Customer Reviews

Elfland (Aetherial Tales)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Cross Elizabeth Hand with Fire and Hemlock, and you might end up with something like Freda Warrington's _Elfland_. This is the kind of big, sweeping modern faerie tale that you don't see often on the adult shelves anymore. There's been some beautiful work done in YA recently, but in the adult realm, the trend has been away from novels like this. And that's a shame. _Elfland_ is complex, rich, sensual, beautifully written, and sometimes heartbreaking.

I devoured _Elfland_. I carried it with me everywhere for four days, because I never knew when I might have a spare five minutes to steal a page or two. When I was at work, I looked forward to going home so I could read more. I read late into the night, every night. I was hooked. That, to me, is the surest sign of a five-star book: the complete inability to put it down unless I absolutely have to!

Our heroine, Rosie Fox, is of Aetherial (fae) descent, living with her family just this side of the Great Gates that divide our world from the Otherworld. Rosie's haughty neighbor, Lawrence Wilder, is the Gatekeeper, and as such, is supposed to open the Gates every seven years to allow travel, and a flow of energy, between the realms. As the story opens, however, he has shut the Gates, claiming a great danger lurks on the other side. Elfland follows Rosie, her family and friends, and Lawrence's family over the course of the next fourteen years. Fourteen years: long enough for a girl to grow into a woman, for loves to be lost and found, and for family secrets to explode. Long enough for some Aetherials to decide it's better to deny their fae nature, and for others to resort to desperate measures to reopen the Gates.

At its heart, _Elfland_ is about how denying one's true self is a sure path to disaster. It's also a love story. I usually don't go for romances in which the hero and heroine bicker, but Warrington makes the trope sing. Rosie and her eventual love interest get off on the wrong foot as kids, and the way their relationship develops seems painfully realistic to me, with the characters slipping back into snarky retorts because they're familiar, and because the retorts serve as an outlet for emotions more disturbing than anger. Both characters have a lot of growing to do before they're a good match for each other. _Elfland_ is, in part, the story of that growth, and of the sometimes wrenching mistakes made along the way.

When the plot moves into the Otherworld, Warrington handles the journey perfectly. It would have been easy to let the story get bogged down in travelogue here, to slow the pace down by showing the reader every single strange thing that populates the Aetherial realms. Warrington doesn't fall into this trap. She gives us a glimpse of how beautiful and how terrifying Elfland can be, but leaves some things to the imagination, and keeps the focus firmly on the characters' quest. This has a dual effect: it keeps the plot moving, and it allows the Otherworld to retain some of its mystery.

Overall, I loved _Elfland_. It's a sumptuous feast of a novel, filled with vivid characters, magical locales both earthly and Aetherial, and a complicated plot in which nearly every detail turns out to be significant in the end. I'll definitely be looking up Freda Warrington's backlist.

"What a great book!" That was my first thought on completing "Elfland." It was one of those books that I would read far into the night, telling myself: "just one more chapter, just one more chapter..." until I couldn't even keep my eyes open. In a nutshell: it's unique, it's clever, it's funny and it's definitely not what you'd expect from this particular genre.

Probably best described as urban fantasy, "Elfland" concerns a community of people known as Aetherials. The Aetherials are physically indistinguishable from humans, and move between this earthly plain and their true home called the Spiral in another dimension. A Gatekeeper controls the way in and out, but at the start of this novel, the current keeper - Lawrence Wilder - has flatly refused to open it, claiming that there is something deadly on the other side. Some Aetherials believe him, others don't, and yet there's nothing that any of them can do considering that only Lawrence has the power to open it.

As year follows year, the Aetherials feel the inevitable entropy that comes without access to the rejuvenating powers of their home, and the latest generation grows up with no experience of their powers or heritage. Some are quite happy with this arrangement, wanting to embrace normality and the human world. But obviously, others are more interested in finding a way in...

Despite all the fantasy trappings, "Elfland" is predominantly a family drama, as most of the action involves the members of two specific families: the cold and wealthy Wilders, and the warm and loving Foxes. Between the two families exists a strange bond, not a "feud" as such, but rather an inability to keep out of each other's lives for reasons that only become clear when the dark family secrets are brought to life. There is a large range of interconnected characters based around the Fox and Wilder families: brothers, sisters, parents, children, stepmothers, friends, lovers - there's a veritable gold mine here of characters and their tumultuous relationships with one another.

The story stretches out over several years, with the younger generation growing from children to adults over the course of the story; changing, maturing and altering their opinions of life as they go. Although Rosie Fox is our main protagonist, the third-person narration moves from character to character, utilizing their different points of view. This means that we can get differing opinions on various issues and characters; for example when Rosie first sets eyes on Jon, we idolize him as much as she does - until we see him through someone else's eyes who can give us a more rounded view of him. This ensures that no one is wholly good or completely bad - as with almost everything in life, it all depends on your point of view.

