There are times I finish a book and I feel an absolute sense of loss that never again will I sit and get to read the first page of the book for the very first time. I can reread and I will - but it won't be the same as that first, wonderful, immersive reading experience.

That is how I feel about this book. I'm writing this because reviews are so about plot, but I want books where I lose myself completely in them and this was one of those.

Read this book several years ago and thought about it again today. Such a great read!

A fun urban fantasy novel with an intriguing concept. The narrator, mid-50 year-old Mira, is not the usual protagonist for a fantasy novel, but that fact alone makes her story intriguing. Starting from her childhood, Mira talks about her seemingly ordinary life, albeit with a few mysterious twists. The entire plot of the story moves fairly slowly until the last fifty or so pages, but I believe it is all the better for the story. By the time everything is explained with the main mystery of the disappearance of Mira's mother over forty years ago, I was so invested with the characters that I was sad to see it end. However, at times I wished more of the main mystery was actually answered before the end of the book, but I was quite impressed with what Jane Lindskold did here.

So the good - great to see fantasy that is not tired Celtic mythology rehashed or the annoying current Vampire craze which seems to be 90% of what passes for fantasy these days.

The disappointing - the story was a wee bit of a letdown.

I really have enjoyed other books by Jane Lindskold. I enjoyed this one too, but not as much as some of the others. It pulled me in at first, and I liked Mira. I think it could have been edited down in some parts. I wish we'd seen more through Maybelle's eyes too as I thought her story was interesting. I have to admit, that in my mind's eye, I saw Melissa McCarthy (she played Sookie in Gilmore Girls) as Maybelle. I don't know why, I just saw her as capable of being that character!

In the end I was frustrated a bit as I thought it wrapped up rather too neatly and I felt it sort of died out rather than went somewhere interesting. I somehow wanted something else, although I can't say what that is. I suspect part of my frustration lies with Colette. Everyone else, including Stan felt 3-dimensional to me and Colette was an enigma. Why did she, who is the lynch pin of the story have to be so narrow. There was great potential in the possibilities around Colette/Mira that were merely passed by that could have made this mind-bogglingly good instead of merely good. Ah, it's so easy for a reader to edit though, isn't it?

I adore the long and short fiction of Jane Lindskold. That being said, this is my least favorite of her novels.

It's BEAUTIFULLY written, but s-l-o-w with little satisfaction.

Very disappointing. Interesting idea but a short story would have sufficed. Lots of expository to pad the story. Comparisons with Charles de Lint are just too generous.

"Excellent"

Jane Lindskold deals with liminalities. For me so many things fall in those in between spaces. Lindsold brings the beauty out in all those in between spaces. The woman who is not yet old, but no longer young. The house that is falling apart but not yet condemmed. hte land that is not Santa Fe, but not Albuquerque. [return][return][return]Lindskold writes the characters to make them real, to make them flawed but never ugly. The landscape is beutiful, the house is beautiful. She captures what it means to live in a land where water is part of every decision, and yet is not spoken of. She captures so many things and wraps it all up with a tale that I hold in my heart like those fairy tales I learned as a child.

A marvelous piece of magical realism. The characters, (especially protagonist Mira Fenn) are all believable, and most of them are likeable. The fantasy aspects are obviously well thought out, and make sense in the story. No idiot balls being passed, no plot holes, no out of character moments, just plenty of good storytelling and characterization, with a dash of trivia to flavor it.

This might be Lindskold's best work.