Happy New Year. Things have been a bit quiet on here lately, since I've been getting used to starting work again and have been in a bit of a creative slump during the Mondayest month of the year. Nevertheless, I have some plans for blogging projects. Anyway, to start this New Year, I decided to take a look at Red Daisy, a fantasy by fellow Swanwicker Gemma Owen-Kendall. This post is part of a Reading Between the Lines blog tour organised by Lynsey Adams.
Blurb
What if the girl who wore the red coat fell in love with the wolf?
Grace Kennedy was once a quiet teenage girl, growing up in a rural area with her parents. When Grace turns sixteen, she moves to a new town to live with her grandparents to study a diploma in Dance at the local college.
It's there that Grace’s life changes when she meets the polite and charming Daniel and also encounters the dark and mysterious Ben.
But are both boys truly who they say they are ...
Dealing with the sudden strange events happening to her and a complicated love triangle, Grace world implodes when she learns that werewolves and spellcasters do truly exist.
Review
At first glance, you'd expect this book to be a modern-day re-telling of Little Red Riding Hood. Even Grace herself lampshades this during the narrative. However, I was surprised at the angle it took.
The first chapter acts as a prologue of sorts. Taking place in 1884, it tells the story of how the boys Magnus and Constantine became werewolves and were told to protect a spellcaster named Florence, but fought over her affections, resulting in their death's and Florence becoming pregnant.
The rest of the book is told from the perspective of Grace - a descendent of Florence - looking back on her teenage years. While studying dance, she's courted by Daniel and Ben, but it later transpires that history is repeating itself. Having read the outcome in the first chapter, that made me want to know what would happen the second time around.
There are some great twists and turns as we find out who's filling what role in a prophecy that was both laid out and played out in the prologue, and I enjoyed how the story developed and added more layers to the myth. While both Daniel and Ben have a creepy overtone, it was interesting to see the interactions between them and Grace, especially after the more fantastical aspects of the story came to light. And when the fantastical aspects do come out, it provides some great action scenes and some memorable moments from characters you'd least expect.
Red Daisy is available on Amazon here. It's not a particularly hefty read, but certainly an enjoyable one. I look forward to seeing what other adventures Grace Kennedy will get involved in.
About the Author
Gemma is a writer from North East Lincolnshire, UK. Graduated at the University of Lincoln in 2009, she studied a degree in Drama. However years later Gemma has discovered writing is her hobby and passion. She hopes to one day to be able to go back to University to study creative writing. As well as her own writing, Gemma is a huge supporter for writers within her local area.
Happy writing.
