Review & Giveaway: Shadowspell by Jenna Black

For me, one of the more interesting bits of lore about the Fae is the Wild Hunt, which shows up in quite a few urban fantasies (Jim Butcher's Dresden Files and Simon R Green's Nightside series, to name a couple). It comes from an ancient bit of European folklore that has morphed from country to country, but regardless of which version you choose, the huntsmen and their leader, the Erlking, are usually bad news.

So I love that Glimmerglass author Jenna Black has put the Erlking and his Wild Hunt on motorcycles and set this deviously sexy Hell's Angel (well, sort of) against a 16-year-old Faeriewalker named Dana. This new YA urban fantasy, Shadowspell, was released January 4 by St. Martin's Griffin*. Want to win a copy? Read on!

PLOT:   On top of spending most of her time in a bunkerlike safe house and having her dates hijacked by a formidable Fae bodyguard, Faeriewalker Dana Hathaway is in for some more bad news: the Erlking and his pack of murderous minions known as the Wild Hunt have descended upon Avalon. With his homicidal appetite and immortal powers, the Erlking has long been the nightmare of the Fae realm. A fragile treaty with the Faerie Queen, sealed with a mysterious spell, is the one thing that keeps him from hunting unchecked in Avalon, the only place on Earth where humans and Fae live together. Which means Dana’s in trouble, since it’s common knowledge that the Faerie Queen wants her – and her rare Faeriewalker powers – dead. The smoldering, sexy Erlking’s got his sights set on Dana, but does he only seek to kill her, or does he have something much darker in mind?

THE AUTHOR: Jenna Black graduated from Duke University with degrees in anthropology and French.  A full time writer of paranormal romance and urban fantasy, she lives in Pittsboro, North Carolina. Her paranormal romance books include the Hungers of the Heart series. A new urban fantasy series kicks off in April with Dark Descendant, and Glimmerglass was the first in the Faeriewalker series.

MY THOUGHTS: This is an easy, engrossing read. To be honest, I love reading a YA book that gets me outside the high school setting for a change, and while 16-year-old Dana has her share of boy issues, she's got much bigger Fae to fry and the Erlking is a delightfully untrustworthy (and wicked-hot) opponent. Or ally. Which is it? Great worldbuilding, and a nice twist in the creation of the Faeriewalker--Dana is half fae, half mortal, and can cross back and forth between Faerie and the Mortal world, which makes her skills both valuable and dangerous. And did I mention the Erlking is hot? One of the most enjoyable YA paranormals I've read in quite a while.

THE GIVEAWAY: I'm giving away a copy of Shadowspell--just leave a comment and tell me if you have a favorite "faerie" tale. As always, extra entry for comments, blog followers, followers on Twitter @Suzanne_Johnson, and an extra for Tweeting (or Retweeting) the contest. Drawing will take place on Saturday, January 15.