Review: Into the Night Reviews ... Homecoming: A Cloaked Devices Short Story by Cecilia Robert
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 01 23, 2014
3.5 out of 5 starsHomecoming is the introductory novella to what promises to be a very interesting 'shifter' series.  Homecoming is the 'establishment' chapter of the series in which we are introduced to the main characters and get a fairly detailed description/understanding of the environment, culture and context for the story.  Roberts has created, with very intricate detail, a society filled with shape shifters, humans with the ability to bend air, fire and earth, ships that fly ... it's absolutely amazing in fact.  The characters are incredibly intriguing.  Levian and Tegue, twin brothers and panther shifters; Sera also a panther shifter and mate to Levian; Uriel a human that can bend air and fire.The focus of Homecoming is on finding Sera and her return to the clan home.  Her departure, on the night of her mating ceremony with Levian, was unexpected and it has taken Levian five years to track her down. As the story unfolds we begin to understand the connection between Levian and Sera and the reasons for her mysterious departure.  I enjoyed the way the story unfolded and felt that I develped a good understanding of each of the characters.While the start was a little slow, I gradually found myself immersed in the story, wanting so much to happen between the characters.  There were sections where great detail was provided, although sometimes it was too much for me as I worried I would need to retain the detail for future instalments in the series.  In other sections things were glossed over a little when I would have liked more detail - which will no doubt be forthcoming in future books in the series.  There were some minor editorial issues in the version I was reading, which were a little distracting at times.  But overall I enjoyed Roberts writing style and her ability to engage me as a reader.While this is a novella, it provides a good introduction to the series.  There is no cliffhanger as such, but obviously there are lots of unanswered questions when you get to the end of Homecoming.  I will add future instalments in the series to my TBR list as I would really like to see what unfolds in this series.Visit the Into the Night Reviews blog or Facebook page for book reviews, new release updates, giveaways and more!!