Cybele's Secret (Hardcover)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: han guard, bee goddess, midday call, Other Kingdom, Duarte Aguiar, Master Teodor (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 8 Up—Several years have passed since the passageway to the Other Kingdom closed for the five sisters introduced in Wildwood Dancing (Knopf, 2007). Two are married with children, and Tati still has not been seen since she followed her true love into the other world. Cybele's Secret is told by scholarly Paula. Following an accident, she is required to travel with her father to Istanbul in order to assist him in procuring a mysterious religious artifact. Upon their arrival, it becomes clear that there are many who desire Cybele's Gift; not only is the artifact valuable and viewed as a good-luck charm, but also a new cult that practices ritual sacrifice to Cybele is rumored. Soon Paula embarks on a quest to an unfamiliar part of the Other Kingdom. At stake are the life and happiness of her sister, the unfulfilled debt of a friend, and the possibility of true love. Although the fantastical elements of this tale are brief until the last quarter of the book, the plot holds together, providing a sufficient complement to Wildwood Dancing. Paula is not featured extensively in the first book, and although her fierce independence, intellect, and physical attributes are similar to those of the previous narrator, Jena, it is still a pleasure to hear her voice. The Turkish culture is well researched and skillfully incorporated, bringing a richness to the scene in which the plot effortlessly arcs.—Heather M. Campbell, formerly at Philip S. Miller Library, Castle Rock, CO
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From Booklist

*Starred Review* Adult-market fantasist Marillier enlarged her teen following with her first YA novel, Wildwood Dancing (2007), about five Transylvanian sisters with ties to the mercurial Other Kingdom. In this honeyed draught of a companion novel, bookish, 17-year-old Paula travels to Istanbul to assist her father in delicate negotiations for Cybele’s Gift, a pagan totem raising a hue and cry among the city’s Muslim clerics. Every bidder risks danger, so Paula and her father hire a bodyguard, Stoyan, who gradually becomes an active partner in Paula’s efforts to decipher portents from the Other Kingdom—a plotline predicated on the first book’s fairy world building but readily accessible to newcomers. Marillier embroiders Ottoman Empire cultural details into every fold and drape of her story, which also interweaves pirates, eunuchs, hidden currents of feminine power, and turbulent journeys across sea and land. Not every thread is neatly knotted, with slow-burning questions about Stoyan’s long-lost brother and Paula’s exiled sister are too hastily dispatched. Of greater importance to teens, though, will be Paula’s determination to be more than merely “curves and smiles, blushes and modest speech,” and her incremental, often-muddled acknowledgment of her deepening feelings for earthy, solid Stoyan. Teens who didn’t know Marillier when they started this sandalwood-scented adventure will rapidly place her alongside the likes of romantic-fantasy idols Shannon Hale and Sharon Shinn. Grades 7-10. --Jennifer Mattson

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 448 pages
• Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers (September 9, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 037583365X
• ISBN-13: 978-0375833656
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #89,647 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cybele's Secret, September 12, 2008

By	Janeifer Drew (MI) - See all my reviews

I loved "Wildwood Dancing", so I was thrilled when I saw that Juliet Marillier was writing a sequel (or companion) to it. The main character this time is Paula. We don't see too much of the other sisters (Jena, Iulia, or Stela), as Paula leaves them behind to travel with their merchant father to Istanbul as his assistant.

Paula and her father, Teodor, are hoping to purchase a legendary artifact related to the ancient cult of Cybele. The artifact has an air of The Holy Grail to it: nobody is exactly sure what it is, but everybody wants it. They aren't the only merchants in the running, however, and some are not above violence and murder.

Paula, ever the scholar, tries to learn more about Cybele and the mysterious artifact. In Istanbul, where women are hardly allowed out in public, to say nothing of their educations, Paula finds an intellectual sanctuary in the home of Irene of Volos, an influential as well as a respected woman of intellect. It is in Irene's library that Paula receives clues to discovering Cybele's Secret, and the quest she needs to embark upon in order to succeed in her search. Paula finds herself back in the Other Kingdom, where she thought never to return, in a quest filled with eerie dangers and hairbreadth escapes.