I'm finding it quite hard to summarize the plot at this stage, since the story itself is so sprawling and filled with so many characters. Although it hinges firmly on the character relationships, there's always the sense of the fantastical element lurking at the periphery of your vision, and there are plenty of far-reaching plot details, all of which are recalled at the right place and time. In a book this long, you'd expect some plot-points to be lost or forgotten, but Warrington remembers everything, from an angelic painting in the attic to a crystal necklace and the scar it leaves. My favourite would have to be the appearances of the tree dryad: it pays to heed her warnings!

Usually I dislike loathing-into-love romances, (simply because they're never handled particularly realistically) but in "Elfland" this storyline works wonderfully. Neither one of the participants is perfect, and although first impressions between the two of them are just terrible, and though they spend the majority of the time divided by social obligations and problematic situations, you breath a sigh of relief when they finally reach an appropriate time and place for each other, only to start holding it again as yet another problem threatens them!

However, I am compelled to point out that there is adultery in this novel, something that always gets my goat when it isn't handled properly (glorified adultery being one of the reasons why I didn't really enjoy The Horse Whisperer; personally, I'd rather read about star-crossed lovers who do the right thing, than about a couple who give into desire and try to justify their actions afterwards). Warrington's treatment of the subject matter certainly isn't irresponsible enough for me to oppose "Elfland", since the direct consequences for the adultery are dire. Likewise, the participants feel guilty about what they've done, and take steps to fix the damage that they caused. But on the other hand, the third (wronged) member of the party is needlessly vilified and conveniently disposed of afterwards. I felt bad for him, more so than any of the other characters seemed to. When it comes to this sort of thing, it pays to bring your own moral compass. Some readers will find the fact that the lovers pretty much get away with their crime somewhat problematic and loose respect for them in the process, whilst others will shrug and think: "what's the big deal? It's only a book."

Furthermore, the concept of the Aetherials themselves is a bit vague. I got the impression that they were a superior race from another dimension, having powers of shape-shifting, a tendency toward lucid dreaming, and the ability to move between different plains of existence. But I was never entirely sure what they *were*, and at one stage, when they are held up as the source for humanity's stories of the Fair Folk, I wondered why they couldn't simply BE the Fair Folk, albeit in a contemporary setting.

However, both these issues are in no way detrimental to the plot (in fact, the adultery is *essential* to it), and more down to personal preferences and expectations as opposed to an actual flaw in the storytelling. Ultimately this is a brilliantly conceived and written novel that explores the many faces of love: whether it is platonic or lustful, passionate or peaceful, an temporal infatuation or a deep and abiding commitment to another person. Likewise, there is an emphasis on self-discovery: the longing for a normal life by denying one's heritage...or is it longing for one's heritage when trapped in a normal life?

In short, the best compliment I could give this book is that by the time I finally reached its end, all I could do was wish there was more of it.

we gave this book five stars...
dear lovers of faerie lore,
... but we'd like to give it seven stars. In fact, we bestow upon it the the Seven pointed Elfin star. If you took Charlotte Bronte and merged her with Jane Austin and brought her into the present writing in the Magical Realism style of Alive Hoffman about elves in modern Britain, you'd have this wonderful novel. It could be called a "tale of two families" for it tells of the relationships between the Wilders and the Fox family, who are both elven/aetherials, and upper class British citizens. There is romance here, and longing, and a beast that lurks beyond the gate to Elfin, for which reason it has been sealed and closed, creating protests among the Vaethyr, the elves on Earth/Vaeth. We could go on, but instead, simply read this book. No one's ever come closer to understanding the modern Faerie folk.
kyela,
the silver elves

I stumbled onto Elfland on accident...I had never heard of it and I usually do a little research before purchasing a hardcover book. The beautiful cover art prompted me to pick it up, but it was the praise from a couple of authors I really enjoy (Charles de Lint, and Tanith Lee) that actually brought me to the check-out. Best book I have purchased this year! It easily makes my list of favorites. Along with other reviewers, I devoured this book and simply couldn't put it down.

The world of the Aetherials is an enticing one, but the real reason this story stands out against the rest is the wonderful characters and the relationships they have. I feel like the fantasy genre can crank out the magic and world-building, but well done characters make the difference between a good idea and a great story.

I loved how family relationships, romantic relationships, and friendships represented--to me -- how they feel and what they mean during different points of the character's lives. Rosie Fox, our protagonist, learns to trust her instincts through trial and error. She finds love and loses it, and finds it again.

