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Title | Cast in Shadow
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Author | Michelle Sagara
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Cover Art | ---
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Publisher | Luna - 2005
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First Printing | Luna - 2005
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Printing Status | Available
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Title | Cast in Courtlight
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Author | Michelle Sagara
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Cover Art | ---
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Publisher | Luna - 2008
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First Printing | Luna - 2006
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Printing Status | Available
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Title | Cast in Secret
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Author | Michelle Sagara
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Cover Art | ---
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Publisher | Luna - 2008
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First Printing | Luna - 2007
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Printing Status | Available
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Title | Cast in Fury
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Author | Michelle Sagara
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Cover Art | ---
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Publisher | Luna - 2008
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First Printing | Luna - 2008
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Printing Status | Available
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Title | Cast in Silence
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Author | Michelle Sagara
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Cover Art | ---
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Publisher | ---
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First Printing | ---
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Printing Status | Available
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Title | Cast in Fury
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Author | Michelle Sagara
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Cover Art | ---
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Publisher | ---
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First Printing | ---
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Printing Status | Available
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Title | Cast in Moonlight
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Author | Michelle Sagara
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Cover Art | ---
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Publisher | ---
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First Printing | ---
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Printing Status | Available
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Category | Fantasy
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Warnings | None
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Main Characters | Kaylin Neya, Severn, Tiamaris, Sanabalis, Nightshade, Lord Grammarye, Marcus, Teela, Tain, Ybelline
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Main Elements | Magic, dragons
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Website | Sagara's Livejournal
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 Cast in Shadow
Seven years ago Kaylin fled the crime-riddled streets of Nightshade, knowing that something was after her. Children were being murdered - and all had the same odd markings that mysteriously appeared on her own skin...
Since then, she's learned to read, she's learned to fight and she's become one of the vaunted Hawks who patrol and police the City of Elantra. Alongside the winged Aerians and the immortal Barrani, she's made a place for herself, far from the mean streets of her birth.
But children are once again dying, and a dark and familiar pattern is emerging. Kaylin is ordered back into Nightshade with a partner she knows she can't trust, a Dragon lord for a companion and a device to contain her powers - powers that no other human has. Her task is simple - find the killer, stop the murders...and survive the attention of those who claim to be her allies!
Cast in Courtlight
In Elantra, a job well done is rewarded with a more dangerous task. So after defeating a dark evil, Kaylin Neya goes before the Barrani High Court, where a mispoken word brings sure death. Kaylin's never been known for her grace or manners, but the High Lord's heir is suspiciously ill, and Kaylin's healing magic is the only shot at saving him - if she can dedge the traps laid for her...
Cast in Secret
Stolen goods were so much easier...
Still avoiding magic whenever possible, Private Kaylin Neya relished investigating a run-of-the-mill theft. Until she found out the mysterious stolen box had been taken from Elani Street, where the mages and charlatans mingled, and it was sometimes hard to tell the difference between the two. And since the box was ancient, without a keyhole, and held tremendous darkness inside, Kaylin knew unknown forces were again playing with her destiny - and her life...
Cast in Fury
To be or not to be...
When a minority race of telepaths is suspected of causing a near-devastating tidal wave, Private Kaylin Neya is summoned to Court - and into a PR nightmare. To ease racial tensions, the emperor has commissioned a play, and the playwright has his own ideas about who should be the focus...
But Kaylin works her best magic behind the scenes, and though she tries to stay neutral, she is again drawn into a world of politics...and murder. To make matters worse, Marcus, her trusted sergeant, gets stripped of his command, leaving Kaylin vulnerable. Now she's juggling two troubling cases, and even magic's looking good by comparison. But then nobody ever said life in the theater was easy...
A coworker thought I would like this book so I gave it a go. She was right, I enjoyed it a lot.
Now Luna is a trademark of Harlequinn, a fantasy/romance division of the larger romance publisher, so when I started reading it I kind of expected a lot of smooching, or at least people with grandiose names that keep making googly eyes at each other.
But it wasn't like that. It wasn't like that at all.
