Ingledove - Hardcover

Youmans, Marly

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0374335990 ISBN 13: 9780374335991

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR), 2005

Synopsis

A gripping, fantastic battle against an evil creature

After rowing across the waters that cover what was once their home, a valley intentionally flooded during World War II, Ingledove and her older brother, Lang, visit their mother's remotely situated grave, where they find a mysterious inscription on her headstone: "A daughter of Adantis." Vaguely remembering hearing of Adantis when they were younger, the two siblings find themselves unwittingly entering into it, a magical place hidden deep in the Great Smoky Mountains. But they seem predestined to encounter something terrible as they continue what Lang thinks is just a good camping trip. A strange music hangs in the air, and eventually Lang is entranced by its source - at first sight, a beautiful woman. In fact, she is part serpent, an ancient creature of evil who is out to drain the life from Lang. Only with the help of a man called the Master of Witchmasters and only by venturing into enchanted tunnels will Ingledove be able to save her brother from death.

Mining the rich legends of the Cherokee Indians, Marly Youmans has crafted a decidedly American fantasy written in breathtaking prose.

About this title

About the Author

Marly Youmans is also the author of The Curse of the Raven Mocker, which is set in the same enchanted world as this book. She lives in Cooperstown, New York.

From the Back Cover

"Ingledove is a marvelous book. I loved it and thought it was even better than Marly Youmans's first book about the magic land of Adantis, The Curse of the Raven Mocker, where the inhabitants and their magic are half Cherokee, half Border Celtic.  I loved the way the Hidden Land materializes around you, as you read, as naturally as breathing. And the magic seems to arise almost as naturally - though it can be as sudden and cruel as a snakebite - and all of it is always breathtakingly wonderful. Then, instead of leaving you simply gasping at her marvels, Marly Youmans has the courage and the good sense to point out that experiences of this order cause people to change. I really admired this book."

-- Diana Wynne Jones

Reviews

Grade 6-9–In this sequel to The Curse of the Raven Mocker (Farrar, 2003), Youmans returns to the secret land of Adantis, nestled in the heart of the Great Smoky Mountains. When Ingledove and her brother, Lang, are ushered off to visit the grave of their mother, Lang finds himself obsessed with the music and beauty of a woman in white, Malia. Readers soon learn that she is actually an evil half-serpent, half-human who is out to kill him. It is up to Ingledove, along with the help of Jarrett, Master of Witchmasters, to destroy Malia and save Lang, all the while fulfilling her own destiny. Youmans weaves an average fantasy out of a mixture of Cherokee and Celtic myth. However, the abundance of historical background that is revealed through Jarrett's speeches leads to confusion. As a result, readers are unlikely to become attached to the characters. At the end, the conflict is resolved very neatly and somewhat prematurely. It almost feels as though Ingledove is only half of the story. If Raven Mocker is popular, then purchase this one; otherwise, it's strictly additional.–Carly B. Wiskoff, Great Neck Library, NY
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Gr. 5-8. Like Youmans' previous fantasy for young people, The Curse of the Raven Mocker (2003), this one follows a girl, Ingledove, into Adantis, a hidden land in the Blue Ridge Mountains that is inhabited by magical creatures as well as people who count the Cherokee, English, Scots, and Irish as their ancestors. After Ingledove's older brother, Lang, is bewitched by a shape-shifting serpent woman, the siblings set out for Adantis. There they find their mother's grave, the dammed lake that has drowned their birthplace, and the evil creature who enchants Lang and threatens his life. Beyond all the associations with death, in Adantis they also find beauty, friendship, and hope. Jarrett the witchmaster foresees their coming and joins Ingledove in the perilous journey she must take to save Lang. The appended Adantan glossary discusses the meaning of words, identifies people and creatures, and explains aspects of Adantan lore. Besides the richly imagined setting and history, this fantasy offers a sympathetic heroine involved in an exciting adventure. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

From Ingledove:

Now the two of them called the sleeper's name, reeling him from the deeps of slumber.

He responded incoherently, loudly, and just before he woke let out a series of hoarse shouts. The perspiration poured from him as his eyelids flung open, and he stared unblinking into the dark.

"It's me, Lang, it's me," Ingledove blurted out. She had lurched backward when his eyes flew open, as if the fierce gaze could hurt her.

"Calm down, son." The old woman rested a hand on his cheek. He kept on staring until his eyes seemed to find something familiar in his sister's face.

"The night rider caught you," Danagasta said softly, beginning to unravel the covers and loosen them from around the bare chest. That was always her answer to a nightmare -- the wizard who would mount the sleeper and ride.

Lang shook his head violently and seized her by the arm.

"I dreamed..." he began, then stopped to rub the drops from his lashes and blot his face with the bed sheets.

Edition details

• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
• Publication date: 2005
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0374335990
• ISBN 13: 9780374335991
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 208