My one complaint....after I put down this book, I immediately went to look for more from Freda Warrington, but this is her first American release, which means all of her other novels are a little more difficult to get and some are very pricey. I hope Elfland's success will lead to re-prints here in the U.S. I am anxiously awaiting more from Warrington.

I purchased this book based on the reviews I saw here on Amazon. I was not disappointed. I couldn't put the book down. I really enjoyed the main character Rosie and the world created by the author of the Atherials and how it is connected to the Earth. I am excited to hear there are more upcoming books based in this same world.

I don't want to give any spoilers away but experiences of the main character regarding unrequited love and forbidden romance was well written. At times I felt the intensity of emotions that were being experienced by the characters. The plot is creative and there is much more to the story than just romance to keep you entertained. I felt that the character development was strong throughout the book. Characters that did not seem interesting at first would suddenly come to life later on in the story and surprise you.

I also thought the cover art on the book was beautiful. I am a sucker for great cover art.

All in all I say this was an enchanting read and I look forward to reading more of this Atherial world in future publications.

I've given this book a rating of 'No Grade' because I didn't finish it. I really tried to, but for reasons which I will explain here, I lost interest in moving forward.

The novel starts off interestingly enough: we're introduced to Rosie Fox as a young girl whose family is from the fairy realm, accessed through the Gates. These Gates are closed to them by Lawrence, another Aetherial, due to his belief of evil lurking on the other side, ready to escape.

Through the next 200 pages or so, we grow up with Rosie and her family and all the drama that goes with it. It reminded me of a soap opera, where all the characters are fae, yet they merely only talk about it. It's rare we get to see any Aetherial action. Enormous amount of time is spent on love affairs, adultery, and drugs. I felt this annoyance in the plot events was doubled by the fact that I never really liked Rosie. Everyone would say how nice and good a person she is, but she's rather selfish, passive and abrasive. I never understood why she made certain desicions such as those relating to her romantic life. I felt like drama was created for the sake of drama. I also didn't care for Sam very much: the stereotypical bad boy the main female character can't help fall in love (or lust) with.

For 200-something pages we are given all this backstory and I ultimately stopped reading for lack of movement of the main plot: getting the Gates open or defeating the evil presence beyond them. I wasn't interested in the family saga.

I too found this book by accident. I was captivated by the cover art and leafed through it and really liked the author's sensitive writing. I soon fell in love with the rich, creative world Freda created. This is a beautiful book that takes you deep into the Faerie kingdoms, and the passionate lives of their races. I highly recommend this one. I'm on the hunt to get her other books now!

If you like character driven Urban Fantasy, you should give this book a try. You will not regret it. Elfland is my favorite book to come out this year. Freda Warrington's writing is at once: beautiful and sparse. The book was one of those reads that you don't want to end and when it does you're left with a sense of loss and a yearning to read more. I can't wait for the next book to come out. Although Elfland is the first book in the Aetherial Tales, it stands alone, so you don't have to pull your hair out waiting for the next one because it has ended on a cliff-hanger. If you only read one book this year, Elfland by Freda Warrington, should be that book.

Every seven years on the Night of the Summer Stars, the Aetherials routinely move back and forth between the Spiral and the Earth when the gates between realms are opened for a short time. The Aetherials live amongst the earthlings as humans, but must go home periodically to touch their basic essence or go insane.

Their return to home trip abruptly fails this year when for no known reason the Gatekeeper Lawrence Wilder shuts the portal permanently. He proclaims danger is coming from beyond that could destroy the realms, but says nothing further. The Aetherials are stuck on Earth and panic stricken though they have lived safely as mortals amidst the humans; but these Fair Folk will go mad and die if they fail to return home. The daughter of their King Auberon, Rose Fox is attracted to one of the sons of the Gatekeeper, though both offspring Sam and Jon Wilder want her. This is not a good time for romance as the desperate visitors are losing their grips on sanity from failing to touch with their Aetherial selves on the other side of the shuttered gate.

ELFLAND, the first Books of the Silver Wheel saga, is an excellent fantasy due to the refreshing cast as the human, the Aetherial, and the Gatekeeper and his family (especially his sons) seem genuine with all types of personal conflicts and desires. Surprisingly, the story line focuses deep on the relationships (carefully keeping the romance from overwhelming the rest of the plot) between and within the two key families while one brood struggles with sanity while trying to go home. Fans will relish Freda Warrington's opening gamut and look forward to the rest of this character driven series as the Fair Folks instinctively know time is running out on their minds.

Harriet Klausner

I got this book after reading other reviews. Absolutely loved it. Parts of the book reminds me of Lord of the Rings, the Twilight series, Mysts of Avlon, but it is even better! I couldn't put it down. Highly recommended.