Neryn is protective of the Good Folk and unwilling to send them to their deaths.

She must visit the Guardians – four ancient beings of great power who can teach her how to be an effective Caller. In book two, Raven’s Flight, Neryn begins her training. Neryn travels through country such as this on her way to Shadowfell. In the past, a Caller was instrumental in winning great battles by joining fey and human forces. On the way, the Good Folk help her and she discovers that she is a Caller – a rare human who can channel magic to compel the Good Folk into action. The king’s rule has pitted neighbor against neighbor and no one is safe. A young man she doesn’t know rescues Neryn from the inferno that kills her father, but in Alban, no one is trustworthy. At the beginning of Shadowfell, the take her father’s life as well. Neryn has seen the worst the Enforcers can do – they burned her village, murdered her brother, and stole the mind of her grandmother. Enforcers maintain that obedience and add to the fear. His rule is rooted in fear and absolute obedience. The current king has outlawed interactions between humans and the Good Folk, as the fey are generally called. The series is set in Alban, a fictional world similar to Scotland cast with all manner of fey and human folk. But if you enjoy mental challenges and situations that demand moral integrity with no map to point the way through murky solutions and outcomes, then you’ll adore these books. If you’re a reader who craves a fight on every page, this series probably isn’t for you. The testing main character Neryn endures as she seeks the refuge of Shadowfell, are vital to her later success.

This hope is what carries them through the next two novels when physical and emotional strength are the things they need most. They face struggles for survival and as they seek the means to survive, they must also learn how to grasp hope. The challenges are not so much against other characters, but within each character and the land, nature, the Good Folk. They do a lot of traveling, but with that comes self-discovery. While it is true sword or fist fights do not occur often, the characters move and grow and change. Several reviewers thought Shadowfell lacked action. I really enjoyed the voice of the characters, the depth of their issues and challenges. Juliet Marillier is a new author to me, but I’m quite certain this series won’t be the last books of hers I read. Shadowfell: fantasy, adventure, deep characters, impossible choices, the Fey That’s where Chirp and the Daily Deals from Audible are quite helpful. Let’s face it, when you devour between two and four audiobooks a week, you just can’t pay full price for them. Thank you, Chirp! I might never have discovered this delightful series had it not been for a discounted copy of Shadowfell on my Chirp email.

Shadowfell book series