False Covenant

April 15, 2012
Widdershins is back, facing romance, supernatural foes and some serious soul searching. After the dramatic events of the first volume (Thief's Covenant, 2012), street-rat-turned-noble-turned-thief--and now turned bar owner--Widdershins and her deity Olgun (still secret in a city with 147 recognized deities and a very strong church) are trying their hand at honest living, but it's not working out. When they go back to the criminal life, they stumble into another big conspiracy of crime and dark magic, find themselves allied with the surprisingly appealing Major Bouniard of the city Guard and, more reluctantly, with a disgraced nobleman out to destroy Widdershins in revenge. Marmell's occasionally florid writing and hackneyed dialogue can't detract from the gory adventures (including a wonderfully macabre bad guy), but beneath the action lies a deeper, if unsubtle, tale of loss and love. Secondary characters may be types and primary characters tropes, but genuinely adolescent (including occasional idiotic and immature behavior) high fantasy is rare enough that this stands out. A romp with an edge and a feisty female lead: Fans will rejoice at the indication that this series has even more to come. (Fantasy. 13 & up)

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August 1, 2012

Gr 9 Up-In this Renaissance-esque sequel to Thief's Covenant (PYR, 2012), Widdershins is fighting to keep her tavern afloat. In the guise of Madeleine Valois, she plays the role of an aristocrat at parties but reverts to her more natural persona, black-leather-clad Widdershins the thief, stealing from the hosts of the soirees she attends. However, she soon finds herself caught up in a battle to save not only her inheritance from a man hell-bent on her demise, but also the town that she loves from a horrific beast. Even with her personal god Olgun always present, she quickly learns that she must enlist the help of her fellow thieves from the Finder's Guild, as well as oh-so-irresistible Commander of the Guard Julien Bouniard, the Church, and yes, even her devious would-be murderer Evrard d'Arras. Together they must discover how the fairy-tale creature Irouch has come to life, and what they must do to stop him. Marmell successfully weaves in enough backstory to keep new readers interested, but they will be clamoring to read Thief's Covenant, and will eagerly await the next books in the series.-Wendy M. Scalfaro, G. Ray Bodley High School, Fulton, NY

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.