Kylie reviews The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There
By Catherynne M. Valente
Published on October 2, 2012
Published by Fiewel and Friends
Source: Publisher
Published by Fiewel and Friends
Source: Publisher
September has longed to return to Fairyland after her first adventure there. And when she finally does, she learns that its inhabitants have been losing their shadows—and their magic—to the world of Fairyland Below. This underworld has a new ruler: Halloween, the Hollow Queen, who is September’s shadow. And Halloween does not want to give Fairyland’s shadows back.
Fans of Valente’s bestselling, first Fairyland book will revel in the lush setting, characters, and language of September’s journey, all brought to life by fine artist Ana Juan. Readers will also welcome back good friends Ell, the Wyverary, and the boy Saturday. But in Fairyland Below, even the best of friends aren’t always what they seem. . . .
The
Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There did not capture my attention at first. Until I was about halfway through the book, I
had to force myself to read it. I think
my problem was the information. There
was so much detail between the talking and action, which started to get
repetitive. Yet, when I got to a certain
point, I couldn't put it down. I had to
know the ending. As in Catherynne
Valente’s first book in the Fairyland series, this installment did not quite end
on a cliffhanger, nor did it completely wrap everything up. I will definitely need to read the last book.
So at the start of the book we
immediately are informed that September, the heroine of this series, is another
year older. Now a teenager, she has a
heart. A raw, sensitive heart which does
not know its own strength. Throughout
the story we get to follow September’s heart growing and breaking, from when
she has her first kiss to when she is betrayed for the very first time. By the end of the book she has matured a bit,
and takes initiative in her relationships.
The point of this adventure was to
bring the Shadows of September’s loved ones back to their flesh bodies from
Fairyland-Below. Because of this, there
are a lot of new characters and we don’t see A-through-L or Saturday (her best
friends from Fairyland-Above) until the end.
When our protagonist reunites with her partners, the book ends on a good
note.
Despite this book lagging in some
parts, when it wasn't slow it was very well written. Things from the previous book and even random
little things in this book connected.
Valente did a good job pointing out some things younger readers may not
have picked up on. Overall, this wasn't
my favorite book, but I give it three out of five stars.
