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Thursday, January 7, 2010

Impossible by Nancy Werlin


Impossible by Nancy Werlin 5 of 5 stars.

A line of strong, defiant young woman are cursed to be broken, body and mind by an evil creature known as the Elfin Knight. Forced to become pregnant at the age of 17 these girls are face with four impossible tasks. They must make a shirt with no seams or needlework, find an acre of land between the salt water and the sea strand, plow in with just a goat's horn, and sow it over with one grain of corn. Now its up to Lucy, 17, to save herself and her unborn daughter from the clutches of this evil creature. If she does not complete these impossible tasks and break the curse she will have the child, go mad, and become a possession of the Elfin Knight. And her daughter will then follow in her footsteps.

But Lucy and her baby are not alone. Guided by her mother's journal and the love of her family and friends Lucy struggles to save herself and her child in an extraordinary show of strength and determination. But nothing is sure and there is no way to know if all of their toils are working or not.

Impossible was a simply beautiful novel. I loved the idea and the style even if I was hoping for something that seemed a little more of an adventure. In the beginning Lucy's character seems strong and I get a good idea of her personality, but as the story progresses she fades out. I get a great view of Zach, though, and see inside his personality. He was a very lovable character but I would have liked to see a bit more of Lucy. It felt slightly vague to me in spots. There are things I think Nancy Werlin could have shown a bit better rather than telling. On the other hand, it did give the story a classic fairytale ring that went along well with the lyrical sound of the story.
All in all it was a wonderful read I could hardly put down and I would suggest this to anyone.


For fans of: Fantasy, Graceline, Gail Carson Levine

3 comments:

Lauren said...

This sounds really unusual. I hadn't really read much about it before, although I'd always liked the sound of it, but your review makes me think I should pick it up when I get the chance. Thanks for the review!

(Arya) Paige said...

You totally should, Lauren! =)

Glad I could help.

Amy Jane (Untangling Tales) said...

I read this last May and loved the portrayal of symbiosis between the couple.

One of my biggest complaints w/ girl-power novels isn't the girl having power (duh) it's the reinforced implication that any weakness-gap closed by a male/authority figure somehow reduces the girl's power.

The reason I loved this novel was that it had involved parents and a true-to-life interdependence between the MC and her world. It was a terrific example of how healthy healthy people in healthy relationships *don't* have to do it all themselves.

Granted, as such, it broke the expectation that the MC should be "strong" and do everything herself, but I've been pregnant a few times and let me tell you, there were responsibilities I was ready to share ;o)

Go luck on your high fantasy goal! If you haven't read The Wolf Hunt (by Bradshaw) that's another one I recommend, along with Victoria Hanley's The Seer and the Sword & The Healer's Keep.

I'll probably "follow" you know that I've seen you're doing this challenge-- my reading is so much reduced lately I have to enjoy books vicariously *sad grin*

 
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