Branded by Fire (Psy/Changeling Series Book 6)

4,5 STARS

Finally, I had some free time to continue reading this fantastic series. And as per usual I really enjoyed reading this story or any story in this series so far. This one was a bit different since we don't get a changeling and psy couple but two changelings trying to find their luck in love. All I can say is that I really hoped this would be a fantastic read and thankfully my hopes have been heard. :)

Nalini Singh cranks up the heat in what is perhaps one of the best stories so far in her phenomenal Psy-Changeling series. Branded by Fire is an erotic and exciting read that captivates from the very first page and continues to enchant long after the story ends.

Mercy has always been one of my favorite characters, but in Branded by Fire she sealed her position as my personal favorite heroine of Ms. Singh's. She's strong, both physically and mentally, cunning, kind, warm, and generous - everything a heroine should be without being impossibly perfect. Despite her reticence at falling in love with a wolf, Riley is exactly the right male for her. He's more than Mercy's equal in terms of strength, dominance, and pack position. He's also incredibly giving, which is utterly endearing. His heart is scarred by the kidnapping and torture of his sister, Brenna (of Caressed by Ice). Her imprisonment left its mark on Riley, making him overprotective of those he cares about, which causes problems at times in his relationship with Mercy. I loved watching the two of them find their way in their relationship, each complimenting the other's strengths and willing to call one another on their flaws. It should also be mentioned that, in being a perfectly-matched couple, Mercy and Riley burn up the page like no one's business. Since they are Changelings, both Mercy and Riley are tactile beings, and Ms. Singh definitely makes the most of this in ways sure to make the reader shiver.

Branded by Fire is the eighth story (sixth full-length book) in the Psy-Changeling series. While Mercy and Riley's romance stands on its own, when it comes to the complex world Ms. Singh has created and the impact events in this book have on the characters and storylines which run throughout the series, new readers might want to start with the first five full-length books (Slave to Sensation, Visions of Heat, Caressed by Ice, Mine to Possess, and Hostage to Pleasure) before enjoying Branded by Fire. I can promise they won't regret it, as Ms. Singh never fails to pen a fascinating tale. For those who are already fans of the series, I am sure they will be delighted to see the characters from the previous books once again. One of the things I love best about this series is how close the packs are, and it was wonderful to revisit beloved characters. But be warned, Ms. Singh will also leave you wanting more characters' book. For me personally, I finished Branded by Fire desperate for Sienna Lauren's story.

One of my favorite books in an exquisite series, Branded by Fire should absolutely not be missed. Joyfully Recommended!

Shayna
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

It holds up better on the 2nd read through, IMO. I loved Mercy, she wouldn’t let Riley stifle her and cosset her: she kept standing up for herself. Riley did learn to quit with the “Be a 50s submissive” housewife towards her, to his credit. Just took his treatment and double standards blowing up in his face.

Wow, I just can't seem to put this series down. I love when an author can make both characters strong without making one weak. I hate when their is a strong female and her male is weaker. I've loved every book so far but this one has been my favorite. Absolutely. Now on to the next.. each book gets better and better.

Many authors try to take on the dominant female character falling in love. I'm speaking of the ultra alpha/beta female and all the problems and joys that come with it. Who would make a good mate for a dominant female? Not a submissive male who would be cowed down, but being courted by a dominant male would also lead to power plays and struggles. I must say Nalini Singh has it down perfect!

Mercy is a lead Sentinel for DarkRiver. She knows there's a good chance she won't find a mate due to her inability to submit fully, and a desire to dominate herself. Riley is a very dominant male who dreams of a submissive mate who would stay at home safe while he's working for the SnowDancers. (What male doesn't right?) Here's where things get interesting. Riley and Mercy set off sparks every time they are within a 3 foot radius of one another!

After a few, ahem, 'one night stands.' Both Mercy and Riley find themselves drowning in problems of pack loyalty, desire and fear. I think it's because Riley is a wolf that Mercy's leopard allows her to submit (just a little!) for Riley. Excellent scenes! The opening one started the entire book off perfectly!

Nalini also gives us glimpses of past heros/heroines. Sasha and Lucas as well as Judd and Brenna are prevalent. I have also been waiting to see who Hawke is paired with and I have to say I saw Sienna coming for him the moment she planed her 18th party a year in advance just to tick off Hawke. I really can't wait! Among all these desires and sub plots the Human Alliance is gaining in power and balls and begin to take bolder and bolder moves. Meanwhile Psys are finding themselves implanted with a compulsion to kill randomly and in public.

