Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Holmberg (Siege & Sacrifice) remixes elements of "Beauty and the Beast," "Little Red Riding Hood," and other familiar tales to create an immersive, dangerous fantasy world. Enna lives at the border of the town of Fendell and the wildwood, caring for her ill father. Though Enna is terrified of the mystings and monsters that roam the forest, she's devoted to continuing her late grandmother's study of the creatures. When a monster called a gobler attacks Enna and her father, Enna knows she's not strong enough to fight back on her own and takes the risk of summoning Maekallus, a mysting trickster, to hunt down the attacker. Maekallus agrees for the price of a single kiss, but with that kiss he steals part of Enna's soul. When the gobler binds Maekallus to the forest during a confrontation, Enna and Maekallus work together to free him from the curse. Holmberg draws readers in with a fast-moving plot, rich details, and a surprisingly sweet human-monster romance. This is a lovely, memorable fairy tale. Agent: Marlene Stringer, Stringer Literary. (Jan.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
When she was a baby, Enna's father traveled beyond the wildwood to the realm of mystings (monstrous creatures) and stole a precious stone to protect his daughter. The Telling Stone warns whoever possesses it when mystings are near. Twenty years later, inquisitive Enna wears the stone daily to protect herself but also to study the deadly creatures it warns of. After being stalked by several mystings, all attempting to retrieve the stone, Enna summons a large humanoid mysting, Maekallus, complete with razor sharp tail and a massive horn protruding from his forehead. She strikes up a bargain with him, but such bargains are never as simple as they seem. Trickster Maekallus ends up trapped in the human world, slowly dying and tied to Enna. Enna can save Maekallus with a reenergizing kiss, giving up part of her soul in the process. Inextricably linked, Enna and Maekallus demonstrate that they both are more than they initially seemed. In this variation on Beauty and the Beast themes, Holmberg ("Paper Magician" series) zeroes in on two isolated heroes, allowing their relationship to gradually progress while they explore their feelings and seek information about the stone. VERDICT This slow-burn fantasy romance with one-of-a-kind worldbuilding is recommended for patient fans of fairy-tale retellings.--Katie Lawrence, Grand Rapids, MI
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