Customer Reviews

In the Forests of Serre

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Reading "In the Forests of Serre" is like walking into someone else's dream. You enter a rich forest of metaphor, sometimes only partially glimpsed but always beautiful. A standard fairy-tale plot is overgrown with jeweled birds and foxes with little golden crowns--Kinuko Y. Craft's cover art is a perfect match for McKillip's writing--but the story's end might still come as a surprise.

The prince and princess both have some growing up to do through the labyrinthine course of the book. I picked the wrong villain, someone very like the villain in McKillip's "Song for a Basilisk" but who is redeemed in this book by his love for the kingdom of Serre.

Speaking of villains, see if you can guess whose heart was enclosed in a casket inside the ribcage of a dragon---you also need guess where it went after the wizards Gyre and Unciel opened the casket. Many hearts go missing throughout the story and not all of them are returned to their true owners.

The Baba Yaga-like witch, Brume and her walking hovel, and her chickens, and her stewpot full of human bones form a striking counterpoint to the beautiful firebird-woman who flies through the Forest of Serre and steals men's hearts with her song. Are either or both of them evil? Are they two faces of the same wild magic? McKillip doesn't give a direct answer to these questions (at least none that I could discern) so you'll have to decide for yourself as you read her story. Both Prince Ronan and Princess Sidonie have to face their own worst fears in Brume's hut, and they are different people when they finally emerge.

The firebird seems to enter and escape the Crone's hut at will--another of McKillip's symbols for death and rebirth, or change?

Incidentally, only the men in this story are seduced by the nameless firebird.

"In the Forests of Serre" is one of McKillip's loveliest and most mysterious fantasies. Even if you don't care for all of that la-de-da love-lost-and-found stuff, or for the book's dense symbolism, you might still enjoy the goings-on of the Wizard Unciel and his bumbling-but-honest scribe Euan Ash. None of this author's characters do quite what you expect of them.

I'm not even sure there was a villain.

Patricia McKillip has gained a reputation as one of the few truly original fantasy authors out there. With her exquisitely ethereal prose and haunting stories, she is on top form in "In the Forests of Serre." Princes, princesses, witches and wizards, firebirds and black jewels are all spun together by a master.

Prince Ronan of Serre lost his wife and child, and now he tries to die by going off to fight in wars for his tyrant father. When returning from a battle, he accidently kills a chicken belonging to the witch Brume; the old woman curses him, but Ronan doesn't take it seriously. Yet when he returns home, his father reveals that he's betrothed Ronan (the only heir) to Princess Sidonie of Dacia, a small but magical kingdom. While Ronan broods about this, he sees a beautiful firebird pass by the castle, and is enspelled by it.

Princess Sidonie is no happier about being married off in a barbaric land, but she has to marry Ronan to keep Dacia from being invaded. She travels to Serre with a wizard, and encounters Ronan wandering in the forest without knowing who he is. When she comes to Serre, she finds that her future husband has vanished -- Ronan is searching for the firebird, because he can't find his way home until he gives it to Brume. But things have become more complicated -- because a wizard has taken Ronan's identity...

Like all McKillip's books, this novel is deceptively simple and intriguingly written. She uses simple concepts (witch, wizards, scribe, prince, princess, firebird, a country's magic, and talking animals) and spins her unique prose around them. This is not a book for people who like all the usual elements used in the same old way.

McKillip's prose is detailed and lush, bringing to mind the best of medieval tapestries and Loreena McKennitt music; when Ronan is in the woods, McKillip describes moths clinging to him, and spiderwebs covering rips in his clothes. The dialogue is more flowing and natural than in some of her other books; the sentences are longer and less flowery. At the same time, her descriptions of things like transformation into a firebird are exquisite.

Ronan is a slightly less vivid character at the beginning, compared to his faded mother and half-nuts father; he becomes more interesting as he stops moping and starts obsessing on the firebird. Princess Sidonie is a likable heroine, not gung-ho but very interesting and determined. The wizard Gyre adds an element of mystery to the plot, while the witch Brume will creep you out.

Venture into "Forests of Serre," where "nothing is predictable." It's haunting, beautiful and magical, not just for fans of fantasy.

