Review--Marked in Flesh by Anne Bishop

For centuries, the Others and humans have lived side by side in uneasy peace. But when humankind oversteps its bounds, the Others will have to decide how much humanity they’re willing to tolerate—both within themselves and within their community...

Since the Others allied themselves with the cassandra sangue, the fragile yet powerful human blood prophets who were being exploited by their own kind, the delicate dynamic between humans and Others changed. Some, like Simon Wolfgard, wolf shifter and leader of the Lakeside Courtyard, and blood prophet Meg Corbyn, see the new, closer companionship as beneficial—both personally and practically.

But not everyone is convinced. A group of radical humans is seeking to usurp land through a series of violent attacks on the Others. What they don’t realize is that there are older and more dangerous forces than shifters and vampires protecting the land that belongs to the Others—and those forces are willing to do whatever is necessary to protect what is theirs…

The war between humans and the terra indigene has already begun by the start of Anne Bishop’s Marked in Flesh! We’ve sensed this battle coming for a while now but the elusive Nicholas Scratch finally makes his move with his followers as he tries to kill all terra indigene and give back the land that should belong to the humans. You can imagine the devastation this will cause on all fronts of Thasia.

The humans make their first strike on the Others’ territory by killing a herd of bison, and pretty much from that point on, we know that the war is just moments from happening. As the different communities or Courtyards are struggling to keep themselves afloat with products their residents will need, the Humans First and Last group keep striking when the Others are down. Not only does the HFL attack Others without cause, they will turn against their own fellow man who support or work with the terra indigene willingly, causing even more strife and war throughout the country. But what these simple minded humans forget is that the Others are not the only creatures in the world.

Life at our favorite Courtyard, Lakeside, is quiet busy as Simon takes in more and more human residents who are seeking shelter from the dangers that have become a part of their normal lives. It’s interesting to see that there are still so many humans who want to work with the Others. They are not like the terrorizing HFL group. Once again, we get glimpses from other Courtyards as they struggle to survive the terrors that are being inflicted upon them by the HFL. This group is relentless in their pursuit of reclaiming land they believe they have every right to own.

It was kind of sickening at times to be reading from HFL members’ points of view. It was few and far between but to see them killing characters we’re meeting and growing to love was heart-aching. From the get-go I’ve been rooting for the Others, mostly because we’ve been with Simon and his Courtyard for so long! And now, there’s a new power in town, one that is far older than any of the Others we’ve come to know and they are not happy with mankind. At. All.

The danger and tension are riding high in this one as we know something bigger than a confrontation with HFL is coming! It’s been coming pretty much since the last book when that HFL was just starting to become a pesky annoyance.

In the meantime, we still get to see Meg working hard to not cut herself to reveal prophecies, she’s still trying to write a handbook for the other Cassandra sangues so that they can learn to adapt to human life and not have to cut themselves. She’s learning to live as a human as best as she can. Though of course since she’s surrounded by terra indigenes she picks up a few of their traits every now and then. Meg is truly her own person and I love that about her! She’s overcome a lot in this series and it’s things we would never think of as accomplishments, but with the life Meg has lived, every little accomplishment is a mile marker for her! I love that Meg is so innocent, in a sense, yet she still knows the dangers of humans and finds more comfort with her Other companions than she would with humans, minus her female pack of course!

There was a great deal of action towards the end of this one, not a busy kind of action, but one where a great deal happens and it will help shape where the next book will lead us. I am excited to see how Meg’s story will come to an end, as I believe our series will continue as The Others but will be focusing on a new character. Marked in Flesh was yet another enthralling installment in Anne Bishop’s series of The Others that will leave you spellbound!


Overall Rating 4/5 stars