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Last Guard
by
Nalini Singh
paranormal romance in a Kindle edition that was published by Gollancz on July 20, 2021 and has 384 pages.
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Other books by this author which I have reviewed include Must Love Hellhounds, Kiss of Snow, An Enchanted Season, Archangel's Blade, Angels of Darkness, Lord of the Abyss, Desert Warrior, Angels' Flight, Tangle of Need, Play of Passion, Archangel's Storm, Wild Invitation, Heart of Obsidian, Archangel's Legion, "Hide and Seek", "Making Dinner", Shield of Winter, "A Conversation", "Home", Angels' Pawn, "New Year's Kisses", Night Shift, "Weapons Training", "Zoë's Workshop", "Wild Night", Archangel's Shadows, Archangel’s Enigma, Shards of Hope, “Fairy Balloons”, “An Unexpected Guest”, Allegiance of Honor, "The Song of the Wolf", Silver Silence, Archangel’s Heart, Archangel’s Viper, Ocean Light, "Elena's School of Horror", Cherish Hard, "Ain’t No Party Like A Bear Party", Archangel's Prophecy, "One Night At The Refuge", "Secret Things", Rebel Hard, Rock Hard, Wolf Rain, "Clean and Dirty", "Wolf School", "Naya’s Most Important Visitors", "Grocery Shopping", "The Cannibal Princess", "A Gift for Kit", "Movie Night", "Kaleb and Sahara’s Meeting with Sascha and Lucas", "Housewarming at the Orchard", "Christmas in the Kitchen", "Stalking Hawke", "Romancing Drew", "Sunday Morning", "Rowan", "Baubles & Ben", Wild Embrace, Love Hard, Rock Addiction, "Music Awards", Rock Courtship, "Rock Courtship Memo"s, Rock Redemption, "Sunshine", Rock Wedding, "With This Memo", "That Lip Ring…", A Madness of Sunshine, "Beary Tiny Ghosts", Alpha Night, "A Wedding Breakfast", "Poker Night", "Knives and Sheaths", "Seedlings", "Star Kissed", "A Walk on the Cliffs", "Wild Cat Blues", Slave to Sensation, Caressed by Ice, Visions of Heat, Kiss Hard, Angels' Blood, Archangel's Kiss, Archangel's War, Archangel's Sun, Archangel's Light, Archangel's Resurrection, “A Perfect Moment”, "Music in the Rain", Storm Echo, Resonance Surge, "Mate", “New Year’s Eve”, Archangel's Lineage, Visions of Heat, Mine to Possess, Hostage to Pleasure, Branded by Fire, Blaze of Memory
Fifth in the Psy-Changeling: Trinity series (and twentieth in the Psy-Changeling Universe) revolving around a world consisting of humans, shapeshifters, and Psy. The couple focus is on Canto Mercant and Payal Rao. If you’re interested, there is a chronological listing of the Psy-Changeling books on my website.
My Take
Last Guard introduces Designation A and their push into visible Psy life through third person global subjective point-of-view, from the perspective of a number of characters — not just the main ones. Singh does flip back and forth in time as Canto and Payal remember their pasts. It’s not that hard to figure out where you are.
Ah geez. Rao’s family is a nightmare, especially her father! There is no warmth, love, or support in this family. Everyone, and I mean everyone, is out for themselves — watch out for the knife in your back. Payal has her own apartment and office specially secured against her family. She’d like to live through the night. I do like her strength!
Pranath takes and gives, playing his children against each other. It seems as if most of these Psy families are too obsessed with their idea of perfect. The imperfect aren’t allowed to survive. I guess it’s easier when you’re Silent. This guy . . . man, he’s so typical of so many Psy without emotion, love, or pride in their progeny. It’s so easy to see why Canto and Payal have such horrid self-esteem issues. Jesus. What’s amazing is that neither of them pass their issues on to others. Just consider Nikhil.
The Mercants (and the changelings) are such a tremendous contrast to the Raos. Oy. For such a “silent” family, they’re warm, supportive, and care for children. It cracks me up when Ena claims Canto is spending too much time with the bears, and those interludes where the bears “invade” Canto’s lair . . . we need another bear story. Okay, okay, I need . . . Kaleb has also changed for the better, and he reflects quite a bit on Sahara’s influence on him. There’s also an emphasis on the difference between Canto’s father and family and the Mercants. It does show a range of possibilities.
Reading about that school . . . I wanna go there and shoot them! How can they do this to children!?! As for the idea of a contract about children, babies, ick. It’s all that lack of emotion. A world I can’t imagine. No flavor in food. No chocolate!!
