Children can have a cruel, absolute sense of justice. Children can kill a monster and feel quite proud of themselves. A girl can look at her brother and believe they’re destined to be a knight and a bard who battle evil. She can believe she’s found the thing she’s been made for.
Hazel lives with her brother, Ben, in the strange town of Fairfold where humans and fae exist side by side. The faeries’ seemingly harmless magic attracts tourists, but Hazel knows how dangerous they can be, and she knows how to stop them. Or she did, once.
At the center of it all, there is a glass coffin in the woods. It rests right on the ground and in it sleeps a boy with horns on his head and ears as pointed as knives. Hazel and Ben were both in love with him as children. The boy has slept there for generations, never waking.
Until one day, he does…
As the world turns upside down, Hazel tries to remember her years pretending to be a knight. But swept up in new love, shifting loyalties, and the fresh sting of betrayal, will it be enough?Rating: 4.5/5
Genres: YA, Fantasy, Romance, Fairy Tale
If anyone ever asked me to recommend them some modern fairy tales, this novel would be at the top of my list. The writing was such a perfect blend of classic and modern that I had no trouble being completely fluent with the language (since sometimes the classics have phrases or dialects that disconnect our flow because we have to pause and translate). There's a lot of telling rather than showing like with the usual fairy tale formula, but while that would typically be a sign of the writer giving away too much, I was constantly surprised with the twists and turns.
Sometimes I figured out a twist before the reveal, sometimes I didn't, but every time I just thought to myself: Son a bitch she got me again. There were so many layers to this plot that I would have absolutely hated writing it, which basically means I was thoroughly impressed.
The relationship between Hazel and Ben, as a key component of the novel, spectacularly showed Black's handle of her characters. While I think there was some development missing from some characters, or I just wished for a bit more, those two siblings made up for it.
Overall, this novel was quite simply right up my alley. The dark theme of magic is something I've always loved in fairy tales. When you strip away the Disney filter we've all gotten so used to (bless your heart Disney but I like some creepy, sinister stories sometimes), fairy tales are pretty messed up. But we still love them, and keep re-writing them, which I imagine as the perfect metaphor for the town of Fairfold; there's always a threat of dark magic, yet people still continue to live there.
If you're a fan of fairy tales in any way, then this book is for you. Prepare to feel like reality has suddenly evolved, because magic and modern have mixed seamlessly in this novel and it's a wild trip.
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