Stolen Songbird (The Malediction Trilogy, #1) by Danielle L. Jensen
Publishing date: April 1st 2014
Publisher: Strange Chemistry
469 pages
For five centuries, a witch’s curse has bound the trolls to their city beneath the ruins of Forsaken Mountain. Time enough for their dark and nefarious magic to fade from human memory and into myth. But a prophesy has been spoken of a union with the power to set the trolls free, and when Cécile de Troyes is kidnapped and taken beneath the mountain, she learns there is far more to the myth of the trolls than she could have imagined.
Cécile has only one thing on her mind after she is brought to Trollus: escape. Only the trolls are clever, fast, and inhumanly strong. She will have to bide her time, wait for the perfect opportunity.
But something unexpected happens while she’s waiting – she begins to fall for the enigmatic troll prince to whom she has been bonded and married. She begins to make friends. And she begins to see that she may be the only hope for the half-bloods – part troll, part human creatures who are slaves to the full-blooded trolls. There is a rebellion brewing. And her prince, Tristan, the future king, is its secret leader.
As Cécile becomes involved in the intricate political games of Trollus, she becomes more than a farmer’s daughter. She becomes a princess, the hope of a people, and a witch with magic powerful enough to change Trollus forever.
When I first saw Stolen Songbird, I didn't give it too much attention. Then I saw a review by my friend Tanja at Ja čitam, a ti? and I thought since she liked it so much, maybe I should request an arc copy on NetGalley since we almost always like the same books and I felt like reading something fantasy. And I did request it. But holy freaking cow! Stolen Songbird is AMAZING! If I knew it sooner, I'd have read it right away!
I don't know about everyone else, but I've never read a book that features trolls, or heard about any for that matter. At least not in the way Stolen Songbird does (we all know about the hideous creatures from Harry Potter). Cecilé is kidnapped and sold to the King of a magical city Trollus where she finds out she is to be bonded (married) to Tristan, the Prince and the future King of Trollus. With her life among the trolls, she has to forget about her past life, but that doesn't stop her from trying to escape. With a new husband and a new lifestyle her life is to be changed unlike she ever imagined possible, but the question is will she like it and welcome it?
I love high fantasy, but I rarely read it. I don't know why is that so, but after reading Stolen Songbird, I realized why do I love it so much. Danielle created a world truly magnificent. Right from the start, I knew I would like it, and as the book progressed, I could only confirm it. Not only was the world building amazing, but I was truly surprised by the depth of this book, political scheming and it's main characters as well as the secondary characters.
Cecilé should be a definition of a YA fantasy heroine. She is not some kick-ass-always-knows-what-to-do, but she posses all the important virtues. She is compassionate, kind to people she doesn't even know, or should I say trolls, and above all, trusting. Tristan on the other hand, at first may come off as incredibly cold, but under all the act, you can see that he is caring, witty and really funny at times. The romance between them takes time to develop, but feels right all the time. There's no insta-romance, and thank god for that, as I was afraid there might be.
I think it is safe to say that Stolen Songbird will make it on my Best of 2014, even though it's only April and I have 8 more months of reading in front of me. So what are you waiting for? Get yourself a copy of this awesome book RIGHT NOW! As for me, what more can I ask for? Except for a sequel maybe? To come out, like, now!?!
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