see http://www.sfsite.com/04a/thi54.htm ( )

This is a darker story than Scorpion Shards, and I found it distinctly unsettling, but it takes the characters to a good place story-wise. It keeps the characters realistically fallible as they are forced to confront their own darkness andpotential for great evil. They have to deal with the guilt and regret of their own actions, and are stripped of the illusion that they are somehow more important than normal people. The series continues to raise thought-provoking questions about identity, moral responsibility, and what makes a person valuable.