Title: Shadowspell
Series: Faeriewalker Trilogy Book 2
Series: Faeriewalker Trilogy Book 2
Author: Jenna Black
Rating: Five Siren Stones
Genre: Fantasy Young Adult
Key-words: Fairies, Wild Hunt, Avalon
Length:
Novel
ISBN: 978-0312575946
Price:
(Print) $9.99
Publisher:
St. Martin's
Reviewer:
Kayden McLeod
Summary:
On top of spending most of her time in a bunker like
safe house and having her dates hijacked by a formidable Fae bodyguard,
Faeriewalker Dana Hathaway is in for some more bad news: the Erlking and his
pack of murderous minions known as the Wild Hunt have descended upon Avalon.
With his homicidal appetite and immortal powers, the Erlking has long been the
nightmare of the Fae realm. A fragile treaty with the Faerie Queen, sealed with
a mysterious spell, is the one thing that keeps him from hunting unchecked in
Avalon, the only place on Earth where humans and Fae live together. Which means
Dana’s in trouble, since it’s common knowledge that the Faerie Queen wants her
– and her rare Faeriewalker powers – dead. The smoldering, sexy Erlking’s got
his sights set on Dana, but does he only seek to kill her, or does he have
something much darker in mind?
Review:
Shadowspell
is a titillating tale, bound to draw you into the new world with an exciting
cast of characters.
I found Shadowspell on sale, and though I hadn’t
read the first book nor did the bookstore carry it, I picked it up, because
Jenna Black rang a bell with me, I just didn’t remember why. When I got home, I
found her Watchers in the Night on my
shelves, which is an adult geared novel. I just hadn’t associated YA with her.
And am I glad I brought
this book home! I’ve been reading a lot of fae related fiction lately, but Shadowspell stood out from the crowd
along with Julie Kagawa’s Iron Fey series,
with its daring edge, unexpected twists and a keen sense of originality that
strayed from the tried and true. Even without having read Glimmerglass, the author wrote the story that just because I hadn’t
read the back story leading up to this book, I wasn’t left feeling clueless and
lost in the references to prior events in the Faeriewalker Trilogy.
Though the lead
character from which the story is voiced, Dana, has realistic flaws, she had a
backbone, the determination to see her decisions through, and the sense to
accept the consequences of her calculated risks. One of my biggest complaints
about YA heroines as of late, is their overall weak personas: the co-dependence,
and nearly constant foolhardy mistakes that suggest their brains have became
defective upon meeting the hero. Dana impressed me from the first page, until
the last, regardless of her occasional misstep in the name of what is right.
Suffice to say, the
moment I leave work this evening, I will heading back to the bookstore to pick
up the third installment of the Faeriewalker
Trilogy, Siren Song.