As a whole, I really enjoyed "Cybele's Secret". The characters are well-developed, and Paula particularly, is marvelously written. I liked the fact that she wasn't perfect, and didn't try to convince the reader otherwise.

BUT, there is an extremely fine line between brilliant and ridiculous, and Juliet Marillier definitely wavered along it in some parts of this book. Towards the end, things started feeling a little rushed and haphazard. I felt that "Cybele's Secret" lacked some of the quality of Juliet Marillier's previous works (all of which I have read and loved). There are some important parts that lack a good explanation. The plot was also a trifle predictable.

Despite the various "buts", I have no regrets in purchasing "Cybele's Secret". Juliet Marillier has a knack for characterization and relationships: familial and romantic. And who can help but fall in love with the gorgeous Kinuko Y. Craft cover? "Cybele's Secret" gets a hearty recommendation from me. There is originality and better-than-your-average-fantasy-novel here.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Angieville: CYBELE'S SECRET, October 31, 2008

By	Angela Thompson "Angiegirl" (Rocky Mountains) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

CYBELE'S SECRET is the sequel to Wildwood Dancing--Juliet Marillier's first young adult novel. I have been a huge Marillier fan ever since picking up her first novel, Daughter of the Forest (The Sevenwaters Trilogy, Book 1), to take with me on a trip to Italy. The wonderful thing about Marillier is that her sequels are always as good as, if not better than, her first books. So even though I liked Wildwood Dancing well enough (it didn't wow me), I was really looking forward to CYBELE'S SECRET to see where she took her characters and what peril they got themselves into.

The story follows Paula, the next to youngest of the five Brasov girls, and the one most noted for her scholarly bent and lack of interest in pretty much all things mundane. Fluent in both Greek and Latin, Paula accompanies her merchant father on a trip to Istanbul to serve as his assistant in his attempt to acquire a most unusual, legendary artifact known as Cybele's Gift. The artifact is a remnant of a long dead pagan cult and is said to bestow upon its owner fortune and blessings untold. Once in Istanbul, Paula's father finds he is just one of several merchants set on purchasing Cybele's Gift. Shadowed closely by her Bulgar bodyguard Stoyan, Paula puts her wits to work ferreting out the history behind the artifact and just why potential buyers keep turning up dead or fleeing town without explanation. Oh, and there's also a dashing pirate and adventure on the high seas.

I enjoyed this sequel quite a bit more than its predecessor. That may have been because I related more to Paula and her struggle to stretch beyond the comfortable boundaries of her introverted nature. I also loved the setting in Istanbul. Marillier's research and immersion in her chosen locale is always evident in her stories and it particularly shone in this one. The twisty markets, the call to prayer, the artfully layered clothing swept me up along with Paula, Duarte, and Stoyan. Though some outcomes were fairly predictable, I always appreciate the loyalty Marillier's characters show one another. Even in the face of extreme doubt and fear. The good, the bad, the gray in between characters are each depicted with their individual virtues and vices and forced to move outside their accustomed circles. No one is perfect and everyone has their less-than-admirable moments as well as their moments when they prove themselves more than they seem. In short, they are all so human. And that's what brings me back to her books over and over again.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Phenomenal!, October 2, 2008

By	Lisa "Fantasy fan" (Plano, TX) - See all my reviews

I just finished reading this amazing book and I have chills on my arms, it is so good. Run and buy this book for you are a woman of any age- Mom or daughter you will love it.

The cast of characters- Paula, Duarte and Stoyan are amazing. I had not previously read Wildwood Dancing, but I had no trouble getting immersed in this story.

Action, adventure, fantasy and most of all a wonderful romance, this book has it all. Paula grows and mature through the course of the story and she has to choose between two very different men. The dashing, erudite and handsome pirate, and the scarred, illiterate farmboy/bodyguard.

OMG, this book defines romance- the growing together of two people through love and trust and of course physical attraction. Straight romance novels focus so much on the physical aspect that true love gets lost by the wayside. This book was so romantic and tender, and set in a wonderfully exotic location of Istanbul.

Please buy it, I promise you won't regret it, even if you are way beyond the YA age group, as I am! I hope we get more books set in this world by this wonderful author.