Author: Lesley Livingston (Website)
Release Date:9/22/09
Publisher: Harper Teen
Age Group: Young Adult (14+)
Source: Borrowed (Public Library)
Go Buy It! Amazon/Barnes&Noble/BookDepository
Overall Feelings: Very good!"17 year-old Kelley Winslow doesn’t believe in Faeries. Not unless they’re the kind that you find in a theatre, spouting Shakespeare—the kind that Kelley so desperately wishes she could be: onstage, under lights, with a pair of sparkly wings strapped to her shoulders. But as the understudy in a two-bit, hopelessly off-off-Broadway production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, wishing is probably the closest she’s going to get to becoming a Faerie Queen. At least, that’s what she thinks... In this fun, urban fantasy, Kelley's off-stage life suddenly becomes as complicated as one of Shakespeare’s plot twists when a nighttime trip to Central Park holds more than meets the mortal eye." (Goodreads)
Plot & Ending: So, this passed Sunday I participated in In My Mailbox and one of the books I picked up was this one and it's sequel, Darklight. I started Sunday afternoon and it took me a little long to finish this one. Why? Because the plot was a little too slow for me in the beginning.
But, it was pretty cool. The story behind Wondrous Strange revolves around the Fae, and this dangerous power, The Wild Hunt. It's centered in New York, more specifically Central Park. In fact one of the four gates designed to restrain the Fae from entering the mortal realm, Samhain, is disguised in Central Park. Pretty neat, right?
Kelley Winslow (a rad name, by the way) is the heroine. A seventeen year old actress chasing a big dream, accidentally starring in a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream, playing the role of Queen Titania. Turns out that she isn't just playing a role. While she may not be Queen Titania, she's definitely not human. But, her secret was totally unexpected, at least in the beginning.
In comes Sonny Flannery. Oh, how I love knights in shining armor! Not that he actually does have armor, but he is one of the thirteen Janus. Guardians of the Samhain gate.
As I mentioned before, the plot went a little too slow for me, at least in the beginning. Once I got halfway through, things started to pick up speed, and my interest piqued. BUT, this wasn't one of my most loved reads, though it was good.
The ending was actually my favorite part. If you've ever read it, you may be wondering why due to Sonny's predicament. For me, it was a very emotional scene. *this may be a tiny little bit spoilerish, so skip over this part if you don't want to know* Being that Sonny and Emma were basically reunited, the whole "I love thee", and Bob's dedication to Kelly all add up to a really great ending, one that pulled and tugged on a lot of warm emotions.
All and all it was a pretty good read and you'll probably like it, so go pick up a copy!
Characters: While I wouldn't say these characters are necessarily flat, they aren't exactly all that memorable, if that makes sense? I don't feel like there's any real depth to them. I loved Kelley's fiery temper, gift of being raised by the Irish. Sonny didn't turn out to be one of my favorite characters, but I fell in love with the romance that blooms between the both of them. It's so very tender and heart-felt, you can't help but love it. The humor brought to the book comes from Tyff, Kelley's roommate. Hilarious as hell would be the best was to describe her. Another cool character was Bob, aka Puck in this novel, who is very dedicated to Kelley, and is sort of funny too.
I was a little disappointed by the fact that there isn't too much revealed about the Janus guards. I felt like there was a lot more to them than what is revealed in the book. Other than that I liked the whole cast. (:
Cover: I adore the cover! She is so beautiful, the reddish hair, the lipstick color, the pale skin, and then the dark background. Very nice.
Stay tuned for a review on the sequel, Darklight...
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