And You Thought Your Family Was Bad at Sharing Information

This novel is pretty far into the Ocotober Daye series so spoilers abound for the previous novels.  If you have finished Kate Daniels and need a new fix, I definitely recommend this series, just give it two or three books to find its groove (basically seems like a standard warning for urban fantasy at this point).

One thing I appreciate about the October Daye novels is that Seanan McGuire tends to make her characters have to deal with the aftermath of events.  After Toby’s mom held Tybalt and Jasmine hostage to make Toby find her sister August, both of them are dealing with the aftereffects of being forced to stay in their animal forms longer than they wished.  After years of suave control and ruling as king, it is especially messing with Tybalt and how he sees himself, and as a result, affects his relationship with his fiance, Toby.

This is why Toby faces many of the challenges without her usually reliable beau (actually between Tybalt being hit with elf shot two novels ago and trapped in a cage last novel, we have been getting shorted on Tybalt time in these novels).  Fortunately, she still has a strong support system because this novel brings back a plot line I thought had been resolved in a previous novel. Toby’s daughter has gone missing. Last time her daughter was kidnapped, Toby saved her but also had to completely give her up after her daughter chose her human side.  Her ex first accuses Toby of being involved in the disappearance before finally relenting and asking her for help.

Toby quickly puts together some clues but the gang is also being led on a bit of a goose chase.  My favorite part about McGuire’s novels tends to be all the detail and connections, and this is yet another novel that seems to completely change Toby’s perspectives while revealing some more ancient family history.  No one in Fae can just come out and explain everything to Toby which is why she is constantly being surprised by discovering old connections. As the reader, these are usually intriguing, and it’s definitely the case in this one as we learn more about Toby’s mother and background.  Between August’s quest for the road to Oberon, some revelations about Oberon and Maeve in this one, and some other small hints throughout the series, I can’t help but feel that a much larger challenge is looming in the not too far future. I don’t think it will be in the next novel, but I expect Oberon to make an appearance in this series sooner rather than later the way things are going.