Allegiance of Honor (Psy-Changeling #15)

So on a whim I went through and read all the one star reviews on this book just to see if people could possibly find something bad to write about Nalini Singh\’s books. And every single one of the reviews, except one that just wanted more of a specific character, clearly don\’t understand what the purpose of this book was about. If you get the monthly newsletters, Nalini explained, months before this book was released, that this book was intended to close this particular story arc (which spans a whopping 14 books). Allegiance of Honor tied off the Psy-Changeling series by giving a not necessarily last look at the characters of the previous novels, but for the most part they\’re done. I\’m sure the bigger players like Lucas and Sasha and Hawk and Sienna will come back as they are some of the lead characters throughout the entire series. But now, with the release of Silver Silence (the first book of the Psy-Changeling-Trinity story arc) Nalini will begin exploring new previously unseen, or only peripherally seen characters. I will agree Allegiance of Honor is not a standalone read – but truthfully if you\’re new to the series none of the books are standalones as they all are tied together by the protagonists of the series. I adore these books, and I adore her Guild Hunter series as well (totally worth a looksie if you haven\’t already been sucked into that world). What I love about Nalini\’s books is the ever expanding universe she has created. It shows a remarkable depth of talent for her to be going 14 books strong and still engaging readers in the plots and still showcasing new characters. She isn\’t just throwing more and more drama at her original leads, Lucas and Sasha, without ever giving them time to breathe and be happy. I despise a series that just keeps throwing more and more at the lead characters without ever letting them get any kind of closure or HEA. Nalini does that. We\’ve kept up with Lucas and Sasha over the years the series spans and they make appearances and sometimes have a little drama, but usually it\’s in a helping a friend with their drama kind of way. Which I personally like, do you know how miserable a person would be to constantly be getting hit all the time with drama that is specifically focused on them? How tiring! All in all I can\’t wait to get my hands on Silver Silence when it\’s released (tomorrow!!!) and I will continue reading and re-reading every book from Nalini Singh (she does have a regular romance series called the rock kiss series FYI, no paranormal or sci-fi components there at all if sci-fi isn\’t your bag) because this woman can write such captivating tales! P.S. If you\’re a fan but haven\’t signed up for her monthly e-newsletters, you totally should – she sends out exclusive excerpts and links to her short stories about all the various characters from both Psy-Changeling series and Guild Hunter.

Unfortunately seems like this is a positioning book for the next batch of Psy-Changeling books. Normally, I really like her books. She\’s done an amazing job with the series without many missteps, so I give her tons of credit for that as it\’s difficult to maintain continuity over that period of time. This book, unfortunately, isn\’t all that great. She introduces a lot of new characters, who I am assuming will get their own stories moving forward, but it probably would have been helpful to know in advance that there was no real \”story\” here, just a bunch of vignettes that are positioning everyone for the future. I wouldn\’t have paid as much for the book or bought it in advance.

If you\’ve never read a book in this series, DO NOT start with this one. There must be 70 characters, and if you aren\’t familiar with them before reading this book, you\’ll need a cheat sheet. Fortunately, there is a \”cast of characters\” listed at the front of the book. I\’m a huge Nalini Singh fan and have read all the books in the Psy/Changeling series multiple times. So it pains me to say that this book is a waste of time and money. I waited and waited for something to happen …… and…. nothing….happens…. Yes, we find out a couple of interesting tidbits, but nothing that needs it\’s own book. There\’s a new big bad in the shadows. Sasha realizes her mother\’s motivation for sending her to DarkRiver in book 1. Mercy finally gives birth after being pregnant for how many books, maybe eight? We learn a bit more about the BlackSea changelings. The search for a missing BlackSea woman acts as the overarching storyline, but it\’s so thin on content that it\’s really a side note. This book is a series of updates on the mated couples from previous books and novellas. (Surprise, surprise, they are all still in love and some are procreating.) It was a painful read.

I love reading Nalini Singh\’s work. I can\’t even count how many times I\’ve read Slave to Sensation. This book was awful. There seemed to be no point whatsoever except to go over and update every single pack member and relationship. Since it has 14 Psy-changeling books preceding it, this is no small task, and it\’s incredibly frustrating to try and keep up with who\’s who. The new and actually interesting things didn\’t take up more than a chapter or two total. Even the romance was lacking since all the book covered was re-affirmations of previous relationships. It was all \”I love you\” and \”I love you too\” type of stuff and not much more. Maybe the series is just all written out. I was truly disappointed.

If you\’re one of those folks who loves the episode on a long-running TV series where they dream up some conceit to drag viewers back through every plot point from day one, this is the book for you. If you prefer your stories to be almost entirely backstory & exposition, then this is the book for you. I am a huge Nalini Singh fan, have every novel and short story in every series. What I didn\’t need this time was nearly 500 pages of \”catching up\” with Every. Single. Couple we\’ve ever met, while nearly nothing else happens. Just a whooooole lot of meetings, talks, babies, more chatting, a couple kidnapping storylines (one attempted, one actual, both fairly underplayed), a few more talks over the phone, and the trope she\’s used before where we read half a storyline through journal entries/letters. Then a few more conversations. The writing is, as always, lovely. I just found myself skimming entire chunks because I so desperately wanted something to HAPPEN. Well, something other than yet another baby/pregnancy/birth.

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