by Nalini Singh
Part of Psy-Changeling, book 5
First published 2008
Ashaya Aleine creates neural implants for the Psy Council while secretly fighting to protect her son from the cold brutality of the PsyNet. The Council forces her to develop technology that will enslave her entire psychically gifted race. When she finally breaks free, she runs straight into the scope of DarkRiver sniper Dorian Christensen. Dorian carries the rage of his leopard changeling side and burns for revenge against the Psy who killed his sister. He cannot shift like other changelings, but his inner leopard thirsts for Psy blood. The Council assigns him to guard Ashaya and her son, creating an impossible situation. She represents everything he hates about her emotionless race. He embodies the violent changelings she has been taught to fear. Yet protection duties force them together as the Council closes in. Ashaya must choose between the safety of hiding her emotions and the risk of feeling again. Dorian faces his own choice between the comfort of hatred and the dangerous pull of unexpected desire.
Genres: science-fiction, romance, suspense, thriller
Vibes: emotional, intimate, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, forced-proximity
Setting: PsyNet, DarkRiver
330 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Berkley Sensation
Content warnings: violence