In the Forests of Serre is a fantasy novel with a Slavic style. Prince Ronan has lost his wife and child and, after burning their bodies on the funeral byre and scattering their ashes in the river, he has ridden away to war with rebels in southern Serre, hoping to die in battle. His father, King Fergus, sends a messenger and a troop of soldiers to order him to come home. Ronan obeys his father, returning with the wounded warriors and escorted by the troop of soldiers. As he crosses a wasteland, his horse steps on a white hen. Ronan is soon made aware by the witch Brume that the crushed bird is hers and she bids him to pluck the chicken for her pot and invites him and his companion to enter her house and drink the broth. Ronan refuses her bidding and invitation three times and is then informed that he will have a bad day.

When Ronan reaches his home, the king wastes no time telling him that he will marry Princess Sidonie in four days. Although Ronan tries to demur from this wedding, saying that he is still grieving his lost wife and child, the king refuses to delay the wedding and, when Ronan continues to deny his command, the king puts Ronan under guard prior to the ceremony. Ronan's mother is sympathetic but is powerless to change the king's plans.

While Ronan is in his guarded room, he sees the Firebird in the forest and hears her singing. Ronan leaves his room, walks down the staircase and, while the guards are following him at a slower pace, slips out of the castle gates and down the cliff to the forest. There he follows the Firebird, running and running, then standing still to watch and listen, and then running again. He is soon lost in the woods, enthralled by the beauty and song of the Firebird. As he follows, the prince is asked by various distressed animals to help them with their troubles, which he does in an absent-minded way.

In Dacia, Princess Sidonie is told of the impending marriage and runs to Unciel, a formerly powerful wizard, to convince him to urge her father to change his mind. The king is relentless, however, and soon persuades Sidonie and Unciel that the marriage must occur to preclude an invasion of Dacia by King Fergus. Unciel suggests that a wizard should accompany the marriage party to protect against the wild magic of Serre. He is still too weak and powerless from a long and strenuous battle against a mighty foe to provide such protection, but he calls upon the wizard Gyre, who owes him a favor, to accompany Sidonie's party.

After many long and hard weeks of travel, Princess Sidonie and her escorts finally enter the forests of Serre. While playing with her bow and arrows in the forest, Sidonie comes upon a wild and ragged looking man following the Firebird. She talks to the confused and somewhat incoherent man for a while and gives her bow to him as he starts to run after the Firebird. When they reach the Castle in Serre, Sidonie soon determines that the deshelved man must have been Prince Ronan.

This novel is a story of wizards and witches, princes and princesses, kindness and cruelty, and warm passion versus cold intellect. The witch Brume is devious, but can sometimes be fooled. King Fergus is powerful and determined, but has only limited perception. The story is full of light and mystery and ends with a hint of still other secrets not quite seen.

Highly recommended for McKillip fans and anyone else who enjoys adult fairy tales written with a light and fanciful touch.

Although the Forests of Serre is not my favorite McKillip book, her stories are always a pleasure to read, and this is no exception. Her lyrical prose creates vivid pictures (I love the image of the witch running off with her house of bones!) and the story is beautiful and wonderfully strange, bringing to mind a fairy tale by the Grimms. I was a little disappointed, however, by the lack of intensity in the story and felt that characterization was sacrificed for story development. The characters don't seem fully realized and Sidonie especially seems like a caricature, as the beautiful, golden princess. Still, definitely worth reading for McKillip and fairy tale fans!

Patricia A. McKillip once more takes us into her intricate and ornate imagination with "In the Forests of Serre", which has the feeling of an old fairytale that McKillip has discovered in some old book and fleshed-out for us in her unique style of writing. Combining several components from various myths and legends, (predominantly the Firebird and a witch who bears more than a passing resemblance to the Russian Baba Yaga), "In the Forests of Serre" is a book that McKillip's fans will find to their liking.

In the Forests of Serre are many creatures of enchantment, both beautiful and deadly, predominantly the Mother of All Witches: Brume, who lives in a moving house of bones. It is one of her white chickens that Prince Ronan of Serre kills on his way home from the wars and so is cursed. For Ronan however, the threat of bad fortune is meaningless - he's already lost his wife and infant son to death: what could possibly be worse?

