I enjoy the slightly different take on Faeries and such. Am awaiting the next installment
After experiencing one more humiliating event at the hands of her drunken mother, 16-year-old Dana Hathaway decides that living with her Fae father whose she's never met, sounds like a super idea and she promptly runs away to live with him. Unfortunately she's never visited Avalon either, so she's unprepared for the danger and the dangerous creatures out to get her. Immediately upon her arrival she's kidnapped by her Aunt Grace who has nefarious plans for her. When she's mysteriously rescued by persons unknown (Ethan and Kimber), she's shocked and scared. After all, who are these people and why are they rescuing her? And where the hell is her father?
I've read way too many novels pertaining to the Fae to be impressed with this one. (The Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa is much better written and way more entertaining!) All in all this was just kinda blah. There really aren't any likeable characters - not even Dana, whose pretty much TSTL. This is definitely not a series I will be continuing.
Reviewed by Jaglvr for TeensReadToo.com
Do you like stories about faeries? Or do you prefer a good thriller? Well, if you combine the two, you get an idea of what GLIMMERGLASS will be like. This is the first in a new series by adult paranormal author Jenna Black.
I was a bit skeptical before reading GLIMMERGLASS. I heard many people tell me it was one of the best books they've read in 2010, and definitely a standout in the Fae genre. So it was with some cynicism that I cracked the spine of the book.
From the beginning pages, when Dana has had it with her alcoholic mom, I was hooked! Dana is about to showcase her bewitching musical voice when her mom stumbles into the performance and makes a spectacle of herself. Thankfully, not many know that the disturbance is caused by her mom. But it won't be long before the talk starts again, and Dana and her mom will move on to yet another town and another school.
So, without telling her mother, Dana contacts her father. Dana has never met him and her mom warns her of what life in Avalon was like. Avalon is a town in England that is home to both Fae and human. They coexist in their own world, disregarding both the laws of England and of the Faerie world, instead creating their own universe, much like Vatican City.
Little does Dana realize that her father holds some power in the Fae world. She arrives at the border gate to Avalon expecting to find her father. Instead, she's interrogated and finally meets her Aunt Grace. Dana is told that her father is in prison temporarily. From that point on, Dana's life becomes a whirlwind of survival.
Dana is kidnapped by the brother and sister team of Ethan and Kimber. Everything they tell Dana is opposite of what Aunt Grace has led her to believe. Until Dana's father is released from prison, Dana is unsure of whom to trust and what she should do.
With political subplots and many otherworldly monsters, GLIMMERGLASS will not disappoint. Ms. Black crafts the tale in such a way that the reader truly has no idea whom to trust as the story unfolds. Even as the final pages drew closer, the story is left hanging as Ethan warns Dana to keep hidden what she has learned.
I definitely give kudos to GLIMMERGLASS. Not only is the cover absolutely gorgeous, the story is well-written and incredibly addicting. Readers will have to wait until January 2011 (un)patiently for the follow up novel, SHADOWSPELL. I for one hope there is lots more of Ethan and the mysterious Keane in Dana's crazy life.
