
This much anticipated sequel to the New York Times Bestseller Impossible – a fantasy full of suspense, mystery, and romance – will appeal to fans of Beautiful Creatures, Raven Boys, and...
This much anticipated sequel to the New York Times Bestseller Impossible – a fantasy full of suspense, mystery, and romance – will appeal to fans of Beautiful Creatures, Raven Boys, and...
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This much anticipated sequel to the New York Times Bestseller Impossible – a fantasy full of suspense, mystery, and romance – will appeal to fans of Beautiful Creatures, Raven Boys, and Wicked Lovely.
Fenella was the first Scarborough girl to be cursed, hundreds of years ago, and she has been trapped in the faerie realm ever since, forced to watch generations of daughters try to break this same faerie curse that has enslaved them all. But now Fenella's descendant, Lucy, has accomplished the impossible and broken the curse, so why is Fenella still trapped in Faerie?
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In her desperation, Fenella makes a deal with the faerie queen: If she can accomplish three acts of destruction, she will be free, at last, to die.? What she doesn't realize is that these acts must be aimed at her own family – and if she fails, the consequences will be dire, for all of the Scarborough girls.
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How can she possibly choose to hurt her own cherished family – not to mention the new man whom she's surprised to find herself falling in love with? But if she doesn't go through with the tasks, how will she manage to save her dear ones?
Excerpts-
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From the book
A desperate plea
"Consider—"
"I have considered! I have spent the last four hundred years helpless while every girl in my family suffered. They blamed me for their fate, along with blaming Padraig. I caused the curse, and then I failed to break it, and then I failed to protect any of them. I failed!"
Fenella sank to her knees and raised her head on a rigid neck. "I have already tried to die in every way I know. Poisoning and drowning. Fire and blade. Hanging and leaping. Nothing worked. Show me mercy. Undo this life-spell that Padraig cast. Let me die. It is long, long past my time."
One of the elk fey whispered to a rabbit, and the mossy rock face of a stone fey glowed phosphorescent in the moonlight.
"I beg you," said Fenella.
ALSO BY NANCY WERLIN
Are You Alone on Purpose?
Black Mirror
Double Helix
Extraordinary
Impossible
The Killer's Cousin
Locked Inside
The Rules of Survival
Chapter 1
"I demand to speak to the queen!"
Panting, shouting, a redheaded human girl named Fenella Scarborough raced toward the center of the forest clearing, barely in front of the willow-tree fey chasing her. She felt the flick of a long thin branch start to twist around her waist, but she wrenched it aside before it could yank her backward. The full-moon court of the fey was assembled, with countless faeries crowding the ground and trees and air, but Fenella ignored them all. She kept her eyes fixed firmly on the tall figure of the queen as she zigged and zagged and fought toward her.
The girl's desperation was real, but the chase was staged. The queen's tree fey guards were helping Fenella Scarborough. They might not approve of her quest, but she had convinced them of her need to try.
Bless them, Fenella thought as she evaded another feint at capture.
She reached the queen and staggered to a stop. The queen had risen to her feet, and Fenella looked a long way up into her face, for the queen was taller than tall. But the queen's half-mask of reptilian skin, which nestled over her forehead and around her left eye, made it hard to read her expression.
"You must hear me." Fenella put an unconscious hand to her side, where she had a stitch from running.
The assembled court stared and pointed and chattered. The tree fey whipped restraining vines around Fenella's waist. In a moment, they would have to drag her away.
But then it happened, just as Fenella had hoped and planned. The queen's wings rose with interest and she held up a clawed hand. "I will hear this human girl."
The tree fey guards loosened their bindings, though they did not remove them.
Fenella knew to wait now, until she was bidden to speak. She stood still beneath Queen Kethalia's examining gaze. She did not let her eyes slip even once to the thick, curved knife that the queen wore in a sheath on one forearm.
Her involuntary shuddering made her glad for the support of the tree fey's vines. Would the queen think she was afraid? Fenella jutted her chin out. She was not. Not of the new young Queen of Faerie, not of anyone, not of anything. Fear had burned out of Fenella Scarborough years ago.