Pick up this book! Nalini Singh was amazing with Slave to Sensation and each book just shows her growth as an author. Branded by Fire has everything in it. Love, desire, loyalty, kidnapping, playing, war and tons of action. 5 stars all the way!

I prefer my heroine strong and I really wanted to like Mercy but she was just abrasive, arrogant and bitchy for nore than half of this book. I was frustrated many times by Talin (In Mine to Possess) but I could empathize with the trauma she went through and the life decisions that she made that even caused her 20yr separation from Clay but Mercy got on my nerves.

Reviewed at Another Look Book Reviews

Branded by Fire had answered a long time question for me. What would happen if two alphas collided together as a couple? I have read a ton of romance books and usually the couple formula is one dominate and the other is a submissive. "Branded by Fire" added to the intensity of the Phy-Changeling series by not only mating a wolf with a leopard but also an alpha with an alpha. The result was constant conflict, heads butting and the reader constantly taking sides. One minute I was all, "Come on Mercy give him a break. Let it go girl." And the next I was, "Oh my God Riley you male chauvinistic wolf chill out."

What I love about Branded by Fire is that Nalini Singh answered so many questions a reader would have about this odd potential mating. I love that she didn't think the readers wouldn't question how, why, where and when. I like it when an author knows her readers are smart.

So what would happen if a wolf mated with a leopard? How would they live together when both are an intricate part of each other's packs? Could they mate? What would result? Cubs, pups, babies? How would their mind nets function? Would they all be joined as one big net now? See all these questions I had? I am so pleased to say, they all get answered!

I found Branded by Fire introduced a lot more characters and I admit it, I was getting confused. You have Mercy's 3 brothers, the two alphas that were sent by Mercy's grandmother, a bunch of new younglings from each of the packs, the Human Alliance characters and now at the end of the book, a bird changeling Adam. I had to stop and pause often to remember who was who.

Once again I was pleased to read about the previous characters. Sascha and Lucas have good news this book and I am very interested in the storyline regarding Sascha's further developing E-Phy ability. I love the little snippet as to what's up and coming regarding Judd's niece Sienna's abilities (not to mention the Hawke connection there) and oh this Phy council has my head spinning. So much to love in this book. I also think of all the books, this one had the most sex. Riley and Mercy had such powerful emotions towards each other and they were either conflicting or having sex the entire book. The minute Mercy finally accepted their mating bond, it was beautifully written and captured their moment perfectly.

This is a great series of books. Initially I wasn't sure I would like this one as well because neither of the main characters was a Psy but were instead both Changelings. I soon changed my mind as the characters drew me into the story. It was nice to see a very strong female character who was also sympathetic.

The only problem I have with the book is that it is getting a bit hard to keep track of all of the characters in this wonderfully developing story. Given that many of the main characters from previous books have important roles in subsequent books, perhaps she should add a brief character summary at the end of the book. I also found the frequent tangents with other characters a bit disruptive to the main story. Not a major flaw however.

All in all a very fun book to read. I can't wait for the next one.

I really struggled with this book. I loved the story of Mercy and Riley as well as the pack interaction happening around them. I did not like all the details of the Psy Council and the Human Alliance. That made this a difficult read for me. I would read 10 pages, 8 of them Mercy and Riley and 2 of them Council/Alliance and take a break. It's been a long time since I've had that much trouble getting through a book I enjoyed.

Mercy and Riley were my favorite couple to date in the series. If the book was just about them I would give it a 5. Having to endure the Council/Alliance throughout the book took it down to a 3.

This was not one of Singh's best. I've read all her books so far and have enjoyed them, but this one was a let down for me. Mercy and Riley were repeat characters from previous novels. They both sounded so interesting when they played their small parts in previous books, but nothing rang true in this one.

I'll try to explain without giving out spoilers. The readers knew from the previous books that Riley took his sister's abduction hard, but the scenes of him getting over it were very shallow and small. Mercy didn't have any previous bagage, but her character was so irratic. She was constantly angry with Riley for so many little things that were not worth being angry over. It was like Singh was trying to create conflict out of nothing. The Psy played a very small part in this novel and the part the humans played didn't make any sense and was glossed over. The major plot of the story centered around sex between Riley and Mercy and it made it seem that was the only relationship they had to stand on. Sorry, but I must say, sex is NOT something to base a major conflict on.

