Bonds of Justice

Bonds of Justice

Review #1

Bonds of Justice audiobook free

This is my third time reading and it’s become one of my favorites from the Psy-Changeling Series. And that saying something given it still has new books! It’s funny what a third read of a series will reveal. This is now up there with Book One: Slave to Sensation. Max is such a great hero who is swoon worthy, intelligent, insightful and respectful. Sophia is brave and vulnerable at the same time. It also gives insight on what’s to come if you’re up to date with the series and reading this book again. It really fleshes out Nikita and Sascha’s dynamic. I love how Singh manages to keep every side character interesting, whether they’ve had a book or not. It’s one of my favorite series and when I lose interest in the current romance series, I always come back for another read.

Review #2

Bonds of Justice audiobook Series Psy-Changeling

Max Shannon is a human cop for the New York Enforcement with a gift that allows him peace. His mind has a strong natural shield that excludes him from the suggestions that are sometimes planted in his fellow officers’ minds by the Psy. This has also precluded him from rising in the ranks, but Max doesn’t mind as long as he is sure he’s the one making the decisions in regards to his cases. Knowing this it comes as a huge surprise when he’s tapped as a special investigator by a Psy Councilor, and not just any Psy Councilor, but Nikita Duncan herself. And he won’t be working alone…

Sophia Russo has been a J (Justice) for over 12 years. The long active period has left her with terrifyingly thin shields and she knows it’s just a matter of time before she’s called in for that final rehabilitation that all Js must either succumb to, or escape from through death. Having first met Max on the case of a sociopath, Sophia was intrigued by, and attracted to, him – something a perfect Psy would never be. Sophia is a long ways from the perfect Psy though, and has been for longer than she’s been a J. Knowing her interest in Max will only lead her more quickly to her final end, she’s relieved (and disappointed) when she’s out of his presence. But then she’s called to be Max’s liaison and partner on this new deadly case for Nikita.

Can they find out who’s killing those close to Nikita before they strike again? Will the bonds Max and Sophia form be strong enough to save them both?

I have to admit, in this world of the Psy/Changelings I was not that interested in the main couple going into this book because of the human hero. I’m not afraid to admit when I am wrong. And boy was I wrong. At a glance humans are the very lowest of the three races. They don’t have the mental abilities that the Psy do. They don’t have the strength and enhanced senses that the Changelings do. They’re thought of as less by many Psy and Changelings. But Max is a fantastic hero. One hundred percent human, he’s got an intelligent, quick mind and strong ethics, added to the fact that he’s very protective, totally loyal, persistant and incredibly, absolutely sexy-as-hell.

Sophia, on the other hand, is kind, caring, smart and intriguing all with an underlying core of steel. She’s strong and vulnerable. Sweet and sexy (as Max would say). She’s been a J for longer than most others, and yet she continues to push that, in the end, things are fair. It’s such a likable quality, and one that could easily push her over the edge into either too good, or not good enough. The balance is perfectly attained, and Sophia is a character that I’ll love for many years to come. She faces some of the same issues that most of the Psy that are still in the Net, but with new, heart-breaking twists.

Max and Sophia are now some of my favorite characters in the story, and I hope that we get to see more of them in the future.

There is a lot going on in Bonds of Justice, with the Psy, the Changelings, and the relationships between many of them. We get to see many of our favorites, including Lucas and Sascha, Faith and Vaughn, Clay and Tally, Nikita, and (my personal favorite enigma) Kaleb. The depth that Nalini Singh continues to give each and every character – whether they’ve been in the story for books, or a couple of pages – always amazes me.

The plot, attempts to get at Nikita through those closest to her, is solid. It’d be tempting to think that her calling in a human/J combo to figure this out is out of the realm of possibility, but it’s not only realistic, it’s addressed by the characters themselves. And the reasoning makes the story all that more intriguing. The mystery itself, and the continued work with the serial killer that brought Max and Sophia together in the first place, are too interesting for me to spoil here.

But the real joy here is the fabulous love story between Max and Sophia. I have to admit that there were a few times I had to put down my Kindle in order to wipe the tears from my eyes. The way they come together, with trust, and openness, love and honesty spoke directly to my heart.

Being the tenth book in the Psy/Changeling series I wouldn’t recommend starting with Bonds of Justice. Ms. Singh does a fabulous job with providing all the relevant information needed to read it as a stand-alone, but you’d be missing out on some fantastic tension, world-building and romance to skip the previous entries in this wonderful series.

Every time I read Nalini Singh’s books I think ‘she can’t possibly get any better than this’ … and then she does. Nalini continues to blow me away with a detailed world, beautiful love story, and fascinating characters. Bonds of Justice is an absolute must read. Intrigue, danger, passion and more fill the pages, tempting you, forcing you, to keep reading well into the night.

