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This review does not represent the opinions of the general public. It reflects my personal thoughts and opinions on the book.
That said, on to the review!
The elder four Raven-Lyon children have all proven themselves as Primes, on the field of battle and in the Towers, and even in the field of medicine. Now, however, with the threat of the Hivers mostly contained, it's time for the preeminent family in FT&T to deal with more immediate, more mundane problems...like the accusations of nepotism in the corporation, or the violation of FT&T's charter of pacificism and autonomy. And that's not even including the pressing need to open new planets for colonization for the Mrdini whose populations are growing at a nearly Hive-like rate. Or finding ways to provide contraception methods for the Mrdini, whose physiology is so unlike that of the humans. Or thwarting assassination attempts of the leaders of the Human-Mrdini alliance and FT&T. Or finding new Primes and high Talents to accommodate travel between great stellar distances. If you ask anyone in the extended Gwyn-Raven clan, it's obvious they'd definitely say they'd rather be fighting Hivers!
The Tower and the Hive continues a terrific saga, and from all indications, it isn't over yet! I certainly hope not. After all, I still have to see what the two youngest of the Raven-Lyon clan, Ewain and Petra, are going to do with their Talents. And we certainly haven't seen enough of Morag and Kaltia, not when you compare them to the exploits of their elder siblings. On the other hand, we did get to see all four of the younger Raven-Lyon children, and considerably more than we saw before.
Possibly the most interesting--and, unusually, the most disappointing--part of the book is the introduction of Vagrian Beliakin, a T-2 whose older brother, Yoshuk, worked under Laria for a time. I really thought that he'd provide an interesting obstacle to the Raven-Lyon clan, and certainly he did provide a great deal of action where Laria was concerned, but what followed left me mildly disappointed. Another disappointing part of this book was what happened between Laria and Kincaid. Not that the two of them don't deserve happiness, but...still! Anyway, I'm sure these problems are all part of a set up for the next novel in the series. Certainly they offer the potential to create some interesting dilemmas to resolve!
The Tower and the Hive continues a terrific series, and I'm certain it's not the end of it. And were I not pressed for time just now, I'd certainly read it--the whole series, actually--all over again. Which just goest to show you how impressive this series is! So go out, by the books, and read!
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