Softcover

ISBN 10: 0575130474 ISBN 13: 9780575130470

Verlag: GOLLANCZ, 2016

When we last saw her, Aileana Kameron, the Falconer, disappeared through the fae portal that she was trying to close forever. When she escapes and reenters the human world, she finds her beloved city—indeed, the entire world—has been destroyed, and the fae world itself is slowly dying. Somehow Aileana is the key to preserving both worlds—but how? This much-anticipated second chapter in the Falconer trilogy "combines vivid world-building with action-packed fight sequences" (School Library Journal) "and a cliffhanger ending ensures that readers will follow Aileana to the very end of this trilogy" (The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books).

About the Author:

Elizabeth May currently resides in Edinburgh, Scotland. The Falconer trilogy is her debut series.

From School Library Journal:

Gr 8 Up—In The Falconer, 19th-century Edinburgh debutante Aileana Kameron discovered that she is the last Falconer, a line of women warriors with the ability to defeat fae. In this installment, which picks up where the previous volume ended, Aileana, after failing to prevent the destruction of Edinburgh, is trapped in what was once the Unseelie Kingdom with the vicious Lonnrach, who tortures her physically and psychologically. After being gone for the equivalent of three human years, Aileana returns to find the world a very different place, with her human and fae friends—among the few survivors—hardened by the destruction they witnessed. Throughout the novel, the young woman copes with the guilt and shame of letting her friends down and of being forced into the role of a helpless victim. After Aileana purposely survives death so she can come back with the gift of sight, this entry ends with her being reborn with the power of Kiaran and Aithinne's mother, The Cailleach, the queen of the fae. This work combines vivid world-building with action-packed fight sequences and does a better job than the first volume of pulling readers in from the beginning. Aileana is a strong heroine, and, as such, her struggle to avoid being a victim following her captivity with Lonnrach is believable and compelling. Kiaran and Aileana's romance progresses in a predictable way, but that does not make it any less enjoyable. Fans will eagerly await the trilogy's conclusion. VERDICT Purchase where the first volume is popular.—Marissa Lieberman, East Orange Public Library, NJ