Friday, December 9, 2011

Cast in Ruin by Michelle Sagara

Seven corpses are discovered in the streets of a Dragon's fief. All identical, down to their clothing.

Kaylin Neya is assigned to discover who they were, who killed them—and why. Is the evil lurking at the borders of Elantra preparing to cross over?

At least the investigation delays her meeting with the Dragon Emperor. And as the shadows grow longer over the fiefs, Kaylin must use every skill she's ever learned to save the people she's sworn to protect. Sword in hand, dragons in the sky, this time there's no retreat and no surrender…
~~

I do have to agree with Dear Author on one thing - I think this series has about reached that point where new comers can't just jump in and get the same level of enjoyment as those who have been reading since the beginning. I love where we are, even if I have to stop and think sometimes to remind myself what happened in previous books, but it's hard for me to picture another person doing that.

I do wish things were going a bit faster, but I'm an impatient reader and even if it put Kaylin at risk of getting flamed by the Emperor I'd STILL want to see it. Luckily for you guys I'm not writing these books and Kaylin's getting the (hopefully) appropriate training and meeting some cool new characters along the way. 

I love these books for their fantasy roots (romance is only really hinted at here and there) at the same time those roots can make my heart hurt for the main characters. The past is never really just the past, and while we may not see Kaylin actually get over some of the things that have affected her, we do get to see her reveal more of what's lying underneath (sorry for being purposefully vague here, but it's too important to spoil). Cast in Ruin does include a new character for Kaylin to be friends with, someone who has their own journey and hurts to overcome, and I can't wait to see what happens next.

Overall Feeling - Thumbs Up.

Series - 1) Cast in Shadow 2) Cast in Courtlight 3) Cast in Secret 4) Cast in Fury 5) Cast in Silence 6) Cast in Chaos 7) Cast in Ruin