She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Jude-broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness-has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Not so much romance as suspense, this stylish fantasy mesmerizes.īlack is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy. Dilemmas and choices are complex, providing much food for thought. The blend of history and fantasy enhances both storylines as the narrative shifts between past and present, gradually doling out clues. The sense of foreboding grows as Hester learns more and more about the past and struggles to find answers to her questions about her own future. Fantasy elements are incorporated seamlessly, so despite knowing about the mermaids from the first, readers will only gradually comprehend the extent to which they have influenced the lives of those around them. Fama's lush language makes the past seem as immediate as the present-day scenes. In modern times, Hester puzzles over her family history her female ancestors have tended to die young for generations, her mother included, making her decide to swear off love and maybe have a chance to survive into old age.

The romance between Syrenka and her beau, Ezra, in 1872 leads to a particularly disturbing murder-suicide, and the pact she makes with Noo’kas, the queen of the mermaids, has repercussions that reach into the present. A mermaid's attraction to a man begets both love and evil in the waters off Plymouth, Mass., where these exotic creatures have always lived and will live forever.

Monstrous beauty by elizabeth fama