The Psy have forgotten much of their past history, and it may doom them now. They have made judgments without really understanding. They have forgotten the whys and the whos of their own. Fortunately, they slowly begin to piece together why there are so few As, how the disintegration of the PsyNet contributed. They’re lucky to have Ager (whom Singh presents as both a single person and a a multiple, it’s very confusing) who remembers a heckuva lot about the past, pulling up nuggets that reveal how events affected the As and how those reasons got twisted and/or forgotten. Ager also provides a why about why Silence was embraced, even though time has not proved it out. I’m curious if Singh will explore what set off the earlier generation before Silence further.
”Empaths. Once they decided you were one of their people, it was like trying to shake off a tick.”
We discover who the Architect is!! In past stories, the Architect has been nuts, but really goes megalomaniacal in Last Guard.
Ya gotta love the bears! They accept fairly easily and life is a par-tay! That Valentin has quite the ego and encompasses the Mercants into his pack. Ena even has an apartment at Denhome. Lol, “bears seem to find using Canto’s front door optional.” I think I need to go back and re-read Silver and Valentin’s story . . . if only for the laughs.
Singh continues to tease us with the possibility of Nikita’s and Anthony’s private relationship.
Payal has an idea that may well explain why too many Psy children were destroyed.
Emotions may be a challenge for some Psy, but I think the Mercants got it beat. Canto certainly hasn’t been Silent and his exposure to the bears has really helped him emotionally. He’s also getting some very good sexual advice, lol. Including that it is wise to have a lot of practice. Hmmm . . . The Manual is still making its rounds, lol. After that interview Payal gives the PsyNet Beacon, I gotta say Canto was right about her: She’s perfect as she spreads the credit.
I love it: Payal is told that “the most admired people in human and changeling societies are the ones who walk to the beat of their own drummer”. That it’s okay to be different. YES!
It’s mostly character-driven but there is still plenty of action at a mostly fast pace. Payal made a good point about kintsugi, mending cracks making the artifact more beautiful — it sums up what Last Guard is about.
Oh, yes, that ending is brilliant. And so wonderful that Payal recognizes its value.
Uh-oh, maybe I spoke too soon, for Singh has introduced what may be a new “character”, and I’m dying to know how it will play out!
The Story
The PsyNet is dying and a long-forgotten Psy designation is rousing from its lethargy, recognizing their own importance to the survival of the Psy. Only there’re too few and some too old.
Canto Mercant has recognized the need to gather other hub-anchors, other Designation As to present their visualization of the PsyNet. To save their people.
The Characters
Payal Rao, a Psy cardinal teleport-capable telekinetic and a designation A, a hub-anchor, is the CEO of the Rao Conglomerate in Delhi, India. The psychopathic Lalit is her next eldest sibling. And why she was so wild and enraged as a child. Pranath Rao is her despotic, controlled psychopathic father, who’s all about appearances. *snicker* Karishma is her younger sister, an artist. Visha Ramachandran is Karishma’s companion, the maid Payal rescued from Lalit. Miss Almeida is Karishma’s favorite teacher. Vara is their home in Old Delhi, a mahal of beauty. Her grandfather, uncle, and Varun (her eldest sibling) are dead and forgotten. Dealt with.
Ruhi is Payal’s assistant. Sunita is Canto’s spy inside the Rao Conglomerate. Nikhil Varma is a cleaner of chemical and medical waste at Raja MedChem.
Canto Mercant, a Designation A of Mercant Corp, is in a wheelchair and brilliant with computers, running Mercant intelligence — the Mercants cherish each member of their family. They’re known for their network of spies. They can find anything. Ena Mercant is his grandmother (the tiny gangsters call Ena “Babushka Ena”) and the head of the Mercants. Sea House is her primary and secret residence. Magadalene, a researcher, is Canto’s guilt-stricken mother. Silver “Starlight” or “Siva” Mercant is Ena’s heir, the director of EmNet (the Worldwide Emergency Response Network), and is mated to Valentin Nikolaev (Silver Silence, 1 (16)), the bear alpha of the StoneWater bear pack in Russia. Arwen is an empath who offers himself to everyone, a healer. He’s dating Pavel Stepyrev, a.k.a. Pasha, a bear shifter, who is StoneWater’s tech specialist. Cousin Ivan is in charge of security and beset by his own demons. Genara is a new member of the Mercant family and a teleporter. Adina Mercant had been a poet back in the 1800s. Lord Deryn Mercant lived in the early 1500s. Harissa Mercant, 1947, states that “To forget our history is to forget ourselves”. A statement with which I heartily agree.
Magdalene Mercant entered into a fertilization and conception contract with Binh Fernandez in 2044. Danilo Fernandez is the CEO of the Fernandez Family Group in Manila.
Other anchors include Bjorn Thorsen (the only non-cardinal), a math professor in California (Tangle of Need, 11); Suriana Wirra; the angry Arran Gabriel, another teleport-capable telekinetic, is a mercenary; the ancient Ager Lii who is somehow a dual person; Chandika Das; Prabhyx; Shanta; Virat; and, Pallavi. The job of the As is the health of the PsyNet.
