Ballad

by Maggie Stiefvater


Despite this book being a sequel to Lament, it really reads more like a stand-alone novel. The main character and narrator of this book is James, a secondary character in the first novel. The setting has changed, as has all but one of the remaining characters. Dee is still in it, but she definitely takes a back seat in this one. In fact, most of what we know that's going on with her is from "text messages" dispersed throughout the book. And the few times she does appear, she's kind of annoying.

And even though James' narration is funnier than Dee's, the story of Ballad just didn't excite me as much as Lament did. The faeries as a collective group are not a big part of the story until the very end. Many of the newer elements to the faerie myths are not fully explained. Stiefvater has based a lot of her story on actual Celtic myth, so I was able to look some of it up, but I still think she should have included more. I'm teetering on the edge of a 3 or a 4 star rating, but settled on a 3. Not jumping for joy over it, but not regretting taking the time to read it - a solid 3 I'd say.