Peace is in the rear-view mirror and Armageddon is here. The entire world is on the brink of destruction and the archangels have to figure out how to save it? Cassandra is not yet fully asleep yet and has decided to send them help.
Meanwhile Raphael and Elena are separated by conflicted duties. Elena's father has a heart attack and not expected to survive, and Elena must haste to his bedside. The Pacific Islands seems to be without archangelic oversight and Raphael must head there to get to the bottom of what's going on.
The usual suspects are around, Sparkle and Bluebell now a power couple in their own right, Elena's sisters now all grown up and little Beth is starting to show her age even as she has two children now. Sara's daughter Elena's god child is becoming a weapons maker following in her father's footsteps. Where did time go and how did all these kids grow up? I often feel that with my own family so to see this jump from one book to the next totally took me back.
In the meantime, events are escalating and the newest archangel to wake up thanks to Cassandra's meddling is not just and ancient? he considers the ancients children and exists from before the evolution of the current world.
Can the world be saved? will the price to be paid hurt even the unfeeling archangels beyond price?
Another excellent addition to this series but why does it feel like this book is a goodbye to this world? I certainly hope not, there are still stories to be told and Ms. Singh will be back with more.

Lineage feels like a subtle tying up of a number of loose ends in a grand story arc--much like Allegiance of Honor in Singh’s Psy-Changling Series and if the series had to end here, I would take it… but I hope it doesn’t! In it we have a global shift threatening Angelkind, an awakening of an extraordinarily old being, and the deepening of Elena’s understanding of what life as an immortal will mean as she eventually begins losing the mortals in her life.

Thank you Netgalley for an early copy in exchange for a review.
I feel like I went home. Nalini Singh brought me back to the great story lines of smaller characters as well as the main characters.
I will try not to include any spoilers but be warned.
The angelic Cadre has arrived at the Refuge for a celebration of the relative peace that the world has enjoyed for the last 10 years.
Immediately the Earth quakes and it the Refuge begins to be exposed to the world, it becomes a race against time to find an answer to the problem.
It is while they are cleaning up from the quake that Elena's father faces a medical emergency. She leaves immediately to see him at the hospital.
Nalini Singh takes a deep dive into the dynamics of Elena's mortal family. I loved how the hurt and pain that Elena has been carrying about her Mother and sisters starts to heal as does her relationship with her father. The story is set 10 years from the previous book so Zoe is a teenager, her nieces are growing up as well as her younger sisters.
An Ancient relative of Raphaels awakes & is integral in the resolution of the Refuge problem.
Many story lines are brought up to date and some resolved. It almost felt like the end of the series, although you know it's not😉. I loved catching up with my old friends and seeing how both they and their lives and relationships have evolved.

Archangel’s Lineage deals with Elena’s change from mortal and immortal and what happens when those you love continue to age without you.

It has been ten years of quiet rebuilding since Lijuan, the Archangel of Death, has been defeated. Most of destruction has been rebuilt, the reborn have been destroyed and the world is experiencing a true peace. But that peace is shattered when the land begins to quake under the Refuge, where the babies and most vulnerable are hidden from the world in general. And as the quakes continue to destroy the buildings and schools, they also realize that the veil which keeps the Refuge hidden from prying eyes is beginning to fray but no one remembers how it came into being, let alone how to fix it before the Refuge is unveiled for all the world to see and their vulnerable angels and precious baby angels will no longer be safe from prying eyes.

Archangel Raphael and the Cadre have hidden the most vulnerable underground but more and more violent natural disasters may point or an Ancient awaking from sleep or something much more ominous. Jessamy, the Refuge Librarian and the Tower’s Vivek have been working together and have uncovered information written in a language even older than Old Angelic, and there is no key for a translation but it seems to indicate a being even more malevolent than Lijuan.

Meanwhile, no one has seen Archangel Qin in some time. With the Cadre down in members, now isn’t the time for Qin to sneak off to go back to Sleep. Now Raphael will need to deal with Qin’s territory halfway around the world to make sure the vampires there don’t succumb to bloodlust while there is no Archangel to oversee the territory.

