4 out of 5 Bites to Kiss of Snow

Posted Jun 23 2011, 7:00 am in book club, Book Hungry, characterization, fiction, Kiss of Snow, Patty Blount, shifters, What I'm Reading, wolves, YA

 

This month, Book Hungry reviewed Kiss of Snow, the latest story in the Psy-Changeling series. I’ve never read this series before, but after reviewing this book, I will definitely check them out. The story was compelling and the characters were exceptionally engaging. The story was wonderfully layered with suspense, political intrigue, power plays, and hot, hot love.

The hot, hot love story plays out against a backdrop of war between humans with powerful psychic ability, the Psy, and the Changelings, a race of humans with the ability to shift into animals. Changelings are organized into dens like SnowDancer, the wolf/human den. Alpha Male Hawke has been in charge since he was fifteen. He’s also been alone, the girl who would have been his mate dead since they were still children. Hawke is a powerful man. I enjoyed the way Singh describes the constant inner battle he and ‘his wolf’ fight.

SnowDancer is also home to a family of Psy who defected – the Lauren family, each with unique psy abilities. Hawke already has a lot of responsibility riding on his broad, muscular shoulders. The last thing he needs is trouble from Psy teen Sienna Lauren but trouble is just what he gets. Sienna is a cardinal X, the most powerful Psy ever catalogued. None have ever survived past their twenties and Sienna is already nineteen.

And the object of Hawke’s wolf’s lust.

Writers are taught to infuse every scene with conflict. Conflict, conflict, conflict! Singh takes this to new and wonderful extremes.  Hawke’s inner wolf wants Sienna. His human side constantly reminds him he’s nuts. She’s too young for him. And then, there’s the whole mate issue – a bond that makes Twilight’s imprinting look like puppy love.  After losing his mate, Hawke knows he can never bond with anyone again. Yet, his wolf wants her to such an extent, he can’t function. We get to watch Hawke fight and lose some crucial inner battles – the first of which is the obvious one to stay away from Sienna.  Hawke’s and Sienna’s sexual tension is so far off the charts, I suffered from SBB – Sympathetic Blue Balls – for him.

Singh deftly draws it out, giving Hawke all manner of political crises to interrupt them. What’s an alpha to do but steal a moment here and there? Wolf-men, I learned, need their play-time as much as they need food or sleep. Hawke’s attempts to engage Sienna in play-time aren’t just sweet, they reveal much about Sienna’s life, before defection.

Sienna was little better than a prisoner. She never played and was never a child. She was groomed to be a weapon of mass destruction, her power levels requiring frequent ‘earthing’ to keep her from going super-nova on her adopted den-mates. Her growing attraction to Hawke is ratcheting up her power but doing precious little for her ability to contain it.

If all that’s not enough conflict for you, Singh treats us to a second love story, this one developing between Sienna’s uncle and the den’s head doctor. They are not your typical secondary characters; theirs is a story within a story. In fact, all of the secondary characters are not secondary at all, but crucial components to a multi-layered plot.

Overall, I thought the book was great and gave it 4 out 5 bites because the sexual tension nearly killed me. Why bites? Oh. Trust me. You’ll want to read the book to find out. Meanwhile, don’t take my word for it. Read the rest of my Book Hungry sisters’ reviews.

 

 

4 Comments