Review: Bones Of Faerie by Janni Lee Simner

Bones Of Faerie by Janni Lee Simner

Series: Faerie (#1)
Pages: 247
Publisher: Random House
Published: January 27th, 2009
IBSN: 9780375845635

The war between humanity and Faerie devastated both sides. Or so 15-year-old Liza has been told. Nothing has been seen or heard from Faerie since, and Liza’s world bears the scars of its encounter with magic. Trees move with sinister intention, and the town Liza calls home is surrounded by a forest that threatens to harm all those who wander into it. Then Liza discovers she has the Faerie ability to see—into the past, into the future—and she has no choice but to flee her town. Liza’s quest will take her into Faerie and back again, and what she finds along the way may be the key to healing both worlds.

[Synopsis by Goodreads]

In Janni Lee Simner's first book for young adults, she combines dystopia and paranormal and creates a post-apocalyptic world all but destroyed by a war against Faerie. Residual magic still remains in the human world, and Liza has grown up under the impression that magic is evil, until she finds her way into another town, where magic is controlled and used for good.

My favorite thing about the book was its premise: a girl finding magic - that she's always thought of as inherently bad - within herself, and running away. The writing style was beautiful, but I didn't feel any suspense or sympathy for the characters from it.

Liza was a fairly strong character: when something needed to be done, she did it, and didn't complain. But I couldn't identify with her. From her narration, I got a lot of what she was doing and feeling, but nothing about who she really was.

The plot was fast-paced, making for a quick read. It was entertaining, if not entirely engaging to me.

I give Bones Of Faerie a 3 out of 5. I may read the sequel, Faerie Winter, when it comes out on the 5th of April.