Emotional Journey Through Pain to Love

The story of two people who have loved one another most of their lives and yet have tremendous pain to overcome to find love together.

THE STORY: Clay Bennett is a leopard changeling who was raised as human by his mother. Clay is often viewed as cold and detached for a changeling. He has missed his childhood friend, Tally, for twenty years. As children, they had a special bond that was shattered when Clay killed Tally’s abusive foster father. Talin McKade spent the best days of her life with Clay as a child. When he killed to protect her, Talin ran from Clay going as far as having him told that she was dead. Twenty years later, she has come to Clay to ask for his help. Street children are disappearing and ending up dead. Talin is determined to find the remaining kidnapped children but needs Clay’s help. The anger and pain between Clay and Tally threaten to destroy any connection between them and yet the beauty of their memories brings them together.

OPINION: This book is deeply emotional and painful. Tally’s abuse at the hands of her foster father had an incredibly negative influence on her life. MINE TO POSSESS slowly reveals the different ways in which she has had to live with the effects including her rejection of Clay and her deliberate separation from other people. Singh does not flinch from Tally’s pain filled life including her sexual promiscuity. I believe Tally to be incredibly strong to have survived and rebuilt her life. Her reunion with Clay allows her to not just survive but to find happiness and joy. Clay has his own demons to deal with. His childhood also scarred him. His mother wanted to deny his leopard and as a result, Clay is at risk of going rogue and losing himself to the leopard part of himself. The DarkRiver leopards have made Clay one of them even when he would like to be apart. He has missed Tally and when she reappears in his life, he is understandably angry at her deception. It is difficult to read how abrupt and cutting he is with her, but he is also striking out in pain at her denial of their connection. The acceptance and understanding that builds between the characters throughout the novel is deeply moving. Singh has created an amazing world, characters and series and I can’t stop turning pages.

WORTH MENTIONING: I’m a big fan of Singh’s incorporating characters from previous books into the story. This is not a series where a couple is paired off and never seen again. She has a large cast of characters that make appearances big and small throughout each of the books.

FINAL DECISION: The romance between Clay and Tally is so complicated and layered. I love the pain and the beauty of their love. While not my favorite characters of the series, I think the book overall is my favorite because of the deeply emotional nature of the story.

CONNECTED BOOKS: MINE TO POSSESS is the fourth book in the Psy-Changeling series. It can be read independent of the other books, but readers should be aware that there is an overarching story that connects all the books and is being slowly revealed as the series progresses.

STAR RATING: I give this book 5 stars.

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Incredibly Angst Filled Story Where the Hero and Heroine Heal Each Other

Singh has created an incredibly detailed world involving the Psy who have excised emotion from their people and their society who rule the world of humans and changelings (animal/human shapeshifters).

THE STORY: Judd Lauren is a former Psy assassin who now lives with is family with the SnowDancer changeling wolves. He is cold and has no intention of breaking Silence to admit emotion to his life because he knows that it will turn him into an indiscriminate killer. He is working with other Psy to destabilize the governing system of the Psy. Brenna Kincaid was tortured and almost killed by a Psy serial killer. Her mind was broken and raped by the Psy and Brenna is still discovering what the effects are. The changeling wolf has been changed by her experiences and she fears what she is becoming. When she dreams of a murder that happens and she feels joy in the killing, Brenna fears that she will also become a killer like the Psy who tortured her. Neither is looking for a relationship and yet Judd and Brenna and constantly drawn to one another.

OPINION: I really enjoyed this book. Both Brenna and Judd are damaged people. While others insist that they cannot help one another, their mutual pain brings them together and gives them an understanding of what the other is dealing with. This is one of those books where the pain and emotions of the characters are put on display in such an intimate fashion that the reader goes on the emotional rollercoaster that the characters are on. The book is intense and difficult to read at points. Singh, however, shows her characters in the darkness but does not leave the reader there. The beauty of CARESSED BY ICE is the light and joy brought to the characters through their relationship. I love books that rips open emotions and then bring the characters into the beauty of love. Brenna, especially, is incredibly strong and her ability to overcome and fall in love with Judd is amazing. I especially liked in this book the alternating point of view between Brenna and Judd. Singh does a fantastic job of changing her tone to suit each character and the emotional journey of Judd was compelling as well.

WORTH MENTIONING: Fans of the virgin hero will find an interesting variation here.

FINAL DECISION: I think this is a fabulous book. It is incredibly moving and emotional and I highly recommend it.

CONNECTED BOOKS: CARESSED BY ICE is the third book in the Psy-Changeling series. The book can be read independent of others in the series although the world building that is done depends upon the overarching story being developed throughout the novel. A reader can start here, but I recommend starting at the beginning to appreciate the overarching story.

STAR RATING: I give this book 5 stars.

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