Book Review: Tangle of Need by Nalini Singh

Tangle of Need
Author: Nalini Singh
Publication: Berkley Hardcover (May 29, 2012)

Description: Adria, wolf changeling and resilient soldier, has made a break with the past--one as unpredictable in love as it was in war. Now comes a new territory, and a devastating new complication: Riaz, a SnowDancer lieutenant already sworn to a desperate woman who belongs to another.

For Riaz, the primal attraction he feels for Adria is a staggering betrayal. For Adria, his dangerous lone-wolf appeal is beyond sexual. It consumes her. It terrifies her. It threatens to undermine everything she has built of her new life. But fighting their wild compulsion toward one another proves a losing battle.

Their coming together is an inferno...and a melding of two wounded souls who promise each other no commitment, no ties, no bonds. Only pleasure. Too late, they realize that they have more to lose than they ever imagined. Drawn into a cataclysmic Psy war that may alter the fate of the world itself, they must make a decision that might just break them both.

My Thoughts: This eleventh entry into the Psy-Changeling series surprised me. As this one focuses on changelings I was expecting a romance where the two people were destined to be mates as has happened in other entries. Riaz, SnowDancer lieutenant and lone wolf, met his mate only to find out that she was already in love with and married to a human. This really rocked his world and left him running back to the Pack for comfort and thinking that he could never love because his mate was unavailable.

Adria was another SnowDancer wolf who had problems of her own. She just ended a relationship that fell about because she was a more dominant wolf than her partner. The relationship had become very painful for both of them. Adria especially feared that she would have the same problem in any future relationship - love turning to resentment.

Adria has an instant aversion to Riaz when they meet which Riaz sees as a challenge. They gradually build a relationship but it is filled with torment for both of them with Riaz feeling he is betraying his mate and Adria only wanting to accept a man who will love her totally.

We also see Sienna and Hawke deepen their relationship after their mating and learn to compromise with each other. Compromise is not usually a word in an alpha werewolf's vocabulary but he is willing to try for Sienna. It helps that Sienna is an extremly strong Psy with a very dangerous and unusual talent.

And, in the background to these romances, the Psy world is being shaken up and is on the verge of a Civil War that will cause thousands of deaths among the Psy and the humans.

This was another great episode in this long running series. Being a fan of the series, I can't judge how well the book would stand alone but my opinion is that a new reader would be lost regarding anything but the main romance. Of course, my suggestions is to read the rest of the series. All of the books are filled with wonderful romances between strong people.

Favorite Quote:

It hadn't escaped her notice that the two had sandwiched her between them the entire time they'd been together. Her wolf was irritated, its hackles raised. She wasn't a pup to be protected, but a senior soldier, well able to get herself out of trouble. "Do you think Hawke will want the information circulated throughout the pack?" she asked, fighting the urge to snarl. It would be like trying to explain trigonometry to someone who'd never seen a math book. The words just would not compute in their testosterone-laden male brains.

I bought this one because I am a big fan of the series. You can buy your copy here.