From School Library Journal
Grade 6 Up–This atmospheric coming-of-age fantasy tells the story of a teenager who is destined to become queen of the Amazons. The product of a rape and shunned by her distant mother, Rain struggles to find her identity and prove herself. Her first-person narration is accessible while evoking a sense of otherworldliness. She talks of animals and people as sisters. The story unfolds at a measured pace with little dialogue, but the language makes it compulsively readable. Readers will be drawn in by Rain's attempts to win her mother's approval even as the teen begins to question the Amazonian way of life and see a new future for her people. Like the best of myths, this story finds truths in details and emotional insights. Not for everyone, but a treat for fans of Tamora Pierce and Hoffman's other novels.
–Adrienne Furness, Webster Public Library, NY Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
Gr. 7-10. "Some stories are born out of misery and ashes and blood and terror": Hoffman's fourth novel for young adults, told in spare, lyrical vignettes, is one of these. In an all-female tribe of warriors, who kill all male babies and reproduce through sex with prisoners of war, the daughter of the fierce queen yearns for her mother's approval. Burdened by stigma (Rain was "born in sorrow" after the queen's rape) and by dark prophecies, the girl finds comfort in honing her battle skills and in developing friendships with other outsiders. After her mother dies bearing her second child, it falls to Rain to determine the future of her community--and her own. Many teens, particularly girls, will identify with Rain's self-doubt even as the young woman senses within herself "a kernel of something that was made out of fire." At the same time, the alien setting and fablelike narration offer limited opportunity for readers to remain connected with the characters. This will particularly attract girls intrigued by the gender reversal premise and book-report writers drawn by the slender length.
Jennifer MattsonCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
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Alice Hoffman sent the following posts to customers who purchased The Foretelling