“The treachery of beautiful things”, by Ruth Frances Long is published by Dial Books and is set to be released August 16, 2012.

                I was doing some browsing on Goodreads when I came across this book.  The cover art is beautiful and when I read the description I was very interested in reading it.

                “The treachery of beautiful things” starts off with a young brother and sister (Jenny and Tom) walking home from music lessons (Tom is gifted with the flute). They decide to take a shortcut by some woods and Tom is taken by something in the forest. Jenny, scarred by the abduction and unable to reasonably explain what happened to Tom to her parents, is sent away to attend school and get counsiling.

Seven years pass and the story really begins. Jenny returns to the woods determined to find Tom and bring him home. She enters the forest only to find that she has crossed the border from the human world into the fae realm. She soon encounters Jack o’ the forest, a border guardian, and puck the hobgoblin (aka Robin Goodfellow). Jenny struggles with the reality of what is happening or rather the fantasy of it, but she is not deterred. Jack and Puck very reluctantly agree to help her after trying numerous times to get her back over the border. Let’s not forget the evil Queen Mab, King Oberon, the queen’s piper, blood drinking redcaps, maneating trees, and evil water fae.

It didn’t take me any time at all to get fully invested in this story. I liked Jenny, which is saying something because I usually find myself disliking the main female character in teen books. She didn’t do a lot of senseless whining and fit throwing, and she stuck to her guns. Don’t get me wrong, she did make some stupid choices and I had a few moments where I wanted to smack her, but overall she was a good lead character.

Jack was my favorite character in this book. He was well written and very complex. He struggles to follow his heart while battling Queen Mab and King Oberon, who are both out to get Jenny under their control. Jack finds himself wanting to be close to Jenny but knows that he needs to get her home and out of danger. He is written in a way that shows you he isn’t human, but he still wants to be free and to be the master of his own heart. 

In “The treachery of beautiful things”, Puck is mischevious and not entirely trustworthy, but he is a great supporing character. This book is filled with some pretty creepy fae that will make you glad you aren’t alone in a forest with them. The romance between Jack and Jenny is subtle and in no way the main plot in this book.

Filled with beautiful descriptions and a not so fluffy take on fairies, “The treachery of beautiful things” is a lovely book that is a must read for anyone who likes teen fantasy books. This book seems to be a stand alone title, but I would love to see another title set in this world. Ruth Frances Long is an author to watch, and her books have a place on my favorite’s shelf.