"You look like a young girl," mused Queen Kethalia at last. "But you are older."
A discreet tug at Fenella's waist cautioned her not to reply.
It was true that Fenella Scarborough looked young, eighteen at most. But an acute observer with knowledge of magic—and the queen was nothing if not that—would stop and look again, questioning the surface. And it would not take knowledge of magic for an...
Reviews-
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July 15, 2013
Held captive by the man who killed her lover, psychologically and sexually abused, forced to watch successive generations of young girls treated similarly and then killed: This sounds more ripped from the headlines than fantasy. Some 400 years ago, Padraig stole Fenella and cursed her family. The curse broken, damaged Fenella wants only to die. But faeries don't play nice, and Fenella's release requires three acts of destruction visited upon her family (known and beloved to readers from Impossible, 2008). She is aided by the faerie queen's brother Ryland (from Extraordinary, 2010), whose wry, amoral observations provide the closest thing to levity here. This should be a rich, nuanced novel: It boasts survivor guilt, impossible situations and the question of what choice means, all set against a backdrop of complex familial relationships and faeries, with the bonus of tying together two previous and well-liked tales. But flat main character Fenella never elicits sympathy, in part because her abuse is talked around more than about, and her awful behavior (arson, attempted murder and kidnapping) will leave readers hard-pressed to root for her. Even the (destined) brewing romance that brings Fenella back to a place of kindness involves Fenella behaving as a sexual predator, and the late-game switch from selfish to selfless motivations can't redeem the character. Unpleasant, unlikable and unbalanced. (Fantasy. 14-18)COPYRIGHT(2013) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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August 1, 2013
Gr 7 Up-Lucy Scarborough has ended the curse that haunted the women of her family for 400 years and is settling into a happy life after the events of Impossible (Dial, 2008). But Fenella, with whom the curse began, isn't at peace. After being trapped in Faerie for centuries, all she wants is to die, so she strikes a deal with the Faerie queen: if she destroys her family, she can end her own life. She shows up on Lucy's doorstep to begin her three tasks of destruction (the inverse of Lucy's three tasks of creation). However, despite her tortured past, it is difficult to sympathize with Fenella's cruel intentions. Readers who rooted for Lucy's success may struggle with this novel, especially since Lucy's spirit and determination, so much a part of her character in Impossible, are largely absent here so that Fenella can take center stage. They will also have a hard time believing Lucy's family's acceptance of Fenella, even after she begins to destroy their security and love. Mention is made of their suspicions, but Fenella is never asked to leave, and while the ending is somewhat open-ended, it's still more hopeful than seems likely. Even with its flaws and heavy reliance on a suspension of disbelief, Unthinkable may still find an audience among fans of Impossible who liked the blending of real-world and fantasy, the focus on family, and the tale of a young woman overcoming what seem like incredible odds.-Gretchen Kolderup, New York Public Library
Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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Starred review from August 1, 2013
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* In this stand-alone sequel to Impossible (2008), Werlin presents a heroic character who has three tasks: to destroy her family's home, their love, and their hope. The destroyer is Fenella, who has been trapped in the faerie realm for hundreds of years. Like Impossible's Lucy, she is a Scarborough; Lucy broke the family curse that killed generations of girls; Fenella was the first to be cursed by the despicable Padraig. The only way for Fenella to find release, according to the Faerie Queen, is to destroy, and she agrees before she's told it is Lucy, her husband, daughter, foster parents, and tormented mother, Miranda, who must be the targets. Werlin pulls off quite a feat, making us care deeply for a character driven by selfish needs, intent on betrayal. The irresistably plotted book, also raises large questions about the nature of security and whether destruction is tied to creation. The tension is palpable as Fenella ponders possibilities for accomplishing her unforgivable tasks, and the reader, though horrified, can't walk away from her, nor can her love interest, Walker. Fenella's feline companion, Ryland, the feisty brother of the Faerie Queen, adds some levity to a unique and unforgettable quest. Though the destruction is handled almost philosophically, at its heart, this is a story about the many different levels of love.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)
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