Well, rightly or wrongly, this series has gotten under my skin - I think I have four or five to go and given how this winter has been lingering, I'll probably finish them all before the snow is gone. I've noticed that most winters I do this, fall for a series, and as long as it has some of the ingredients I like, that does it for me. This latest follows Jay Rockwell's impulsive decision to reveal himself to the Traders, the Eubians, his father's people, as the heir, Jaibriol III, their new emperor, after he thinks his parents have both died. He is a 'provider' - a empath/telepath and a very strong one, a Ruby psion through his mother, Sauscony, in fact, and he has to hide this from the Eubians. What makes this book fun is how long and hard Asaro has thought about the Eubian character. They are essentially sociopathic, they do not feel pain (emotional, not physical) - genetically engineered to be 'perfect' by an earlier and much mistaken Skolian. Over time this characteristic instead of making them formidably logical and rational and 'good' has given rise to a culture where like vampires, the pureblood Eubians prey on strong empaths and telepaths for 'transcendence' - a 'feeling' that fills the void in them where normal emotional responses are lacking. They call these psions, Providers and regard them as having no purpose but to serve their needs. It's quite awful, but also compellingly done - how a culture can develop and then believe in its superiority with absolute blindness to the ethics of their ways. Great lit, of course, it ain't, but winter lasts a long long time here in Vermont, and I really can't be reading, say, Kafka, so I'm happy! Anyhow, Jai falls for Tarquine, who herself is a rare Eubian who has ended up sickened by transcendence. Interestingly, the Eubians who develop a distaste for transcendence also tend to be older and to have their hair turning white (although most would die it black again, some don't) - I just read somewhere that one thing that happens to animals who are domesticated, is that they tend to develop white splotches and patches. Of course, we older folks acquire plenty of white hair too, hopefully along with some wisdom! **** ( )

TBR

This book focuses on the aftermath of Jaibriol's ascension to the throne. I like that it intertwines well with the other books int he Skolian Saga that it overlaps.

I think that I enjoyed this book largely because of the focus on Eubian culture and society and how it is they interact with each other. ( )

This book focuses on the aftermath of Jaibriol's ascension to the throne. I like that it intertwines well with the other books int he Skolian Saga that it overlaps.

I think that I enjoyed this book largely because of the focus on Eubian culture and society and how it is they interact with each other. ( )

I loved the early books in this series and was very disappointed in this one. She revisited old events, and didn't really add much. ( )