As KINKED begins, the Sentinel Games have just ended. After the games; Quentin the Wyr-Panther has won the right to be one of Dragos' new sentinels. Aryal the Harpy sentinel has long believed Quentin to be a criminal. Her single-minded hunt for proof of his criminal culpability, as well as her utter hate for him, has driven Aryal's every action. For his own part, Quentin also dislikes Aryal intensely. Their arguments and physical altercations finally spiral out of control, and Dragos sends them on a two week mission together and tells them to settle their differences or else.

Aryal and Quentin are sent to a long dead Elven land, Numenlaur; which was the scene of a horrible atrocity, and which has been deserted for many years. They are to meet up with a group of Elves and scout the land to see what changes have taken place. What they find is an evil magical entity who proves to be a grave danger to the pair; an entity who leaves the two sentinels in a battle for their lives. Along the way, Aryal and Quentin discover some truths about each other, and about themselves. With all the danger surrounding them, they begrudgingly become allies; and slowly but surely they come to an understanding about each other's vulnerabilities and needs. The transformation from enemies to lovers, then finally to friendship and love isn't easy, but ultimately worthwhile for them.

As Thea Harrison's Elder Races series has progressed, there have been quite a few ups-and-downs with the series; as the quality of the stories have fluctuated somewhat. KINKED, however; stands as an example of the best of what the Elder Races series has to offer, and is destined to be a reader favorite. Aryal the Harpy was always a dislikable, bad-tempered character, and a difficult one to redeem; but Harrison did a good job, and acquitted her nicely. KINKED has a very different feel to it; gritty and dark in places, which is a rather enjoyable change of pace for the series. There is also the issue of the kinked sexual proclivities of both of the leads. Although sexily humorous, rough, and fitting to the characters; this one was more erotic than any of the other books to date. KINKED leaves the reader happy and satisfied; and hopeful for continued books in this vein.