Review: Feast by Merrie Destefano

Book Description:

Halloween is a bad time to return to the woods…

Madeline MacFadden (“Mad Mac” to fans of her bestselling magical stories) spent blissful childhood summers in Ticonderoga Falls. And this is where she wants to be now that her adult life is falling apart. The dense surrounding forest holds many memories, some joyous, some tantalizingly only half-remembered. And she’s always believed there was something living in these wooded hills.

But Maddie doesn’t remember the dark parts—and knows nothing of the mountain legend that holds the area’s terrified residents captive. She has no recollection of Ash, the strange and magnificent creature who once saved her life as a child, even though it is the destiny of his kind to prey upon humanity. And soon it will be the Harvest…the time to feast.

Once again Maddie’s dreams—and her soul—are in grave danger. But magic runs deep during Harvest. Even a spinner of enchanted tales has wondrous powers of her own…

Review:

Feast: Harvest of Dreams takes what most consider to be contemporary issues like divorce, depression, parenthood, financial security and career development, then mixes in elements of a darkly beautiful fantasy that will ensnare you from page one. I was surprised at how involved I got in reading this book, at often I thought of the characters after I was finished. The writing style was just so visual and I found it easy to imagine Ticonderoga Falls, almost like the world came alive inside my mind.

The Darklings aren't your average friendly forest creatures at all. They are truly the stuff of nightmares, feeding off the dreams of humans with no regard for life at all. To them people are nothing more than prey, something to be hunted. Rather Grimm like, in my opinion, which is more like I have grown to envision the fae. All except for Ash. At first I had trouble figuring out the character of Ash. Was he good or bad? Was he watching out for Mac because he cared or did he want to feed off her? I definitely liked reading to find out all his secrets. Mac was also very well written and being a mother myself I found her actions to be easy to understand. I just liked her.

The only real nit-pick I have is that each chapter is told in a different character POV which at times can be a bit frustrating because when the chapter is short it disrupts the flow. On the other hand, it was interesting way to learn more about the Darklings. It's just something to be aware of, that's all.

You can learn more about Merrie and her books by visiting her website.

*Reviewed by Anna Dougherty
*I was sent this book for reviewing purposes.