Synopses & Reviews
Ryder’s mother was once a great prophet and powerful witch, but she is slowly losing her mind to grief—and maiden’s woe, an addictive flower drug found in the Witchlands. Deadly monsters made out of dirt and sticks and stones are coming, she warns. There is an assassin in the mountains, she cautions the coven. But none believe her.
Then the monsters come. In the wake of his village’s destruction, Ryder heads into the mountains on a quest to find the assassin and destroy the creator of the ghastly monsters. When he finds his twin—a spirit twin who is not the assassin, but is a sworn enemy of the Witchlanders—Ryder and Falpian awaken a long dormant magic and become entangled in the stirrings of new war between their peoples.
Laced with rich, imagined histories, miles of catacombs, and prophecies true and false, Lena Coakley’s debut novel is a lush, chilling story in the tradition of Nancy Farmer and Garth Nix.
Review
WITCHLANDERS Lena Coakley, Atheneum, $16.99 (416p) ISBN 9781442420045
Living in the Witchlands, Ryder struggles to maintain his family's remote farm after his father's death. Falpian is a "blackhair" Baen prince from the Bitterlands, sent on a retreat to mourn his drowned twin. They are hereditary enemies, carrying the weight of disappointed expectations and unquestioned cultural assumptions. All his life, Ryder has been taught by his mother, the lapsed witch Mabis, to mock the prophecies of the coven that drove off the invading Baen army 20 years ago. When a drug-crazed Mabis returns to prophesying, Ryder considers her mad--until the prophecies begin coming true. And if this madness is true, what about his own visions of black-haired sisters or the strange power of the songs he sings in the fields? In her first novel, picture book author Coakley (Mrs. Goodhearth and the Gargoyle) takes on faith, doubt, and dualities, exposing their flaws and strengths alike. Plot twists unfold at a riveting pace, the boys' characters are compellingly sketched, and Coakley explores her subject matter masterfully without falling prey to safe plot choices.
-- Publisher's Weekly July 11, 2011 *STAR
Review
WITCHLANDERS Lena Coakley, Atheneum, $16.99 (416p) ISBN 9781442420045
“Ryder wants to harvest his family’s hicca before the chilling arrives in Witchland, but now his mother, a rebel witch addicted to a mind-altering flower, has thrown the bones and seen a vision of an assassin in the mountains. Meanwhile, along the border of the Bitterlands, Falpian hopes to find his own magic as he mourns the loss of his brother and awaits an assignment bestowed by his father. As these two distrustful strangers begin to share each other’s dreams and find a magical connection through music, enemies from their rival, warring lands—with radically different religious systems—have been stirring up trouble. In Witchland, this trouble takes the form of gormy men, pretend creatures normally used to frighten young children, which have come to life. When Ryder’s and Falpian’s destinies collide, they use their burgeoning knowledge of magic to destroy the gormy men and expose evil Witchlander forces. But their mission is not as straightforward as it may seem. Both young men grapple with loyalty and their faiths and experience how fear and secrets have shaped religion and culture. A sequel to this thought-provoking fantasy is certain, as is a broad fan base. The rich language will enthrall female and male readers alike—if the latter can look past the extremely feminine cover.”
-- Kirkus, July 15, 2011 *STAR
Review
"Fans of contemplative, psychologically rich (but no less action-packed) fantasies
Review
* "Coakleys world comes to life with exquisite detail and imagery; readers will feel the chill of the frost and smell the crackling bonfires. High fantasy lovers will gobble up Witchlanders."
--SLJ, December 2011, *STAR
Review
* "Takes on faith, doubt, and dualities, exposing their flaws and strengths alike. Plot twists unfold at a riveting pace, the boys' characters are compellingly sketched, and Coakley explores her subject matter masterfully without falling prey to safe plot choices."
-- Publisher's Weekly July 11, 2011 *STAR
Review
* "The rich language will enthrall female and male readers alike.”
-- Kirkus, July 15, 2011 *STAR
Review
"A welcome fantasy debut."
--Booklist, October 2011
Review
"Fans of contemplative, psychologically rich (but no less action-packed) fantasies à la Ursula Le Guin will welcome this warm, inventive debut."
--Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
Review
"A welcome fantasy debut."andlt;BRandgt; --andlt;Iandgt;Booklistandlt;/Iandgt;, October 2011
Synopsis
High in their mountain covens, red witches pray to the Goddess, protecting the Witchlands by throwing the bones and foretelling the future.
Its all a fake.
At least, thats what Ryder thinks. He doubts the witches really deserve their tithes—one quarter of all the crops his village can produce. And even if they can predict the future, what danger is there to foretell, now that his peoples old enemy, the Baen, has been defeated?
But when a terrifying new magic threatens both his village and the coven, Ryder must confront the beautiful and silent witch who holds all the secrets. Everything hes ever believed about witches, the Baen, magic and about himself will change, when he discovers that the prophecies hes always scorned—
Are about him.
About the Author
Lena Coakley was born in Milford, Connecticut, and grew up on Long Island. In high school, creative writing was the only course she ever failed (nothing was ever good enough to hand in!), but, undeterred, she went on to study writing at Sarah Lawrence College. She lives in Toronto, Canada.