Daughter of the Forest FROM THE PUBLISHER
A beautiful retelling of the Celtic "Swans" myth, Daughter of the Forest is a mixture of history and fantasy, myth and magic, legend and love... To reclaim the lives of her brothers, Sorcha leaves the only safe place she has ever known and embarks on a journey filled with pain, loss and terror. When she is kidnapped by enemy forces and taken to a foreign land, it seems that there will be no way for Sorcha to break the spell that condemns all that she loves. But magic knows no boundaries, and sorcha will have to choose between the live she has always known and a love that comes only once.
FROM THE CRITICS
Melinda Helfer - Romantic Times
A simple beautiful storyteller, Ms. Marillier's debut novel brings a classic Celtic fairy tale to vibrant, glowing life with riveting prose and lyrical magic. Haunting in its intensity, this stunning reading experience will linger like the finest of wines.
Publishers Weekly
This imaginative retelling of the Celtic Swans myth begins a promising new British romantic fantasy series. Six brothers have been turned into swans by their wicked stepmother. Only their sister, Sorcha, can save these sons of an Irish chieftain by weaving magical shirts that will turn them back into human beings. As she begins her task in the forest, she is raped and forced to flee. British nobleman Hugh of Harrowfield rescues her from the attacker while on a search for his missing brother, Simon, whose life Sorcha has saved earlier. Unfortunately, Sorcha can't reveal to Hugh her role in helping Simon, for she has had to take an oath of silence until she completes the shirts. When she marries Hugh, she assumes a new identity as "Jenny" so that she can return to England. Once there, however, she is thrust into a deadly power struggle among Hugh and his allies; his mother, Anne; and Hugh's wicked uncle, Richard of Northwoods--and she narrowly escapes being burned at the stake for witchcraft and treason. Though the novel features a stereotypically happy ending and leans more toward romance than fantasy, Marillier is a fine folklorist and a gifted narrator who has created a wholly appealing and powerful character in this daughter of the forest. (May) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|
KLIATT
Sorcha and her six brothers grow up happy in their secluded Irish haven, protected by the thick, mysterious forest that surrounds them and by their dead mother's blessing. But everything changes when their father brings home a witchy stepmother. Trying to protect their home and family, they run afoul of the witch, who casts a spell to turn the brothers into swans. The Lady of the Forest tells Sorcha she can save her brothers, but only by maintaining silence as she spins, weaves and sews shirts from the spiny starwort plant. When Sorcha is kidnapped and taken away to enemy territory, she finds herself in danger, unable to speak to defend herself... and in love, unable to speak her heart. This retelling of the beloved fairy tale is so well written it's hard to believe it is a first novel, and the reader will be glad to know that it is the first in a series about this family, both blessed and cursed by the Fairy Folk. KLIATT Codes: SA�Recommended for senior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 2000, Tor, 554p., Root
Library Journal
As the only daughter and youngest child of Lord Colum of Sevenwaters, Sorcha grows up protected and pampered by her six older brothers. When a sorceress's evil magic ensorcels Colum's sons, transforming them into swans, only Sorcha's efforts can break the curse. Marillier's first novel uses a familiar Celtic legend to tell the story of a young woman's sacrifice for the sake of those she loves and her own discovery of unexpected joy in the midst of sorrow. The author's keen understanding of Celtic paganism and early Irish Christianity adds texture to a rich and vibrant novel that belongs in most fantasy collections. Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.\
Kirkus Reviews
This, the first of a projected fantasy trilogy from newcomer Marillier, reworks and embroiders the fairy tale of the brothers who are transformed into swans by their evil stepmother; they can be returned to human form only by the agonizing labors of their young sister. In Ireland, patriarch Colum and his six sons and daughter Sorcha are beset by Britons in pursuit of an old blood feud. The brothers are variously gifted: Conor has druidic leanings, Cormack is the scholar, young Finbar has the Sight, etc. Then Colum's men capture a young Briton, Simon, from a raiding party, and torture him for the secrets he supposedly keeps; Conor and Finbar help him escape; and, later, Sorcha tends his injuries. Soon, however, the Lady Oonagh—clearly a witch—beguiles Colum and plots to drive the brothers and Sorcha away. They attempt to restrain Oonagh with magic, but Oonagh's too strong and transforms the brothers into swans. The Lady of the Forest tells Sorcha how she can free them—by hand-weaving each swan a shirt of barbs, and by keeping utter silence until the task is complete. In fleeing Oonagh's wrath, however, she falls in with a party of Britons looking for Simon. In distant England, meanwhile, Sorcha's mission seems more impossible than ever—and there'll be many complications before matters are resolved in traditional style.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING
Ms. Marillier's ability to use so well such a known legend and make it both logical and exciting is an outstanding gift. I am now, of course, eager to see 'what happens next'. — Andre Norton
A fine new fantasy writer�I enjoyed it immensely. — Anne McCaffey
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