Elfland and Demon's Lexicon

Two more wonderful reads, lumped together because I read them one after the other, but coincidentally they do share an underlying theme.

Elfland by Freda Warrington is a nice thick urban fantasy about faerie-like demi-mortal beings, Aetherials, some of whom live in our world as humans, although they really belong somewhere else (the Spiral). There is a Gatekeeper between worlds, and at the start of the book he tells the Aetherial community on earth that he's keeping the gate shut for their own good. So a generation of Aetherials grows up without connecting to their heritage. The story focuses on the Gatekeepers kids and the next door Aetherial kids, specially siblings Rose & Lucas. It's written as a family drama and a romance, and what I like best is that the Aetherial characters are written as deeply human. I specially recommend it for romantic readers.


The Demon's Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan is a fast-paced adventure. Magicians get their power by sacrificing people to demons, and brothers Nick & Alan are on the run from magicians who are trying to get back a magical amulet from their insane ex-magician mother. The story is told from Nick's pov, and he cares only about Alan, because Alan is the one who raised him and looked after him. The trouble is Alan cares about everyone, including a brother and sister who come to them for help, and it's all up to Nick to save Alan from his chivalrous impulses. I really loved this book, because even though Nick is moody and angry and literally murderous, I feel such empathy for him. A very dark story written with lots of humor and wit.