I've been waiting to get my hands on this novel for far too long due to the ebook format not being sold in the UK and not having any way of finding it. Thankfully the series was once more nominated for the Hugo awards and I got my hands on the latest five novels that I've been missing. I've been looking forward to the moment I could finally sink my teeth into Sarah's story and it did not disappoint in the slightest.

This is a fascinating book in the series and not just because it takes us away from the 'core' sibling group of the Price family, but also because it brings us up close and personal with the cuckoo's. We've had very little contact with cuckoo's so far, with the exception of Sarah and her adoptive mother Angela in the earlier InCryptid novels. There's lots of mentions of them; often in terms of how they destroyed lives, families and communities. But that's all from a distance. This is a novel that brings them into the main focus, and not just on a personal level with Sarah but on a species level as Sarah is forced to come face to face with others of her species.

This isn't quite McGuire at her best, but it isn't far off. I really appreciated the build-up of lore and background to the cuckoo's. It was awesome to have so many of the family together in one place, although some familiar faces were missing. There was certainly threat and tension here a plenty and the ending was an almighty cliffhanger. All in all, an enjoyable and fascinating instalment in the InCrypid journey and it goes without saying that I need to know what happens next.

Another outstanding book in the Seanan McGuire's InCryptid series.

For the first time, the viewpoint changes to an actual InCryptid. The main character of this book is Sarah Zellaby. Sarah is a member of an amoral aggressively predator species from another dimension that evolved from wasp-like creatures who have nearly irresistible psychological control over anyone around them. Most of her species are a seriously scary risk to everyone around them. However, due to rare circumstances, Sarah is a very unusual exception. She is an adopted full member of the cryptozoologist Price clan. Although she may not have innate human ethics and responses, she tries very hard to do the right thing, and her responses are quite human as she progresses along the path to healing from an encounter with the aggressively anti-InCryptid and all too human "Covenant of Saint George".

As expected, Sarah's plans are quickly overturned by the need to survive against the latest planet-threatening InCryptid calamity. Fortunately, Sarah and her loyal family are there to do their best to save the day. This is an excellent and most enjoyable book.

I thank the publisher and author for kindly providing a review copy of this work.