As it turns out, an arranged marriage. In his absence, his tyrannical father has organised a marriage to Princess Sidonie of Dacia, attracted to the small kingdom's promise of magic and power. Though Sidonie is a reluctant bride, she realises the threat posed toward her home - if King Ferus cannot have Dacia through marriage, he will take it by force. The court wizard Unciel is sympathetic to her plight, and has arranged his young acquaintance Gyre to accompany the princess to her new home in Serre. But Gyre has his own agenda concerning the magic in Serre, and the hidden past between himself and Unciel has not yet reached its conclusion...

And then Ronan is captivated by the sight of the Firebird, which reveals to him its secret, beautiful face. Without a second thought, Ronan escapes into the forests, which is only the first of many comings and goings into the Forests of Serre, which are traversed by almost all of our characters throughout the course of the novel. Each time something new is discovered, something is lost, something precious switches hands or is left behind. By the time the story ends each of the characters (even the far away Unciel and his new scribe Euan Ash, who is working to piece together his history) have all their secrets revealed.

The characters are not especially vivid, especially when compared to others that appear in McKillip's previous books, but their dilemmas and mysteries are interesting - from Ronan's earth-shattering grief, to Sidonie's entrapment between two countries, to Gyre and Unciel's shadowed past together.

The forest itself is gorgeously written in McKillip's distinctive use of language and imagery, and Kinuko Y. Craft's beautiful cover illustration once more embodies the atmosphere of the book. Filled with meaning and symbolism, this is a treat for any fantasy lover, especially those that are already fans of McKillip's work. Although at times it can be a bit needlessly complicated (I kept loosing track of who was in the forest and why, since there are so many coming and goings), and perhaps not the best McKillip novel out there, it was still an intriguing and fascinating read.

In the Forests of Serre was my first McKillip novel and after reading it I was hooked! I'll admit that it is a bit confusing and you have to think quite a bit before you figure out what it is about. However, it is definitely worth reading and you will probably find yourself grabbing every single one of her books that you can lay a hand on afterwards!

It alternates point of view between several characters: Prince Ronan, Princess Sidonie, the wizard Gyre, and Euan Ashe, a scribe. The story begins with Prince Ronan returning from a military campain in the south of Serre. On his way back to the palace, he accidently runs over a white hen which belongs to the elusive witch, Brume. When he refuses to enter her house (for good reason; the witch is known to eat anyone who does), she lays a curse on him that he will have a very bad day, and be forced to wander in the forest until he finds her again.

He returns home and finds his father, King Ferus, in a rage that his sone went off to fight without his permission. He tells Ronan that a Princess from Dacia (a smaller neighboring country with a reputation for magic) is coming and that he will have to marry her. Ronan is obviously upset by this, the more so because his own wife and child died in childbirth. Ever since then he has been trying to be killed.

Ronan wants to escape, but doesn't know what to do. He happens to glance out the window and sees a bird made of fire perched in the forest. (This is the mystical firebird, which gives anyone who follows it his heart's desire.) The bird calls to Ronan and he flees the castle, following the bird into the forests of Serre.

Meanwhile, in Dacia, Princess Sidonie is not exactly thrilled with the match either. She must marry Ronan to prevent a disastrous war between Serre and Dacia. Since Dacia had lost most of it's magic in the last generation. She runs to the wizard Unciel for guidance, but eventually she determines to go and make the best of it. Unciel puts a wizard named Gyre in charge of watching the princess in the dangerous and unpredictable forests of Serre.

Arggh, this story is hard to explain! So much happens and there is so much that is only implied, but has so much impact on the story. Well, I'll just give you a brief idea. Sidonie makes it through the forests to the palace only to find Ronan missing. Ronan has been wandering in the forest, following the firebird, but no one knows where he is. He does find the witch, but she won't release him until he captures the firebird and brings it to her. To Ronan this is unthinkable, because he has lost his heart to the firebird.

Somehow, Gyre decides he wants to take over Serre and become Ronan. So he captures Ronan and turns him into a firebird. Then Gyre takes Ronan's shape and leaves the real Ronan at the witch's house. Now he can go home. He makes it to the palace and is about to marry Sidonie before he says something that gives him away. Ferus blows him out the tower window in a blast of fire. However, this doesn't kill Gyre. Ronan manages to free himself from Brume, and agrees to bring Gyre to her in return, but he has to leave his heart with her as a guarantee.

