Voice of Crow

Mystical Native American ambiance blends with epic romantic fantasy as a clash between culture and religion escalates in Smith-Ready's intriguing sequel to Eyes of Crow. The Asermon and Kalindon tribes, guided by the guardian spirits of animals, are at war with the Ilions, who prefer man-made gods. Rhia is a shape-shifter whose guardian spirit, Crow, allows her to listen to the voices of the dead. After her newborn son, Nilik, is stolen by the Ilions, she must use this skill to help find him and his father, Marek, who goes with his son despite knowing he'll be enslaved. Nilik is soon marked for a camp where he and other shapeshifter children are to be used as a magical fighting force against their own people. Smith-Ready's fascinating world is diminished somewhat by her meandering, vanilla prose.