Author: Juliet Marillier
Genre: Adventure, Family, Fantasy, Romance, Historical
Summary: Jenica and her sisters discover a mysterious portal in their family's Romanian estate, Piscul Dracului which leads to the Dancing Glade of the Other Kingdom during the time of the Full Moon when they were little. The five sisters and Jena's frog friend had slipped in and out of the Other Kingdom in secret ever since. They had all lived a sweet and happy life with their unconventional father until he had to travel to the warmer Constanta in the winter due to his illness. During his absence Jena was supposed to mange the estate but their bullying, power-hungry cousin starts to take over their castle little by little.
Their privacy, peace and even the safety of the Other Kingdom at stake, will Jena be able to put everything to right? And what about her sister Tati, who had fallen in love with one of the Night People?
Review: Let me first say something about the cover: Isn't it absolutely gorgeous?! I spent a huge amount of time guessing who those dancing people could be! Pictures can be fun too~ The summary at the back was pretty good too, it went like this:
Four dark creatures...
Three magical gifts...
Two forbidden lovers...
One enchanted frog...
Cross the threshold into the Wildwood, and enter a land of magic, daring, betrayal and true love.
As for the story, it was completely fantastically magical and inscrutable and thrilling! To be honest the first few chapters had me going at a very indifferent state, but as the story progressed on, more and more interesting characters showed up and the story started to spin knots and twists and new patterns and stuff and I found myself raring to turn the next page!
The most quirkiest character that I found to be was Draguta. She was one wicked little pot brewer! (I adore her!) And Cezar their cousin would make even the most apathetic reader grind his teeth with pure annoyance and/or hatred. Then there's the sisters. I liked Jena, she was someone who I can relate to on some aspects so I had no trouble rooting for her throughout the story. Paula was an interesting character too, being all scholarly and smart. The rest of the sisters were pretty normal.
The best part was of course about Gogu and Sorrow. Their love for the two sisters were just so intense and believable that it made my heart ache. Think the kind of love between Lyra and Will, or Polly and Tom, or Sophie and Howl, or Hiroto and Nao. Think the kind of un-shallow love that I can bear to read about!
So, anyone who misses this wonderful book full of mythical creatures, dark secrets, tests of courage and true love is a pitiable person. (No, I am not poking you with my Persuasion Poker.)
Quotes: Er, sorry, I didn't stop to note down any...
Rating: 10/10
Note: Paula has her own book, Cybele's Secret! Its a companion to Wildwood Dancing. I can't wait to go back to the Library!