Review: Teen angst, teen sidhe, and teen romance
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 06 29, 2012
First in a new teen fantasy series, The Binding by L. Filloon takes readers from the world of an orphaned American teen to the boundaries of a mystical realm of elves where her destiny waits. The story's told through the eyes of eighteen-year-old Lily and her Sidthe prince Tharin, with different chapters switching point of view. Both characters suffer the same teen angst, despite their different backgrounds and ages, and no-one's ever sure what anyone else feels, or willing to state their own point of view out loud. Frustrating, in a teenaged kind of way, the writing can be slow and confusing, but some lovely lines are paired with the prosaic. "Dreams are stages where lies and truths intertwine in an endless dance," muses one character, while another complains, somewhat more casually, in the drama of battle, "Out of nowhere someone blindsides me."Southern Utah felt familiar as the characters' road trip continued. Pursued by horrors, betrayed by friends, allied with ogres and assisted by the world's most wonderful panther, the heroic sidthe learn the value of strong female protagonists, and the strong female protagonist begins to learn the meaning of love.Personally I felt cheated by the ending, wanting to know more. But I guess the author had indeed made me care about the characters on the way.Disclosure:  I received a free ecopy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.