Tag: Mythology

Fantasy, Folktales, Magical, Magical Realism, Mystery, Mythology, Women, World Literature

The Fox Wife by Yangsze Choo

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

Some people think foxes are similar to ghosts because we go around collecting qi, or life force, but nothing could be further than the truth. We are living creatures, just like you, only usually better looking . . .

Manchuria, 1908.

A young woman is found frozen in the snow. Her death is clouded by rumors of foxes involved, which are believed to lure people by transforming themselves into beautiful women and men. Bao, a detective with a reputation for sniffing out the truth, is hired to uncover the dead woman’s identity. Since childhood, Bao has been intrigued by the fox gods, yet they’ve remained tantalizingly out of reach. Until, perhaps, now.

Meanwhile, a family that owns a famous Chinese medicine shop can cure ailments, but not the curse that afflicts them—their eldest sons die before their twenty-fourth birthdays. Now the only grandson of the family is twenty-three. When a mysterious woman enters their household, their luck seems to change. Or does it? Is their new servant a simple young woman from the north or a fox spirit bent on her own revenge?

New York Times bestselling author Yangsze Choo brilliantly explores a world of mortals and spirits, humans and beasts, and their dazzling intersection. The Fox Wife is a stunning novel about a winter full of mysterious deaths, a mother seeking revenge, and old folktales that may very well be true.

My Thoughts

This is my first 5-star review in awhile. This book gets ALL the descriptors: mysterious, lovely, heartbreaking, satisfying, lyrical, deadly, and so many more.

Ah San (or Snow) and Tagtaa are characters I will remember for a very long time. Both driven by love for family and loyalty to friends and lovers, they drive this story forward as one seeks revenge and one seeks to protect. The complicated relationships that connect the two women and Bao are intricately plotted and beautifully rendered.

The writing here is some of the best I’ve read in a long time and the story grips you from the first page forward. I feel like this would be amazing in audiobook form and will look for that in the future.

I will be purchasing a print copy of this for my own shelves (which rarely happens!). Highly, highly recommended.

“Beware: once you start, you may not be able to put it down!”
—Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, author of Independence and The Last Queen

Publication Date: February 13, 2024
Published By: Henry Holt & Co.
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy.

Children's, Fairytales, Fantasy, Folktales, Magical, Women, Young Adult

Unseelie by Ivelisse Housman

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

Description

The start of a swoony, high-energy duology that Emily Lloyd-Jones, author of The Bone Houses, calls “reminiscent of classic fairytales yet brimming with a charm all its own.”

“A world of glimmering fae that sparkles with mystery, adventure, and enchantment.” —Andrew Joseph White, New York Times bestselling author of Hell Followed with Us

Iselia “Seelie” Graygrove looks just like her twin, Isolde…but as an autistic changeling left in the human world by the fae as an infant, she has always known she is different. Seelie’s unpredictable magic makes it hard for her to fit in—and draws her and Isolde into the hunt for a fabled treasure. In a heist gone wrong, the sisters make some unexpected allies and find themselves unraveling a mystery that has its roots in the history of humans and fae alike.

Both sisters soon discover that the secrets of the faeries may be more valuable than any pile of gold and jewels. But can Seelie harness her magic in time to protect her sister and herself?

“Housman’s stunning debut is the sort of love letter only an autistic author could write. Fae canon has been waiting for this one.” —H.E. Edgmon, author of The Witch King

My Thoughts

The author provides an informative and thought-provoking introduction to Unseelie where she discusses what it’s like to be a changeling. Ivelisse Housman, you see, is autistic. She presents an interesting case for the changelings – those unusual beings well-known in folklore as fairy children who have replaced human children – having been children with autism whose differences made them part of folklore.

In Unseelie, Housman has created a character who is different. Whose differences are acknowledged by her family, if not fully accepted, and who is loved unconditionally. Iselia or Seelie as she is called throughout the book, doubts herself and feels responsible for bad things that happened to her family. In Housman’s hands, though, Seelie becomes powerful as she accepts who she is and what she can do.

The story follows many of the familiar themes in folklore – there’s a quest, a treasure, and a band of misfits who battle powerful forces. There is also a strong theme of family and friendship which provides the backbone upon which the story is built. And this is a cracking good story – imaginative, clever, and full of vivid description.

This is a beautiful and powerful story that will surely appeal to fans of fantasy and folklore of all ages. Appropriate for upper middle grade and older.

Publication Date: January 3, 2023
Published By: Inkyard Press
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy

Uncategorized

Lore by Alexandra Bracken

Patricia McDonald Uttaro

From the Publisher:

From the #1 New York Times best-selling author of The Darkest Minds comes a sweepingly ambitious, high-octane tale of power, destiny, love and redemption.

HER NAME WILL BE LEGEND

Every seven years, the Agon begins. As punishment for a past rebellion, nine Greek gods are forced to walk the earth as mortals, hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines, all eager to kill a god and seize their divine power and immortality.

Long ago, Lore Perseous fled that brutal world in the wake of her family’s sadistic murder by a rival line, turning her back on the hunt’s promises of eternal glory. For years she’s pushed away any thought of revenge against the man–now a god–responsible for their deaths.

Yet as the next hunt dawns over New York City, two participants seek out her help: Castor, a childhood friend of Lore believed long dead, and a gravely wounded Athena, among the last of the original gods.

The goddess offers an alliance against their mutual enemy and, at last, a way for Lore to leave the Agon behind forever. But Lore’s decision to bind her fate to Athena’s and rejoin the hunt will come at a deadly cost–and still may not be enough to stop the rise of a new god with the power to bring humanity to its knees.

This new vision of the Greek gods and heroes is an imaginative, pulse-pounding tale for the 21st century. Drawing on a deep knowledge of the old gods and new knowledge of pretty much every action-adventure-quest video game out there, Alexandra Bracken has created a dangerous world where the players breathe loyalty and betrayal. The fact that the protagonist is a young woman who kicks ass makes this even more appealing.

The ass-kicking isn’t all that’s special about Lore, though. She’s got very human feelings and morals, believing that doing good for others is far more important than power. Like any good hero, she struggles with the concept of power throughout the story, and nearly perishes while trying to defend the city at the end.

This will appeal to readers who enjoy fast-paced action-adventure blended with mythology. Well done.

Publication Date: January 5, 2021
Published By: Hyperion
Thanks to Netgalley for the review copy