I realise this was going to be 'darker', but I feel it went overboard. The story was really not bad, alien culture, the slowly growing together of 3 people, both sides changing. But the sheer amount of torture and rape was not believable, no matter how alien the culture. And even less believable was an eldritch who cheerfully underwent it all. Ok, he was not cheerful, but nevertheless, he wasn't believable, and I felt emotionally distanced from the whole thing. Normally, I would have expected to cry at a story like this. As it is, I pretty much finished this because I hoped Vasiht'h and Jahir would show up. In the end, it was clear they wouldn't, but by then I did want to know how it would finish.

I might read part 2 for Vasiht'h and Jahir, hoping they are the same as they are in their own series (because the mind healer series was written after this one I believe, and the Family novella that was also written before the mind healer series was a travesty in my opinion. Those were not the same characters at all. ) ( )

Too slow for me, I got bored. And too studied, too "tell, don't show" ( )

In my ongoing quest to read everything [a:M.C.A. Hogarth|65211|M.C.A. Hogarth|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1294085991p2/65211.jpg] has written about the Eldritch, the last in my most recent spree was this book. Having struck up by this point a conversation about my interest with the author on Twitter, she warned me that this particular book was going to be darker than the rest. I assured her that I was not worried, and still excited to read about the Eldritch in a different scenario—especially with the knowledge that Lisinthir wasn't like the rest of his race.

That was all very much an understatement.

Lisinthir throws everything we think about Eldritch culture and flips it on its head. While there are very distinct differences, the parts that make him different stem from the similarities: he is headstrong, self-assured, determined, and focused. He is a stern fighter and not one willing to give up, or bow to needless niceties. His task is his task, and he will do what it takes to accomplish it.

No matter what.

Watching the violent spiral that is the Chatcaavan Empire intertwined with someone like an Eldritch is jarring, to say the least. Hogarth wasn't kidding when she warned me that this was some of the darkest of her writing. It does, however, prove a depth to her writing ability that I was welcome to see – though what context it came in was saddening. Yes, I cringed at some of the scenes, but it was tempered so much by being able to see into Lisinthir's thoughts—to see his passion and dedication, to see how he worked through the trials and tribulations to come out the other side. He quickly grew to sit right alongside Hirianthial and Jahir in my pantheon of adored Eldritch.

And then there were the Chatcaavans. Only spoken of in song and tale in the books before, it was dramatic to finally have a proper introduction to the bogeymen of the Pelted universe. Vicious, cruel, and impulsive, the Chatcaavans are so very much a foil to the Eldritch that it is difficult to not be just as drawn to them. With the power dynamic balance between what is seen with the Emperor and what is seen with the Slave Queen, there is so much depth that Lisinthir really only has the ability to touch the surface of, and yet we find little ways of delving in and learning so much in just a few words.

There are reference, small and scattered, throughout this that reference the other Eldritch we know: an offhanded reference to an Eldritch studying at an Alliance academy, mention of an Eldritch princess we would meet in [b:Rose Point|20501099|Rose Point (Her Instruments 2)|M.C.A. Hogarth|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1389312582s/20501099.jpg|34355718]. For someone that has read these books already (or read after this, and I'm just writing this review late), it is an open offering to the rest of the books...and a warning that it may behoove an interested reader to peek into them, before the third book in the Her Instruments series tosses all the Eldritch together. (And that will be a book I am eager to see!)

All in all, a much darker book than the rest; not advisable for those who shy away from violence and cruel situations. But if you are up for the challenge, you will not be unrewarded. ( )

Well written but much too bloody and sexually intense for me. ( )

Oh. Wow. That is...it's utterly cruel and harsh and vicious, there are innumerable depictions of deliberately inflicted pain, and several deaths. It is cruel - but unlike so many other stories with this kind of content, Hogarth doesn't wallow in the viciousness. We see, to some extent, what happens, but what she's focused on is the effect on those involved - both the victims and the perpetrators (especially since the roles switch, a lot). It's also a fascinating depiction of a quite alien race - who turn out not to be as alien as is believed. I did get a little bored with the sex-and-violence mindset of the Chatcaava - don't they ever think of anything else? But even that is part of the story - they used to be a very different people, a different (and much richer) culture. And by the end of the story...maybe they can be again. Even if this Change fails, its effects are going to ripple through both Chatcaava and the Alliance. I'm delighted that this is the first book of a series, though I don't think I could read another one right away. The physical and emotional wrenching depicted here are tough on a reader... ( )