The Winter Oak
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4.7 • 3 Ratings
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- $3.99
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- $3.99
Publisher Description
"Happily ever after" doesn't always work, even in fairy tales. Maureen Pierce has won her castle, her man, and her powers, after terrible suffering in THE SUMMER COUNTRY. She has won a host of fierce enemies as well -- among them, the powerful dark witch Fiona and the deadly black dragon Khe'sha, who plot vengeance. Many of the Old Blood fear the change that she brings to the Summer Country of Celtic myth, and the warrior Pendragons believe that her lover, Brian Albion, has betrayed their secrets.
If that wasn't bad enough, Maureen hates her castle for the pain she suffered there. She fears her new-found powers. The ghosts of old trauma still haunt her and those close to her -- Brian, her sister Jo, and Jo's lover, the human bard David.
Against that, Maureen has the love of the Wildwood, the tangled, dangerous, above all magical forest surrounding the castle she won. She and those with her have honor -- a strange and rare and powerful concept in the Summer Country.
Holding her place turns out to be as hard as winning it, and she's going to need help.
Sometimes, that can come from where it's least expected.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Full of rich prose (as well as R-rated dialogue), this sequel to the critically acclaimed The Summer Country (2002) confirms that Hetley has created that rarest of gems: a Celtic fantasy worth reading. There's nothing fluffy about this fairy tale which is appropriate, since the original Celtic legends it's based on were just as bloody and cynical. Hetley skillfully weaves in threads of exposition in a plot that at first focuses on the recovery of the witch-sisters Jo and Maureen from their battles against the Old Ones. Jo leaves the land of the Summer Country and returns to the world of men, where she confronts her abusive father, while her lover, David, attempts to put their experiences to music, pay the bills and fend off curious police. Maureen's partner, Brian (aka Arthur Pendragon), tries to pull her out of bitter alcoholism as he explores the castle they conquered and she befriends the local forest. After a storm of double-crosses and revelations clears away, the sunny conclusion full of love-conquers-all sentimentality is somewhat cloying, but the happy ending doesn't come free: these good guys put up a tough fight and deserve to win. Fans of "realistic fantasy" authors like Charles de Lint and George R.R. Martin will particularly enjoy sinking their teeth into this gritty and entertaining story.
