Shinn, Sharon. Summers at Castle Auburn. Coriel is the illegitimate daughter of a royal lord. Her Uncle Jaxon makes sure that she spends her summers at the castle with her half- sister learning all that might be required of court behavior, but Corie is an independent spirit and the restraint of the castle is difficult for her. Nevertheless, she loves her sister Elisandra deeply, has a crush on Prince Bryan, and finds her summers a mixture of joy and rebellion.
She spends the winter months as apprentice to her grandmother, learning healing and the ways of a village wise woman. What she learns stands her in good stead for her summers at Auburn.
I enjoyed the book, but several things seemed rushed and not completely answered. It was more of a fantasy romance, light and enjoyable. A fun read, but not of the same quality as The Shape-Changer's Wife. The theme of both novels appears to be that is wrong to try to change the nature of a being (human or otherwise) by force. To do so is a form of enslavement that may or may not involve the obvious bonds of slavery.
Fiction. Fantasy. 2001. 342 pages.
I looked for The Shape-Changer's Wife last weekend on my outing at Half Price books but couldn't find it - darn. I'll have to go this weekend and see if I can find it :)
ReplyDeleteiliana - I hope you find it. It is a perfect little fairy tale.
ReplyDeleteI own all of Shinn's books but one... let's not go into how many I have read! Anyways, I started this book the other day but couldn't get into it at the time, so I am going to try again soon. I enjoyed her young adult trilogy, but I have not read The Shape-Changers Wife yet either.
ReplyDeleteJust finished this book today -- what a fun romp! I agree, not the intensity or vivid imagery of her Angel books, but I enjoyed it. I also loved Heart of Gold!
ReplyDeleteLatharia - I intend to read more by Shinn!
ReplyDelete