11. Anne Bishop - Murder of Crows

After winning the trust of the terra indigene residing in the Lakeside Courtyard, Meg Corbyn has had trouble figuring out what it means to live among them. As a human, Meg should be barely tolerated prey, but her abilities as a cassandra sangue make her something more.

The appearance of two addictive drugs has sparked violence between the humans and the Others, resulting in the murders of both species in nearby cities. So when Meg has a dream about blood and black feathers in the snow, Simon Wolfgard—Lakeside's shape-shifting leader—wonders whether their blood prophet dreamed of a past attack or of a future threat.

As the urge to speak prophecies strikes Meg more frequently, trouble finds its way inside the Courtyard. Now the Others and the handful of humans residing there must work together to stop the man bent on reclaiming their blood prophet—and stop the danger that threatens to destroy them all.

This second book in The Others series left off immediately after the first book.  Meg is a cassandra sangue, a blood prophet.  As we found out in the first book, she escaped virtual imprisonment where The Controller would sell her "skin" for her prophecies to the highest bidder.

The land is controlled by the terra indigene (also know as the "Others"), who are made up of a variety of creatures from vampires to shape shifters to elementals to others who are only known in myth.  They were here first and as Namid's creatures, they grant humans the ability to live in small enclaves with the understanding that the humans will provide them with the technology while the Others will provide them with the resources they need to make the technology.  Unfortunately, some humans believe they are superior to the Others and are willing to do whatever is necessary to become the "superior" race.  However, they forgot that the Others have the power not only to destroy these enclaves but wipe the entire species from the continent.

Meg managed to find safety in the Courtyard (the residency of the Others) in Lakeside and became their Human Liaison.  As she was isolated from the outside world her entire life, she is not only struggling to find her identity but also learning to understand and live with the various species of Others, including Simon Wolfguard, the head of the Lakeside Courtyard.

The book starts with Crows in various cities dying after ingesting food tainted with a new drug that tainted the food they ate, while humans were fed tainted meat to put them in such a rage that they would attack the Others without consideration of the repercussions.  The goal: kill off the Others and give humans the power to overthrow them so they can get control of their land.

The origins of the drugs and meat were unknown until Simon started licking one of Meg's wounds.  At that point, the Others realized that the origins were the blood and flesh of the cassandra sangue.  The main suspect: The Controller.

In the first book, there were clear struggles with Meg and the Others trying to figure out how to relate to and live with one another without Meg becoming a main entree.  While that was settled, their relationships are challenged due to the growing violence throughout the region and the threats to both Meg and the Others in the Courtyard.  Meg really develops her own sense of identity during this period while the Others learn that they can possible find a balance that will be beneficial to all species.

I will say that I am greatly enjoying this series.  While the books are clearly YA, if an adult is looking for an easy fantasy read, I highly recommend this.