day 16 - a rigorous process called Silence

[magisterequitum]

today's topic from streetslkeveins to talk about Nalini Singh's Psy Changeling series. Which you've probably seen me talk about EVERYWHERE by now and might be sick of it. BUT ANYWAY HERE WE ARE. It's been one of my favorite things about 2013, so it's not going anywhere

Comments

[streetslkeveins]

Thank you!! This is a good sales pitch. I kinda stalled out in the middle of the second book (which I don't dislike I'm just still getting used to it I guess), but I'm curious about where it's going and I'm really glad to hear that humans get involved at some point. I always feel like, if you include humans, you need to involve them otherwise why have them around to be "canon lame."

[magisterequitum]

I should drop the law school and just sales pitch books out, lol.

I think books one and two both suffer a bit from the whole setting up the universe type deal? I remember reading them super quick but also feeling like mhmmmm okay about them. It wasn't till book three that I was super hooked.

Humans come in around book five and six. They're the under represented race out of the three, but they're basically fed up with the Psy government and such kicking them around. so they start getting angry.

[tosca1390]

CRIES A LOT ABOUT THIS BOOK SERIES

[magisterequitum]

EVERYTHING IS SO MUCHHHHH. I am glad that you did read them and join in. :)

Everything gets so much better and fuller as she gets better as an author. I like it a lot.

I do love the consent discussions that we get. It's so nice.

But you're good at talking about things, shush.

Yeeees this series

[rosaxx50]

Ok first off, THE TITLE OF YOUR POST \O/

So this series isn't perfect and for sure actually in the first two books there's a bit that makes you go really are we gonna rely on this overly aggressive trope. BUT, as the series progresses, for me, the author gets a lot better and actually consent is talked about a lot and I like that. Actually my biggest issue with the series overall is the lack of non-hetero romantic pairings.

Yes and yes and yes. I'm not always happy with how gender roles work, but that's very much to do with genre--and actually, I think Guild Hunters does pretty well with this IMO, so I'm optimistic with where Nalini Singh's taking this. And also agree especially w/r/t wishing there were non-hetero romances. (Which makes me wonder: within the Changeling packs... how would mating bonds work between a non-het pair? If it's supposed to be a biological imperative?) It took until Kiss of Snow before we were introduced to Ines/Simran, and they got precisely one subtextual scene.

I don't subscribe to the theory at all that

[magisterequitum]

Sorry my default setting is the posts to be locked, but I can unlock it if you want to link it

[rosaxx50]

I can unlock it if you want to link it!
\o/

Lol, I see we are of one mind with books 4 & 7 them because those were the ones that didn't work for me.

Psy think humans are discarded materials essentially. Changelings don't understand them because they operate in a different way. So of course, to them it's pride, because the changelings have operated on pride basis for a long time.

Yeah, precisely! I like that it's more subtle with the Changelings, too. Changelings, as a whole, tend to protect humans and respect them--but the danger for Changelings was the economic squeeze and a broken spirit, so that's what they think about. And oh, just imagine living knowing that your political leaders aren't necessarily liars (unlike most of ours lol) but probably, through no fault of their own, don't have your best interests at heart no matter how much they want it.

[magisterequitum]

Yup. Those two just weren't it for me at all.

And oh, just imagine living knowing that your political leaders aren't necessarily liars (unlike most of ours lol) but probably, through no fault of their own, don't have your best interests at heart no matter how much they want it.

It has to be actually a really terrifying thought. Which further we get the Human Alliance starts out very aggressive and very violent, which is completely understandable and such. So I imagine how scared humans must be. I mean these are people that can take over your mind easily.

[theepiccek]

yessss. this is really excellent.

I also really like the point about the series not being perfect - there are a lot of things I LOVE about the series, but there are also things that don't work for me. But weirdly, in MOST books MOST of the time, the SUPER ALPHA thing doesn't realllly bother me. Or it does, but nowhere near as much as it might in other romance books. I think, because it IS fantasy, I sort of ascribe it to that part of the book, because it doesn't feel like the author is trying to be like "this is how romance should be" which I think a lot of contemp/historical romance authors do?

[magisterequitum]

I agree with you! And I think any long series you get that. Things that are good and things that are just like ehhhh, whatever, but none of it diminishes my love and fun overall? Given that I've written six fics already, I say I'm fully done for lol.

I agree with you also on your fantasy point. I tend to go with it more because of what it is and the way the universe is set.

[katayla]

YES YES YES.

You know, I'm glad you unlocked this post because it's such a great sales pitch and YET. DO I HAVE ANYONE LEFT TO SELL IT TO? ;)

[magisterequitum]

Haha, now it can be if you manage to find someone you've not influenced already ;)