Woven

November 10, 2014
When a 17-year-old peasant named Nels finally gets to attend his town’s yearly festival, all he wants is the chance to become a real knight—and perhaps win a kiss from the lovely Princess Tyra. But before the day is out, Nels is killed by a master of the magic called Fabrication. Much to Nels’s dismay, the only person capable of seeing his ghost is Princess Tyra, who publicly humiliated him only hours earlier and has no intention of helping her phantasmagorical new companion. According to a magician named Ickabosh, however, Tyra’s fate is bound to Nels, and the man who killed Nels won’t rest until both of their life-threads are cut. While the novel is aimed at a YA audience, its language sometimes feels closer to middle grade and tends to summarize the protagonists’ feelings rather than demonstrate them (“In spite of the peasant’s insolence, Tyra was intrigued and curious about him—if only a little”). Still, this brisk adventure from first-time authors Jensen and King is a charming quest tale in classic fantasy tradition. Ages 12–up. Agent: Meredith Bernstein, Meredith Bernstein Literary Agency.

November 15, 2014
In a world where reality is created on looms and woven into complex tapestries, Nels' life dangles from a single vulnerable thread. Nels longs to be a knight and can't understand why his mother's forbidden him to pursue his dream. Coaxed into disobeying her to attend the summer festival, he beats Averand's chief knight in a wrestling match but is publicly snubbed by Princess Tyra, who reneges on her promise to kiss the winner (after all, Nels is a mere peasant). Just hours later, Nels is murdered by a mysterious stranger and becomes a ghost, visible only to Tyra. She may be able to help him back to life, but first he must persuade her to do so and to accompany him on a dangerous quest before time runs out. Mentoring the heroes' journey is Ickabosh, who practices Fabrication, as he is able to perceive and manipulate the threads from which reality is woven. They're pursued by Rasmus, Bosh's former apprentice, bent but powerful and wielding a terrifying gift. Jensen and King's cosmology draws from weaving and tailoring, as do the tools fabricators manipulate-thread, thimbles, scissors-and what they create with them. While the plot follows a familiar high-fantasy arc that occasionally dips into melodrama, the worldbuilding is dynamic, original and intriguing (if a tad schematic), and the characters, appealing. A sure bet for high-fantasy fans. (Fantasy. 10-14)

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March 1, 2015

Gr 6-9-A quarrelsome princess and a handsome ghost connect with sorcerers, conjurors, and witches as they seek an enchanted Needle to stitch the world back together. Nels, a peasant lad seemingly dead at the hands of an evil Fabricator, must join forces with petulant Tyra, princess of Averand, in order to restore himself to life. The mismatched pair stumble into danger, adventure, and love as they discover nothing is as it seems in their quest to preserve the kingdom. The premise behind this mythical world is creative: a great tapestry into which everything in all of the worlds is woven, supported and protected by weavers with magical skills to keep the threads from unraveling. The execution, however, is not always successful: characters with insufficient depth or backstory and dialogue that occasionally seems too modern for the world in which it is spoken. While many fantasy readers may prefer the works of Terry Pratchett and Diana Wynne Jones, there are those who will enjoy the world-building, magic, action, and trace of romance found in this novel, which leaves the door open for sequels. VERDICT An entertaining but slight fantasy for libraries with ample budgets.-Sharon Grover, Hedberg Public Library, Janesville, WI

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