Customer Reviews
Enchanting - By: H. Jones, 10 Aug 2007 
This is the first book I have read by McKillip. The story is touching & cleverly put together following the story of Atrix, Prince Talis & Saro. The imagery is mouth watering & beautiful. It's very atmospheric & enchanting. The only reason I gave it 4 stars not 5 is being there is somethingin McKillip's writing that is sometimes hard to follow for me.
Enchanting Spell - By: Spy Groove, 10 Sep 2004 
I was so deeply moved while reading this book. The frase: 'your worst enemy is your own self' is vividly portrayed.
Started by a mistake done by an old powerful mage, Atrix Wolfe that ends a war between Kardeth & Pelucir. A mistake which caused the uproar & tragedyin human world & fairy world.
In the face of the destruction he had caused, Atrix buried himself for 20 years until the heir of Pelucir called him back through a book written by Atrix himself right after the war.
The book contained spells seemingly harmless enough for a beginner mage. But when Talis of Pelucir tried to study them, there were actually other meanings behind every words written which endangered both his & his brother's, the King, life for the true meaning of the words led to a black terror that had only one purpose, Death.
The black terror was made by Atrix's spell & by the destructive spell, he torn the world of fairy, separated the Queen of the Woods, from her consort & daughter. By her, Atrix was forced to finish what he had started years ago.
The language is so enchanting, it almost put a spell on your mind. You can also make up some delicious recipes from here. The description itself made me hungry everytime I read about tha chapters concerning the castle's kitchen.
Highly recommended
Enchanting Spell - By: Spy Groove, 02 Sep 2004 I was so deeply moved while reading this book. The frase: 'your worst enemy is your own self' is vividly portrayed.
Started by a mistake done by an old powerful mage, Atrix Wolfe that ends a war between Kardeth & Pelucir. A mistake which caused the uproar & tragedyin human world & fairy world.
In the face of the destruction he had caused, Atrix buried himself for 20 years until the heir of Pelucir called him back through a book written by Atrix himself right after the war.
The book itself contained spells seemingly harmless enough for a beginner mage. But when Talis of Pelucir tried to study them, there were actually other meanings behind every words written which endangered both his & his brother, the King's life for the true meaning of the words led to a black terror that had only one intention, Death.
The black terror was made by Atrix's spell & by the destructive spell, he torn the world of fairy, separating the Queen of the Woods, from her consort & daughter. By her, Atrix was forced to finish what he had started years ago.
The language is so enchanting, it almost put a spell on your mind. You can also make up some delicious recipes from here. The description itself made me hungry everytime I read about tha chapters concerning the castle's kitchen.
Highly recommended
A hauntingly beautiful faerie-tale - By: , 14 Jun 2001 This is simply a wonderful book, which merges events of an epic scale with gripping human (and faerie) drama. Patricia McKillip shows what fantasy is or once was all about: the enchantment of the supernatural, evocative language, & a delicate plot. And all thatin just one book of less than 250 pages! Think about it before you start reading Martin Jordankind's multi-tome series...
Fantasy Doesn't Get Any Better Than This! - By: , 03 Nov 2000 What a wonderful book! Weaving, retelling & redefining the classic faerie talein a style at once simple & elegant, McKillip brings a sense of wonder & magic to every page, creating a world at once familiar yet unlike any other I've encountered. The author has created a haunting fictionin which a thin veil exists between the ordinary & magical, the commonplace, medieval setting of fantasy & the barely perceived kingdom of the Other. This is the realm of Faerie, the closest I have come to it, outside of traditional folklore, since reading Tolkien, yet written with an individual vision that while drawing upon the rich heritage of mythology & legend, such as the Wild Hunt & the Queen of the Wood, breathes new life into the faerie tale, until the story has a character & wonder all its own.
Lovingly & richly detailed, this is not a book to read on an empty stomach. Scenes of feasts & the kitchen abound, delightfully rendered & salivating. The descriptions of the wood captures naturein all its beauty as well as its at times its frightening indifference. The invocation of magic & the spiritual realm are craftedin a way at once wondrous & believable, & for a few hours the reader steps into a worldin which he or she wishes they could linger long after the final page reaches its conclusion. Mystery abounds, & it is impossible not to become capturedin the author's written spell.
This is not, however, simply a tale of wondrous places & larger than life events. As well as writing lyrically, the author invests her tale with metaphor, & a meditation on words & their relationship to identity. The duality of things perceived is as much a theme throughout the work as is the ostensible tale of magic gone awry, and, as with the characters, one needs to look closely at the nature of what is named. I can think of no other author currently writing fantasy that uses the genre as a means to explore larger existential matters, a reflection upon not only the real world but also the world of myth. This book is truly a feast, not only for the senses but the intellect as well.
One of the best works of fantasy I have ever read, at once richly acknowledging the meditative & figurative themes underlying the best traditional folklore, as well as investing the genre with intentions rarely found todayin fantasy fiction, writtenin a style as magical & beautiful as the tale being told. Beside the wonder of this novel, my praise is but a weak & mute substitute.
