Review of YA fantasy Dare by Christina Bauer
***BEWARE***
If you don’t like pixies, then don’t read this diary.
Also, if you don’t like pixies who become Queen of the Summer Fae and stay their sassy selves, then definitely don’t read this. I’ll never genuflect, suck up, or tone down.
And I’m totally kicking it as queen. That is, until an evil sorcerer named the Usurper schemes to kill every last thing in Faerie. Whoa. To defeat this deadly mage, I team up with my elf crush, Dare. He’s a Prince of the Winter Realm and just awesome in general. Together, we’ll totally stop this deadly mage. It’s a dangerous quest, but things get worse when the unthinkable happens.
Dare is kidnapped.
Will I give up? Hell, no. But I will crash an ice polo pony tournament in a bikini.
***A 40,000-word diary written by Calla the pixie***
Excerpt
Dear Diary,
Tonight, Ghost Dare visits me in my room. Technically, this is a spell where Dare projects his astral body across space, but calling him Ghost Dare is just more catchy-sounding. At this point, I’m lying in bed and happily tucked under my covers while a hazy white cloud becomes a semi-transparent version of my boyfriend.
Life is getting good.
Little by little, Ghost Dare turns to me. Our gazes lock. My breath catches.
Even as a kid, Dare wields what can only be called an icy stare. Mind you, this isn’t a serial killer type of thing. It’s more that Dare’s a prince of the winter court and that place is a political battlefield. To survive, Dare always plays dozen games of three-dimensional chess at once. It enough to make anyone’s irises a little chilly.
But in this moment? Dare’s intensity holds a different edge. Although the prince may be semi-transparent, there’s no missing the desire that fires through his vision. He’s thinking the same thing that I am.
I blush my face off.
When Dare speaks, his voice holds a husky tone. “Hello, Little Hob.” The prince crosses the room, leans over the bed, and brushes ghostly kiss on my lips
“I hate it when you call me that. But that kiss was cool.”
“I’ll join you tomorrow.”
“Ghost you or real you?”
“Ghost.”
“I’ll take whatever I can get.”
Dare gives me another kiss before fading from view. And I fall asleep with a smile.
– Calla
~Buy Dare:
Review
This was exactly what I’ve come to expect from Bauer—sassy, fun, and heartfelt. I enjoyed the hijinks and drama, and it was also great to see the more serious side of things, too. The journal format works very well, allowing the character voice to really shine through.
Plenty of action to keep things moving, and a healthy amount of intrigue. There was one point where things seemed to get resolved much faster than I expected, but overall, that didn’t hamper my reading experience. Oh, and the romance is adorable. If you like your YA fantasy on the fun side with lots of attitude and fun characters, I can’t recommend this enough.
About Christina Bauer
Christina Bauer thinks that fantasy books are like bacon: they just make life better. All of which is why she writes romance novels that feature demons, dragons, wizards, witches, elves, elementals, and a bunch of random stuff that she brainstorms while riding the Boston T. Oh, and she includes lots of humor and kick-ass chicks, too.
Christina graduated from Syracuse University’s Newhouse School with BA’s in English along with Television, Radio, and Film Production. She lives in Newton, MA with her husband, son, and semi-insane golden retriever, Ruby.
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Giveaway
Christina Bauer will be awarding a fairy necklace (US Only) to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
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nice review
Thanks for hosting!
Sounds like a good read.
Sounds like a great book.