Human

by Chris Fenwick

Surprisingly, being a shapeshifting wolf and magical Fae is no longer enough to save humanity.

Casidhe finds herself back where she started, alone. She can't contact her pack or her mate, Dana, even to let them know she's safe, for fear she'll risk their lives.

Cian has won. The Fae portals are closed, the worlds are crumbling, and Saoirse can no longer help. Casidhe's only hope lies in the mystical Book of State Changers, which she is unable to decipher.

Just when Casidhe's sure there is no hope, a surprising ally enters her life, but she is unsure her new friends, the Druids, can be trusted.

Can Casidhe find a way to unlock the secrets of the Book? Will the Druids help her defeat Cian? How will Casidhe attain enough power to save the worlds, without Dana by her side?

Lesbian fantasy thriller, Human, wades through the challenges surrounding a mortal existence, but ultimately reveals the hidden powers buried within the human soul.

256 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 10, 2020

About the author

I am a mother, a spouse, a writer, an editor, a marketer, and a part-time farmer. I grow, build, remodel and fix things. I spent over 25 years in a tech career that I didn't love but still excelled in. Now, I make books. Some I write myself. Some are the works of others. I live in a hollow surrounded by trees, a little piece of paradise in Pennsylvania, with my wife, our last teenage son, goats, chickens, dogs and occasionally pigs, turkeys, deer, ducks, and many other varieties of birds and wildlife.

Writing the State Changers series was the most fun I have had professionally, ever. The process of writing is like coming home. It is powerful and humbling at the same time. Casidhe became so real to me, inspiring and guiding me as we found our way through the words and pages together. I sincerely hope readers love her story as much as I have. I heard a quote recently and it made me think of writing this series. "If it delights, it delights." Writing the State Changer series truly delighted me.

I have always loved books, and almost never can part with them once they find their way into my library. I can think of no other job I am more clearly suited to. Sunbury Press' moto is, "Continue the Enlightenment!" Who wouldn't want to be a part of that?

Reviews

[Gabriella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Note: This review contains spoilers for State Changers #1 and #2.

This is a good continuation of this series, though I did enjoy the first two books more (since Wolf is a fun tale of Casidhe’s self-discovery as a State Changer and Fae is high-stakes and oftentimes shocking). As in Wolf and Fae, the title is a reflection of the part of herself that Casidhe must get in touch with throughout the course of the book. In Human, Casidhe must deeply analyze what makes her human and how this can help her in her prevail.

This book begins with Casidhe’s return to her original hometown in North Carolina. There, she must come up with plans to defeat her unhinged brother Cian and reopen the Fae portals he closed. She also must learn how to harness her powers as the White Wolf, a role she inherited from her dead great-great-grandmother, Saoirse. Her journey from here on isn’t as fast-paced as it was in Wolf and Fae: there’s a great deal of recruiting allies to join her cause and not a whole lot of action. The action that does occur is over very quickly. Throughout the book, there’s a general feeling of being in limbo, which makes sense given the point in the saga, but I would have liked to have seen more action and higher stakes. Even the ending scene is not as epic as I thought it would be, and I was left feeling underwhelmed.

Human introduces us to several new characters: most notably Guy, who I assume is on the cover with Casidhe. He’s a charming, affable human musician who Casidhe suspects is hiding secrets of his own. We’re also introduced to several Druids – magical humans who are in touch with nature and have a history of interaction with State Changers. Several new State Changers from across the Unites States are introduced as well, including a pair of Black Alphas named Peadar and Shona. I don’t remember any prevalent characters of color in the first two books, so this was nice to see. While some of the new characters we meet have major roles throughout the book, there are also many new characters who have no other role in the story than to illustrate the presence of State Changers and Druids in other parts of North America. Hopefully, some of these characters will have bigger roles in Hero (book 4).

Like the previous installments, there are quite a few editing issues (ex. random instances of head-hopping and awkward comma placements), but they aren’t prevalent enough to have distracted me too much.

I’m excited to see how Chris Fenwick will end this series with Hero!

Content Warnings: blood, mind control, stalking, non-graphic sex, threats, violence, death

I received an ARC from BookSirens in exchange for an honest review.

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave this book 3.5 stars. I was looking forward to this book which I thought would be the last of the trilogy and was surprised to find at the end that it was just another book in the series not the end. While some of the plot line gets resolved but there is more left undone to warrant another book. This YA paranormal fantasy has developed a good story that includes Wolves, the Fae, Demons, magic artifacts, and in this book, even Druids. I felt that this story was somehow rushed to get to the finish line and could have used a few more pages developing both the main character Cassidhie and the Wolf packs of the Eastern US. The previous two books spent more time in overall character development. While there was action in this book, the sense of urgency was manufactured rather than developed over time and it added to the feeling of rushing to the final scene. Even with some of those flaws I intend to finish up the series because a world with Wolves, Fae and Humans living together in a healed world strikes a chord during this time of Covid.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Gee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Casidhe Keneally is alone - again. Having been beaten by her twin Cain, and not being able to stop his plans to close the portals to the Fae world, she’s had to leave her mate, Dana behind to save the Book and to gain the strength and power to become the White Wolf. But it’s hard to plan, when you’ve lost the only family you’ve ever really known and loved.

This is the third in the series about Casidhe and her pack, and it’s as good as the previous one. (I didn’t read the first one but this and the second book Fae are both stand alone reads). It’s very fast paced, has loads of twists and turns, mainly unexpected, and it’s obviously really well plotted. There is a depth to the characters, and apart from the obvious villains of the piece, most have enough about them to make you root for them against all the odds. For anyone who loves this genre, definitely a very good read.

I received an ARC for free in return for an honest review.

[DR · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, I'm impressed with this story line. Cas comes into her own and she and Dana are back together. I appreciated the new cast of characters and appreciated the author's tie-in of humans, fae, and state changers. I took my time with this book in the series and appreciated more of the author's style. Cas, although gifted with great responsibility still has much to learn but she's willing. Well written story within the series and I do look forward to the next book.

[Tory · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! I love this series.

I can’t wait to read book 4. I highly enjoyed the first 3 and think anyone who reads them will too. I highly recommend this series to all. Enjoy, I surely did.

[Saundra Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those series where I go immediately from one book to the next. Excellent characters, world building and plotline.