Faerytales go dark and gory
Radiant Shadows is the fourth book in the Wicked Lovely series and for those who have been following the chain, there is nothing about Aislinn and Seth (on whom the first book was based) in this story. Those who haven’t will find Radiant Shadows tedious as the story deals with the complex workings and squabbles of various faery courts.
A quick brief on Marr’s faery world: Faeries live alongside the human world, though invisible. The faery world is divided into courts that have their own typical traits and are ruled by immortal faery kings and queens. Faeries like to stay invisible to humans and can be evil.
The present book focuses on Devlin, assassin-cum-adviser to Scorcha, Queen of Faerie, and Ani who is half-mortal half-faery. Ani’s blood is different as she feeds on both humans and faeries and has an appetite for emotions and touch. As she grows, young Ani finds it hard to control and satisfy her appetites. Emotion-denying Devlin (styled like Dr Spock of Star Trek), who has been ever loyal to his queen, had years ago spared Ani when the Queen had ordered him to kill her. Now decades later he realises his fate is somehow tied to hers and he must protect her from Bananach (war) who also wants Ani for her unusual powers.
Marr gives us a complex but engaging world of magic where steeds change into cars, dreams can be woven together and reality keeps changing. A rewarding read only if you have patience for the unexplained.
***
Another weave from faeryland, Spells is a sequel to Aprilynne Pike’s debut Wings. It has nothing of the complex world of Radiant Shadows, and its atmosphere is brighter as faeries here flower like plants and carry blossoms on their backs. Those oblivious to Wings, can easily begin with the second, but other than the faery-life tid-bits there is little original here.
The story is more or less a Harry Potter replica where young Laurel is in a Hogwarts-style academy to learn the faery arts she missed out on while growing up with a human family. In the first volume Laurel had saved the gateway to faeryland Avalon. The threat from “trolls” lead by Jeremiah Barnes, still exists and she must be ready for it. Everything is not fine on the personal front, too. Laurel finds her mother getting increasingly distant with the revelation that she is a faery. Also, while Laurel has a human boyfriend David, she is unable to deny the connection she feels to faery guard Tamani.
Laurel herself is a fall faery and the more she learns about winter, summer and spring faeries, the more she finds herself at odds with their system. Hormones run high in the novel as kissing and snogging happen frequently, even at the expense of the plot. Freshness comes only in kicks and starts as Tamani shows Laurel around Avalon and explains to her the faery discipline. Towards the end Laurel successfully vanquishes the threat to two worlds and resolves her love life, for the time. The end leaves room for another sequel, but with little promise. P.S.
Post new comment