Atonement Sky
Author: Nalini Singh
Reviewer: Jen
Rating: A
What I’m Talking About:
Adam and Eleri briefly met ten years prior when she was a young J-Psy working on a case involving the murder of Adam’s parents. The case didn’t go well and each went their own way, but never forgot the other because both recognized they had a special connection. Now Eleri is investigating a serial killer who lives and works among the WindHaven changelings where Adam is the Wing Leader.
I absolutely enjoyed Atonement Sky! This is a new focus for the series – an avian shifter. We’ve seen them before but never been among their folds. Singh provides perfectly fitting descriptors and visuals to describe the falcon-shifter’s actions and thoughts. It’s the small word choices that make the difference and create important distinctions between the WindHaven raptors and other shifter groups like DarkRiver and SnowDancer.
While the overall series story arc regarding the collapse of the PsyNet is an exciting and important plotline, I relished the change in focus in Atonement Sky. I loved the standalone romance that returned the Psy Changeling series to its roots – tracking down a dangerous predator hiding among the innocent.
The hunt for the killer was exciting without getting out of control. It made my heart race, but didn’t overwhelm me. I loved the balance between the case and the romance. I love that Eleri trusts Adam completely and will not lie to him. I love that they hunt for the killer together.
What makes their relationship special is that both knew what they were to one another when they first met. It broke my heart that a younger Adam, devastated by the injustice of his parents’ murder trial, realized he was going to have to live a solitary life without his mate, blaming Eleri for not standing up to protect him. But then as he gets to know her as an adult, realizes he didn’t protect her. He’s a leader without being an alpha-hole. He’s protective but gentle.
I also love that after the villain was apprehended, there is still the race against time to save Eleri, Bram, and the other Js. It’s a great project that has different races and people work together to meld science and technology in an effort to protect the Js, creating something that will make a difference across the globe.
Overall, Atonement Sky is probably one of my top 5 in the overall Psy Changeling universe. The characters are interesting, driven, kind, and willing to put it on the line to help the other and make a difference. The story kept me engaged from beginning to end.
My Rating: A
Jen
About the Book:
Justice-Psy Eleri Dias knows the end is near for her, her mind one step away from fatal psychic exposure. In the short time that remains, she is determined to atone for an act of omission that has haunted her for a long, cruel decade. But that decision not only means facing a powerful changeling wing leader, but also putting herself in the path of a serial killer.
Falcon wing leader Adam Garrett is fiercely protective of his family and his clan. After losing his parents as a teenager in a shocking act of malice, Adam has no forgiveness in him for the J-Psy who betrayed him, betrayed them, at the most painful moment of his life. But the evil that stalks his territory will allow him no respite, forcing him once more into contact with the J he has never been able to forget.
Everything that could’ve been between Eleri and Adam was lost years ago, a shimmering promise crushed. As they work to uncover a monster, the moment of reckoning looms ever closer. Soon, there may be no more time left for either atonement…or love…
Release Date: July 15, 2025
Publisher: Berkley
Series: Psy-Changeling Trinity #9; Psy-Changeling #24
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Format(s): hardcover (400 pages), e-book, audiobook
Book Source: Publisher/NetGalley
Reviews in the Series:
Psy-Changeling series