Prah, Constantine, and Baryeh Review: The Masquerade, an Altar, & a Fairy by Kristen D. Van Risseghem #Fairy

Hi peeps! Yea, I know that's a little old-fashioned but hey, it is appropriate (I think). So for September, we selected a paranormal (we seem to be lingering in paranormal lately). It's probably because we're all relatively new readers of paranormal romance, so we're kind of fascinated with some of the characters, plots and the lingo - things that are apparently quite standard in the genre.

Anyway, so we selected The Masquerade, an Altar, & a Fairy by Kristen D. Van Risseghem. When you're done here, don't forget to check out what Prah and Constantine have to say about the book.


Here's the blurb
Frustrated with her extravagant duties as a Summer fairy, Sidelle Amistad is desperate to prove she can be more than a petty princess. The accidental capture of Winter fairy, Finnegan, looks like the ideal opportunity—until Sidelle and Finnegan fall in love.

Knowing her love for Finnegan is forbidden, a heartbroken Sidelle searches for deeper meaning in her eternal existence. Her pain leads her on a quest to help the humans … in a desperate fight against Hell itself.

My Thoughts

Okay, so I'm a cover hound so I tend to talk about book covers a lot. Honestly, while I think the cover works for the story, it isn't my favourite cover or what I'd have selected for the story. However, it does fit the story, so I'll move along.

The book started out like a certain Disney animated movie that I won't mention :-) (which I loved BTW), so I enjoyed the read and the journey into Fairyland and experiencing the romance blossom between Sidelle and Finnegan and an unexpected trip into our world. That's Part 1, and as the blurb goes, our heroine is seeking something more out of her existence.

In Part II, Sidelle gets her chance to leave Fairyland and runs into one of my favourite paranormal creatures - Werewolves (don't worry, that's all I'll reveal) and our heroine does her bit to keep humanity safe.

What happened to the romance, you ask? Same question I have. Finnegan disappears. I kept thinking he'd show up at some point, but sadly that didn't happen.

As you may imagine, that was what didn't work for me in this book. The two parts of the story read to me like two separate stories. Perhaps the author could have dealt with part one as a novella about the romance and the part two as a spin-off series of Sidelle's later adventures.

For those who are looking for a forbidden romance to end in a HEA, this isn't what you will get.

If you're looking for an enjoyable story with a strong heroine, by all means, pick up this book - but be prepared to pick up the next because at the end of the story, our herione has yet to fulfil her mission of finding...(hehe, read the book to find out)