Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

Blaze of Memory by Nalini Singh

1 review

just_one_more_paige's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

 
Book the seventh. This first book that doesn’t involve a changeling in the relationship and I have to say that that made me a little hesitant going in. I’m invested in the world now, and definitely interested in what’s gonna happen with the breaking down of the Council and the PsyNet, for sure, but I got into this series for the, as my partner has been calling it “sexy jaguars.” So, yea, I am still powering through this series, but was less hype for this particular installment (especially after the awesome dual changeling mating we got in the last book). 

The romance here is between Devraj Santos, now the director of Shine, the organization we learned about in Tally and Clay’s story. That organization works to identify and help/support descendants of the Psy who chose to defect when the original decision to adopt Silence was made (known as The Forgotten). He’s intense and single-minded in that goal. Katya Haas is a pure Psy, but though she had worked for the Council, she also assisted Ashaya (prior to Ashaya’s escape and mating with Dorian, of course). So, she is like, a good(?) Psy. And though everyone assumed she had died when Ashaya’s lab was destroyed, she was actually kidnapped by Council member Ming (the big bad of the Council) and tortured (deep content warnings here, as there have been for all these stories, especially violence, mental rape, confinement, parent death, general trauma) for months, turned into a weapon, without control over her own mind. When she is dropped on Dev’s doorstep, his protective instincts kick in, and their inescapable connection will lead to either them saving each other or one (or both) of their deaths. 

Again, as these novels continue, Singh manages to do a great job continuing to add depth to the world she’s created, this time focusing on The Forgotten, those Psy who chose not to adopt Silence. Although those decisions were made a century prior, there are some interesting excerpts from letters (no spoilers on how the author is related to this story’s characters) elucidating how and why the decision for Silence was originally made. And though it isn’t perhaps the best or safest answer to the problem, it becomes clearer why the decision was made. And that adds considerable nuance to the conversation and emotional investment from the reader. It was also cool to see more about how Shine and the human world work and interact, and the way the descendants of The Forgotten have evolved, adding another layer to the Psy abilities and possibilities. 

As far as what else we learn, or how the rest of the stories/characters are ever more interwoven, I loved how much we got of Lucas and Sascha here – their banter and the way their interactions have changed over time and with her pregnancy. Also, some interesting developments with her power and her contact with her mother, Nikita. And although it was a bit “deus ex machina,” I was fascinated by the ending, the way certain Psy powers might interplay with each other and how that would of course be a lost knowledge/advantage under Silence, where emotional connection is not permitted. It’s sweet and innocent in the way that children can often be, and yet there is a lot of promise there. Very cool (and adorable really, with the purity of children’s love/connection). Also, an incredibly touching sub-plot with Judd that I was very into. 

As far as Dev and Katya, they were an interesting pairing. I wasn’t as into their relationship…as suspected. Partly because of the lack of changeling, but partly because I couldn’t ever get a feel for where it was coming from. I mean, like many of these pairings, shared or complementary trauma creates a basis for these romantic attractions (unhealthy as that may be, it’s a cornerstone of this paranormal series’ rubric), but it never seemed to line up quite right enough for me. However, their physical chemistry was pretty solid, and while it was no Mercy and Riley, I did enjoy it. Also, an unexpected occurrence, this is the first of the series that made me cry. Holy shit. I’ve justbviusll0 been blowing through this series, but the decision they’re forced to make about each other/the future, and the way the ending plays out (prior to the deus ex machina, obviously), was devastating. This is the first one that felt real enough that I could imagine it seriously, not just get lost in the supernatural and the sex scenes, and I was apparently more emotionally invested than I had anticipated. 

So, while this isn’t a top favorite of the series for me, I have to give it props for eliciting such and intense reader response. And the greater story arc had a lot of details added in to help push that along nicely. I’ve got the next one downloaded to the Kindle and ready to go already. 

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