Sunday, May 30, 2021

WAILING TEMPEST, by T.B. Phillips

    


Fantasy -- 2 stars

Blossom of the Fae - Book 1

Beneath the Tree of Life in Fiannotheria is a bush that holds seven blossoms, each a different color, each holding the power of one aspect of life.  When a human steals six of the blossoms, leaving only the ruby flower, representing the art of healing, corruption begins to spread in the fairy realm.  Alistaria's mission is to sneak into the human world and reclaim what she believes is her family's birthright.  But what if the Fae history she learned growing up is wrong? ----- This story has so much going for it--fairy vs. humans (and gnomes), a quest, magic flowers, mistaken identity, secret births, changelings--yet somehow it failed to ignite.  Part of the problem is there is just too much going on, starting with a war between two faerie kingdoms: the Faen who were turned into Banshees by their fairy enemies, the Fianne, but who also do their Banshee wailing in the human world every 30 days.  Then there's the Fiannotheria king who for some reason decides to start his own mission that may or may not run counter to the one with which Alistaria has been charged. Add that everybody seems to currently be or has previously double-crossed someone.  After yet another character argued that her/his version of the myth of the blossoms was the true one it became apparent that none of the parties were entirely innocent of anything.  They simply all crave the power of the blossoms to the detriment of everyone else.  With no "true goodness" to root for, fantasy as entertainment fails.


No comments:

Post a Comment