A Chalice of Wind (Balefire, No. 1)
Grade 9 Up–Separated at birth, Thais and Clio are identical twins who've never met. Clio lives with her grandmother in New Orleans, where they practiceBonne Magie, a branch of witchcraft similar to Wicca but much older. Thais has lived with her father in Connecticut, and when he dies in a freak accident, she is moved to New Orleans by her new guardian, Axelle Gauvin, also a practicing witch. Thais meets Clio on the first day of their senior year at her new school, and both are freaked. Why were they separated? And what happens now that they are reunited? The girls tell their stories in alternating narratives. They are the most fully developed characters, but even secondary characters are given some depth. Though the plot starts off rather slowly in Connecticut, it picks up speed when Thais arrives in New Orleans and other secrets are discovered. Each chapter holds a sense of mystery and uneasiness. The ending is wide open, leaving so many questions unanswered and raising so many new ones that the next installment is a necessity. Containing fantasy, mystery, romance, and the bar scene of New Orleans, the book will find a wide audience.–Heather E. Miller, Homewood Public Library, ALCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.