Gyre is lured to Brume's cottage by the firebird and Ronan forgets his heart and goes home. When Sidonie finds him completely heartless (no pun intended) and discovers why, she sneaks out of the palace to find Brume and get Ronan's heart. Ronan's mother sends him out after her, and long story short, Ronan, Sidonie and Gyre all find themselves thrown together in Brume's cottage. Gyre appears to have realized how evil he was becoming. They are only free when Gyre gives the firebird's egg to Brume. Apparently they are somehow connected.

The story ends with Gyre going off on his travels alone, as before. Ronan realizes that what he really needed was something (or someone) to live for. It seems like he and Sidonie have a chance for a happy ending after all.

Another thing is that it is rather unclear why we keep having flashbacks to Unciel and Euan. Somehow, in an amazingly intricate way, they are all connected, but it is very foggy. I still don't really understand all of it, but it was so delicately embroidered together that it was a joy to read. However, if you like action-packed, clear-cut, black and white fantasy, this is not for you. This book is all about the grey areas. What does it really mean to have a heart? To be evil or kind? To be dreaming or awake? How can you really tell what is real and what is not? I mean, at the end, you're not even sure Brume is bad! I highly recommend it to all fantasy lovers, but be prepared to have a lot to think about after reading this.

If for nothing else, read this book for McKillip's graceful prose and her gorgeous descriptions. It is one of the most beautifully written books I have ever read!

Do you know the value your heart? If you think you do, do you know yourself that well? Dive in the magical tale weaved by the firebird that reflected each one's heart desire.

Serre, a mighty kingdom, with its dense and enchanted forest. Dacia, a small but wealthy kingdom, with infamous magical veined kings, except its latest one. To prevent magical war between them, Sidonie, Princess of Dacia, and Ronan, Prince of Serre, were trapped in royal marriage plan although both of them tried to flee from it. And a young wizard, tried to find and encapture his heart's true desire but attracted to dangerous side of himself that he didn't know instead. Each lost their heart and each found them again, guided by the magic of Serre in the form of firebird.

Discover yourself and your heart through the tangling beauty and ugliness, light and dark, good and evil, enchanting of the heart of The Forrest of Serre, where fairytale came to life till it brought you to satisfying conclusion.

Never exactly borrowing her plot elements and characters from Russian and Slavic myth and legend (but oh! so closely sometimes!), McKillip is the absolute mistress of her literate, adult, and realistic style. There are the usual wonderful extended metaphors, the droll, yet humane humor, and the rich characterizations that pervade her growing oeurve. While readers would also enjoy the Adult Fairy Tale series, edited by Terri Windling, and the Fairy Tales for Adults anthologies from Windling and Datlow (to which I believe McKillip contributes), no other author does it as well at McKillip. Virtuoso reading!

In The Forests of Serre, McKillip has released yet another beautifully crafted story. I love her work so well, that I simply buy whatever she puts out immediately. Again, I was not dissapointed. Drawing me in swiftly, I would argue that this is one of her best so far. "Ombria in Shadow" left me desiring something, though it too was a lovely tale, but Forests has more than made up for it. Deceptively simple, her work will leave you pondering afterward. In a class far above most fantasy, I could argue that it be sold in the Literature section, rather than fastasy, as it is fantastic in more than genre.

Once upon a time in the kingdom of Serre, the heir to the throne Prince Ronan went to war in the hopes that he would be killed in battle. He lost his wife and child and saw no reason to go on living but fate had something else planned for him. On his return home from battle his horse stepped on a witch's chicken and she cursed him. When he returned home, his father informed him that he arranged for the prince to marry Princess Sidonie of Dacia, a kingdom known for its powerful sorceress.

The prince is ensorcelled by a firebird and follows it into the forest where he meets the princess and the Gyre sorcerer who accompanies her from her land. No introductions occur and the princess resumes her journey only to find that her bridegroom is not at the palace awaiting her. Gyre searches for him, but when he encounters the prince he changes him into a firebird and assumes the appearance of Ronan. Gyre intends to take over the prince's role because Roman doesn't want it and the sorcerer does.

Patricia A. McKillip weaves her usual magic to create a spellbinding tale of two star-crossed lovers who find that fate is not always unkind. The adventures they partake in change them in subtle ways, making them more aware of the needs of the other and wanting to give that person their heart's desire. Readers will remember the irascible witch in this tale who lives in a house of bones, has big feet and is more and less than she seems.

Harriet Klausner