Reviewer: Holly Silver Silence by Nalini Singh
Series: Psy/Changeling #16, Psy/Changeling Trinity #1
Also in this series: Mine to Possess, Hostage to Pleasure, The Magical Christmas Cat , Kiss of Snow, Tangle of Need, Slave to Sensation , Wild Invitation, Heart of Obsidian, Shield of Winter, Shield of Winter, Visions of Heat, Mine to Possess, Caressed By Ice, Branded by Fire, Blaze of Memory, Mine to Possess, Hostage to Pleasure, Hostage to Pleasure, Shards of Hope, Shards of Hope, Heart of Obsidian, Caressed By Ice, Branded by Fire, Blaze of Memory, Play of Passion, Allegiance of Honor, Kiss of Snow, Tangle of Need, Shield of Winter, Shards of Hope, Allegiance of Honor, Allegiance of Honor, Wild Embrace, Wild Embrace, Wild Embrace, Silver Silence, Tangle of Need, Ocean Light, Ocean Light , Caressed By Ice, Wolf Rain , Silver Silence, Wolf Rain, Alpha Night, Alpha Night, Last Guard, Last Guard
Publisher: Penguin, Berkley
Publication Date: June 15th 2017
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Pages: 320
Add It: Goodreads
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New York Times bestselling author Nalini Singh introduces a bold new chapter in her extraordinary paranormal romance saga with the Psy-Changeling Trinity series. Wild passion will encounter the darkest of betrayal...
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...
Silence has fallen, and the Humans, Psy and Changelings have created the Trinity Accord, with the hope of fostering peace between the races in this new climate. Silver Mercant, personal assistant to Kalek Krycheck, the most powerful Tk on the planet, is also the head of EmNet, an emergency network set up to coordinate all available resources in the event of a large-scale disaster. Taking her out would hurt Kaleb, the Trinity Accord and temporarily disable EmNet. So it isn’t really a surprise when there’s an attempt on her life. The surprise is the bear shifter who ends up saving her life.
Valentin has been courting Silver for months – she just doesn’t realize it. When Grandmother Mercant – the head of Silver’s family – asks him to keep Silver safe until they determine who was behind her attempted murder, it’s just the excuse he’s been looking for. Silver isn’t nearly as Silent as she’d like to make out, and there’s no one better than Valentin to prove it to her.
For Silver, Silence is a necessity. She needs to keep control of her emotions at all times, to keep control of one of her secondary psychic abilities. But Valentin makes her feel things, and he’s persistent enough that her Silence just might not hold. If only that didn’t mean certain death for her…
Silver was about what I expected from previous books. Naturally there’s more to her than meets the eye. I was interested to learn more about the Mercant family. I wasn’t disappointed. Both Silver and her family were fascinating. Still, Valentin was everything for me in this book. Playful, arrogant, adorable..I just wanted to eat him up. He’s playful, fun and loving, but also more than capable of kicking ass and taking names.
Silver had a sarcastic kind of humor that really played well against Valentin’s more playful sense of humor. They had great banter and wit.
“My people chose Silence for a reason,” she’d said to him three visits earlier. “While parts of that reasoning have proven false enough to topple Silence for many, other parts still apply. I am and always will be Silent. That means I will never be ready to ‘run off’ and experience ‘shenanigans’ with you.”
Valentin is great at drawing Silver out of herself. He knew just the right tone to take with her.
“Can I—”
“No.” Silver put down the bottle on the bedside table Valentin had built with his own hands.
“You don’t know what I was going to ask,” he protested.
“You’ve been staring at my hair when you haven’t been staring at my face. You want to touch my hair.”
Valentin tried to think like a cat again. Sneaky. After all, Lucas Hunter had a Psy mate. If a leopard could do it, a bear could do it better. “I’ll shift and let you pet my fur in return.”
Though he often teased, Valentin respected Silver right down to her toes. He knew she was capable and didn’t try to stop her from doing what she needed to do. Too often alpha-males (be they human or other) are given a pass in being overbearing, but that wasn’t the case with Valentin. He wanted to protect Silver, but he didn’t even attempt it. Because he respected her and trusted her judgement.
His Starlight should’ve been in bed, resting. Instead, she was here, fighting to clean up a mess of violence, fighting to save lives. Because she was Silver Fucking Mercant, and she was as tough as any bear in StoneWater.
Including its alpha.
Despite the issues facing them in regards to Silver’s Silence, they were a great team. They showed a united front to his clan, worked together to deal with outside threats, and came to rely on one another through thick and thin.
I do feel like Silver’s medical issues was a bit too easily dealt with. The conflict lacked the emotional punch I’ve come to expect. It was just all neatly tied up in a bow. I didn’t doubt for a second that all would work out as it should.
We saw glimpes from the Consortium – the largest threat to Trinity – as well as from The Human Alliance. I’m anxious to see both explored further.
Silver Silence was an excellent start to this new chapter of the series. I can’t wait to see what Singh has in store for us next.
“Silver Fucking Mercant.” The words were the opposite of an insult, his tone drenched in primal admiration. “You’re an alpha under your pretty, soft skin …”
4.5 out of 5
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