YA Review: Beneath These Cursed Stars
Beneath These Cursed Stars by Lexi Ryan (HarperTeen, 432p., ages 13-up, 9780063311909)
Beneath These Cursed Stars is a fast-paced, neatly executed YA dark fantasy featuring human-fae intrigue, romance, and tangled secrets that refuse to stay undercover.
It has been three years since Princess Jasalyn, now 17, was released from imprisonment in the dungeons of "false king" Mordeus. Rumors that the once-dead Mordeus has been resurrected are circulating and Jasalyn's sister, queen Abriella of the Unseelie Court, wants to send Jasalyn to the care of King Misha in the Wild Fae territory. But Jasalyn is no helpless victim; she traded her immortality for a magical ring, "forfeit[ing] any days beyond" the age of 18 in exchange for the powerful tool. At night, Jasalyn seeks out the worst of Mordeus's followers and uses the ring to administer the "kiss of death." On one of Jasalyn's deadly hunts, she is captured by fae disguised as humans who want to use her to fulfill their oracle's prophecy. When Jasalyn finds their goals align, she allows one of the captors, shapeshifting Felicity, to impersonate her, giving Jasalyn the freedom to spend her last year hunting Mordeus. As things turn steamy with leader Kendrick, the price Jasalyn paid for her ring begins to seem too high.
Lexi Ryan (These Hollow Vows) tells her thrilling romantic fantasy through the absorbing first-person voices of Jasalyn and Felicity. Characters wield tantalizing secret agendas as they fight against--and adhere to--the fates, and the sexy "will-they-or-won't-they" nature of the romance heightens the fun. The cliffhanger ending should leave readers eager to learn whether love or betrayal will ultimately win out. --Lynn Becker, reviewer, blogger, and children's book author.
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