Everneath by Brodi Ashton

Nikki Beckett has returned home after mysteriously disappearing for six months. What she can't tell her family and friends is that during that time, she spent 100 years in the Everneath, allowing Cole - an Everliving - to feed off her so that he can continue his immortal lifestyle. The humans in the Feed were not expected to survive, but thoughts of her mortal boyfriend, Jack, kept Nikki sane. Now she's trying to regain some semblance of her previous life and reestablish relationships with her family, and with Jack for six months...before she has to go back.

Although this book is not really a retelling, it does make allusions suggest an alternate interpretation to Greek myths, particularly the stories of Orpheus and Eurydice, and of Persephone. The plot and characters are compelling and gain quite a bit of depth in the second book; Nikki turns out to be a surprisingly strong heroine. I would recommend this to older fantasy fans who enjoy stories in the real world that have a darker edge.

This book is followed by Everbound and Evertrue (will be released in January 2014).

• If this book sounds interesting, consider these: Ever, Radiant Darkness, or Trylle trilogy

Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woon

Renée Winters' life changes forever when she discovers her murdered parents on her sixteenth birthday. Although she has had a happy life in California, her grandfather removes her from her friends - and brand new boyfriend - to send her to Gottfried Academy, an extremely exclusive and remote boarding school in Maine. She slowly starts to make new friends as she adjusts to life at Gottfried, studying philosophy, Latin, and "Crude Sciences." Renée also meets Dante Berlin, a mysterious boy to whom she feels connected, although she doesn't know why. More importantly, she starts to suspect that there may be secrets at Gottfried, and that there may be more going on than the school's administration is willing to admit.

This book is followed by Life Eternal, and then Love Reborn (to be published January 2014).

I thought this was an interesting take on the idea of the "undead" which has been popular recently in various forms. That's a small spoiler, but it shouldn't be much of a surprise, given the title. The story feels a bit gloomy and slow, but I was definitely intrigued to find out the ultimate direction. I would recommend this book to older fantasy readers who prefer stories that are more somber about the real world, particularly stories that deal with the undead.

• If this book sounds interesting, consider these: Abhorson, Lost Voices, Wicked Lovely, or Warbreaker

Swoon by Nina Malkin

Candice "Dice" Moskow has just moved from New York to Swoon, Connecticut where she lives across the street from her aunt, uncle, and cousin Penelope ("Pen"). She is, as she puts it, "a teensy bit psychic" which is why she knows that Pen is possessed by a ghost after she falls out of a tree and nearly dies. The ghost - Sinclair ("Sin") - immediately starts wreaking havoc on the inhabitants of Swoon. Desperate to free her cousin, Dice performs a ritual she believes is meant to exorcise his spirit, but instead gives him a body. Now Sin is free to do whatever he wishes and Dice is the only one who can stop him. But Dice has her own problems that she hasn't figured out how to deal with, and, on top of it all, she's somehow fallen in love with the ghost she has to destroy.


I was definitely drawn into this story although it's a bit darker than most of the fantasy that I read. This book is written from Dice's point of view and is as much about trauma and psychology as the supernatural. I would not suggest this to anyone looking for a fluffy read. However, older fantasy fans looking for something a little more serious or character-centric might enjoy this, particularly anyone who prefers books about the supernatural.

• If this book sounds interesting, consider these: The Summoning, Wicked Lovely, Annals of the Western Shore, or Black Pearls

Abhorson Trilogy and Across the Wall by Garth Nix

The trilogy includes Sabriel, Lirael, and Abhorsen all of which take place in a universe where the Old Kingdom borders the country of Ancelstierre. In the Old Kingdom, the Charter allows all people to use magic, although some (mostly necromancers) also attempt to use dangerous Free Magic to accomplish what regular magic cannot. On the other side of a spelled wall, the people of Ancelstierre are people of science, much like today's world of technology, and do not believe in the magic of the Old Kingdom.

