Much like the previous two books, this was another solid urban fantasy with, well, just good everything! Good plot. Good characters. Good relationships. Good writing.

This time the plot revolved around the fae and their mythology, so the characters were dealing with fae immortals/gods, traveling to the Faery realm, etc. The plot was kind of interlinked with the plot about Patrick and the others having to find and retrieve the Morrigan Staff that was stolen, but that, although it played a part in the story, wasn’t resolved quite yet. I do get a little confused in these books because the plots can get a bit complicated, and there’s a lot to keep track of, what with all the different supernatural groups and packs and government agencies and military branches, but I’m always able to understand the important stuff.

The characters are a lovable bunch. Patrick is kind of emotionally damaged from his messed up family, things that were done to him, and his time in the war, but he’s been healing, seeing a therapist regularly, and learning to trust Jono. Jono is a good guy, a little quick to have a temper, but only because he wants to protect people he cares about or considers deserving of protection. Wade, the teenage dragon who came into the story sometime in the previous book, was a fun addition to the group; he’s kind of like a son to Patrick and Jono and Sage and Marek, they look out for him, but he wants to have their backs too, even if he is generally quite sidetracked by wanting snacks. The other characters are good too. There were even some new characters (or maybe just ones I forgot) from Patrick’s military team that we got to know a bit, and I liked seeing Patrick’s friendship and ease with them.

The relationship between Jono and Patrick was yet again sweet. I love Jono’s patience, how much he really does care about Patrick, and how much he wants to be there for him, help him heal, and show him that he’s not going to leave.

There was a cute found family element to this book too, what with the relationship between Patrick and Jono, and their little pack, and their friends, and the people they consider to be like family to them. And the whole Christmas scene at the end was so cute and heartwarming.

Actually, I feel like this book in general had less harshness than the others and more sweetness.

The audiobook narration by Gary Furlong was good, though I have heard better from him. His narration just sounded kind of flat and never changed to match the intensity or pace or emotion of the scene, at least not that I remember. The dialogue was more natural with more emotion though. Voices for characters weren’t super different, but they had different pitches and accents. It’s always especially easy to tell when it’s Jono talking since he has a British accent, and some of the side characters this time had Irish accents. I would recommend the audiobook, despite the mild flatness.

Overall, I enjoyed my time with Patrick and Jono and their pack yet again, they’re a lovable group, and I look forward to reading more about them.