Customer Reviews

The Ruby Key (Moon & Sun)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

To my great joy I returned home from Texas with 2 boxes of books waiting for me from Amazon.com. I love to preorder! One of the books I received was The Ruby Key by Holly Lisle. I followed the creation of The Ruby Key on Holly's blog - Pocket Full of Words and have waited impatiently for almost a year since her last book Night Echoes was published.

This is Lisle's first foray into the world of youth fantasy fiction and she jumps in with both feet and splashed me from head to toe! Page one hooked me and Saturday was completely lost as I read the entire 368 pages in one sitting. Food? Who needs food? Certainly not me or my kids. Mom hung the do not disturb sign around her neck and parked it on the couch with the dogs curled up at her feet and totally submerged herself in the Night Worlds.

14-year old Genna is spunky and likable, her 12-year old brother Dan so reflects my 13-year old son that I laughed out loud and the Nightling Yarri was easy to love as she fought for her people's freedom. While written and marketed as youth fiction (ages 9-12) it easily kept this 35 year old mother captivated from beginning to end. I happily recognized some of the snippets Lisle posted on her blog during the writing process which is kind of neat too.

As always her world is superbly created and well fleshed out. Her villains range from hard to hate to tough to love and this adds to the overall realness of her world. Even side characters are given enough personality that they are integral to the story and not simply fillers helping to increase word count. The talking cat has such a huge personality I wonder if he could carry his own story in this series.

Speaking of series, it's my understanding this is part of a trilogy but the story was wrapped up in such a way that you felt like you were finished and not left hanging. But there were enough doors left open so that you were left looking forward to the next book in the series (The Silver Door).

All in all a fantastic read by an amazing author. My only regret? I finished it in one day and now have to wait until June for Hawkspar. Thank goodness I already have it on preorder.

The "Harry Potter" series created a new market for young adult books that have inspired the best authors from fantasy, mystery, and other genres to write for the 9-12 market. Now, Holly Lisle has entered this auspicious group with a trilogy beginning with "The Ruby Key."

Her premise is that humankind only ventures forth by day. Should any go about by night, they are subject to the nightlings, elven creatures with magic who would enslave or kill them:

Mankind is Sunkind
And rules by the light;
Sunrise to sunset,
No less, and no more.
Nightlings are moonkind
And rule in the night;
Sun's set to sunrise,
Or there will be war.

But, young Genna, (14), and Dan, (12) of the village Highrush are out after dark the only night they can be. This is the night that the humans give their offerings to the nightlings. They give their best and in return, the nightlings give them trinkets and baubles.

The sibs have risked being taken as slaves by the nightlings to save their mother. They've made their offerings quickly and are sneaking out to secure some sap from the magical taandu tree, which they hope will cure their Mama, who has fallen ill. They have already lost their father, the former caer of the village, and fear that he is dead.

As they are attempting to gather the life-giving sap, they encounter a nightling girl who tells them a tale of treachery. It seems, their "Uncle Banris" who's taken over the job as Highrush's Caer since their father disappeared has made a deal with the Nightling leader, Kai Letrin.

Banris wants to be immortal and he doesn't care who he kills to get there. The sickness, or saku, that is effecting their village and their mother, is a result of this deal. Banris isn't quite immortal yet--he must wed their mother and kill their whole family to achieve his life.

It's up to young Genna and Dan to make a new deal with the Kai to save their family and their village. They are told by their nightling ally that Letrin will ask for something impossible, but not to worry--the rebel nightlings will give them aid. All the nightlings ask of Dan and Genna in exchange for this help is to ask for the Ruby Key.

Genna manages to secure the deal she sought. All she has to do is find one person, the child Doyati, and return him to the Kai by the dark of the moon.

What the Kai didn't tell them was that they'd have to learn to travel on the moonroads, magical roads that can take you anywhere, if you know how to manage them, face a warrior bard, the blind hunt, a dire worm, and other adversaries....

But, they will have help. The young nightling girl will aid them as much as she can--and a talking cat will come to guide them.

As always, Holly Lisle crafts a story with gem-like beauty and precision of phrase that will keep anyone from 9 to 90 reading late into the the night.

Rebecca Kyle, May 2008

Though at first glance this book seems like a YA book, it is easily so much more than that. The themes Holly has woven into her magical tale, themes of love of family and community, duty, honor, and compassion know no age limits. You're compelled to read on and on, to find out how three children with the weights of two opposing societies rest on their young shoulders will succeed. Danger lurks around every corner and on every moonroad, but with the help of a snarky cat they keep trudging forward, hoping against hope that their quest is not impossible.

