I couldn't put this book down. Loved the characters, they were all so well realized. The ending was not satisfying, as the frenzied action that started near the end hadn't quite abated and I was expecting a definite resolution. The book began sedately, and it's in the sedate dramatic scenes that the horror of the situation faced by the mechanical slaves (and one unfortunate human) really hit home. Luckily, despite the fact that the author depicts spiritual violation the way Octavia Butler did with Xenogenesis, he didn't scare the crap out of me like she did. His characters can still hope for a happy ending. That's why I look forward to the rest of the books, and hope that the happy ending comes.