Nalini Singh out did her self with Branded by Fire with a great plot, fun, sexy, witty dialog, kick butt Heroine and a yummy Alpha Hero. Even if there was no smexing going on I would still love it as Mercy and Riley had some sexy, witty bickering.

Favorite Quotes
Riley to Mercy: "Though right this second, I'd take plain old hot sex. Got an itch, kitty?"

Mercy: "So what, you followed me hoping I'd lower my standards and sleep with a wolf?"
Riley: "You want to claw at me, kitty-cat? Come on."
Mercy: "Sorry, I don't beat defenseless puppies."

I love the characters in this author's books. The women are strong, yet sensual and the men are also strong, macho, and yet gentle. That is a very unusual combination in a man, to say the least. The suspense in this combination of stories is excellent. I was very surprised at the true culprit. Can't wait to read the next one.

The sixth book in this series focuses on Mercy, a leopard and Riley, a wolf shifter getting together while trying to find out who's trying to pit changelings vs psy.

As has been typical with this series, Mercy's strong, Riley's alpha and possessive and they have to find a balance to be together.

The Bottom Line
The romance was fun and the world continues to fascinate me. Very enjoyable series so far.

Riley and Mercy have made annoying one another an additional job requirement to their many responsibilities as pack liaisons. Since the wolves of SnowDancer and the leopards of DarkRiver made a blood pact and became allies, Riley and Mercy were put in charge of interpack communications and to soothe any pack related fur. The problem is that Riley and Mercy don't necessarily play nice with one another. Both are extremely dominant and hold identical positions within the highest ranks of their packs. While Mercy is flamboyant, opinionated, outspoken and daring, Riley is calm, steadfast, quiet and cunning.

As a dominant female and sentinel of the DarkRiver pack, Mercy grudgingly accepts the fact that she may never mate. While the human in her may love with all her heart, her leopard won't be able to stand being tied so strongly to another. This happens occasionally with very dominant and independent females of the pack. But at this moment, Mercy doesn't care if the man's her mate, she just needs release on such a primal level that all other Changelings are picking up on her heat and when "stick-in-the-mud" Riley Kincaid steps out of the trees, Mercy is more than willing to take him on. She could use a bit of violence to cool her need. But when Riley begins tempting Mercy on a highly sexual level during their sparring, it takes her but a moment to dispel any leopard instincts to turn away the enemy wolf.

Not only are Mercy's sensual curves and feline nature a physical draw for Riley, it's also the fact that she's the one person who can break him out of his shell. Not very long ago Riley's sister, Brenna, was kidnapped and horribly abused by a Psy killer. Although Brenna was rescued and now happily mated, he still feels the guilt of her abduction and mind rape. Dreams plague him where Brenna is found dead rather than alive and ever since that horrific time of his life, Riley has closed himself off from others. While his cool demeanor may keep others at bay, it only serves to instigate Mercy's need to crack through his brooding moments of guilt and shame.

It's not long before Riley proves that he's just a tad more dominant than Mercy. And while this knowledge raises Mercy's hackles it also ignites her sexual desperation for the wolf and besides, he makes her cat purr. But when the mating dance blooms, the two must face some serious ramifications to their potential mating. For one, they shift into different animals. How will that affect their offspring if they can even have offspring? And more importantly, how will this affect their packs? Both Riley and Mercy are blood bound to their alphas and neither has the desire to leave their respective packs but if the mating bond is complete, one will undergo the heartbreak of their blood bond snapping apart from their alpha. Because Riley is the more dominant of the two, most likely it will be Mercy that will be forced away from her pack by the mating bond.

In the end, it's the female's decision whether or not to complete the mating bond and this causes the males to be a bit more feral than usual. Given the fact that Mercy holds the same rank within DarkRiver as Riley does in SnowDancer, there will be many times where both must face death. This poses a huge trust issue on Mercy's end for Riley. If his overbearing protective urges come into play, he could very well suffocate Mercy's leopard. Mercy will not drop her position in Pack and it's a real testament of Riley's promises to her when he walks into battle beside his mate.

