follows the story of the hound and the bear who met during the story of The Princess and the Hound. The hound and bear are just beginning to get used to one another when an evil being arrives in their forest, driving out all magic and life. Will the bear be able to face someone he hates in order to save them - and will the hound ever feel completely comfortable back in her original form?
This was a complex and very beautiful fairy tale story. The characters - the bear and hound - are very realistically portrayed and I love Harrison's exploration of their human and animal sides. The story is quite beautiful as well, seeming almost reminiscent of Beauty and the Beast. Harrison uses fairly sparse language, but it fits very well into the story - the symbolism and descriptions of scents and feelings allow us into the minds of characters who one might not at first be able to relate to.
Read-alikes:
Definitely read the companion novel The Princess and the Hound
Princess of the Midnight Ball and Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George
Princess Ben by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
RATINGS:
s-factor:!
Maybe one or two.
mrg-factor: X
A few things were hinted, but not in a graphic or descriptive way at all.
v-factor: ->
Fighting and killing happens.
Overall rating: *****
Posts
Tell me this: can I read this one without having to reread the first one? (Because, as is typical, I don't remember much from the first one.)
ReplyDeleteIt does sound fabulous.
Melissa, I hadn't read the first one for a while when I read this one. It didn't detract too much, since it was pretty much its own story. I had forgotten the Bear's story, but it explained it over the course of the book.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely worth the read - even without remembering much from the first.