Review #3

Audiobook Bonds of Justice by Nalini Singh

Max Shannon is a good cop but hasn’t progressed far in his career within New York Enforcement because he has a natural shield, leaving his thoughts protected from the Psy. Sophia Russo is a Justice Psy able to see into the minds of criminals and extract relevant memories. When Psy Councillor Nikita Duncan’s advisors begin dying in accidents and apparent suicides, she hires Max and Sophia to investigate because of their unique skill sets. But as Max and Sophia start work on the case they are irrevocably drawn to one another, and Sophia is forced to fight to preserve what is left of her mind.

This is the eight book in Nalini Singh’s Psy-Changeling series, and while I am a big fan I approached this book with a little trepidation. I really missed having a changeling central to the previous book ( Blaze of Memory ) and was worried that this would be the same, especially as Max was introduced briefly like Dev in  Mine to Possess . Thankfully I was wrong, and this book is a real return to form.

J-Psy’s have been mentioned in previous books and it was great to see more of their world. I’m used to the author developing the world in each book, and I really liked how she portrayed the two approaches to justice – that of human cops alongside the J-Psy approach. I like cop-based storylines so the secondary story of a psycho killer was just as interesting to me as the main investigation.

I really like Max and Sophia, and I also like how Sophia is unique to the other Psy from the series. She is told at the beginning of the book that she has a month before her mind is totally wiped, and this means that she has more reasons to begin living her life the way she would like. As most of the book takes place in San Francisco, the DarkRiver changelings make frequent appearances which I really enjoyed.

Review #4

Audio Bonds of Justice narrated by Angela Dawe

Firstly, I really (REALLY) enjoyed reading this. I think NS is a fantastic writer, creating characters that I care about, interactions that feel right (and real) and a world that is fascinating. Sophia Russo is a J designated Psy, with a touch of F (but as back-sight). True to NS’s sense of the logic of this world, J’s have a streak of the DarkMind running through them which leads them to occasionally dispense justice to those who may escape it (so criminals die unexpectedly when a J is in the vicinity). Sophia has dispensed this justice several times (killing those who have abused children) – but every action has a reaction, and both this and her exposure to all the negative thoughts of the criminals she deals with is slowly but surely eroding her shields. This is the fate of all J’s – eventually they either die (through suicide) or are rehabilitated as their shields fail.

Max Shannon was first seen in Talin and Clay’s story ‘Mine to Possess’: he carries his own psychological scars due to a traumatic childhood. He is interested in Sophia from the first time he sees her – which is when she is dealing with a sociopath (Bonner) who Max has finally arrested. Previous reviewers have dealt with the general plot, and I must agree with those who lauded the slow development of Max and Sophia’s relationship – NS always makes sense, her plots and characters always develop naturally and I’m never startled by an awkward revelation. This is where my only ‘gripe’ with this book arises. In past books it hasn’t been made very clear that those Psy who are still in the Net can still have contact with those outside the Net. In fact, it has almost been the opposite – when Psy drop out of the Net they are no longer in contact with either the Net or those still in it. That was always my assumption – I suppose thinking back, that wasn’t made entirely clear, but it was strongly hinted at. So, imagine my surprise when Nikita is able to telepath Sascha (in an emergency) and Faith is able to ‘spot’ Sophia as she navigates the Net. Faith is also able to tell that Sophia has been the subject of a psychic attack – when Faith isn’t in the Web and shouldn’t be able to perceive this.

NS develops her world perfectly, it all makes sense, the pieces fit together. This is hugely unusual in this genre – many authors employ the ‘oh how convenient’ plot device that boggles my mind at just the right point in the story – NS never does this. That is why I noticed the discrepancies in this book. There were also exchanges between Nikita, Kaleb and Anthony which are less ‘psy’ and more ‘normal’ – this could be to show the gradual collapse of the Net (which is the over-riding story arc that runs through all the books), but it did jar slightly.

If I could have given this 4.5 stars I would have. It’s a great book, contributes well to the overall storyline and I enjoyed it, but I did find those few ‘continuity’ errors ever-so-slightly irritating. It’s a very relationship based book – charting an emotional entanglement rather than a physical one – which makes a really nice change. Read it and enjoy it, but expect a few jarring moments.

Review #5

Free audio Bonds of Justice – in the audio player below

The second book in a row which takes place away from the changelling packs. Max, a human law enforcement officer who first appeared in Clay & Tally’s book ‘Mine to Possess’, falls for a J-Psy whilst investigating a both a human serial killer and suspicious deaths at Psy Councillor Nikita Duncan’s business empire. This book moves ths overall story forward, particularly regarding the development of Nikita and her willingness to accept the ’emotional’ Psy in the Net and there are also hints dropped about Kaleb Krychek. The DarkRiver pack play quite a large role but overall the main focus is on the Psy.

Perhaps this book suffers for being the second in a row taking us away from the key protagonists in the changelling packs and the characters we’ve come to know, and there’s no doubt that ‘flawed’ Psy women are beginning to become a touch predictable. I enjoyed it more for the ongoing arc than the stand-alone story, although Singh continues to write her characters with warmth and romance which makes it a good, if not “un-put-downable read.

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