Throughout all this emotional turmoil, added to the mix is the rise of the Human Alliance. No longer content with being known world round as the weakest link, the humans will not tolerate be looked down upon any longer. When launching a massive strike against the Psy Council members, the Alliance steps on the toes of the DarkRiver and SnowDancer packs thus rising their hackles and their claws. When juveniles from both packs are kidnapped, Riley and Mercy must put aside their mating dance and locate their packmates before its death that they find.

'Branded by Fire' lived up to every impossibly high expectation I set for it. In fact, it obliterated those expectations and rose above them into an entirely new realm of greatness. It's hard to imagine the Psy/Changeling series reaching an ever greater height of amazement but truly, this author continues to pleasantly shock me time and again.

I loved Mercy. It's not often that I fall in love with a heroine, but Mercy embodied traits that sang to my reader heart. She's strong, protective and intelligent and she never hurts anyone who is weaker than her, which is a lot of people. I love that she had courage and although mating to Riley was frightening for her, she trusted her heart. Mercy is a proud leopard but she didn't let that stop her from going to Riley when she's made a mistake and apologizing. Needless to say, Mercy earned my respect as well as my heart.

Riley. What a hero! He had so many shadows in his soul and its Mercy who shines some much needed light into his heart. Sometimes I've felt that in other novels, the heroine was more than the hero deserved, but not in this case. Riley deserved every inch of Mercy's soul. I also loved that although he was more dominant and frightfully protective, he gave Mercy freedom. He may have faltered a few times but in the end, he'd rather revel in the freedom of Mercy's soul than contain it. It showed depth in his love for Mercy that he could fight every dominant instinct and not smother Mercy's leopard. Riley has no wish to break her, he just wants to love her. Definitely a true hero.

The only draw back to this book is that it may not be a suitable start for new readers of the Psy/Changeling series. I even found myself confused at times since it has been a while since I read the book prior to 'Branded by Fire'. This wasn't enough incentive for me to drop the rating but I highly recommend new readers to start at the beginning of the series with 'Slave to Sensation'.

The chemistry between the main characters in this sixth installment of Singh 's psy-changeling series sends sparks jumping off the page! Mercy is the take no prisoner leopard Sentinel whose been tasked with being liaison to her packs ally the Snow Dancer pack of wolf shifters. Her contact is Riley, the wolves head lieutenant who irritates the heck out of her with his stodginess. But now his dominance is starting to really make her internal cat meow!

Riley has always been in charge and responsible. But he's still dealing with the nightmare baggage left over from his little sister Brenna being abducted for a time at the beginning of the series. Now if he wants to stay near the flame that is Mercy, he'll have to let her in to see that even he has vulnerabilities.

Of course a Psy plot which is hard to figure out and the machinations of the Human Alliance in their territories won't let our main couple take a leisurely look into love. They'll have to out think the other races and keep their packs save, while maintaining their separate loyalties...Not to mention dealing with Mercy's brothers and some of her pack mates who aren't to happy with inter-species lovin'. We also meet a new pack who is thinking of aligning themselves with Dark River and Snow Dancer, falcons!

The series in order:
Slave to Sensation
Visions of Heat
Caressed By Ice
Mine to Posses
Hostage to Pleasure
Enjoy!

With her DarkRiver sentinels mated, Mercy Smith feels somewhat abandoned, but also knows as an alpha, few men will meet the demands of her cat and human needs. However, the worst that could happen is she is attracted to an alpha male, SnowDancer Lieutenant Riley Kincaid. Mercy is unaware that Riley loathes the concept that he desires the female equivalent of him.

Someone abducts a young changeling, which frightens the law abiding packs. They fear a new threat has surfaced that could cause havoc if not stopped early. Mercy and Riley with the support of their respective packs team up to uncover a conspiracy to undermine the peace. They must rescue the changeling while each has reasons not to pursue their attraction, but neither can prevent the pull from getting stronger.

The sixth Psy-Changeling romantic suspense fantasy (see MINE TO POSSESS, SLAVE TO SENSATION and CARESSED BY ICE, etc.) is a super entry in a great series. The world of Singh seems genuine as the sentinels, their mates, and their enemies come across as real. Fans will enjoy the mission that Riley and mercy team up on as two alphas in love will leave the audience wondering who will end up on top.

