Into the Rabbit Hole

THE BRIGHTEST FELL
October Daye # 11
Seanan McGuire
DAW/ Penguin Books
September 5, 2017


I have followed the October Daye urban fantasy series from the beginning, Rosemary and Rue, and it has been a must-read for me. October is a changeling (half human, half-fae) who has struggled to find her place, both in the mortal and in the fae world. In fact, she is the daughter of Amandine, one of the First Born of the fae, but Amandine has been a largely absent and shadowy figure until The Brightest Fell. The book opens on a happy note, during the bachelorette party for Toby at a San Francisco karaoke bar. The party was organized by Toby's "fetch" May, and it is no matter that Toby and her betrothed, Tybalt, King of Cats, have not even set a date. An uproarious good time is had by all until Toby returns home to find Tybalt there, A knock at the door brings Amandine with a demand. She wants Toby to find August, Toby's half-sister who has been missing for over a century. To enforce her demand, she takes hostages of Toby's nearest and dearest.

Amandine's demand takes Toby and her squire, Quentin, into Toby's past and the rabbit-hole that is the fae realm. Accompanying them is Toby's greatest enemy, August's father, Simon Torquil. There is plenty of magic and mayhem and an accounting of some of the decisions and actions Toby has been forced to take in previous books. The character of Amandine becomes clearer, but whether she is a monster or just nuts is still up in the air. The Brightest Fell foreshadows events to come and I hope they come soon, after time to take a breath. Seanan McGuire has built a rich fantasy world and I think that the series needs to be read in order to fully enjoy the latest novel.

I was delighted to receive an advance digital copy from DAW and NetGalley. The opinions above are my own.

RATING- 4.5 rounded up to 5 Stars