Feast: Harvest of Dreams - Book Review

Feast (Harvest of Dreams) by Merrie Destefano

What is it about:
Madeline MacFadden ("Mad Mac" to fans of her bestselling magical stories) spent blissful childhood summers in Ticonderoga Falls. And this is where she wants to be now that her adult life is falling apart. The dense surrounding forest holds many memories, some joyous, some tantalizingly only half-remembered. And she's always believed there was something living in these wooded hills.

But Maddie doesn't remember the dark parts -- and knows nothing of the mountain legend that holds the area's terrified residents captive. She has no recollection of Ash, the strange and magnificent creature who once saved her life as a child, even though it is the destiny of his kind to prey upon humanity. And soon it will be the Harvest. . . the time to feast.

Once again Maddie's dreams -- and her soul -- are in grave danger. But magic runs deep during Harvest. Even a spinner of enchanted tales has wondrous powers of her own.

What did I think of it:
As I loved Destefano's Afterlife I have been looking forward to reading Feast since I heard about it (and come on, who wouldn't want to read a book with the title: Feast, Harvest of Dreams).

With such high expectations there's always a chance that a book will disappoint, but Feast delivers, even though in a completely other way than I expected.

I had thought it would be much like Afterlife only in a different setting, but were Afterlife is a gritty, realistic Urban Fantasy, Feast is a dangerous and dark fairytale which grabs you and holds you until the very end. The worldbuilding is imaginative and beautiful, but still so real you could imagine to see the creatures from Feast sneak around outside your house on a dark autumn night. There are multiple viewpoints in this book, but Destefano is a master in getting you involved in the life of each of them, even the not so pleasant ones.

Voodoo Bride would have liked the romance to be a bit more present than it is, but otherwise this is a beautiful and haunting story and I hope Destefano will write more books like Feast.

Why should you read it:
It's a beautiful, dark fairytale