Ashes of Honor by Seanan McGuire

It’s been almost a year since October “Toby” Daye averted a war, gave up a county, and suffered personal losses that have left her wishing for a good day’s sleep. She’s tried to focus on her responsibilities—training Quentin, upholding her position as Sylvester’s knight, and paying the bills—but she can’t help feeling like her world is crumbling around her, and her increasingly reckless behavior is beginning to worry even her staunchest supporters.

To make matters worse, Toby’s just been asked to find another missing child…only this time it’s the changeling daughter of her fellow knight, Etienne, who didn’t even know he was a father until the girl went missing. Her name is Chelsea. She’s a teleporter, like her father. She’s also the kind of changeling the old stories warn about, the ones with all the strength and none of the control. She’s opening doors that were never meant to be opened, releasing dangers that were sealed away centuries before—and there’s a good chance she could destroy Faerie if she isn’t stopped.

Now Toby must find Chelsea before time runs out, racing against an unknown deadline and through unknown worlds as she and her allies try to avert disaster. But danger is also stirring in the Court of Cats, and Tybalt may need Toby’s help with the biggest challenge he’s ever faced.

Toby thought the last year was bad. She has no idea.
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I've got to say that as usual, Sean McGuire has knocked it out of the park with Ashes of Honor. It's another great installment to a series filled with depth and intrigue and fantastic amounts of action. I personally find it harder to fall in love with straight urban fantasy series, there are probably only a few authors who I truly consider auto-buys, but Seanan McGuire is just irresistible.

We've seen Toby grow as detective into a hero, collecting friends and allies along the way, and in this book she needs all of them. There's tons of action as Toby tries to find Chelsea, the being(s) who are using her powers, and she's still trying to protect everyone along the way. Ultimately the action, while amazing, takes a backseat to the characters. I find myself engrossed in what's happening to everyone, and how that relates to the big finish - and because of how things ended with Connor in the last book Tybalt has an even larger role, which, no surprise to anyone, I LOVE. All in all, as I've mentioned in my reviews of the previous books, these stories are frightening and thrilling, filled with action and emotion, and with each one I finish I still can't wait for the next.

Overall Feeling - A

Series - 1) Rosemary and Rue 2) A Local Habitation 3) An Artificial Night 4) Late Eclipses 5) One Salt Sea 6) Ashes of Honor