Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Review - Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston

Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston

Released: December 2008
Publisher: HarperTeen
Genre: Young Adult - Paranormal - Faerie
Pages: 336
Source: My book shelf aka I bought it


Rating: ♥♥♥♥



Seventeen-year-old actress Kelley Winslow always thought faeries were just something from childhood stories. Then she meets Sonny Flannery. He's a changeling - a mortal taken as an infant and raised among Faerie - and within short order he's turned Kelley's heart inside out and her life upside down.


For Kelley's beloved Central Park isn't just a park - it's a gateway between her ordinary city and the Faerie's dangerous, bewitching Otherworld. Now Kelley's eyes are opening not just to the Faerie that surround her, but to the heritage that awaits her ... a destiny both wondrous and strange.


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Faerie type books are not one of my favorites to read. Don't me get me wrong, I love the idea of them. I really do, but I have trouble getting into a book with so many odd names, this Court vs. that Court, etc. I had heard such great things about Wondrous Strange, that I decided to just go ahead and get a copy. And plus, that cover cannot be ignored - it's too eye catchy.

I'm very surprised this is Lesley Livingston's debut novel. She is such a talented writer and has a way with weaving in words. I cannot praise her writing enough - it's fantastic! I've been trying hard to think of ways I can describe this book and one thing that comes to mind is this: It's simply beautiful.

The romance between Kelley and Sonny had my heart doing a pitter patter. I loved every scene the two of them were together in. Sonny is the perfect knight in shining armor who deserves the swoon worthy award. What I really liked about their relationship is the classic feel it had. I haven't really came across many young adult books that had this type of feel. Maybe it had to do something with all the Shakespeare.

But this book isn't just about the lovey dovey-ness (though it was my favorite part). It's about Kelley, who is a wonderful character, finding out where she came from. While some parts were kind of predictable, there were other parts I didn't even question that surprised me! Towards the middle I did get a little anxious in wanting things to pick up. When it got close to the end, it was so packed full of action, I couldn't put it down! It leaves you with wanting to know much more (which is why I've already started on Darklight). All in all, this is one read I think everyone should pick up even if they're not a big fan of the paranormal/faerie type of tale. Trust me, you'll love it!

♥amber

7 comments:

Thao said...

Nice review. I'm really looking forward to reading the series. Love the covers.

Kim said...

Thanks for the review! :D I have this in my pile right now and was hesistant to read it. I'm moving it up now! (:

Wrighty said...

Great review! You brought up some good points that I hadn't really thought about but I feel the same way. Sometimes the stories about fae are hard to get into with the old names and histories. I hadn't really thought about that. I do enjoy them most of the time though and I'm looking forward to this one. Thanks!

(Your blog looks awesome!! Happy holidays!) :)

Tales of Whimsy said...

Great review. I really liked this one too.

in which a girl reads said...

Great review! And I agree about the lovely writing and the romance. Really enjoyed this book!

Erin said...

You know, I am not typically into faerie books either, and personally, I find this cover a bit creepy (eye-catching, yes, but creepy -- I thought it was a vamp novel at first) but perhaps I'll give it a go.

I never did find a title for my Nano book, no :( I think I might need to get it closer to done before something strikes me.

Did you end up being able to re-write your life-sized Batman scene? Sometimes the re-writes are better than the original, and sometimes they're so much worse. I hope yours was better :)

Cecelia said...

I agree with you about the cover of this book - stunning! I liked, but didn't love, this one. I'll definitely be checking out the next in the series, though - it's supposed to be even better. Nice review!