Sabriel is just finishing school in Ancelstierre where she has lived for years, while her father, Abhorsen, travels around the Old Kingdom, using the skills of a necromancer and the magic of the Charter to undo the damage of actual necromancers and put souls back to rest. Now, however, Sabriel discovers that her father is missing and that strange and terrible things roam the Old Kingdom in his absence. As she sets out to find him, she gathers companions along the way - a cat named Mogget who is not at all what he seems, and Touchstone, a man who has been ensorceled for two hundred years. Together they must help Sabriel find her father, learn to use her powers, and stop the evil before the entire kingdom is lost.

The other two books take place back-to-back, more than a decade after the end of Sabriel. Lirael is a daughter of the Clayr who are distant cousins of the royal line and who all come into their peculiar power of seeing the future. But Lirael is different - she does not look like the other Clayr and does not know who her father was since her mother died when she was young; worst of all, Lirael is quickly becoming the oldest Clayr who has not yet come into the Sight. In desperation, Lirael finally gains permission to work in the library and devotes herself to learning and the use of complicated Charter magic. Along with the companion she creates, the Disreputable Dog, she stumbles upon her fate, different from all of the other Clayr.

Meanwhile, Sam, the prince, encounters terrible magic on the other side of the wall where he has been sent to school. Although he escapes, he has been wounded both physically and emotionally. He is sent home to recuperate, but he cannot seem to bring himself to do what his parents expect of him. Even worse, his friend (Nick) came out of the experience even more damaged although no one realized it. Now, Sam has decided to sneak out on his own and find Nick, not understanding the depth of the problem awaiting him. When his path crosses Lirael's, they must join forces (along with Mogget and the Dog) and race to save the kingdom from the evil threatening to destroy them all.

I really enjoyed this trilogy (and not only because Lirael was a librarian, although that was a fun part of the story); the characters are all very well developed and easy to relate to. There were a few parts of the world-building that were confusing when they were first introduce (for example, the Clayr are mentioned in the first book, but there is no real explanation of who they are until the second book), but I did not feel as though they really detracted significantly from the story. Although Nix's style can be a little tedious, I did not feel that these books were as slow as the Keys to the Kingdom series that I reviewed previously. Aside from all of that, these books are rather unique although they are a bit darker than some fantasy - particularly since the central plot revolves around necromancy and Raised Dead. I would definitely recommend these books to fantasy readers who are looking for something a little different or a little more serious than some of the lighter books.


Also, Across the Wall: A Tale of the Abhorsen and Other Stories includes a story about what happens to Nick following the end of the trilogy, although the other short stories are not related in any way. The story about Nick was a nice 'postscript' to the books although I was a little disappointed by the ending (I would have liked to know more about what happened and what had happened to all of the other characters who are not mentioned). I did not read all of the other stories in the book, although several of them were very interesting and readers who are looking for short stories that are a little different may want to pick this book up for some quick reads.

• If this book sounds interesting, consider these: The Last Apprentice, The Protector of the Small series, or Annals of the Western Shore

The Wish List by Eoin Colfer

Meg Finn has few options since her mother died and her step-father has kicked her out. For that matter, she hasn't really been a good kid. But now, her 'partner-in-crime,' Belch, has convinced her that they should break into an old person's house and rob him and Meg has to go along with it even though she isn't very happy. But the crime goes wrong and both Belch and Meg end up dead. Now, Belch goes straight to Hell, but Meg has ended up with an absolute even score and cannot enter either Heaven or Hell. To try and skew the balance, Meg has a second chance - she has to go back and help Lowrie McCall (the man that they tried to rob) finish up his Wish List of things that he wants to accomplish before he dies. It sounds rather simple. Unfortunately, Satan has decided that he'd like to have Meg down below and his second-in-command sends Belch out to 'make her bad.' Meg doesn't have very long to change her fate, and she has no idea how complicated it's going to be.

I'm not sure this qualifies as a 'fantasy' book per se, but it's definitely supernatural, so I thought it might interest some fantasy readers. This was a fairly quick read - it's aimed at the younger teens, but older readers will enjoy it too. The story is rather out of the ordinary and the characters are fairly well done. I'd definitely recommend it to readers looking for something quick and somewhat 'fluffy' or for anyone looking for something a little less 'fantastical,' but still outside the general fiction category.

• If this book sounds interesting, consider these: The Summoning, The Keys to the Kingdom, Reseerved for the Cat, or Fablehaven