Review: They live among us
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 08 7, 2012
In The Mall Fairies: Exile, Conda Douglas has sketched out a world where the fairies live among humans, seen through the eyes of a teen fairy named Swoop. Like many teens, she is trying to find her place in her society, while skirting the rules.  Her story is paralleled by that of a human girl Grace, who has a scheme to run away to go to art school to escape the family drama of her grandmother's drinking and her own guilt about her grandfather's death.  While the fairies must keep their existence secret from humans, Grace's grandmother knows about them, but of course, no one believes her. When the time comes that Swoop needs her help to save a friend's life, Grace needs to capture a fairy to prove that her grandmother is not crazy.I was impressed by the realism of the fairy society, which treats fairies as small people who can fly with the use of a special ointment, which is now running out, and that no one knows how to make. Clearly, fairies have not always lived in the mall, and the book hints at their previous history, raising questions to be explored in series.The human situation is well described too, though in broader strokes, as we already know what it's like to be human.  Like many first-in-the-series novels, this one lets us fly through the fairy world, following as Swoop takes ever-increasing risks. Both girls make unfortunate choices, and the repercussions  make their original goals seem childish. It is an excellent coming of age story unfolding across the edges of two worlds.I received a free copy of this book for review.