Harriet Klausner

It is pretty much a given that Nalini Singh writes spectacular books. Her Psy/Changeling series is a very successful and beloved by her readers, and I am one of them. Her soon to be released, Branded by Fire (Psy/Changeling book #6) is no exception. Not only has she delivered another great action packed tale, but she raises the steam, as in the sexual dynamics between the two main characters. The majority of Nalini's heroes are alpha males- hear them roar. Their women are tender fighters and their men feel the need to coddle them. But in Branded by Fire, Nalini has written a hero and heroine that are on equal footing. Mercy and Riley are both alphas and they must come to terms with their natures. These two want it their way or no way at all. And as these two continually butt heads with one another, their attraction and lust is smoldering. Branded by Fire is the most sexually charged book in this whole series. The first chapter says it all. Usually it takes a hundred pages or so before a love bird duo will act on their desires. Not Riley and Mercy. The hottest sex scene in this whole book is in the first twenty pages. And it is very satisfying indeed.

Because Branded by Fire is the sixth book in this futuristic, sci-fi romance all rolled into one, newcomers must go back to book one. Sorry, Branded by Fire is not a stand alone book. Things have been building up through the last few books where there is about to be an explosion dealing with every society Nalini has created. The Psy, the various Changeling creatures and Humans are all at war with one another. The world they live in together, side by side, is crumbling and unless they can come to a resolution there will be many causalities. No one is safe. And I have come to the conclusion that they cannot survive without the other. Things have become very complex and to explain everything would take too long to explain.

If you love reading strong, in your face characters, Nalini has accomplished that with Riley and Mercy. These two are a bit like Romeo and Juliet because Mercy is a leopard and Riley is a wolf. They are total opposites because a wolf and a leopard should not mate, but their need for one another defies all reason. And if they complete the mating bond, one must turn away from their pack and embrace their mate's new one. Riley is a bit more understanding and is willing to sacrifice a part of himself to make Mercy happy. Mercy holds back and will only give Riley a small piece of herself, mainly though the physical attraction she has for Riley. Riley wants a no holds bar relationship with his kitty-cat and that means she must give him her heart and soul. Riley chases Mercy and tries to tire her to the point she will give in because he knows he is the only one who can tame her.

Now when I say Riley wants to tame Mercy, it is not meant as a negative. He wants to cherish her and protect her and also keep those sharp claws of her in check. He doesn't mind a bit of pain when it comes to Mercy, (especially during sex because Riley enjoys when Mercy let's go and scratches him) but because Mercy is skilled as a warrior, she doesn't know how to give in a little to the other side, the one that needs a bit of TLC from such a man like Riley. And the scene towards the end where Mercy decides she needs Riley is everything the reader has been waiting for. Love is all about giving and taking and after Riley has inched his way into her heart, she finally has an epiphany.

Even though the Mercy and Riley's relationship is very prominent there are other important things to take note of in Branded by Fire. Many past beloved characters make an appearance. We see a great deal of Sasha and Lucas and how they have grown together. Their happily ever after is everything you would imagine and Nalini gives them something so very special that made me smile and raises my fists in the air. Fans of Brenna and Judd will be also thrilled. Judd is still happily breaking furniture. And for those who wants Hawke's story (he is Riley's alpha of the Snowdancer pack) and Sienna's (she is Judd's Psy niece), you will not be disappointed. Nalini is slowly building the emotional bonds between these two. She makes Hawke and Sienna suffer. Hawke wants Sienna badly, but Sienna is still so young and confused. Sienna is destroying herself because of her feelings for Hawke and doesn't know how to deal with them. They cannot continue to be around each other, but being apart is also painful. Nalini also throws a curve ball in their relationship because there is possibly someone waiting in the wings to take Sienna way from Hawke even before anything could happen between these two. And dare I mention one of the most mysterious and deadly characters of all in that of the Psy Kaleb? Again Nalini gives us just enough, a small peek as to what Kaleb has planned and what he hopes to accomplish. I have had my eye on Kaleb for a long time and I know Nalini must have a reason for making Kaleb an important part of this series. (I am a team Kaleb girl all the way and I am anxiously awaiting his own story.)

Branded by Fire left me wanting more and again cements my devotion to the writing talents of Nalini Singh. If there is one author you haven't read and should, Nalini is one of them.

