The Treachery of Beautiful Things - Hardcover

Long, Ruth

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0803735804 ISBN 13: 9780803735804

Publisher: Dial Books, 2012

Synopsis

A darkly compelling mix of romance, fairy tale, and suspense from a new voice in teen fiction

The trees swallowed her brother whole, and Jenny was there to see it. Now seventeen, she revisits the woods where Tom was taken, resolving to say good-bye at last. Instead, she's lured into the trees, where she finds strange and dangerous creatures who seem to consider her the threat. Among them is Jack, mercurial and magnetic, with secrets of his own. Determined to find her brother, with or without Jack's help, Jenny struggles to navigate a faerie world where stunning beauty masks some of the most treacherous evils, and she's faced with a choice between salvation or sacrifice--and not just her own.

About this title

About the Author

Ruth Frances Long lives in County Wicklow, Ireland. A lifelong fan of fantasy, romance, and ancient mysteries, Ruth studied English Literature, History of Religions, and Celtic Civilization in college and now works in a specialized library of rare and unusual books. This is her first novel for teens.

Reviews

Gr 7 Up-As a child Jenny saw her older brother Tom swallowed up by trees that came to life. At 17, she has struggled for years with what she saw. No one believed her story, her parents have withdrawn into sorrow for their missing son, and she is ostracized by her peers. When preparing to leave for university, Jenny decides to visit the spot of Tom's snatching, and while there she hears music, the kind only her prodigy of a brother could make, and she runs into the wood searching for him-despite her terror. The small stand of suburban trees becomes a gigantic forest as she runs, and Jenny finds herself trapped in Faerie. Full of gorgeous beauty, the realm also holds danger, treachery, and intrigue. Estranged King Oberon and Queen Titania both want Jenny for their own ends, and the creatures she meets on her quest to rescue Tom are not what they seem, especially the Guardian of the Edge, Jack, to whom Jenny is irresistibly drawn. He, too, finds her irresistible and wants to protect her, but he is already torn between two powerful feuding Courts. Also, Jenny unknowingly brings her own kind of power into Faerie-enough perhaps to change the balance of power and free not only her much-changed brother, but even to break the enchantments binding Jack. Vivid imagery brings the lush, dangerous world alive, and the story moves at a brisk pace. The immediate connection forged between Jenny and Jack will melt the hearts of romantic readers and have them rooting for the pair to overcome the impossible odds they face.-Caroline Tesauro, Radford Public Library, VAα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

*Starred Review* When Jenny was 10, her older brother, Tom, disappeared before her eyes into the forest near their English home. Seven years later, Jenny goes to the forest to say good-bye, and stumbles into the fairy realm, where she learns that Tom is being held captive in the Sidhe court. Jenny’s quest to reclaim her brother becomes a fight not only for her life, heart, and soul but also for Jack o’ the Forest, with whom Jenny is falling in love. Jenny attracts the attention of both the Summer Queen and the Winter King, and she becomes a pivot point in their courtly machinations. Led by her heart and purity of purpose, she discovers that there just might be a way to save not only Tom but herself and Jack as well. In her debut novel, Long has created a delicious and wonderfully romantic meld of several legends and fairy tales, including elements of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and the ballad of Tam Lin, with plenty of action mixed in. Lyrical prose, along with highly imaginative and descriptive phrasing, makes the forest setting—and its creatures and people—immediately present and sparked with magic. Grades 7-12. --Charli Osborne

Edition details

• Publisher: Dial Books
• Publication date: 2012
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0803735804
• ISBN 13: 9780803735804
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 384