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Faery Rebels: Spell Hunter |  | Author: R. J. Anderson
Publisher: HarperCollins
List Price: $16.99
Buy New: $2.91
as of 11/22/2009 20:25 CST details
You Save: $14.08 (83%)
New (42) Used (15) from $2.62
Seller: my-bookmarket
Rating:  18 reviews
Sales Rank: 275244
Media: Hardcover
Reading Level: Ages 9-12
Pages: 336
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.9 x 1.3
ISBN: 006155474X
EAN: 9780061554742
ASIN: 006155474X
Publication Date: May 1, 2009
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Forget everything you think you know about faeries. . . . Creatures full of magic and whimsy? Not in the Oakenwyld. Not anymore. Deep inside the great Oak lies a dying faery realm, bursting with secrets instead of magic. Long ago the faeries mysteriously lost their magic. Robbed of their powers, they have become selfish and dull-witted. Now their numbers are dwindling and their very survival is at stake. Only one young faeryâKnifeâis determined to find out where her people's magic has gone and try to get it back. Unlike her sisters, Knife is fierce and independent. She's not afraid of anythingânot the vicious crows, the strict Faery Queen, or the fascinating humans living nearby. But when Knife disobeys the Faery Queen and befriends a human named Paul, her quest becomes more dangerous than she realizes. Can Knife trust Paul to help, or has she brought the faeries even closer to the brink of destruction? Talented newcomer R. J. Anderson creates an extraordinary new fantasy world and weaves a gripping tale of lost magic, high adventure, and surprising friendship in which the fate of an entire realm rests on the shoulders of one brave faery rebel.
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 18
 She Only Looks Sweet and Innocent... September 16, 2009
Kirsten A. Edwards (Duvall, WA United States)
Although the aetherial young fairy on the cover might, at first glance seem to belong to the pretified elementary-school series book crowd, I was able to sell this to a high school teen lover of goth fantasy by pointing out that although the story starts with "Bryony's" childhood, shortly into the story the girl comes of age and chooses her own name: Knife. Trapped inside an ancient oak tree, hiding from humans and animal predators alike, the dwindling fairy community seem to have never known anything but loss and decay. Young Knife, however, rebels, and in saving her future, saves those of her fairy kin. Good worldbuilding, anything-but-cute fairies and a wonderful friendship (that will ultimately blossom into romance) between the fairy girl and the crippled human boy she befriends make this a memorable tale. Knife's exciting adventures, from her exploration of the human world, covert ops against her own people and death-defyinig aerial battles with vicious crows keep one turning the pages.
 Fresh drink of water September 11, 2009
voracious reader (denver, co)
Refreshing quick read with a strong female character. It is almost a coming of age story, a mystery, and a twist on classic fairy stories. I wasn't always sure where this was going and it was fun to read. A fresh drink of water on a warm August night. I will definitely look forward to the sequel. I hope the author can do as well or better because I hate to be disappointed. :)
Action-packed faery adventure September 6, 2009
Reader Views (Austin, Texas)
Reviewed by Sara McGinn (age 9) for Reader Views (9/09)
R. J. Anderson's "Faery Rebels: Spell Hunter" is about a young faery who wanders outside her home, Oakenwyld, and the adventures she encounters. This book is action-packed. It also has a love story that made me very uncomfortable because it really freaked me out when they kissed. I have never read books with anyone kissing in it before. But I really liked that Knife, the main character, wasn't scared of anything- not the crows, not the humans, not anything! (This surprised me because I thought faeries were scared of humans.) This story is a pure people pleaser!
I really like Knife for her courage and fiery nature. She is my heroine! I also thought the artwork on the cover was beautiful and it made the book seem mysterious.
I have always fancied action, so this book took to my fancy from chapter one. Even though the story in "Faery Rebels: Spell Hunter" by R. J. Anderson turned into a love story, I still love it!
If It's A Choice Between Love And Duty, I Choose...! August 31, 2009
Larissa (Australia)
Faeries have always existed in the Oak; it has been their home for hundreds of years, long before the humans and their house. But there are no longer as many faeries as there once were. They are fading, dying. Their magic is all but gone, and no one can say why.
There are a few simple rules all faeries must live by, obey the Queen, never go outside, and above all else stay away from humans. These rules are made to protect the Oak and its faery inhabitants. But what if it is these rules that are slowly killing the faeries?
No faery would dare to disobey the Queen, but when one faery has the chance to leave the Oak, to discover the truth of the faeries past; will she be able to save her kind, finding a way to restore the faeries magic? Or will she bring the destruction of the faery world down upon them all in her quest for the truth, and be forced to make the ultimate sacrifice?
I have been looking forward to reading this book for a while, and at first I feared it would never live up to the expectations I had built up. But lucky for me it was everything I expected it to be and more.
Knife is a story of adventure, danger, secrets, love and faeries; a magical world to lose yourself in. This is the kind of book you can read again and again, with something in it for everyone. It is surprisingly touching and more involving then first appears. The first in a series, this book is a must read.
 Unusual & Not to My Taste Take on Faeries August 25, 2009
Mary Kate (Wisconsin, USA)
My rating is 2.5 stars.
*Caution: This review mentions a few plot points that some will consider spoilery.*
Faery Rebels - Spellhunter introduces us to a small group of faeries living in a tree in the human populated countryside. The faeries, all of whom are female, almost never leave their tree, have little to no magic and, in a very unfaerylike manner, seem to have no natural harmony with nature. Long ago, the mysterious "Sundering" took their magic from them. They exist now with little kindness or affection between them and no creativity. They do not know if other faeries still exist in the world and, at first glance, do not appear to be trying to find out.
One of the youngest among them is Bryony, a curious child who grows into a brave young woman and is chosen to be the Queen's hunter. When she is so appointed by Queen Amaryllis, who rules the group, Bryony takes the name Knife.
Just outside the large oak tree that contains this dying colony is a human house where a couple live with their son, Paul. Knife and Paul had a brief near-encounter when they were very young. They have not seen each other since, but shortly after Paul is paralyzed in an accident, they meet up - and officially meet - again. Paul has come home to recuperate - or not. He is bitter, is taking things out on his parents and is not much interested in living.
I was about half way through Faery Rebels - Spellhunter before I began to find it somewhat interesting. Anderson has crafted a rather unique take on faeries and their place in the world. Unfortunately, it turns out her take isn't one I'm much interested in learning more about. I didn't like their depressing existence, their glumness or how they were ruled. Even toward the end when some explanations and how-things-used-to-be's came out along with some revelations about faery/human interaction, I felt disappointed. Faeries give humans their muse - that's one of their primary purposes for existence? Just having someone talk to them about humans and the human world keeps faeries from being taken by the Silence? It was something of a let down - I guess the magic the faeries had before the Sundering wasn't what I'd have wished for. Further, I didn't care enough about Knife and Paul (I really hated Paul's suicide attempt in front of Knife, which struck me as sadistic and made it really, really hard for me to like him) to get past that. Certainly, my interest in their story didn't overcome my other issues enough to make me have any interest in the planned sequel. And I feel kind of sad just saying that.
While I simply didn't care for this tale, I extend kudos to Anderson for originality. Her writing style shows promise and I am likely to check out future unrelated books from her.
Faery Rebels has lovely cover art by talented fantasy artist Melanie Delon - whose work I've admired for years - and has back cover recommendations by a number of popular authors including Melissa Marr and Patricia Wrede.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 18
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