REVIEW: Archangel’s Lineage by Nalini Singh

In Archangel’s Lineage by Nalini Singh, The Refuge is the one place on earth that Raphael and the other Archangel’s know to be a safe haven, fully protected against outsiders. And rightly so, considering it is where their (mostly) defenseless young as well as their full historical records live. But an earthquake changes everything. It rattles not only the Refuge itself, but their faith in the peace they thought they finally had in their world. And when other natural disasters begin to happen around the globe, Raphael and the other Archangels know they will need to come together as the Cadre and once more–post Cascade–put aside their differing opinions in order to save their world.

‘She’d seen areas flooding beneath them, homes being swept away, mountains crumbling in slides of mud and stone, and the landscape blurring as the earth shook again and again.
The world was falling.’

At the same time, unfortunately, Elena is notified that her father has had a massive heart attack. And it doesn’t look good. Knowing her Archangel will be away saving the world, she endeavors to handle her family situation on her own. Not an easy task while worrying about Raphael, the state of the Refuge, and wondering if she’ll have time to finally talk things out with her estranged father. Being pulled in many directions isn’t anything new for Elena. But as she navigates the many changes and threats against her family as well as humanity itself, she finds herself relying on her bond with Raphael as well as her closest friends in this time of need.

‘However long their eternity lasted, they’d walk through it hand in hand.’

With Nalini Singh’s dazzling descriptions of a world in turmoil, hurtling toward disaster, and the beings who are tasked with saving it at the possible expense of their own lives, ARCHANGEL’S LINEAGE was absolutely breathtaking.

“For the first time in memory, we must consider the security of the Refuge.”

How can anything written by Nalini Singh be anything other than epic, right? ARCHANGEL’S LINEAGE, her latest installment in the Guild Hunter series, was most assuredly epic–as well as thrilling, heartbreaking, tender, and simply amazing. And I found it impressive that at book sixteen she is still building and expanding this world that Raphael, Elena, Caliane, Illium, and the rest of the Archangels, Vampires, Angels, and Humans live in. Not only did we get more information about the legacy of previous Ancients, but we also learned more about the Legion, their creator, and how it all ties into the present day.

Just the fact that it was the Refuge–the place where angelkind’s youngest live so they can be protected while learning and growing–that was at risk of falling was more than troublesome, it was downright horrific. The earthquakes and other disasters both at the Refuge and around the globe was what let Raphael and the other Archangels know things were amiss. It was quite something to see them all work together for a common cause. Especially since the Cascade war was over. (This is set roughly about ten years after the war ended) Without giving spoilers, the Cadre *did* come together without much infighting to resolve the issue…possibly with the help of one or more Angels who were in their Sleep.

What they all learned explained what exactly protected the Refuge and the world itself. Something that it feels like the series has been leading up to since the beginning–which has me wondering if Singh always knew this event would happen? Either way, Raphael and Elena secured their bond even further while searching for answers and while she was engulfed in the fear that she’d lose her father after his heart attack. I think readers will be wowed by how Elena’s part of the storyline unfolded. It was a very emotional thread in an already deeply emotional book, but it was on-point with how Singh draws her readers in every single time.

QOTD: Have you read the Guild Hunter series yet? If so, do you have a favorite character or couple?

Book Info:

Publication: Published: April 23rd, 2024 | Berkley | Guild Hunter #16

New York Times bestselling author Nalini Singh’s dangerous and beautiful world of archangels, vampires, and mortals has never faced a threat this cataclysmic…

Raphael and Elena are experiencing their first ever year of true peace. No war. No horrors of archangelic power. No nightmares given flesh. Until…the earth beneath the Refuge begins to tremble, endangering not only angelkind’s precious and fragile young, but the very place that has held their most innocent safe for eons.

Amid the chaos, Elena’s father suffers a violent heart attack that threatens to extinguish their last chance to heal the bonds between them and make sense of the ruins of their agonizing shared history.

Even as Elena battles grief, Raphael is torn from her side by the sudden disappearance of an archangel. But worse yet is to come. An Ancestor, an angel unlike any other, stirs from his Sleep to warn the Cadre of a darkness so terrible that it causes empires to fall and civilizations to vanish.

This time, even the Cadre itself may not be able to stop a ticking clock that is counting down at frightening speed…