To me its part fairy tale, part Spirited Away told in such a way that only Holly Lisle could have written it. You have nightlings, which as Holly describes, sound very much like elegant and mysterious fairies. Then you have audiomaerist or fortune tellers. You have wizards and monsters. You have a quest element, but one that though it does not encompass a whole world, it directly affects two very different societies. You have the mystical object, the Ruby Key, and the prince in hiding.

I look forward to reading more about Genna, Danrith, Yarri and the cat in the next books. This world of Moon and Sun is one I'd like to visit again and again.

Last night I finished The Ruby Key, the new book by Holly Lisle. What a great book, perfect for any young person -- or adult -- looking for a good fantasy. Genna's world is a place that I hope Holly Lisle will return to time after time.

Here's the basic plot: The world is divided into day and night, day ruled by humans, night by the nightlings. Genna and her brother Dan discover that their "uncle" has made a horrendous deal with the lord of the nightlings: He has traded the lives of the people of their village for immortality. Genna and Dan make their own deal with the evil nightling lord and start off on an impossible quest to locate a child and return him to the nightlings. Along with them travel an annoying cat -- which is both more than and less than a cat -- and a young, bright nightling.

But naturally things aren't what they seem. Genna soon learns that the world is different than she had always been told and that her quest has far-reaching consequences. There are monsters and moonroads (you'll have to read the book to discover what those are) and villains and heroes. You will be both surprised and pleased at how it all turns out.

The Ruby Key reminds me of the best of Andre Norton. Genna has resources and bravery that she doesn't even know she does, and this book is the beginning of her journey. I'm looking forward to the next book.

By the way, The Ruby Key is gorgeous with a wonderful cover and neat flourishes throughout, a handsome addition to any library. Add it to your library today.

Due to an agreement between the humans and Nightlings, the two are never to meet. But when Genna and her younger brother, Dan, venture outside at night, when everyone is supposed to be safe inside, to get a special sap to save their mother, things begin to change. They are told by a Nightling slave the truth of what is really happening between the Nightlings and humans. The leader of the human village, Genna and Dan's "uncle," has made a deal with the Nightling king that will result in his own immortality but the downfall of every other human.

Genna and Dan must strike their own deal with the Nightling king and set out on their own journey to not only save themselves and their family but everyone in their village -- as well as the Nightlings.

Filled with adventure and striking prose, THE RUBY KEY is one of the best fantasy novels I've read in a while. The characters, even the non-human ones, were realistic, and every single one of them played an important part in the unfolding plot. The plot itself was unpredictable and filled with twists and turns you never see coming. The ending even keeps you begging for more.

Holly Lisle may be an accomplished adult author, but her name is sure to become a popular one among teen fiction, too.

Reviewed by: Harmony

"The two most engaging powers of an author," said William Makepeace Thackeray, "are to make new things familiar, familiar things new." In THE RUBY KEY, book one in the Moon & Sun series, Holly Lisle has accomplished both. Drawing on elements characteristic of fairy tales and fantasy novels, and adding inventive touches, this work is sure to engage young readers as it draws them into the original world of the Sunkind and Moonkind, two races struggling for power and peace.

It is the night of the offering in the small village of Hillrush. With her father missing and presumed dead and her mother ailing, 14-year-old Genna will make the offering for her family. Every year, in order to keep peace with the Nightlings, the humans offer food, cloth and more to the mysterious creatures who live in darkness and with whom they share an uneasy peace. If the offering is unacceptable or if humans are out after dark, they can be stolen away to the deep forest in which the Nightlings, the Moonkind, reside. Late that night, after the ritual, Genna and her 12-year-old brother Dan venture out and into that dangerous forest in search of the magical tree sap they hope will bring their mother back to strength, save her life and rescue their family from the foul intentions of Banris, who wants to marry her and raise the children, and their younger siblings, as his own.

When they tap the tree to collect the sap, they meet a young Nightling. She is friendly and seems to know who they are and much about their family. She tells them the story of Banris and the deal he has made with the evil Kai-lord, Letrin, who rules the Nightlings through fear and violence. Their own deal with Letrin, she suggests, may ruin Banris's plans and save not only their family but their whole village and even the lives of innocent Moonkind. Genna and Dan follow her deep into the world of the Moonkind and are brought face to face with the cunning Letrin.

In bargaining with Letrin, Genna and Dan not only embark on the journey recorded in THE RUBY KEY but also set in motion changes that will alter the lives of the Moonkind and Sunkind forever.

