Greymist Fair
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
“Sharp and accessible.” —School Library Journal “Illustrates the revolutionary power of love, kindness, and community.” —Publishers Weekly
“Fans of retellings will enjoy finding many hidden tropes in the warm, original fantasy.” —Kirkus Reviews
The villagers of Greymist Fair know that the woods are a dangerous and magical place, and that they should never set foot off the road. But when a young tailor discovers a body, her search for the culprit reveals even more strange and dark happenings around her town.
From acclaimed author Francesca Zappia, Greymist Fair is a suspenseful and inventive murder mystery infused with magic and inspired by the lesser-known fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm.
Two roads lead into a dark forest. They meet at Greymist Fair, the village hidden in the trees, a place kept alive by the families that never leave. The people of Greymist Fair know the woods are a dangerous and magical place, and to set foot off the road is to invite trouble.
When Heike, the village’s young tailor, discovers a body on the road, she goes looking for who is responsible. But her quest only leads to more strange happenings around Greymist Fair.
Inspired by the original, bloody, lesser-known fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm, acclaimed author Francesca Zappia crafts an enthralling murder mystery that will keep readers turning the pages. Told from multiple points of view, with each narrative building on the crime discovered by Heike, Greymist Fair examines the themes of childhood fears, growing into adult responsibilities, and finding a place to call home amid the trials of life and death.
Features chapter decorations by the author throughout, as well as a map.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Incorporating elements from several Grimm Brothers' fairy tales, Zappia (Katzenjammer) delivers a darkly enchanting collection of interconnected stories centering the insular village of Greymist Fair and the treacherous forest that surrounds it. Following an atmospheric introduction, opening story "The Girl Who Outran Death" follows teenage tailor Heike as she stumbles across the bloody boots and clothing of carpenter's apprentice Tomas on the road leading out of town. She initially assumes he fell prey to—and became—a warg, one of the vicious spirits created when Greymist residents die violently. But wargs have never before ventured past the tree line or left behind traces of their victims, prompting Heike to brave the woods in search of answers from an enigmatic forest witch. The tales that follow are each told from a different individual's perspective and shed light on a new piece of the puzzle surrounding the wargs and Tomas's disappearance. This skillfully written and thoroughly cohesive narrative gratifies as a mystery while illustrating the revolutionary power of love, kindness, and community. Zappia's ominous full-page b&w art, which features settings from each subsequent story, introduce the individual entries. Heike cues as white; secondary characters are racially diverse. Ages 13–up.
