Wonderous Strange, by Lesley Livingston

Just a quick commenting, not a real review, because this has already been out a while (and it has been waiting for me to review it for a while, and although it deserves reviews just as much as anyone else, time is short in spring. The crops need planting, etc.).

I'd already read Melissa Marr (Wicked Lovely) when I approached Wondrous Strange, by Lesley Livingston (2008, HarperTeen, 327 pp), and as a result, I was uncertain. The plot sounded pretty similar--girl finds faerie destiny in urban setting with some bad faerie types trying to thwart her and her faerie/human romance. I was pleased to find that, plot aside, the two books very different in feel and texture, and that Wondrous Strange was a rather satisfying read in its own right. In fact, I would highly recommend this book to the 13 or so year old who hasn't yet begun reading paranormal romance/urban fantasy--I think this is a perfect introduction to those sub-genres. It is light-hearted and quite funny in places, which makes a nice change (I would like more bits of humor please, modern writers of YA fantasy), and it is not as Dark and Urban as many other books are. I liked the backdrop of the theatre, I liked the characters, and I liked the writing in a pleasant read kind of way.

Except that the male love interest is named Sonny. Why? Why was a child taken as a changeling by the Winter King named Sonny? Is it ironic, in that Sonny had no chance to be his parents' son? Also ironically, the name makes me think sun-burned farm boy (as unwintery as you can get in a name), and this is not right. I mean, Frosty would be wrong too, but what about something like "Seth?"

Other reviews can be found at The Book Zombie, Teen Book Reviews, and The Dreamer Reader.