By Molly O'Neill
New York, 2025. 308 pages. Fantasy.
Beneath the still surface of a lake lurks a monster with needle sharp teeth. Hungry and ready to pounce, Jenny Greenteeth has never spoken to a human before. But when a witch is thrown into her lake, something makes Jenny decide she's worth saving. Temperance doesn't know why her village has suddenly turned against her, only that it has something to do with the malevolent new pastor. Though they have nothing in common, these two must band together on a magical quest to defeat the evil that threatens Jenny's lake and Temperance's family, as well as the very soul of Britain.
Greenteeth is a truly stunning tour of Old English and Arthurian legends. At multiple points in the story, I set the book down to google a name or magical item that appeared in the story, only to find myself delving into a rich background of lore and old stories that the author had obviously lovingly drawn inspiration from. (See: Twrch Trwyth the mythic boar, Caval the hunting hound, and Lady Creiddylad the fae queen). And yet, despite the magic and monsters, the core of the story remained shockingly human. It is, fundamentally, a story of family. Of what a mother will do to return to her children, or what atrocities one will commit to earn back the family that they have lost. Temperance and Jenny are a lot alike, including in their flaws, the author allowing both characters to falter and stumble in a way that isn't often seen in stories. If you enjoy Old England mythology, monsters who are empathetic and complex yet still act very much like monsters, and a slow building of family and friendships through a cross-country road trip, this book is for you!
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By Heather Fawcett
New York, 2023. 317 pages. Fantasy.
Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world's first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones--the most elusive of all faeries--lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she'll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all--her own heart.
By John Wiswell
DAW Books, 2024. 310 pages. Fantasy.
Shesheshen is a shapeshifter, who happily resides as an amorphous lump at the bottom of a ruined manor until her rest is interrupted by hunters intent on murdering her. The hunters chase Shesheshen out of her home and off a cliff. Badly hurt, she’s found and nursed back to health by Homily, a warm-hearted human, who has mistaken Shesheshen as a fellow human. For a time, they are happy as Shesheshen slowly grows closer to this kindly human. However, the hunters are not to be disuaded for long and as the hunt becomes increasingly deadly, Shesheshen must unearth the truth quickly, or soon both of their lives will be at risk.
-MD
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