Aussie Twilight Mum’s Book Club – February
February’s Book of the Month is:
The Kingdom by Jennifer McBay Barry
Set in a mystical, yet modern-day, Ireland, The Kingdom tells the story of Rioghan and Lily; a man bored with existence and a girl afraid of truly living. Follow Rioghan as he finds a new reason to be, and Lily as she finds the courage to embrace her own future. Fall in love with each character, in spite of their shortcomings, as they find love in each other.
During their journey together, they meet several delightful characters; Ciaran, Aisling, and Frankie; who will teach them the meaning of unconditional love and trust. Rioghan and Lily will also discover that respecting their elders doesn’t mean being a doormat.
The lush Irish countryside provides a colorful and mysterious background. Specific points in Ireland’s turbulent history provide lessons to both Rioghan and Lily as they grow into the people each knows the other can be.
The Kingdom is currently only available through Amazon* but I think you should be able to order it in through your local bookstore.
If you would like to take part in the Book Club, you need to have the book by the beginning of January and head over to the Book Club thread on the forum!
* ATMs are affiliated with Amazon and profit from orders placed via the above link.
I posted this on my review website http://filmandbookreviews.blogspot.com/
The first thing that struck me about the book is that it is quite a slim volume. In the large paperback format it is a mere 237 pages. In the YA category it’s written simply and its size makes it is a nice, quick read!
The story is set in modern day Ireland and is written from the viewpoint of Rioghan, an incredibly handsome young man that we quickly learn has unearthly charms and talents. Toying with people’s emotions he is clearly bored yet little things he does shows he really does care – providing it doesn’t involve him!
Upon meeting the sharp-tongued, red haired Lily, daughter of a famous opera singer, he feels a niggle of something more. She doesn’t fall for his charms and he starts to find her fascinating. The more Lily resists Rioghan, the more he feels and soon she becomes the centre of his universe.
The story is a wonderful blend of mythology and legend, of an immortal/ mortal relationship and of finding what is most important versus what you are expected to do.
The picturesque country of Ireland, described so well, provides a wonderful setting for this modern fairy tale.
Although I wasn’t immediately impressed, the characters are interesting, have a depth to them that made me want to know more and I was soon in the can’t-put-it-down mode! I couldn’t help but think back on the legends and stories of the past and everything became completely plausible. By the end I was disappointed that there weren’t a few hundred more pages!
I do have a bit of a problem with a couple of the terms used (eg. ‘fairy’ seems a bit light for the story and perhaps a more archaic spelling or term, eg ‘faerie’ or ‘fair folk’ would raise the level a little) but this is a fairly minor concern.
This is the start of a series and I must say that I am looking forward to reading more about Rioghan and his Kingdom in the future!