The Siren Depths by Martha Wells (The Books of the Raksura #3)

Genres: High Fantasy, Adventure
My Rating: 4 out of 5

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All his life, Moon roamed the Three Worlds, a solitary wanderer forced to hide his true nature--until he was reunited with his own kind, the Raksura, and found a new life as consort to Jade, sister queen of the Indigo Cloud court.

But now a rival court has laid claim to Moon, and Jade may or may not be willing to fight for him. Beset by doubts, Moon must travel in the company of strangers to a distant realm where he will finally face the forgotten secrets of his past, even as an old enemy returns with a vengeance.

The Fell, a vicious race of shapeshifting predators, menaces groundlings and Raksura alike. Determined to crossbreed with the Raksura for arcane purposes, they are driven by an ancient voice that cries out from... The Siren Depths.

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This was a great way to end this series, and a drastic improvement from book 2, The Serpent Sea. I loved the story in this one because it manged to incorporate a lot of new Raksuran courts and culture, but was also very focused on the Raksuran enemy, the Fell. The sinister villains and the fascinating culture of the Raksuran are two of this series strongest qualities. I loved seeing both the Opal Night and Veridian Sea courts, and how they treated Moon. The interactions are fascinating because they are not human, and even the subtlest body language means something different than it would to us. Its all new and I loved it.

One of the things I found most fascinating was the difference in gender roles. Moon is consort to the Queen and the way he behaves towards her is a way that I would never see a human man behaving towards a woman under any circumstance. On more than one occasion Moon was hurt or weak and Jade carried him. And it just seemed so natural. And the way the men act towards each other as well. They are so affectionate. After Shade faced the Fell progenitor he cried himself to sleep in Moon's arms. When Moon was sick Stone cradled him in his lap. When Dare was dying Moon held him close to his chest as he took his last breaths. I just thought it was beautiful to see these males unafraid to show each other how much they care.

The final battle sequence was just epic and heart-pounding, and everything comes together in the end for Moon and Jade and the Indigo Cloud court. I find I am even happy for Pearl. I will miss the Raksura.

The Cloud Roads by Martha Wells (The Books of the Raksura #1)

Genres: High Fantasy, Adventure
My Rating: 5 out of 5

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Moon has spent his life hiding what he is — a shape-shifter able to transform himself into a winged creature of flight. An orphan with only vague memories of his own kind, Moon tries to fit in among the tribes of his river valley, with mixed success. Just as Moon is once again cast out by his adopted tribe, he discovers a shape-shifter like himself... someone who seems to know exactly what he is, who promises that Moon will be welcomed into his community. What this stranger doesn't tell Moon is that his presence will tip the balance of power... that his extraordinary lineage is crucial to the colony's survival... and that his people face extinction at the hands of the dreaded Fell! Now Moon must overcome a lifetime of conditioning in order to save and himself... and his newfound kin.

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I was totally blown away by this book! I dont remember how I came across it. I have never read another book by the author, I don't have any friends who have read it. And after discovering it I immediately started reading it, instead of it sitting on my to-read list for years like books usually do. It was so amazing and imaginative!

This is a high fantasy, in a world with no humans that is called Three Worlds. There are several different races of ground dwellers, more than we had time to meet, that are referred to as groundlings. Then there are the air races that are referred to as flyers. There are also water races (making up the Three Worlds), but they had no part in this story and they are called sealings. The main character, Moon, is a flyer. He looks human in one form, but he can shape-shift into a creature that looks like a cross between a gargoyle and an angel. They have dragon-like scales, raptor-like claws, and smell with their mouth like snakes. Moon is an orphan who doesn't know what his species is called, and has not seen another of his kind since his family was killed by wild animals 35 years earlier (his race lives a long time so he is still considered young). He lives with whatever groundling communities will take him in. Until they see him shift and they become terrified and drive him off.

Eventually one of his kind finds him, and asks him to come home with him. Moon agrees and discovers that his people live in a colony with a queen, similar to bees. He also discovers that he is a very rare breed of his people, one who can mate with a queen. The one who found him and brought him home, purposely neglected telling him this, because he feared Moon would refuse.

His people are in the middle of a war with another race of flyers. A race of brutal savages who eat those that they conquer. Moon's people don't openly accept him. Most don't trust him and consider him an outsider. The enemy wants him for their own purposes, and the reigning queen and the young queen are fighting over whose consort he will be. Moon is confused and alone but agrees to stay and help only until the colony can evacuate. Of course fate has other plans.

The story is wonderful, and the world and species so imaginative! I loved it so much. The romance was mild and hardly a romance till closer to the end. Although I am not sure if Jade actually cares about Moon or just desperately wants babies. Being a consort sounded a bit too much like a job. I might find out in the next book. It was very strange to read from the POV of someone who isn't human. I don't think I have ever done that before.

There were a few small things that bugged me. The names of all the characters were so confusing! I had a hard time distinguishing between characters because I couldn't remember all their names. I could remember a few main characters, such as Moon, Stone, Jade, Pearl, and Chime. But then there was River, Root, Song, Sand, and dozens of others. Blah, so confusing! Also I didn't understand how Moon could live among groundlings for 35 years and never have heard a single word about his people. No one seemed to recognize him when they saw him shift. Yet his people couldn't have been far away if he was found completely by chance.

I am not sure if this should be categorized as adult or young adult. Can it be neither? The story isn't particularly heavy. More along the lines of other YA fantasy such as Eragon. The sex was completely washed over, like the scenes in YA. But there were no young characters, and there were a few instances of extreme violence, including several references to rape both heterosexual and homosexual. So use your own discretion.