Book Rec: Bones of Faerie, by Janni Lee Simner
This book was like a candy bar. Delicious, but over way too quickly. I started it yesterday, and a little over 24 hours later, I reluctantly shut the back cover on the last page.
Liza lives in a world afraid of magic. Before she was born, a war against Fae armed with innumerable powers took place, resulting in a crushing stalemate. Human survivors of the war huddle in small towns, without cars or electricity, living off the land which is still trying to kill them. The Fae are gone, yes, but their remnants remain: trees that reach and crush along with animals that are bigger and bloodthirstier than their counterparts before the war. Strict rules about magic are followed, and when Liza's sister is born with clear signs of being tainted with magic, she watches helplessly as her father abandons the infant outside of the village. When her mother disappears without a word, only Liza's own magic will help her successfully make the trip to the old St. Louis Arch, where she might not only save her mother, but the future as well.
This book was enthralling from the very beginning. While it took a while to get a handle on the time setting (it is present day, but everything is in ruins because of the war), once I had a reference point, all of the little details from the world Before made it fun. The Disneyland coffee cup, the exchange they pass on I-44, the Missouri quarter. And while Liza could have very easily slipped into a "little miss I can do everything" character (she really can do almost everything it seems), I never once disbelieved that failure was a possible outcome of their adventure. I hate that, when an awesome plot is overshadowed by the fact that the main characters are so powerful that you never really believe they can fail, so challenges lose all their impact. Liza is so unsure of her powers, so frightened to use them, that I found myself happy when she succeeded, instead of annoyed that she has yet another aspect to her power. :) The shadow-baby was sort of a strange sub-plot, and I'm not sure what else I wanted from it, but I don't think I was quite happy with her just sinking back into Mom and nothing else. But I loved everything else, with wolfy Matthew and brave little Allie, and the seedling that brings Autumn back to the human world. Also, the River calling Liza and Allie was awesome. Just yay all the way around.
Liza lives in a world afraid of magic. Before she was born, a war against Fae armed with innumerable powers took place, resulting in a crushing stalemate. Human survivors of the war huddle in small towns, without cars or electricity, living off the land which is still trying to kill them. The Fae are gone, yes, but their remnants remain: trees that reach and crush along with animals that are bigger and bloodthirstier than their counterparts before the war. Strict rules about magic are followed, and when Liza's sister is born with clear signs of being tainted with magic, she watches helplessly as her father abandons the infant outside of the village. When her mother disappears without a word, only Liza's own magic will help her successfully make the trip to the old St. Louis Arch, where she might not only save her mother, but the future as well.
This book was enthralling from the very beginning. While it took a while to get a handle on the time setting (it is present day, but everything is in ruins because of the war), once I had a reference point, all of the little details from the world Before made it fun. The Disneyland coffee cup, the exchange they pass on I-44, the Missouri quarter. And while Liza could have very easily slipped into a "little miss I can do everything" character (she really can do almost everything it seems), I never once disbelieved that failure was a possible outcome of their adventure. I hate that, when an awesome plot is overshadowed by the fact that the main characters are so powerful that you never really believe they can fail, so challenges lose all their impact. Liza is so unsure of her powers, so frightened to use them, that I found myself happy when she succeeded, instead of annoyed that she has yet another aspect to her power. :) The shadow-baby was sort of a strange sub-plot, and I'm not sure what else I wanted from it, but I don't think I was quite happy with her just sinking back into Mom and nothing else. But I loved everything else, with wolfy Matthew and brave little Allie, and the seedling that brings Autumn back to the human world. Also, the River calling Liza and Allie was awesome. Just yay all the way around.