Control. Precision. Family. These are the principles that drive Silver Mercant. At a time when the fledgling Trinity Accord seeks to unite a divided world, with Silver playing a crucial role as director of a worldwide emergency response network, wildness and chaos are the last things she needs in her life. But that’s exactly what Valentin Nikolaev, alpha of the StoneWater bears, brings with him.
Valentin has never met a more fascinating woman. Though Silver is ruled by Silence–her mind clear of all emotion–Valentin senses a whisper of fire around her. That’s what keeps him climbing apartment buildings to be near her. But when a shadow assassin almost succeeds in poisoning Silver, the stakes become deadly serious…and Silver finds herself in the heart of a powerful bear clan.
Her would-be assassin has no idea what their poison has unleashed…
Silver Silence, by Nalini Singh
I’ve written before about how much I love the Psy/Changeling series, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that I was counting down the hours to the release of Silver Silence this week. Literally. Did you know that Amazon releases on Kindle can take up to 15 minutes after midnight (or in my case, 9pm, because living on the West Coast means getting the new release 3 hours before midnight) to show up? It’s agonizing, let me tell you! (At least in this case, I was able to finish cooking dinner. So thanks for that, Amazon. I guess my husband didn’t starve to death on Monday night because your infrastructure is slow.)
Silver Silence marks a transition point in the series. The last book, Allegiance of Honor, wrapped up the first “season” (to use Nalini’s term for it) and revisited a lot of favorite characters without having a central couple to focus on. Now, in Silver Silence, we’re starting the second season, looking out at a world very different than the one we started in, all the way back in Slave to Sensation. (On a subtle note, I love the way she’s marked the transition with a break in the pattern of three word titles for the main novels. I look forward to seeing if she sticks with two word titles going forward.)
Of course, it’s still the world that all the characters we love inhabit and I was really excited to see that this book featured Silver Mercant as the heroine. She’s been an intriguing character since we first met her as Kaleb’s aide, always very controlled and precise. She’s clearly got brains, to be able to keep up with Kaleb, and has stepped up to take on a bigger role in the new world the Trinity is building. Of course, this makes her something of a target for those who aren’t interested in change. Good thing for her the bears are watching out for her.
Or rather, one bear in particular. Valentin might be the alpha of StoneWater but for Silver, he’s more than willing to be her teddy bear. He even says so himself. Repeatedly, if that’s what it takes for her to accept it. It’s our first introduction to the bear changelings, although we’ve certainly heard about them before, and they’re a charming, family-oriented bunch. Also more than willing to party — no one parties like the bears!
Needless to say, this kind of laid-back attitude is rather at odds with the rigid control Silver has maintained all her life and it’s interesting to watch what happens as she tries letting go. I don’t want to spoil this for anyone, especially since the international release only came out yesterday, but suffice it to say that I was desperately rooting for the happy ending.
My expectations were high but Silver Silence did not disappoint. I’m already counting down to the next book in the series and planning both a reread and a listen to the audiobook once I finish my current one. It’s accessible to new readers, if you haven’t read any of the Psy/Changeling books, but I’d still recommend going back and starting with Slave to Sensation if you haven’t read them — you have so much to look forward to and the world will be that much deeper by the time you get to Silver Silence!