Paperback: 352 pages

Publisher: Berkley; Original edition (November 2, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0425237796
ISBN-13: 978-0425237793
Book #12 in Psy/Changeling series
Purchase at: Book Depository

Cover Summary:
In his position as tracker for the SnowDancer pack, it’s up to Drew Kincaid to rein in rogue changelings who have lost control of their animal halves—even if it means killing those who have gone too far. But nothing in his life has prepared him for the battle he must now wage to win the heart of a woman who makes his body ignite…and who threatens to enslave his wolf.

Lieutenant Indigo Riviere doesn’t easily allow skin privileges, especially of the sensual kind—and the last person she expects to find herself craving is the most wickedly playful male in the den. Everything she knows tells her to pull back before the flames burn them both to ash…but she hasn’t counted on Drew’s will.

Now, two of SnowDancer’s most stubborn wolves find themselves playing a hot, sexy game even as lethal danger stalks the very place they call home…

My Review - Note: Since this is book twelve you really need to be invested in the Psy/Changeling series to understand the underlying currents with the characters and to see the complete picture. I’m not saying you can't read PLAY OF PASSION as a standalone but as always with a series the reading experience can be so much more rewarding if you’ve read the previous novels.

PLAY OF PASSION is an intense romance alive with fierce possessiveness, wolf pride and mischievous play. This Psy/Changeling story is all about the romance and has a minor but nonetheless important part for the continuance of the overall plot arc. The pace of the story took a notch down with lots of time to meet new and old members of the SnowRiver pack. It gave me a sense of the interconnected relationships, the structure and rules, and it allowed me to feel the bond they share. The banter going back and forth only emphasized on how deeply connected each member of the pack is, from the youngest to the Alpha leader Hawke. It didn’t take long for me to be absorbed by the SnowRiver pack dynamic and the courtship unfolding.

Drew and Indigo have a great combustive energy together. The dominance issues cause for both internal as external struggles that Indigo and Drew have to deal with. Though it isn’t easy on either of them I loved the fact how the SnowRiver pack participates in the courtship of Drew and indigo. Nobody ever said it was easy to become the mate of a SnowRiver lieutenant but Drew is up to the challenge and has plenty of determination to see it happen. Even though Indigo’s wolf has doubts whether the four year younger Drew with an obscure rank can handle all of her. It is their clash of dominance, their erotic synergy, their playful dalliance that created situations which got me from smiling, to laughing and fanning myself a time or two too.

Drew is the Hunter of the pack but where he truly stands in the hierarchy remains a mystery. It is a very steep problems for Indigo to deal with but Drew has some tricks up his sleeve that will get any woman weak in the knees. Some stunts he pulls to prove himself worthy are unadulterated romance yet other stunts backfire, giving him a lesson in what it means to court a dominant she-wolf. Still, Drew is more than cheeky mischief and a charmer, his love runs soul deep and he is giving his all and then some to mate with the woman who claimed him long ago. To see him romance Indigo made him another cherished character within the Psy/Changeling cast.

Indigo, as a SnowRiver luitenant, doesn’t have many males higher up the food chain. To feel an attraction for a younger male with an unknown rank screams trouble for her. Still, she is a woman who is strong, can handle just about anything you throw at her but there is also compassion, combined with the fiery love and loyalty that burns in her heart. She has a few lessons to learn and she becomes a worthy heroine in her successions and her failures.

The interaction between Indigo and Drew is rife with everything they feel. There is playful banter, all-out wolf-to-wolf collisions of dominance and sexy bed-play. The beautiful setting of the woods gave room for their wolf to stretch and let Indigo and Drew connect on that level too. The vibrance of how they experience life, love, sadness, their animal side which is such an integral part of their being, it made their personalities leap of the pages. Their distinctive personalities spiced up the attraction, it fueled the sensuality between them but also the need for a deeper love to finally take those first careful steps to a bond as mates.

As the warmth and the familiarity of the characters and pack enveloped me there were also threats clouding the horizon giving a suspenseful edge to the story. The plot may have a supportive role in this Psy/Changeling episode but it imbues the romance with a mystery to unravel that threatens the pack. There are no big revelations in this story but the small twists and turns are intriguing, it deepens the awareness something cataclysmic is going to happen only from where, who or what is still very much in the grey. Of course I have suspicions like anyone else up to par with this series. Clues are given but Nalini Singh really keeps the reader guessing and ultimately gave a surprise in the ending.

PLAY OF PASSION is a fantastic return to the SnowRiver pack where you’ll meet changelings who are fierce, loyal and lethal yet also love with an unrelenting force that will make anyone take risks to be on the receiving end of that love. Nalini Singh is a constant in her delivery of a ‘sweep-off-your-feet’ shape shifter romance which will engage the reader from first till last word! Be prepared to succumb to Drew and Indigo’s story!

* Signs of a werewolf are a unibrow, hair palms, tattoos, and a long middle finger.

* If you see a spider on Halloween, it is the spirit of a loved on watching over you.

* Could it be that all those trick-or-treaters wearing sheets aren't going as ghosts but as mattresses?

* One Halloween a trick-or-treater came to my door dressed as "Rocky" in boxing gloves and satin shorts. Soon after I gave him some goodies, he returned for more. "Aren't you the same 'Rocky' who left my doorstep several minutes ago?" I asked.
"Yes," he replied, "but now I'm Rocky II."

* The Ouija Board ended up outselling the game of Monopoly in its first full year at Salem. Over two million copies of the Ouija Board were shipped.

* An intense and persistent fear of Halloween is called Samhnainophobia Samhainophobia is the fear of Halloween.

* According to Irish legend, Jack O’Lanterns are named after a stingy man named Jack who, because he tricked the devil several times, was forbidden entrance into both heaven and hell. He was condemned to wander the Earth, waving his lantern to lead people away from their paths.

* Trick-or-treating evolved from the ancient Celtic tradition of putting out treats and food to placate spirits who roamed the streets at Samhain, a sacred festival that marked the end of the Celtic calendar year.

* “Halloween” is short for “Hallows’ Eve” or “Hallows’ Evening,” which was the evening before All Hallows’ (sanctified or holy) Day or Hallowmas on November 1. In an effort to convert pagans, the Christian church decided that Hallowmas or All Saints’ Day (November 1) and All Souls’ Day (November 2) should assimilate sacred pagan holidays that fell on or around October 31.

* Black and orange are typically associated with Halloween. Orange is a symbol of strength and endurance and, along with brown and gold, stands for the harvest and autumn. Black is typically a symbol of death and darkness and acts as a reminder that Halloween once was a festival that marked the boundaries between life and death.

* Halloween originated in Ireland over 2,000 years ago Ireland is typically believed to be the birthplace of Halloween.

* Scottish girls believed they could see images of their future husband if they hung wet sheets in front of the fire on Halloween. Other girls believed they would see their boyfriend’s faces if they looked into mirrors while walking downstairs at midnight on Halloween.

* According to tradition, if a person wears his or her clothes inside out and then walks backwards on Halloween, he or she will see a witch at midnight.

* Dressing up as ghouls and other spooks originated from the ancient Celtic tradition of townspeople disguising themselves as demons and spirits. The Celts believed that disguising themselves this way would allow them to escape the notice of the real spirits wandering the streets during Samhain.













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I was thinking of doing a Halloween themed Happy Abs Day today but because I couldn't find the pictures I had in mind and since I don't have the time or energy to spend a whole lot of time searching further, I'm falling back on something I've had in my HAD-files for a while...just a picture that had me salivating when I came across it and I feel the need to share.