Bones of Faerie
This is quite possibly the most captivating first chapter of a book that I can ever remember reading. It is only eight short paragraphs long, but Simner manages to get her hook so deep into you that the thought of putting the book down is impossible. It made me catch my breath. It made me go back and reread those two simple pages to see if the text was as fabulous as I thought it was (it was.) It made me say "there's no way the rest of this book can be THIS amazing (it was.)
The premise of this story is wonderful. It is set in a post-apocalyptic world in which a war between earth and faerie has devastated the planet, and sent it's inhabitants centuries of years back technologically while also having to deal with the new dangers of faerie enchanted flora and fauna that are not so harmless as they were "Before."
The main character flees her village when she discovers that the magic has touched her as well, and doesn't want to bring harm to those around her.
The story is brutal and tragic and beautiful and hopeful all at the same time. Part of what makes it so magical is how much is left unsaid. The story unfolds in a way that you know what happens, and you grasp the back story (both the individual character threads and the full tapestry) but you don't see everything. The prose was so elegant yet so simple. So very, very well done.