The Girl Who Never Was

June 23, 2014
Dorset's debut follows 17-year-old Selkie Stewart as her life is turned upside down by the revelation that her mother is an evil faerie. A complex group of prophecies predicts that Selkie will bring down the rule of the powerful Seelie court, where the elite forget anything unpleasant while using the power of faerie names to destroy the weak. Dorset is at her best constructing a beautiful and ruthless world where "ugliness is ferreted out and destroyed." Selkie's potential makes her a target for the Seelies, but when her lifelong protector, Ben, is captured, she is honor-bound to infiltrate the court to rescue him, facing down the mother she's never met. Dorset's story doesn't quite set itself apart in the urban fantasy genreâthe plot, in which a faerie who has grown up believing herself human involves herself in a plot against the Seelie Court, closely echoes that of Holly Black's groundbreaking Tithe. But Ben and Selkie's riveting adventures and touching mutual loyalty, along with a strong cast and central romance, keep this series opener engaging. Ages 12âup. Agent: Andrea Somberg, Harvey Klinger Inc.

May 1, 2014
On her 17th birthday, Selkie Stewart learns of her magical heritage, parentage and destiny.Raised by her great-aunts to be anti-social and secretive, Selkie blurts out her birthdate to her crush, Ben, accidentally unraveling her enchanted and illusory life. She discovers not only that she is half-faerie (and half-ogre) and that Boston was built and is inhabited by other supernatural creatures, but also that she is one of four fay prophesied to overthrow the Seelie Court...and that her mother, the queen, wants to kill her. Trading in a lavishly described Boston for a Carrollian Otherworld, Selkie risks murderous parental wrath to save her sort-of boyfriend, armed only with her newfound powers. Selkie's relationship with Ben feels both artificial and shallow-as do all her interactions with other characters-and their romance swings from PG cuddling to vows of eternal love. Selkie is an unreliable, if poetic, narrator, first dazed by the enchantments and then disoriented by the bizarre faerie court, but she also wavers between childish frustration and adult astuteness in dialogue and behavior. Dorset excels in physical descriptions but falters with an arbitrary adventure and a cliched faerie self-discovery/romance/prophecy plot.A decent but unremarkable addition to the flock of teen faerie tales. (Fantasy. 12-18)

COPYRIGHT(2014) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

June 1, 2014

Gr 9 Up-Selkie Stewart lives with her great-aunts in the Beacon Hill section of Boston. She has just turned 17 on the autumnal equinox and is determined to find the birth mother who dropped her off on her father's doorstep when she was an infant. Selkie learns that she was born because her father saved her mother's life and asked for a child in return. She then discovers that her great-aunts and her father are ogres. Selkie's mother is a faerie queen who rules Otherworld at Seelie Court, and ruthlessly kills nonfaeries. Selkie has been protected by Ben, who appears to be a merchant on Boston Common but is actually a faerie who has created an enchantment for her and takes her traveling across time, space, and realms; she is in love with him. One of four faeries born on the seasonal equinox who are prophesied to take power away from Seelie Court and bring peace to the Otherworld, Selkie is in great danger; her faerie queen mother is determined to kill her. The protagonist takes many risks to become acquainted with her mother, and bravely overcomes evil enchantments, growing in confidence throughout the story. She lives dual roles as a changeling and a public high school student. This action-packed story is rich in snappy dialogue and descriptions of Boston. An additional purchase for middle school collections.-Laura Scott, Farmington Community Library, MI

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.