Read for the 2010 YA Reading Challenge.
Findabhair and Gwen are sixteen year old cousins, planning a trip around Ireland when Gwen comes over from the US to visit for the summer. The two girls have always loved the stories of the Fair Folk and the Summer Realm that exists alongside our own. It’s their plan to visit the sites in Ireland where the Fair Folk once roamed. Their first night, they sneak into Tara, and get more adventure than they bargained for when Findabhair is kidnapped by the King of the Fairies. It’s up to Gwen to rescue her, and her search brings her all over Ireland, and brings her all kinds of adventures.
This was a fun read. I’d say it’s on the chick-lit side of YA reading, with a heavy emphasis on relationships, but there’s also great detail about the places that Gwen visits in Ireland (several of which I have visited, and the descriptions, of the Burren especially, put me right back there). The Fair Folk are true to form – they often come across as immortal teenagers – and they are treated with respect by the author. I’d recommend this to anyone that enjoys Celtic folklore, and can stand a bit of teenage angst on the side.