Lament: The Faerie Queen's Deception
by Maggie Steifvater
Free courtesy of the Jefferson Parish Library.
PJV's Quickie POV: I am truly in love with the voice of author Maggie Stiefvater, she paints a picture that touches the mind and imagination that I haven't found in many authors. Stiefvater truly makes reading a joy and I'm actually saddened that Lament brought to an end books of hers that are new to me and that I have to wait until the summer for the next book, Linger to be released. That being said, out of all her books, Lament is probably the least of my favorites, but it in no way makes it any kind of bad. I have a feeling I might be a bit prejudice since I out of ordered with Ballad, the second book in the series, or really the companion novel to Lament.
Review: Deidre the main character of Lament is a gifted child, a true musical genius. Her voice and her harp bring tears to eyes and render crowds silent in their beauty. The tragedy of her gifts is what is attracted to the power that she possesses. The Faerie. We are not talking about Tinker Bell either, we are talking about beings without souls who are attracted to light so they can steal it and possess it and kill it.
From the moment the first four leaf clover appears, Deidre knows something is coming. A storm hangs on the horizon and she fears that it is centered around her. As she encounters a strikingly handsome and charming boy by the name of Luke Dillion she knows also that something is not right with him, but she doesn't care. As the two become closer and closer more of the world that Deidre believed to be fantasy is revealed and so are secrets that both her and Luke have been keeping.
Lament is a shattering view into the world of faerie and into the darker parts of the unknown. It is a love story, a mystery and a thriller all rolled into one, with the charm of a young adult novel. The characters are so achingly real that you feel as if they are a part of you as the story ends. The story invokes emotions both good and bad as you turn the pages, I found myself hating and loving equally.
Now I must explain why this was my least favorite of the three books, and the number one reason was Luke. He was such a tragic character that I really almost felt that Deidre was too good for him. Her falling for him I thought was a tragedy in itself, I would have gone running from him, screaming and I thought she should have also. Some of you might think I'm crazy about this, but I never could get past his character. Yes, he was a charmer and yes he was a victim, but I still didn't get into the love between the two of them, or more to the point, I didn't agree with their relationship. This could also be stemming from reading Ballad first and having some clue as to the ending of Lament before it began. But I also have to say that I did not like Deidre in Ballad and I thought it would actually be hard for me to relate to her in Lament. Luckily that wasn't true, I understand now her frame of mind in the second book, I still don't agree with her actions in the books, but I still like her.
If you haven't read these books, run run run to the store buy them, read them. You will not be disappointed.
Recommendation: Teens and adults, nothing to fear, just read the book.
Review: Deidre the main character of Lament is a gifted child, a true musical genius. Her voice and her harp bring tears to eyes and render crowds silent in their beauty. The tragedy of her gifts is what is attracted to the power that she possesses. The Faerie. We are not talking about Tinker Bell either, we are talking about beings without souls who are attracted to light so they can steal it and possess it and kill it.
From the moment the first four leaf clover appears, Deidre knows something is coming. A storm hangs on the horizon and she fears that it is centered around her. As she encounters a strikingly handsome and charming boy by the name of Luke Dillion she knows also that something is not right with him, but she doesn't care. As the two become closer and closer more of the world that Deidre believed to be fantasy is revealed and so are secrets that both her and Luke have been keeping.
Lament is a shattering view into the world of faerie and into the darker parts of the unknown. It is a love story, a mystery and a thriller all rolled into one, with the charm of a young adult novel. The characters are so achingly real that you feel as if they are a part of you as the story ends. The story invokes emotions both good and bad as you turn the pages, I found myself hating and loving equally.
Now I must explain why this was my least favorite of the three books, and the number one reason was Luke. He was such a tragic character that I really almost felt that Deidre was too good for him. Her falling for him I thought was a tragedy in itself, I would have gone running from him, screaming and I thought she should have also. Some of you might think I'm crazy about this, but I never could get past his character. Yes, he was a charmer and yes he was a victim, but I still didn't get into the love between the two of them, or more to the point, I didn't agree with their relationship. This could also be stemming from reading Ballad first and having some clue as to the ending of Lament before it began. But I also have to say that I did not like Deidre in Ballad and I thought it would actually be hard for me to relate to her in Lament. Luckily that wasn't true, I understand now her frame of mind in the second book, I still don't agree with her actions in the books, but I still like her.
If you haven't read these books, run run run to the store buy them, read them. You will not be disappointed.
Recommendation: Teens and adults, nothing to fear, just read the book.
14 comments:
Nice! I gotta read this!
I loved her Shiver , so I should probably read this soon. Great review
I read Lament first and loved it. I'm reading Shiver now, but I can't really get into the story, but it is beautifully written. Maggie Stiefvater really is a great writer.
I love all of her books!
I have this one and ballad on my shelf begging to be read...i hope to get to them soon. Great reviews!
I love love loveeee this series. Ballad is even better from James' POV, though I also loved Diedre's. I really hope she makes a third book :)
I loved the touches the mind comment...;)Ballad was my fav of the two because of James-but I liked Ballad too, I think your right on about Luke it was kind of a "pop out of nowhere" romance.
I cant wait until Linger......I heard Shiver is getting made into a movie.
Really, run out and buy them...perhaps I will ;)
I am a big time Maggie Fan Girl and I loved Lament, fab review!
Like you, I didn't like this one as much as Ballad, but it was still good. I did get why Dee fell for Luke. She was very young and he was much "older" in spirit. He was able to reach and understand parts of her that she thought no one would.
I agree with you totally about the recommendation... go read this series!!
I need to get Lament! I have Ballad but haven't read it yet. Not until I read Lament. I have read Shiver and it was amazing!! I love her style of writing. I can't wait for Linger to come out!!
I'm a big fan of Maggie Stiefvater's writing. I liked Lament so I guess I'm going to love Ballad, right? :)
Great review! I definitely agree with you on Lament and also thought Ballad was better. I think the fact that you didn't really like their relationship was partly stemmed from Ballad, where Luke is NOT NOT NOT a healthy boyfriend, though looking back it, their relationship didn't seem that great at first either. I read Lament first though, and it seemed okay at the time except for poor James. But I'm glad he got his happy ending in Ballad. :)
excellent!!
im soo reading this soon :)
btw you won an award!
http://storywings.blogspot.com/2010/01/blog-awards.html
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