Katiebabs

I liked this book because I'm always happy to return to the fascinating world Nalini Singh has created. The book is entertaining and I'm looking forward to the next. Branded By Fire is, for me, my least favorite of all the series' entries. As one astute reviewer has pointed out, the Human Alliance stuff falls a bit flat.
But I think the main reason why I'm not a big Mercy/Riley fan is that I just can't buy into a romance between a leopard and a wolf, essentially cat and dog! I know, I know, it's paranormal FICTION. But still, changelings are supposed to BE their animals. And as a cat/dog owner all my life--that just ain't happening in the animal kingdom.
I guess I'm more prejudiced than the characters in the book, but to steal a line from Westside Story: Riley & Mercy, Stick to Your Own Kind!

I love the entire series and Branded by Fire did not disappoint. I lucked out and got an early copy. I won't go into details but to say I was very happy with the way the book went and I can see all kinds of books based on this one. I have read this book three times already. Seriously!

The intermingling of the Wolves and Cats is getting interesting. It was also nice to see the human element stepping up. I love this series and I'm so happy the next installment comes out in November. I definitely recommend this book to everyone. If you haven't read the series start at book one, Slave to Sensation.

Mercy & Riley's story has been my favorite so far. I love their interaction and negotiation of their relationship as they try to find a compromise to dating even though both are high ranking dominants from opposite Changeling packs. The mystery and action is also balance really well alongside the romance in this one, so I enjoyed that aspect too. Love this series! :)

I'm in love with this whole series!!! The relationships with the main characters of each book are great but the added relationships of all the characters throughout the series is heart-warming. I love the strong family bonds almost more than the romantic ones.

This is the very first review I have ever written, but I feel strongly enough to take the plunge. I absolutely adored this book. Paranormal romance is my thing. I love it! And Branded by Fire delivers in boatloads. This a SOLID romance book with a little Urban fantasy thrown in (but not too much to get on my nerves). Mercy and Riley are great together. It was such a nice change so see the relationship between 'friends' progress and grow. I was afraid for a minute that Riley would 'bend' in order to make this relationship work. But he didn't and I'm quite happy about that. And although I love Ms. Singh, it was also nice to get a break from the Psy. The majority of the Sentinels and their Alpha mated Psy, so it was a real treat to see a cat-wolf paring where the couple had different issues to deal with.

Highly recommend, if romance is your thing.

I loved this book. The mating of a cat and wolf was written really well. It was erotic and romantic and funny at times. Mercy and Riley are both dominant characters and the heat and friction between made for a great book. 5 stars!!

I've read every book in the series (up through Kiss of Snow) and this one is still my favorite. Riley is the hottest shifter I've read in a long, long time. And Mercy hold her own every step of the way. The love scenes are hot and you get to revisit several old friends from previous books. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this book.

While I agree it was "raw", it was also not very sweet, and I couldn't see any romance or even tenderness. From the beginning, I thought these two characters were a bit immature. The way they fought, at times it was almost like watching two teenage siblings argue. I could sense something between the two developing, but it just wasn't described enough. This was just raw sex and then going right back to their missions. It lacked passion and emotion. And, to be honest, the sex wasn't even raving material. It sounded like two animals trying to fight for control, which it actually is, in essence, but it shouldn't feel that way. It shouldn't feel so disassociated. I'm probably not gonna read from this author again.

Please first let me tell you that I am a huge fan of the psy/changelings series. But I totally hated the book. I never found Mercy nor Riley interesting characters. I was frustrated by Sienna and hawke's issues. The only reason I am givng the book 2 stars is because of Judd and Brenna's 5 seconds appearance. So let me give you a piece of advice if you liked the book 1, 2, 3 and 5; don't even bother with this one!

The love story (and sexual exploits) of Mercy and Riley was interesting. I prefer the previous books that developed the changes in the psi society. There was a real sense of danger from Council members.
I would have preferred less erotica and more plot.

This is the best entry into the Psy-Changeling series so far. Ms. Singh does a great job of playing the tension between Mercy and Riley, while giving just enough time to developing other characters in the Psy-Changeling world. My heart broke for Sienna. I can't wait for the next one!

