Silver's Edge

This was the first Luna imprint book I read, and I'm glad I started with this one, or I may have been turned off by other Luna books. The whole imprint is sort of hit-or-miss with me. Anyway, "Silver's Edge" was a great book! There was suspense, tons of action, and I always love books set in Faerie. For me, the best part of this book was how the author would set you up only to totally surprise you. People that I thought were good characters with pure motivations ended up being the real villians. It was nice to read a book with twists like this. I would recommend buying this one and having it's sequel, "Silver's Bane," close at hand!

I didn't just read this book, I devoured it! I became so engrossed in this world of sidhe, "corn" magic, goblins, and powerful women, that I read at white heat, on through the night, only to discover those wonderfully cruel words "to be continued" Anne Kelleher took me by the hand and dragged me gasping, moaning, laughing and crying through a land of turmoil as powerful magic, forged in silver, tenuously holds three worlds apart, keeping separate faery, humans, and goblins. Through the eyes of powerful and engaging characters, I witnessed mesmerizing beauty, horrible carnage, bravery, magic, and moments of heartbreaking tenderness. The storytelling is so enthralling, and so detailed, it was easy to visualize myself falling into this world to fight goblins alongside Nessa, or stepping through mirrors with Delphinea. Now I'm waiting in agony for the sequel, "Silver's Bane" to arrive in the mail...

This is not the type of book that I read regularly, but I have read other books by Ms. Kelleher and enjoyed them. Without question, this is her best work thus far. The characters are rich and complex - I found myself caring about them and wondering what would happen to them next. Much of this book sets the stage for the next book - I wish they could all just be published and read at once! Ms. Kelleher has the rare talent of transporting her readers to a place where only her imagination can take you. The sights, sounds, and even smells are glorious in their vividness. I can't wait for the sequel.

This book has done what few can in my estimation. It became my friend. I missed the characters when I was away from them, and find myself wondering about them even now, having read two other books since Silver's Edge. I became so engaged that I've toyed with the possibility of becoming a blacksmith, and making silver-edged swords! I am a voracious reader, love this fantasy/sci-fi/otherworld/adventure genre, and have waded through a lot of mediocre books. That is NOT the case with this wonderful piece of literature. Ms Kelleher has woven a magnificent background of location as fantastical as Tolkein's Middle Earth while crafting a weft out of characters large and small, magical, mundane, even inspirational into a fabric that reads like silk feels; ethereal, divine, exquisite!

Imagine being holed up in a castle, surrounded by a horde of hungry goblins, and as you ready yourself for the bloody horror of your own certain death, you see, storming down from the heavens, the spirits of screaming naked women armed with teeth and nails and knives and cleavers, who proceed to slaughter the goblins with such ferocity you almost feel sorry them. Wow. I don't know where this book came from, but buy yourself a copy. Anne Kelleher has created a world so real you smell it; a world that's a luscious mix of Celtic myth, Arthurian legend, the heroic tradition and modern paganism fused by a lyrical writing style.To give you just an example of the characters who populate this place, Nessa, the blacksmith's daughter, isn't your typical fantasy heroine - her hands are calloused, her shoulders are broad and she doesn't clean up much ever. Every scene tempts you further and further into this richly complex story, building crescendo upon crescendo. Silver's Edge has all the color of Lord of the Rings, the punch of a Springsteen concert, and the sound of poetry running through the prose. I can't wait to read the sequel.