Kindred: The Shadow's of Night
by Ellen Fisher
ISBN: 1-59998-016-9
Published By: Samhain Publishing
Review Date: 14 Jun 2006
Reviewed by TeeBee
In the distant future, a planet is settled by humans and their livestock. They evolve and merge, and the human race is divided into three shape-shifting races, or Kindred; Claws (big cats), Fangs (wolves) and Antlers (deer).
One day, the Fangs make the mistake of attacking beautiful claw-girl, Katara, leaving her dead in the forest only to be found and brought to safety by Antler-man, Hart. He convinces his family to let her stay. Both are fiercely attracted to each other, and while their differences set them apart, one thing brings them together - the unprovoked violence of the Fangs.
The writing here is excellent, but I felt there were two conflicting stages on which the story was told. On the one hand, we have the (adult) romance between the two leads, while on the other we have a well-executed, but (in my opinion) young-adult style tale of a population divided into three key character types. It's understandable that the author steered away from the Ark-approach, and only adopted three species for the tale, but still I couldn't help but wish the setting and protagonists had been given a little more depth and complexity.
Observation-wise, the animal behaviours were well described, and the story was, as stated, beautifully written. If you're a fan of shape-shifting tales, this is worth a shot for the writing alone.
You can buy Kindred: The Shadow's of Night from…
Samhain Publishing($4.50)
(prices were checked when the review was first published, and might vary)
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