Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #9490 in Books
• Published on: 2006-07-01
• Formats: Abridged, Audiobook, Box set, Illustrated, Large Print
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 512 pages

Customer Reviews

great!
I have had this book on my tbr shelf for over 18 months, I thought it was about time it got read. I don't know why I hadn't picked it up sooner, what a great book. The plot was intriguing and I want MORE! Cast in Courtlight is on my wanted list and can't wait to learn more about Kaylin.

'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 attentions of those who claim to be her allies! '

Decent Concept, but in need of a good editor.
The characters in this book are interesting, the plot line is a fairly decent one and the author manages to create a fairly interesting world. And that's pretty much where the plus points end on this.
For one, the book is pretty badly written and in need of a good edit. As a reader, I should not have to reconstruct sentences within a book just to make sense of it. There are spelling mistakes and bad phrasing pretty much all the way through. Its difficult to understand what on earth is going on for most of the story as the author forgets that her world needs to be explained, causing confusion and several rereads of paragraphs just to try and understand what on earth is going on!
As well as this, the characters are shallow and don't seem to have much of a personality about them, with the exception of a few plot points. There is an entirely pointless part in the castle that I can imagine taking a while to act out, that occurs when the character is desperately searching for something on a TIME LIMIT. It makes very little sense and shows that the author is clearly not focused on her story.
Over all, I think this had veins of a good book in it, it just isn't ready to be published yet, another rewrite is in desperate need for this novel, which is a such a shame!

really good
Michelle Sagara is always good to read and I have very much enjoyed the Elantra books. This was a good edition to the series and I am eagerly awaiting the next book. It will be interesting to see how the relationship between the heroine and Nightshade developes.

Ps her quartet starting with Into the Dark Lands is just brilliant.