Fall Fantasy Flashback...or...Playing Catch-up with Reviews

This past fall I read a ton of great fantasy books and, sadly, did not have time to review them here.  Because I read them so long ago, I can't quite remember all the details of each book so I am going to do mini reviews rather than my normal long review.

The Dark Divine by Bree Despain
(Egmont, Hardcover, December 2009)
In her debut novel, Bree Despain captures the quintessential teen problems—romance, family issues, and faith—all while weaving an exciting fantasy story. The secrets surrounding Grace Divine's childhood friend, Daniel, kept me guessing the whole book and the ending left me waiting for a sequel.

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater
(Scholastic, Hardcover, August 2009)
So many good things to say about this one. Stiefvater's mythology was captivating and intriguing and unlike any werewolf story that I've read (granted, I haven't read that many).  Because Sam will completely revert to wolf form if it gets too cold outside, the use of temperatures for chapter titles was unique and suspenseful.  Shiver is a beautifully written love story and I can't wait to read the sequel, Linger, when it comes out in July.

The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima
(Hyperion, Hardcover, October 2009)

This novel reminded me of some of favorite fantasy writers, such as Hilari Bell and Tamora Pierce.  Set in a world of monarchs and magic, two strangers will have to unite to save a kingdom.  Han has grown up in poverty, but the magic silver cuffs that he wears suggests a there is more to this reformed thief than meets the eye.  Raisa is a princess in a gilded cage but, more than anything, she wants to escape and become a warrior queen.  Thoroughly captivating, this is one of the best fantasy books that I read last year and the sequel, The Exiled Queen, is already on my wishlist even though it doesn't come out until September.

Have you read any good fantasy books lately?

Lament by Maggie Stiefvater Book Review

Lament by Maggie Stiefvater
(Flux, Paperback)
Rating:

Deirdre is a talented musician. So talented that she's caught the notice of faeries. Including Luke, who is also a musician and helps Deirdre to unlock her own magic powers. Luke seems to be protecting her from the faeries that want to harm her, but Deirdre's grandmother warns her to stay away from Luke. As the solsice nears, the faeries ramp up their efforts to hurt Deidre and she must act fast to save her friends and Luke.

I love fairy tales. There's just something so exciting about escaping to a world that might possibly exist around us. Lament is drenched in Celtic lore and reminded me a lot of Wicked Lovely. Both books have main characters that only recently became involved in the faerie realm and both have heroines that possess extra magical abilities/destinies. Deirdre's friend James also attracts the faeries with his bagpipe playing. That sets up a love triangle that isn't quite resolved by the end of the novel. I read that Stiefvater has a sequel coming out so perhaps it will be resolved in the second book. The magical elements of this book were intriguing and clearly well-researched. I had a harder time with some other elements of the book. In particular, the women in Deirdre's family each had their own encounters with faeries and Deirdre's grandmother can still see them. Towards the end of the novel, the faerie queen tells Deirdre that she will grow up and live a boring life. The inconsistency of that statement bothers me. If Deidre's grandmother can still see faeries, why can't Deirdre continue to interact with them? Hopefully, this will be explained further in the sequel. Overall, this was a good, dark tale of faeries and the humans that find out about them. Great for fans of Melissa Marr or Holly Black.

Maggie Stiefvater has a great website that lists more information about her books and short stories.