After a three-book stint in the young-adult genre with her Shadowfell trilogy, Juliet Marillier (Sevenwaters series) makes a triumphant return to adult literature with an appealing new series that straddles two genres.
When a fairy lord offers to help Blackthorn the healer escape from a brutal prison on the condition that she delay her vengeance against the corrupt chieftain who put her there, she barely brings herself to accept the seven-year postponement. Joining her in the magically assisted prison break is fellow inmate Grim--quiet, enormous and earnestly devoted to her safety. Journeying north, the unlikely pair settles for a time in Dalriada, a fiefdom currently awaiting the union of its crown prince Oran to beautiful heiress Lady Flidais. Oran fell in love with Flidais's gentle, thoughtful spirit through an exchange of letters, but when his bride arrives, he finds her coarse, cruel and evasive. Even if Flidais hired a scribe to compose her correspondence, Oran wonders why her beloved dog has turned against her mistress. When Oran hears that Blackthorn and Grim have unexpectedly solved the mystery of a missing girl, he begs them to discover the truth behind Flidais's behavior before he makes a disastrous marriage.
Alternating between lush Celtic-inspired fantasy and gritty mystery, Marillier retells a fairy tale--to say more would spoil the ending--to create a crossover story that will please fans of both genres. Move over, Holmes and Watson; Blackthorn and Grim have arrived. --Jaclyn Fulwood, blogger at Infinite Reads