with each new story. So, how does the latest installment hold up? Onward! And beware – HERE BE SPOILERS! Sorry.
Shield of Winter picks up very shortly after the end of Heart of Obsidian. Silence has fallen and there is a dangerous sickness creeping through the Psy Net. It may be that the long mistreated empaths (Psy designation: E) may hold the key to keeping the Psy Net healthy. But there are so few empaths left and they have no training with their abilities, it may be too late to stop the disintegration of the Net. However, Kaleb Krychek decides to gather a small test group of empaths for training. Our heroine is one such empath.
Ivy Jane has always been different and has been through reconditioning once already. Since then, she and her family have been living in a small Psy farming community. When she is offered employment as part of the empath study, she must take part. Even as isolated as her family is, they have heard of the problems within the Psy Net.
The offer from Kaleb is delivered by Vasic – an Arrow we are familiar with from previous books. Vasic is a true teleporter and sometimes assassin. And our hero! Each empath is to be paired with an Arrow for protection and shielding.
Vasic has been on a dangerous path for a long time. He has been getting colder and more distant for that same amount of time. Only his relationship with his best friend, fellow Arrow Aden, has kept him alive. But when Vasic meets Ivy, something changes, and as their relationship grows, Vasic discovers he may have something worth living for, after all. But is it too late?
You see, faithful reader, Vasic had a bio-mechanical gauntlet implanted onto his arm and it directly connects to his brain. This gauntlet has begun to degrade and this degradation will cause full system failure (AKA death) in a matter of weeks, unless a solution can be found. Nooooooo!
Will love triumph? Will Vasic survive? Will the empaths find a way to stop (or at least slow down) the infection creeping through the Psy Net? You’d really like to know, wouldn’t you? Heh. There aren’t THAT many spoilers here, faithful reader. One teaser though – my favorite thing? That Vasic, the ultimate Arrow, can’t control his teleporting when Ivy kisses him and they end up zapping to unexpected places. 😀
My grade: A+
Summary:
Assassin. Soldier. Arrow. That is who Vasic is, who he will always be. His soul drenched in blood, his conscience heavy with the weight of all he’s done, he exists in the shadows, far from the hope his people can almost touch—if only they do not first drown in the murderous insanity of a lethal contagion. To stop the wave of death, Vasic must complete the simplest and most difficult mission of his life.
For if the Psy race is to survive, the empaths must wake…
Having rebuilt her life after medical “treatment” that violated her mind and sought to suffocate her abilities, Ivy should have run from the black-clad Arrow with eyes of winter frost. But Ivy Jane has never done what she should. Now, she’ll fight for her people, and for this Arrow who stands as her living shield, yet believes he is beyond redemption. But as the world turns to screaming crimson, even Ivy’s fierce will may not be enough to save Vasic from the cold darkness…
Read an excerpt.
Other books in the series:
