Shapeshifter's Quest

Syanthe isn't a human, though she looks like one because she doesn't bare the tattoo on her cheek like all of the other Shapeshifters do but she still is one and she still isn't allowed to live the forest that is her home. But horrible things are beginning to happen to the forest. A plague of sickness is attacking everything alive - Including the only remaining member of her family...her mother. To keep her mother from dying Syanthe must travel out of the forest and into the capital to find the rare medicine... So what WOULD you do in a strange place? While outside of her one and only home Syanthe will find strange people, will go on a crazy mission for her mother and her people. You won't be able to put this book down! Congratulations Ms.Landon! Congratulations to you and Happy reading to anyone that tries this one!

Syanthe is about 18 years old. She is a shapeshifter and has lived with all other shapeshifters in the Carlbine forest all her life (up until she's about 18). Because of an incident that happened years ago, the King had confined all shapeshifters to the Carlbine forest. He marked all of the shapeshifters with a magical tatoo on their faces that would kill them almost instantly, if they crossed the boundaries of the forest. All of the shapeshifters were marked, except Syanthe. She was hid at birth from the King's men. When the Carlbine forest and the shapeshifters (who are closely bounded to the forest) slowly grew sick with an illness, Syanthe's mother included, she set out into the King's capital to obtain the cure for the illness. A few days or so later after Syanthe left the forest, she was caught by a caravan of traders. She decided to join these travelers, who are also on their way to the capital. She soon found out that the leader of the caravan Jerel, has powerful magical powers. She also realized that there was something really wrong with this "caravan of traders". This book is captivating, fast-paced, exciting, and really interesting. It was written in such a way that a reader would stay up all night reading it. He/she wouldn't know how deep into the book he or she is, until the ending is reached. It was written in such a way that "if" (which i doubt would happen) a reader is at the point of becoming bored with the entire story, something exciting happens that would renew a reader's attention and interest. This book may not sound very original, from what the reviews of this book basically sketched. However, that is quite wrong. It is in itself, refreshing, and a reader probably won't understand how that could be, unless he or she reads this book.

Shapeshifter's Quest may sound like the ordinary book that involves a journey for an object. Luckily this book isn't ordinary, but instead extraordinary since it adds a little extra pizzazz. An 18 year-old girl, Syanthe, is the only remaining member of her family to pay off a mysterious debt that she has no knowledge of. She has remained unmarked by the priests who work for the King. As well, she is the only one who can leave the forest and save her mother from dying. Just the thought of leaving Carlbine Forest, which they have been bound to since the rebellion, makes Syanthe stiff to the bone. She enters the human world and meets Jerel and other caravaners and needs to trust them to get her mother's medicine and save the forest from the Kings death magic. Dena Landon wrote this book to show that you can trust people even though you aren't sure you should. If you have been taught differently about them your whole life and others warn you away from them that doesn't always mean that what they say is true. Also not just to hope other people solve their problems by their self if it is not directly affecting you. This book kept me on the edge of my chair (and sometimes so much that I fell over) since it was so suspenseful. When you end a chapter you are already so into the book that you are forced to read more and more. I think that Dena did a great job on this book and should tell others about what a book should really show to the reader.

Like the previous reviewer, I read Landon's book in one sitting--it drew me in from the very first page. Some authors have a knack for good dialogue--this one does. She has a way with words that I would not expect for a first-time author. I could envision the story unfolding, as if I was watching a movie in my mind! Her development of the characters sets the stage for a sequel--let's hope her publisher has signed her up for one! I was satisfied when the book ended but I'm clamoring for more!!

I read this cover to cover in a single sitting (and I'm not sorry I did). Ms. Landon's prose is lovely and her story heartwarming--without the saccharin sweetness commonly found in YA novels. Syanthe (the main character) blossoms in this book, moving from child to young woman over it's course. Her growing is one of gentle unfolding that leaves the reader warmed at her achievements. Growing up these days is often portrayed as an overnight or cataclysmic change. It's nice to see an author depict the process with more care and reality than that. Despite some cataclysmic events, Syanthe stretches into her strength and confidence gradually, just as a real young woman learns to do. Ms. Landon creates a believable world of magic that serves as a backdrop for the truly magical transformation of girl to woman. The enchantments and magics are fun, but utterly believable, and therefore serve to enhance the human aspects of the story. I look forward to seeing many more great things from this author. She has a clear, easy style that makes reading a pleasure, and a sensitivity in her prose that simply shouldn't be missed. The story unfolds nicely, and comes to a satisfying resolution, but you will be hungry for more. In other words, buy this book because I'm dying to read the sequel!!! (I think you'll feel the same way after reading it.) I recommend it highly to teenagers and young adults, as well as grown women who remember what it was like to be caught between worlds. Enjoy! My'li'ny-sy (she sings to make someone well)