Helpful Score: 2
I think this is a very good book. It takes up a little after the third one leaves off and picks up a different generation of the Sevenwaters family. It is very interesting, passionate, and full of fantasy. If you have read the other books in the series you will not be disapointed.
Great read with a great ending.
Marillier is a wonderful fantasy writer, and this tale a great addition to her brilliant Sevenwaters series. I believe (though I am not sure) that it is a retelling of the fairy tale Tam Lin. Clodagh, third daughter of Sean, Lord of Sevenwaters, has to go on a dangerous quest when her newborn baby brother is stolen by the Fair Folk and a changeling left in its place. Her courage, wisdom, and capacity for love will be severely tested as she faces the most powerful of the Fair Folk, the cold-hearted Mac Dara, Lord of the Oak, in the shadows of the Otherworld. As with its predecessors, this latest book of the series is filled with complex, fascinating characters steeped in the wonder of traditional fantasy. My only complaint is that her character list, which included the proper pronunciation for the names, was not complete; and I badly wanted it expanded to include places as well, because these Celtic names are an absolute bear to try to pronounce.