I love this series since it is one of the few within PNR genre that's always maintained a good balance between plot development and romance. Nalini Singh created a unique world with her Psy-Changelings books and filled them with vivid three-dimensional characters, hence I've been eagerly expecting the next installment for months. Unfortunately, after reading Branded by Fire I was left somewhat dissatisfied, and here's why:

1. The delicate balance I mentioned above was definitely skewed in this book. The story took a backseat to romance between Mercy and Riley. The plot felt more like an afterthought to incessant love scenes and everything they did to further the story line felt rushed and underdeveloped. Yes, they went through the motions of acting as a sentinel and lieutenant and spoke about the total dedication to their packs, but it came out forced and unreal.
2. To elaborate on my previous point, I love romantic elements in books, but this book contained nothing else. After the fourth explicit encounter between Mercy and Riley, I started flipping through pages since it was more of the same. There is a thin line between passion and porn and I think it's been crossed here. Those two are supposed to be the highest ranking members of their packs, but throughout the book acted like horny teenagers. All that served to make me feel discontented with this pairing, even though I love both of these characters from their parts in previous books.
3. I don't want to give away spoilers to potential readers, but the focus of this book shifted from the growing hostilities between Psy and Changelings to the involvement of Human Alliance, the new player introduced in the previous book. The problem is that Human Alliance members felt very two dimensional and more like plot devices than interesting new development. Also I wish PsyNet problems would've been better explored since I liked where that was going.
4. The ending was completely anticlimactic and predictable. I realize that this series is formulaic hence should be somewhat predictable by definition, but this was the first book in this series where I pretty much lost interest half way through and didn't really care what happened at the end. Interestingly enough, nothing of significance happened.

I'm assuming that many fans are going to disagree with my point of view, but I felt that voicing my opinion would be beneficial to those whose tastes run parallel to mine. I am giving the book three stars mainly because almost all my favorite characters were featured here and the sections about Hawke and Sienna were fantastic.

For starters let me say this. Author Nalini Singh is an amazing writer. I adore her Archangel Series. Her writing style is unique both to herself and her culture and she brings a fresh perspective to the fictional writing genre. Nalini Singh has a great depth and color to her imagination that shines in her writing to bring her characters to life and let the reader feel they are a part of the story. That’s the carrot.

Now here is the stick. This novel, “Branded by Fire” is Number Six in the Psy-Changeling Series, and although I had great hopes the author would not fall into the trap of political correctness when it came to writing and developing the relationship of her characters, unfortunately my hopes were dashed with disappointment, because unlike the Archangel Series, where you find clear, defined, separation of the sexes, especially between who is dominant and who is submissive in the relationship; such as what you’ll find between Archangel Raphael and his Vampire hunter consort, Elena Deveraux, but not in the Psy-Changeling Series, and especially not between leopard Sentinel Mercy and wolf Lieutenant Riley.

Here is the basis of what I mean. Both Mercy and Riley are enforcers of their perspective Packs. Mercy a leopard. Riley a wolf. Both are Changeling predators. Both are strong, dominant characters and forces within their Packs. However, from the dawn of time, till now, and even in the wild with true animals, when male and female come together to mate, there is always, absolutely always, going to be one who is dominant and one who is submissive, even if the submissive is only submissive to their mate and nobody else! And when you mate, the submissive leaves their original Pack and joins the Pack of their mate. It is just that simple and logical, but in this modern, feminist, world of the 21st Century, everyone is so afriad of offending someone that authors are constantly doing the opposite.

In this novel, clearly, Riley is the more dominant, but time and time again, you have the author writing Mercy with flip flop of a personality, going back and forth between loving Riley, loving her Pack, not wanting to submit to anyone and yadda, yadda, yadda. It is irritating and boggles the mind why authors can’t just stop the political correct crap and just write a story and staying true to the roles males and females are meant to have. Males ARE the protectors and guardians. Females are the nurtures, the staple rock of the males so they are able to do what they are meant to do without having females constantly competing with them like this is some contest of wills and just giving into their nature like every other animal group on the freaking planet!

I could just go on and on, and on about this. I doubt anyone is really going to understand what i’m talking about, but for those few who do, just know, if you read this book, you’re going to have to deal with all the political correct crap you get in every day real life and it will ruin the overall enjoyment of the novel. I finally had to force myself to finish this book, because honor would not allow me to just set it down once I had started. I’ve done that a couple of times when the book was really, really, awful, but this novel was just bad, and no worse.

The simple truth is this. At the end of the novel, Mercy should have had her blood bond broken by her mating bond to Riley, she should have joined Riley’s Pack since she is now his mate, and even though she could have still been a strong enforcer, stayed true to her character and been a true balanced mate for Riley, but, no, instead she just comes across as a selfish, spoiled, bitch, and just like every other feminist in this world these days, they want the male to give up everything and the woman to be “empowered” (eye roll) as I now vomit in disgust!

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