Elfland

by Freda Warrington

Book Overview

Elfland is an intimate, sensual novel of people--both human and Aetherial--caught between duty and desire. It's a story of families, and of Rose Fox, a woman born to magic but tormented by her place in her adopted world. Led by Auberon Fox, a group of Aetherials--call them the Fair Folk, if you will--live among us, indistinguishable from humans. Every seven years, on the Night of the Summer Stars, Lawrence Wilder, the Gatekeeper, throws open all gates...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0765318695
• ISBN13: 9780765318695
• Release Date: August 2009
• Publisher: Tor Books
• Length: 462 Pages
• Weight: 1.49 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.5" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

Romantic and Magical

I got this book after reading other reviews. Absolutely loved it. Parts of the book reminds me of Lord of the Rings, the Twilight series, Mysts of Avlon, but it is even better! I couldn't put it down. Highly recommended.

"Do You Ever Think We'll Ever Be Finally, Completely Free of Them?"

"What a great book!" That was my first thought on completing "Elfland." It was one of those books that I would read far into the night, telling myself: "just one more chapter, just one more chapter..." until I couldn't even keep my eyes open. In a nutshell: it's unique, it's clever, it's funny and it's definitely not what you'd expect from this particular genre. Probably best described as urban fantasy, "Elfland" concerns a community of people known as Aetherials. The Aetherials are physically indistinguishable from humans, and move between this earthly plain and their true home called the Spiral in another dimension. A Gatekeeper controls the way in and out, but at the start of this novel, the current keeper - Lawrence Wilder - has flatly refused to open it, claiming that there is something deadly on the other side. Some Aetherials believe him, others don't, and yet there's nothing that any of them can do considering that only Lawrence has the power to open it. As year follows year, the Aetherials feel the inevitable entropy that comes without access to the rejuvenating powers of their home, and the latest generation grows up with no experience of their powers or heritage. Some are quite happy with this arrangement, wanting to embrace normality and the human world. But obviously, others are more interested in finding a way in... Despite all the fantasy trappings, "Elfland" is predominantly a family drama, as most of the action involves the members of two specific families: the cold and wealthy Wilders, and the warm and loving Foxes. Between the two families exists a strange bond, not a "feud" as such, but rather an inability to keep out of each other's lives for reasons that only become clear when the dark family secrets are brought to life. There is a large range of interconnected characters based around the Fox and Wilder families: brothers, sisters, parents, children, stepmothers, friends, lovers - there's a veritable gold mine here of characters and their tumultuous relationships with one another. The story stretches out over several years, with the younger generation growing from children to adults over the course of the story; changing, maturing and altering their opinions of life as they go. Although Rosie Fox is our main protagonist, the third-person narration moves from character to character, utilizing their different points of view. This means that we can get differing opinions on various issues and characters; for example when Rosie first sets eyes on Jon, we idolize him as much as she does - until we see him through someone else's eyes who can give us a more rounded view of him. This ensures that no one is wholly good or completely bad - as with almost everything in life, it all depends on your point of view. I'm finding it quite hard to summarize the plot at this stage, since the story itself is so sprawling and filled with so many characters. Although it hinges firmly on the character relationships, there's always the sens

excellent fantasy

Every seven years on the Night of the Summer Stars, the Aetherials routinely move back and forth between the Spiral and the Earth when the gates between realms are opened for a short time. The Aetherials live amongst the earthlings as humans, but must go home periodically to touch their basic essence or go insane. Their return to home trip abruptly fails this year when for no known reason the Gatekeeper Lawrence Wilder shuts the portal permanently. He proclaims danger is coming from beyond that could destroy the realms, but says nothing further. The Aetherials are stuck on Earth and panic stricken though they have lived safely as mortals amidst the humans; but these Fair Folk will go mad and die if they fail to return home. The daughter of their King Auberon, Rose Fox is attracted to one of the sons of the Gatekeeper, though both offspring Sam and Jon Wilder want her. This is not a good time for romance as the desperate visitors are losing their grips on sanity from failing to touch with their Aetherial selves on the other side of the shuttered gate. ELFLAND, the first Books of the Silver Wheel saga, is an excellent fantasy due to the refreshing cast as the human, the Aetherial, and the Gatekeeper and his family (especially his sons) seem genuine with all types of personal conflicts and desires. Surprisingly, the story line focuses deep on the relationships (carefully keeping the romance from overwhelming the rest of the plot) between and within the two key families while one brood struggles with sanity while trying to go home. Fans will relish Freda Warrington's opening gamut and look forward to the rest of this character driven series as the Fair Folks instinctively know time is running out on their minds. Harriet Klausner

They Just Don't Write 'Em Like That Anymore

Cross Elizabeth Hand with Fire and Hemlock, and you might end up with something like Freda Warrington's _Elfland_. This is the kind of big, sweeping modern faerie tale that you don't see often on the adult shelves anymore. There's been some beautiful work done in YA recently, but in the adult realm, the trend has been away from novels like this. And that's a shame. _Elfland_ is complex, rich, sensual, beautifully written, and sometimes heartbreaking. I devoured _Elfland_. I carried it with me everywhere for four days, because I never knew when I might have a spare five minutes to steal a page or two. When I was at work, I looked forward to going home so I could read more. I read late into the night, every night. I was hooked. That, to me, is the surest sign of a five-star book: the complete inability to put it down unless I absolutely have to! Our heroine, Rosie Fox, is of Aetherial (fae) descent, living with her family just this side of the Great Gates that divide our world from the Otherworld. Rosie's haughty neighbor, Lawrence Wilder, is the Gatekeeper, and as such, is supposed to open the Gates every seven years to allow travel, and a flow of energy, between the realms. As the story opens, however, he has shut the Gates, claiming a great danger lurks on the other side. Elfland follows Rosie, her family and friends, and Lawrence's family over the course of the next fourteen years. Fourteen years: long enough for a girl to grow into a woman, for loves to be lost and found, and for family secrets to explode. Long enough for some Aetherials to decide it's better to deny their fae nature, and for others to resort to desperate measures to reopen the Gates. At its heart, _Elfland_ is about how denying one's true self is a sure path to disaster. It's also a love story. I usually don't go for romances in which the hero and heroine bicker, but Warrington makes the trope sing. Rosie and her eventual love interest get off on the wrong foot as kids, and the way their relationship develops seems painfully realistic to me, with the characters slipping back into snarky retorts because they're familiar, and because the retorts serve as an outlet for emotions more disturbing than anger. Both characters have a lot of growing to do before they're a good match for each other. _Elfland_ is, in part, the story of that growth, and of the sometimes wrenching mistakes made along the way. When the plot moves into the Otherworld, Warrington handles the journey perfectly. It would have been easy to let the story get bogged down in travelogue here, to slow the pace down by showing the reader every single strange thing that populates the Aetherial realms. Warrington doesn't fall into this trap. She gives us a glimpse of how beautiful and how terrifying Elfland can be, but leaves some things to the imagination, and keeps the focus firmly on the characters' quest. This has a dual effect: it keeps the plot moving, and it allows the Otherworld to retain some of its mystery