The book is actually quite dark, and very, very complex. But with enough moments of humour to lighten the mood. And there was nothing even resembling romance, except a couple of scenes where some male character gently brushes Kaylin's cheek with a finger, or takes her into his arms. And it was clearly noted that most of the men have big, broad, strong chests. But aside from those handful of romance throwbacks, this was pure fantasy.
Kaylin lives in a world inhabited by several different species. Like the winged Aerians, the lion-like Leontines, the immortal Barrani, the telepathic Tha'alani, the ruling Dragons, and of course Humans like Kaylin and Severn. One of the fascinating parts of the book was the interaction between all the species. Each with their unique characteristics, personalities, cultures and ulterior motives, it's a wonder they can all stand to be around each other. A complex dance not to step on anyone's toes, to unintentionally insult someone. They all speak different languages, and though they are mostly under the control of the Lords of Law, they all have their own rules.
One thing I found disconcerting was Sagara's writing style. Her grammar wasn't fluid, and sometimes I had to read some passages a couple times to figure out who was speaking when until I started paying a lot of attention to closing quote marks. Several reviews on the web have complained about this, while my coworker seemed to enjoy her writing style. I guess to each their own.
And if you're into instant gratification and can't stand not knowing what is going on, don't read this book. Kaylin is at the center of everything, but no one will tell her anything. And I mean these are things that her life depends upon knowing and her friends won't say a word. Granted, sometimes all they had were theories, but the Barani mark? Man, I would have strangled my "friends" for keeping everything a secret from me. I don't know how Kaylin could stand it. But then she grew up on the streets of a difficult world, where it was probably best if you didn't know much of what was going on around you. And no, you don't get everything all neatly wrapped up by the end of the book. There are lots of loose threads to carry over to the next. Again, other reviews have complained about this, but I think it is part of the appeal, the not know how the world works and learning as you go along. It can bore you to bits if the narrator just suddenly stops and starts rambling off on how the world works. Imagine someone walking up to you on the street and explaining why the sky is blue. It is actually a fine line authors must work to explain the context without sounding like they're doing it.
And yes, I intend to chase down those loose threads. I've been told each books centers around one of the races, and I look forward to learning more about the diverse beings of the world of Elantra.
September 2009
Alright, I've read two more of the books, and yes, each one focuses on a different race. I'm really starting to love these complex novels. I will admit I spend most of my time going, "huh?" but in a kind of way that just makes me want to understand more rather than give up and throw the book out the window. I don't doubt Sagara knows exactly what she means when she talks about the "essence" of an element, or the machinations of the Barrani. Unfortunately these concepts are not really things that can be put into words, so you end up feeling like you should understand the deeper meaning of things, yet they still elude you. Kaylin may be human, but many of those she deals with are not, and Sagara refreshingly keeps these others "alien". Meaning they aren't just humans with claws or fur, they really are a different species and view the world in ways we don't understand.
On the other hand, the more you read, the more you do understand about the other races, magic, and the world they live in. While she leaves you dangling in each book, the one that follows usually ties up something that the first had started, in the meantime spawning a few new questions to carry over. And because of this I suggest not leaving too big a gap between books when reading them, or else you'll forget those details you may need in the future.
I will say this though, three books in and STILL no one wants to tell her anything. Of course, that is partly because they know she wouldn't remember it anyway, and if she did, then she'd probably find the most inconvenient moment to give away the secret she was supposed to keep to herself. And that's not something you want to do if you don't want to be eaten by the Emperor...
And as to the writing style, either I've gotten used to it, or it's not as choppy and confusing as it was before. Or maybe I just know the characters so well now that I don't have trouble figuring out who must be saying what.
June 2011
Well, I waited and waited for the the paperback versions to come out, but looks like I'm stuck with the trade paperbacks since I couldn't wait longer to return to Elantra. It's a complex storyline and I didn't want to forget everything that came before. It starts off, well, normal for once. And I began to worry there wouldn't be any of that trademark mind-bending weirdness about truth and the nature of the world. But Sagara didn't disappoint. I was never much interested in the Leontines before, but now I find them downright fascinating. This author has a way of creating complex cultures, from the very basic homelife and family interactions right up to the top political leaders. As usual I walked away not quite sure what exactly happened, but still eager to read the next book!
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