I recently read the oddest, most wonderful book! I was caught first by the title, Except the Queen, and the intriguing cover art which depicts a young woman with an intricate tattoo on her neck and a tortured expression on her face, with a huge moon and a murder of crows. This seemed like a book I would like! Jane Yolen and Midori Snyder have writtern an incredible fantasy novel about faeries, a mean-spirited fairy queen, and the differences between the mortal and fairy world. The basic plot of the story is this: Meteora and Serana are fairies (and sisters) who like nothing more than being with each other, playing tricks on mortals and prancing around the fairy world of Greenwood. Their lives take a turn for the worse when they witness the Fairy Queen committing an unspeakable act and in return, she banishes them to the mortal world. In fairy land they were young, beautiful, nimble and blessed with magical powers; in the mortal world they are dumpy old women who live apart from each other, have no powers, and must figure out how to survive in this harsh place. Mysterious things begin happening to the sisters--are they more than mere coincidences?--and Meteora and Serana must figure out what they must do in order to return to life in fairy land. This book is a strange and wondorous piece of writing---I especially enjoyed the sisters figuring out how things work that we take for granted (i.e., snail mail--they call it "eagle mail" because the man with the eagle on his pouch picks it up from their houses every day). The sisters also meet several equally mysterious beings while on their journeys of discovery. This book is a fast read as once you begin it you will find it hard to leave! This book is a perfect read for both young adults and adults and while there are enough "battle scenes" to make it interesting for boys, I believe teen girls will like the story the best. I hope this author collaboration will result in other book of this type, very soon.
Showing posts with label fairies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fairies. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Except the Queen
I recently read the oddest, most wonderful book! I was caught first by the title, Except the Queen, and the intriguing cover art which depicts a young woman with an intricate tattoo on her neck and a tortured expression on her face, with a huge moon and a murder of crows. This seemed like a book I would like! Jane Yolen and Midori Snyder have writtern an incredible fantasy novel about faeries, a mean-spirited fairy queen, and the differences between the mortal and fairy world. The basic plot of the story is this: Meteora and Serana are fairies (and sisters) who like nothing more than being with each other, playing tricks on mortals and prancing around the fairy world of Greenwood. Their lives take a turn for the worse when they witness the Fairy Queen committing an unspeakable act and in return, she banishes them to the mortal world. In fairy land they were young, beautiful, nimble and blessed with magical powers; in the mortal world they are dumpy old women who live apart from each other, have no powers, and must figure out how to survive in this harsh place. Mysterious things begin happening to the sisters--are they more than mere coincidences?--and Meteora and Serana must figure out what they must do in order to return to life in fairy land. This book is a strange and wondorous piece of writing---I especially enjoyed the sisters figuring out how things work that we take for granted (i.e., snail mail--they call it "eagle mail" because the man with the eagle on his pouch picks it up from their houses every day). The sisters also meet several equally mysterious beings while on their journeys of discovery. This book is a fast read as once you begin it you will find it hard to leave! This book is a perfect read for both young adults and adults and while there are enough "battle scenes" to make it interesting for boys, I believe teen girls will like the story the best. I hope this author collaboration will result in other book of this type, very soon.
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Sookie Appears Again!
One of my favorite characters in the book world today has to be Sookie Stackhouse. I have been a fan of Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse series of books since before the HBO series "True Blood" began production. The latest book in this series is Dead Reckoning, and it stars, once again, all of Sookie's interesting boyfriends, ex-boyfriends, friends, family members and enemies. I adore all of the supernatural creatures that find their way into Sookie's world and how she takes it all in stride. Sookie is a telepath and a waitress at Merlotte's, a bar and restaurant owned by her shape-shifting friend Sam, located in a small town in Renard Parish, LA. In this installment of the series, Sookie has an enemy who keeps trying to kill her, and the Vampire King of Louisiana has a big bone to pick with Sookie's vampire husband, Eric Northman. A lot of action occurs in this book as well as some very interesting twists with Sookie and Eric, Eric's "second-in-command" vampire Pam, and Sookie's fairy cousins. You definitely have to have read the other books in the series before you read this one or you will be hopelessly lost with the novel's plot. A special treat is a surprise appearance by Bubba (Sookie fans will know exactly who he is :)) I truly enjoy reading about the food and atmosphere of Louisiana and the believable characters, supernatural or not that are in this book. Charlaine Harris is truly a talented author. Be sure to also check out Harris' Aurora Teagarten and Connerly siblings series.
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