Light Beneath Ferns [Paperback]

Anne Spollen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 8, 2010

I have this strange sense that my silence is preparing me for something I can't name . . .

Elizah Rayne is nothing like other fourteen-year-old girls. More interested in bird bones than people, she wraps herself in silence. Trying to escape the shadow of her gambler father, Elizah and her mother move into an old house that borders a cemetery. All her mother wants is for them to have "normal" lives. But that becomes impossible for Elizah when she finds a human jawbone by the river and meets Nathaniel, a strangely hypnotic boy who draws Elizah into his dreamlike and mysterious world.

Only by forgetting everything she knows can Elizah understand the truth about Nathaniel—and discover an unimaginable secret. 

 

 

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Elizah and her mother live on the edge of a cemetery. Most 14-year-olds would be sort of creeped out by that, but she is far more upset by her mother’s sudden need to “be normal.” With the recent departure of her father, Elizah’s main concerns are keeping the school guidance counselor off her back and resisting her mother’s attempts to make her a social butterfly; that is, until she finds a jawbone amid the graves. Thereafter, she is inexplicably drawn to Nathaniel, an odd young man whose interest in her seems tied to her recent discovery. Spollen’s sophomore effort (The Shape of Water, 2008) is a welcome reprieve from the onslaught of torrid vampire romances but still offers the excitement and drama of supernatural fare. The big reveal won’t be much of a surprise to readers up on their ghost lore. However, the atmospheric tension and quiet longing found on every page will satisfy fans of the paranormal romance genre. Grades 7-10. --Courtney Jones

About the Author

Anne Spollen is the mother of three children. Her fiction and poetry have appeared in numerous anthologies and journals and have been nominated for Pushcart prizes. The Shape of Water is her first novel for teenagers. It began as a short story in Orchid: a Literary Review. She lives in New York.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Flux (February 8, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0738715425
• ISBN-13: 978-0738715421
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,146,010 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Anne Spollen lives near the Atlantic Ocean with her husband, three kids, three cats, two kittens, and one terribly behaved dog. Her stories have been published in many literary journals and two of them were nominated for Pushcart Prizes. Her first novel, The Shape of Water, was released in April, 2008. Her second, The Light Beneath Ferns, is also YA and will be available in February, 2010.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Light Beneath Ferns, May 31, 2010

By 

Tammy Reid-Benedict "author: Little Tales of ... (Indiana) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Light Beneath Ferns (Paperback)

Anne Spollen certainly caught my attention and drew me in from the very first page. I didn't want to put the book down; I couldn't. Fortunately, the book isn't very long, and I finished it within a few hours.

Elizah Rayne and her mother move to the small town of Wenspaugh after her father takes off, abandoning them when his gambling addiction leads to charges of embezzlement. They settle in a house near the cemetery where her mother lands a job as the grounds caretaker. Quiet, brooding Elizah just wants to be left alone, but her mother insists on "helping" her cope with her "feelings" by sending Elizah to counseling sessions with the school's psychologist, Mrs. Daytner. Elizah's mother and Mrs. Daytner "force" social interactions upon Elizah, like: a Halloween party sleep over, ghost walks, and the high school's star basketball player, Mr. Popularity himself, Kyle, who coincidentally happens to be Daytner's nephew.

Wenspaugh secretly has centuries old Indian legends that, Elizah, accidentally stumbles onto when she finds a human jaw bone. From then on, her life is forever changed. She is inexplicably drawn to another teenage boy, Nathaniel Loomis, whom she must never tell anyone about. Nathaniel is dark, secretive, confusing, and completely enthralling to Elizah.

I definitely recommend this book for a quick read. However, I have to warn that there is no "happily-ever-after"; the hero does not "get the girl in the end", and no "mindset altering epiphany". Even though the story was well written, I felt dissatisfied when I finished reading it. It seemed to end abruptly with a lot of emptiness and unanswered questions; I felt like there was no real closure between Elizah and so many of the other characters: her father, Kyle, and most all, Nathaniel.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and Dark, May 17, 2010

By 

Jennifer Sprague "Book Crazy Jenn" (Vienna, VA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Light Beneath Ferns (Paperback)

Heavy topics, which weigh on your heart, and play games with your mind. Beautifully written, yet I still feel like I don't 100% "get" the story, it's one of those that, I know my mind will be "chewing" on for days and maybe even weeks to come. I will never look at the world and those little things we often "miss" if were not looking closely enough for them, again - or at the very least I will try harder not to. It's tough to say much about Light Beneath Ferns, but it's one that I am glad I did not miss out on...but it's also one that might be hard to recommend, not because it's not fascinating in many, MANY ways, but rather because it is, fascinating I mean. I almost, would only recommend this one to strong people, whom are open to things that are different and not quite normal. I give Light Beneath Ferns a 4 mushrooms, and will be adding Anne Spollen to my list of favorites, I can't wait to read more from her, her writing is hypnotic.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Unconventional and Beautifully Creepy Tale, February 28, 2010

By 

Stephanie Su (Swarthmore, PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Light Beneath Ferns (Paperback)

LIGHT BENEATH FERNS is a beautifully written book that will chill you to your bones. If you appreciate poetic language and want to be spooked, this book is the one for you.

The strongest part of this book is its language. Anne Spollen strings words and descriptive language together in chains that I would never have thought possible--until I read it from her. The dreamy language transports you into half-mystical Wenspaugh and sets you right in the middle of Elizah's tiny high school, the graveyard, and the mysterious woods.

Elizah is not the protagonist for everyone. She's cynical to the point of being a little depressing, sarcastic to the point of being rude, and seems to change very little throughout the course of the novel. While I love and admire snarky, well-written dialogue, the number of times that Elizah clashed verbally with other characters quickly grew tiring for me.

Elizah is essentially a strong and well-developed protagonist, and may not have developed throughout the novel, but I was still surprised at the inconsistency of her character when it came to her interactions with Nathaniel. Many times I felt that the story was trying to force Nathaniel and Elizah upon one another, eschewing typical relationship development and trying to make it out that they had a connection before they even met. As a result, the romance was disappointing to me, their interactions based upon sensation but little substance.

LIGHT BENEATH FERNS is a story that revolves, surprisingly, not around the strong, albeit unchanging, characters, but rather the creepy element. It's an interesting mix of snarky dialogue, poetic language, and the paranormal. That unconventional combination of genre and stylistic techniques may be its selling point for some people. It could also be its downfall: many times I found myself struggling to fit the book's many parts together into one cohesive whole. Check it out, and see what it is for you.