The Emperor's Wolves – Michelle Sagara

“Wolves of Elantra” is backstory to “Cast in Shadows” and its sequels. The latter books revolve around Kaylin Neya - a Hawk (effectively a police detective) in a multi-species empire, and one of the important supporting characters is Severn Handred. “The Emperor’s Wolves” takes place a few years before “Cast in Shadows”, shortly after Kaylin becomes associated with the Hawks.

Readers who enjoyed the Elantra series will enjoy this book. WoE will not work as well for readers who are unfamiliar with the series. Although the story seems to stand alone, the emotional resonance depends on more than a dozen previously-written novels. Too much of WoE falls flat if the reader does not recognize the characters or the situations from the earlier Chronicles.

Two discontinuities stand out. Severn is back-storied to know Ybelline fairly well, and to understand the Tha’alani fairly well, and this is at odds with his completely-neutral presence when he meets them with Kaylin. And Severn is apparently being retrofitted with a considerable magical talent. (You’d think that would have come out while Kaylin was fighting the Battle of the Candle.)

It is fairly-clear where the story is heading: There are several references to the chain artifact that Severn wears in the CoE that he does not yet hold.