In the end, it is the characters, especially Genna, who really drive THE RUBY KEY. Genna is likable: brave yet humble, smart yet occasionally overcome with self-doubt, cultivating the strength of a woman but still, in many ways, a little girl. Lisle hits all the right notes with her. The supporting characters, while far less fleshed out, are all compelling as well: Dan is poised to enter manhood and a career as a leader of his village; Yarri is a crafty and fearless figure who has suffered terrible loss; and the cat is by far the most enigmatic and witty character in the book. The villains are scary but with weaknesses appropriately obvious, and there are a few nasty frights lurking in the pages as well.

By blending classic fairy tale and coming-of-age themes with a fantasy setting, Holly Lisle gives readers a fun and adventurous book that is thoughtful and well-written. They will surely look forward to encountering Genna and the others again in the second installment of this series.

--- Reviewed by Sarah Rachel Egelman

A really original take on faeries with strong heroine, cool side characters and a gripping story. I couldn't put the book down until the last page.

I'm using my mom's account for this.

I'm 8 years old. It took me a long time to read this book, but because once I took a break from it. The book is VERY interesting, but a lot of people (especially people under my age) wouldn't get it that much. After I was about halfway through the book, I knew it was my FAVORITE book ever. The Ruby Key is the kind of book that really pulls you in, and makes you want to read it forever. It's the kind of book that brings you to a new world. When I found the sequel to it, The Silver Door, at my local library, I was SO excited. I recommend that you probably shouldn't read this book until you're at least 10.

This book has no swearing in it!

I picked up this book because of the intriguing cover. I love the sense of movement it implies with the crouching elf and the cat perched parrot-like on the heroine's shoulder. This richly detailed fantasy takes place in a world where elves and humans hold an uneasy truce. Much of the symbolism was a bit heavy-handed, Sun/Moon, Day/Night, Humans/Elves, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

Genna and her brother Dan are driven to desperate measures when their traditional village herbal treatments won't help their mother's illness. They sneak out at night (a dangerous time for humans) to steal some taandu tree sap, hoping to cure her. This is technically a breach of their truce with the nightlings, but justified when it's revealed that their evil Uncle Banris has made a magical bargain with the equally corrupt Elf King, Letrin. Letrin has agreed to grant Banris immortality... if he manages to kill all the children in his care. At this point, the stakes are raised so very high, Genna and Will literally have no choice. Of course, they must continue their fight, even if they'd rather give up, because to stop would mean simply letting Banris murder them and their whole family. I was disinclined to feel sympathetic for the way the siblings desperately feel they must protect their young siblings who are vaguely drawn characters at best. Still, their quest to travel the night roads with their guide Yarri and a talking cat provided lots of adventure as the siblings fend off various magical traps. Lisle's magic system didn't always operate with clockwork precision but the culture and rich history of the Nightlings showed solid worldbuilding. With the reveal of the Sun Wizards this feels like a universe where the humans access to magic is on the upswing after a long absence, and that's always fun to read about. Hopefully, some of the characters and magic systems will be more fully fleshed out in the sequels to this planned trilogy.

This is the first book in Lisle's Sun and Moon trilogy. I wasn't sure what to expect from this book. I had read a couple of Lisle's older books back when I was in high school and remember liking them. Well I am glad I picked this up because it was a great book!

Gennadara and Daneth live in a small village called Hillrush and along with the other villagers struggling to maintain peace with the Nightlings, a race that can only emerge at night that is ruled by the evil and immortal Letrin. When Gennadara and Dan find there mother has caught a wasting illness, they seek to make a bargain with Letrin to save their mother's live. Little do they know that bargain they make will take them on a great adventure and force them into an age old struggle beyond their imagining.

This was a really well done book. All of the characters are engaging and interesting. Gennadara is especially intriguing; she is a somewhat timid girl with a core of strength and determination that is admirable. The world Lisle creates is interesting and immense; just the surface of this world is touched in this book with hints showing the larger struggle humanity faces against the Nightlings. Lisle does an excellent job describing the surroundings in a way that really conveys the dark and dank mood of the settings. In general the book is very well-written and Lisle shows great skill in creating a readable and intelligent writing style with excellent plot weaving.

There aren't a ton of action scenes, the majority of this book focuses on adventuring, but both the adventuring and action scenes are very well done. The whole time you are left wondering if Gennadara and Dan will make it in time to save their mother and this really propels the story forward making it hard to put down. You never know what fantastical creature will appear around which corner or what a character will do next. Lisle also adds a thread of humor into both Gennadara's and the Cat's personality that keeps the story from taking itself too seriously.

The best thing about this book is that it reminds me a lot of a good old classic fairy tale or folktale, with a bit more added. At first the story seems contained, but then it is broadened to deal with all of humanity. I just really, really, enjoyed it and couldn't find a single thing about it I didn't like. My biggest complaint is that now I want to read the next book in the series RIGHT NOW! It was a great book, suited for younger children as well as young adults and adults.