Jilian, a young Eyrien witch, finds first love with Lord Dillon a man looking to redeem his reputation with a handfast. He's sure that he can control her, but Lucivar Yaslana stands ready to protect her and all innocents of Ebon Rih.

Elsewhere, trouble between Surreal and her husband Daemon is causing his mind to splinter. His final descent into madness could lead to ultimate destruction and the only Witch strong enough to save him has been dead for years.

Why I started this book: Bishop is one of my favorite authors and I have been stalking Netgalley to find an ARC.

Why I finished it: Not sure why Bishop is my favorite because she is not above torturing her characters and her readers with heartbreak. But it was such lovely, delicious heartbreak leavened with hope. You need to have read all of her Black Jewels books to appreciate this one, but it was great. An exploration of being true to your nature while supporting and protecting your family, even from themselves.

A delightful return to a favorite world, it is wonderful to catch up with favorite characters. The world building is still solid, these are character driven stories with beautiful, broken people living with their trauma - healing and really LIVING, not just surviving. As stories dealing with trauma go, I think the character psychology is some of the best created I've ever seen.
I did feel like the plot was a little contrived. The last 2 books worked because they centered around new characters building lives basically as refugees on their own post-war shire.

As always, Anne Bishop has created a rich and rewarding world. As a fan of the series for 20 7ears I was very reluctant to return to the likes of these characters for fear that the memories of the original stories would be soured. While there where moments I. This story that made me reluctant to continue, I did and thank goodness for it. I hope to see more from her and this world she has built, because I know there is more to tell. As always she has brought the world, characters and story to such vivid life that I couldn't put it down.