And while Raphael is trying to hold the whole world together, Elena’s personal world is quietly collapsing around her. Elena and her father have had a rocky relationship since her mother’s death so long ago but when she receives news that Jeffrey has suffered a major heart attack and might not survive, Elena rushes to his bedside and quietly prays that they have time to repair their rift before she loses her chance forever.

THOUGHTS:

This story is mostly about Elena getting her first bitter taste of what happens when you are a “child of mortals” who becomes immortal. As much as she loves her new life with her Archangel, she is beginning to realize that will also mean she will long outlive her family and her human friends. Her father ends up in the hospital, suffering a major heart attack; she notices her little sister Beth has some gray starting in her hair; she even realizes that Sara’s dog who was “just a rambunctious puppy” is now gray-muzzled and having trouble getting up. Obviously we all needed Elena to be immortal to have that HEA with Raphael but leaving behind her humanity also means outliving everyone she knew from her old life, something often discussed in prior books of how does Bluebell keep befriending humans even though he has lost so many of those friends in his only 500 years.

Most of the Cadre also get a shock in realizing that this past decade of peace is a first for some of the younger Archangels, such a Raphael’s one and half centuries. Most of the ancients awaking from slumber in the last few books haven’t realized just how crazy things have been while they were sleeping after millennia of their own peaceful lives. There were always land disputes between Archangels but never anything as crazy as Lijuan or even Neha.

I don’t know if it will be the feature of the next book but we do have an interesting storyline of Vivek and a very old vampire underworld leader? Madam? Dominatrix? And while Vivek can walk at this point, he is suffering a lot of pain now that his nerve endings are regenerating. It would be a very interesting story.

I love this series but there is a little floundering in what to do in a post-Lijuan storyline as peace doesn’t equate to the same excitement as a full-on Archangel battle like in Archangel’s War.

This felt like a goodbye to me. Readers of the series will enjoy the book wrapping up but it makes me wonder where it goes from here. I also missed seeing more of the seven. Some were barely mentioned.

Elena and Raphael seem to finally be settling into their life and the horrors of Lijuan, the reborn and war seem to be in the past. But two occurrences happen at the same time – the Refuge experiences a huge earthquake that destabilizes the area and Elena’s father suffers a heart attack. While Elena grieves, additional stresses are placed on the Cadre when an archangel disappears and an ancient awakens to warn of impending disaster.
Elena and Raphael must work together with their associates to unravel the mystery and save civilization and angel kind from complete destruction.

I have enjoyed the Guild Hunter series, but some stories have been less successful for me than others. Archangel’s Lineage was an enjoyable read because it focused on Elena, who is always an interesting main character. The action has moved forward into the future a few decades and the wars and reborn, which were beginning to feel repetitive and overdone, are in the past. The story focuses on beloved characters who are struggling with new challenges. The mysteries and threats felt fresher and the action progressed quickly.

This is a good choice for series fans and those who enjoy paranormal romance. A solid entry to the Guild Hunter world. 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for an advanced readers copy of this book.

3.5/5 stars
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Another quality book in the series. I was glad it was more Elena focused. This could feel like an end to the series but I suspect it isn't.

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This feels like an ending. A lot of hints of Elena surviving everyone she loves, coming to a resolution with her father, and solving a major issue for the planet.
I enjoyed it, but found it quite triggering. A lot of moments where Elena and her father remembered Elena's sisters and mother, lots of tears on my part.
I hope the series continues, but I would not be surprised if this was the final volume.

Yet another great installment in Nalini Singh's Guild Hunter series. Despite Elena and Raphael now having several book centered around them in this series, there story never gets old. The events of this novel has me excited to see where Singh is taking all of this world's characters in the future.

I love these books so much and this one was a truly satisfying read! It felt like it was simultaneously wrapping up a lot of things that I've been wanting to see get some resolution in terms of the big overall arc of the plot for the series as a whole and yet also teasing all sorts of possibilities for future stories set in this world that I'm actually interested in (which did not happen as much with the Psy-Changeling series, where by the time we got to the big plot resolution book I just couldn't get into it because there wasn't a strong central relationship anchoring that book the way there is with Elena and Raphael here--those two and their romance just get better and better the longer they're together!). I really hope this isn't going to be the last Guild Hunter book, because whatever else Nalini Singh has planned next for these characters and this universe, I'm here for it.

