Faerie Wars

By: Herbie Brennan

Narrated by: Gerard Doyle

When young Henry Atherton helps Mr Fogarty clean up his house, he expects to find a mess and a cranky old man; what he doesn't expect to find is Pyrgus Malvae, crown prince of the Faerie realm, who has escaped the treacherous Faeries of the Night.

A demon prince, greedy glue factory owners Brimstone and Chalkhill, and the nefarious Lord Hairstreak, leader of the Faeries of the Night, all dream of ruling the Faerie realm and are out to kill Pyrgus. Enlisting the help of his new friend Henry, Pyrgus must get back to the Faerie world alive before one of his many enemies gets to him...

©2003 Herbie Brennan (P)2004 Recorded Books

Critic reviews

"[A] solid adventure [that will] keep listeners on the edge of their seats." (Booklist)

"[Brennan] is a master of the hairpin turn, leading readers in one direction and suddenly reversing their expectations." (The New York Times Book Review)

"Narrator Gerard Doyle does a remarkable job of bringing each character alive. He reads clearly with great enthusiasm and vibrancy, allowing whimsy and mischief to emerge. Fantasy readers will thoroughly enjoy this audiobook, especially fans of Artemis Fowl and Harry Potter." (School Library Journal)

Fun and Entertaining

What a surprisingly fun book!

Well narrated, it started off completely different from what I was expecting from a book with Faerie in the title. By chapter two, I was confused about what was going on. By chapter three I understood what was going on and was very pleased.

The good guys aren't completely good, though they try hard. The badguys, on the other hand, are pretty much badguys, which usually bothers me. I generally think even evil people have something good to their character... but because there are a variety of badguys in this book, and they are each a different *kind* of badguy, there are varying tiers of evil which makes the badguys feel more three dimensional without the reader ever feeling a need to empathize with them.

Loved it!

Much better than expected...

I bought this book by mistake - normally I don't read fiction written for adolescents - but it turned out to be a decent listen. The narrator reads very well and for about 90% of the book you won't notice that it was written for kids. (In fact if it wasn't for the "Audible Kids" note at the first of the book I would never have known it wasn't written for adults.)

Most of the negative reviews said they have an issue with the "homosexual agenda" in the story. I kept listening for this "agenda" attempting to subvert my mind. It never happened. Homosexuality was merely used as a device to explain a divorce.

Apparently this is part one in a series of books but it definitely stands alone - the story and characters are wrapped up in the end so you're not left hanging.

I enjoyed both the story and the narration and would listen to more in the series.

Really good

Loved the ideas in this book, the lessons about greed and love and belief in yourself and others.

Good Story

I liked the story. I was hoping it was similar to the Artimus Fowl stories. It isn't but still a good story.

Good but what's up with the lesbian affair?

I enjoyed this book (and the second in the series) but the circumstances of the parents' breakup added nothing to the story and may confuse younger readers. This and only this would keep me from recommending this book to some kids. If the fact that the mom had a lesbian affair actually related to something else in the story I would have no problem with it but....it didn't. Adults will have no problem with this part of the story (except that they may find it unnecessary).