Daughter of the Forest (Sevenwaters #1)
Summary:
Lovely Sorcha is the seventh child and only daughter of Lord Colum of Sevenwaters. Bereft of a mother, she is comforted by her six brothers who love and protect her. Sorcha is the light in their lives, they are determined that she know only contentment.
But Sorcha's joy is shattered when her father is bewitched by his new wife, an evil enchantress who binds her brothers with a terrible spell, a spell which only Sorcha can lift-by staying silent. If she speaks before she completes the quest set to her by the Fair Folk and their queen, the Lady of the Forest, she will lose her brothers forever.
When Sorcha is kidnapped by the enemies of Sevenwaters and taken to a foreign land, she is torn between the desire to save her beloved brothers, and a love that comes only once. Sorcha despairs at ever being able to complete her task, but the magic of the Fair Folk knows no boundaries, and love is the strongest magic of them all... (Summary and cover courtesy of goodreads.com)
Review:
This book kept me completely mesmerized. Even though I knew the general story of “The Six Sawns”, I still had no idea how things were going to turn out. It was just enough different that I think anyone familiar with story would still enjoy the book even if they have an inkling how things were going to work out.
The historical context of Ireland / Britain was also particularly interesting. I was not sure how that was going to work into the story initially, but it worked well and became a more relevant towards the end. The book has all the great factors in fantasy: magic, battles, redemption and mystery. The one complaint I have is that there were certainly antiquated opinions of women at times. Although a long read, I think it’s one that is worth it and I certainly will be interested in continuing the series down the line.
Warning: Contains repeated violence and sexual content.
Rating: 5 stars!
Who should read it? High fantasy fans who think a historical element sounds appealing.
Want to read the whole series?
Son of the Shadows (Sevenwaters #2)
Child of the Prophecy (Sevenwaters #3)
Heir to Sevenwaters (Sevenwaters #4)
Seer of Sevenwaters (Sevenwaters #5)
Twixt Firelight and Water (Sevenwaters #5.5)
Flame of Sevenwaters (Sevenwaters #6)