Nalini Singh has done it again. She has given us a book with a great story, interesting characters while giving us background on many of the people that we have come to know and love. It was nail biting in some instances to see where all this would end…or is it a beginning for some? Can hardly wait for the next installment.

It's no secret that Nalini Singh is one of my favorite authors. I've been a fan of the Guild Hunter series since the start and the beauty and brevity of the series is unmatched. Watching the growth within the series and the characters has been a revelation.

With the time jump in this book and the strength we've seen from the connections of these storylines, I held my breath for what could possibly come next. Archangel's War was a nonstop stressfest of beautiful writing with a terrifying storyline while the books that came after have been about healing through horror.

This one felt like an ending.

It felt like saying goodbye.

It was a truly beautiful book and the connections we've made along the way made it all that more poinant.

But I'm truly afraid it was a goodbye.

And I'm horribly sad about that because this book kept me up far too late. I loved every moment of it.
And I cannot wait to read it again.

I only hope there is more to come.

What a great installment...It gave a lot of backstory on the origins of the Angels. In some ways it felt like a wrap up to the Guild Hunter series. I hope that is not the case because I am definitely not ready to let go of Elena, Rafael and the 7. I think this was my favorite book in the series. Here is hoping we aren't done.

I have loved this series since the beginning and this book has outshined all its predecessors. Tying up many of the major plot lines and giving emotional closure to the tragedy haunting Elena this book is so satisfying. I really appreciated the moments where Elena is seeing time passing for her mortal friends and family and is starting to grapple with the cost of outliving those you care about. This book deftly explores grief and treasuring the fleeting moments we have.

So good!!! I devoured this book , I couldn't put it down and stayed up all night to read it. But it was worth it, a fantastic addition to the series!!!

Oh Nalini Singh, I do love thee....

Okay, first off, you cannot read this and GET it unless you've read the others. Second, this book *feels* different. I'm actually re-reading it right now to make sure, but there were times that felt redundant and kind of "we've been through this" but as the story progresses, and then ends, it makes sense. This series is one of my favorite - I mean, I work in a library and I BOUGHT them. If you haven't read them yet, start with "Angels' Blood" and don't stop until you get here! I am VERY curious where she'll go next....

Nalini Singh wrung out my soul, shattered my heart and painstakingly–and lovingly–mended it back together in Archangel’s Lineage.

Nalini Singh fans have been speculating about the meaning of the title ever since it was revealed in 2023. I know what I was hoping for and it’s exciting to see what everyone else thinks too! I can neither confirm nor deny any or all guesses, but what I will say is that Nalini Singh doesn’t disappoint in Archangel’s Lineage!

The story is beautiful, heartbreaking, heart wrenching, unbelievable, passionate, explosive, amazing, exciting, nail-biting, tear-jerking, lovely, and everything you want (or need) in a Nalini book.

Archangel’s Lineage is packed FULL of surprises! I cannot wait for everyone to read it! I whole-heartedly recommend the entire Guild Hunter series and EVERY book by Nalini Singh!

First let me say that I absolutely love this series! That being said I was curious as to what this book could offer. It did not disappoint! Once you think you have meet all of the weird personality types in this world, along comes one that will truly entice you! I cannot wait for the next book!

Raphael and Elena are experiencing their first ever year of true peace. An archangelic power celebration at the Refuge is cut short by an earthquake. Where can the angelkind's young go if this safety fails? Then other dominos begin to fall. Elena’s father has a heart attack and an archangel disappears. But the biggest change is the return of an Ancestor, an angel unlike any other, wakes with a warning for the Cadre.

Why I started this book: I always jump at the chance to read the latest Singh book and this was no exception. Requested the ARC as soon as it was available.

Why I finished it: So wonderful to return to Raphael and Elena. I can't believe that this is book #16 of the series. This feels like a bridge book. Necessary for the continuation of the series, tying up loose ends from before and opening up new horizons. Not my favorite of the series but I trust Singh to have more in store for my favorite characters.

Nalini Singh never fails to deliver. This is the kind of book you find yourself reading with a mix of trepidation, elation, and utter awe because you never know what the characters might do next? It was entertaining and I loved how it kept me on my toes.