The Psy Council has been replaced by the Ruling Coalition, which still includes Nikita Duncan, who can infect with her mind; Anthony Kyriakos of the NightStar Clan; Kaleb Krychek, a dual Cardinal Tk, a teleport-capable telekinetic and is married to Sahara Kyriakus (Heart of Obsidian, 12); Aden Kai; and, Ivy Jane Zen. Dr Maia Ndiaye is with PsyMed SF Echo. Project Sentinel is their intended experiment to save the PsyNet. Jin Verkamp-Jeong is the Coalition’s media liaison. The Trinity Accord is an organization that represents Psy, changelings, and humans.
Sophia Russo is a former PsyJustice, a J, and is a minor anchor in San Francisco. Now she’s Nikita’s special advisor and married to the human Max Shannon, a former Enforcement agent, with his blessed natural shields (Bonds of Justice, 8). River is Max’s no-longer-lost brother (“Sunday Morning“, 11.9).
The envious Gia Khan had been a candidate for the Council. In 2016, Neiza Adelaja Defoe had been a Council member. Faith NightStar is a cardinal foreseer for the NightStar Clan and married to Vaughan of DarkRiver (Visions of Heat, 2). Dr Farukh Duvall treats childhood trauma. Coco Ramirez is a journalist with the PsyNet Beacon. Arnaud Smith, Carrie O’Brien, Lin Wong, and Bilar Baramichai are missing J-Psys. Cèlian, a Sensitive and friend of Sophia’s, is a J-Psy on the edge.
The PsyNet is a psychic network that is both an “encyclopedia” of all Psy knowledge and links them, keeping the Psy, humans who evolved into psychically gifted people who saw themselves as superior to everyone, sane. Now the PsyNet is self-destructing. It had split into the DarkMind and the NetMind, a neosentient guardian and librarian of the dying PsyNet and then regrouped. In the Trinity subseries, the Psy are trying to save the PsyNet. Now there’s the Substrate, the foundation of the PsyNet that only As can see.
The Silence Protocol, created by Catherine and Arif Adelaja, was intended to save the Psy, instead it doomed too many, bringing out the sociopaths and psychopaths, although it did hold the lethal Scarab Syndrome at bay. Patient Zero was the first to be recognized with it. Santano Enrique had been one of the worst (Slave to Sensation). The Pure Psy are a group who violently refuse to allow Silence to fall.
The Empathic Collective is an E-Psy union for E-Psy empaths, that will look out for their membership and is led by Ivy Jane Zen (Shield of Winter, 13). The Honeycomb Protocol is their contribution to protecting people. Jaya Laila Storm writes a column for the PsyNet Beacon, and she’s bonded with Abbot of the Arrows (Wolf Rain, 18). Ruslan.
The Arrows had been the black ops of the the Council. They broke away and are now led by Aden Kai who is with Zaira (Shards of Hope, 14).
The Forgotten are those Psy who didn’t agree with Silence. Their leader is Devraj Santos (Blaze of Memory, 7). Payal is a very distant cousin of his.
The Changelings
Bears, wolves, and leopards, oh my! Others in the StoneWater clan include Stasya, who is Valentin’s sister. Chaos, the Kamchatka bear chef, is father to Dima, one of the tiny gangsters, lol. Nova is Dima’s mother. Yakov Stepyrev is Pavel’s twin brother. Yasha is another bear.
DarkRiver is a leopard pack in the San Francisco area led by Lucas Hunter who is mated to Sasha Duncan, a cardinal empath and Nikita’s daughter (Slave to Sensation, 1). Memory Aven-Rose, an aberrant E, is mated to “Lexie” Vasiliev Harte, a wolf changeling in the SnowDancer pack in San Francisco (Wolf Rain, 18). She works with patients suffering from Scarab Syndrome. Ashaya (Hostage to Pleasure, 5) and her psychotic twin sister Amara Aleine are super-brilliant Psy scientists.
The GoldenNight tigers are a changeling pack in Delhi.
The Human Alliance is . . .
. . . a human organization aimed at protecting humans from Psy and led by Bowen Knight (Ocean Light, 2 (17)).
The Consortium is . . .
. . . a shadow organization of Psy, changelings, a Forgotten, and humans intent on destabilizing the world. The Architect is their leader and intends to rule the world, using everyone, Psy, changelings, and humans.
The Jannik-Kao Family Group may do business with Rao Conglomerate. Another test. The Catari Incident is explained. Sigma18 is a shuttered database. The stormy, maddened 3K fought for 7J.
The Cover and Title
The cover overall is a muted pinkish purple with a collage consisting of Vara in the background, Payal standing with a hip cocked on the left, and a partial profile of Canto. All the text is white, starting with an info blurb at the top and the author’s name below it. The title is right-justified starting at Canto’s chin. The series info is at the bottom.
The title is about the anchors, for they are the first and Last Guard of a failing system.
