December 1, 2011
A primitive girl bonds with horses and centaurs in this tedious trilogy opener. After a flock of Leatherwings decimates her tribe and home, young Malora Thora-Jayke spends four years in the wilderness with her father's horse, Sky. When Orion Silvermane captures a herd of Ironbound Furies for his father's stables, he discovers Malora among them. Given Malora's unruly appearance, skill with weapons and apparent status as the last of the legendarily violent People, Orion and his companions treat her as curiosity and threat. Both 15-year-old Malora and her hosts regard centaurs as "Perfect Beings"; unlike their rapacious ancestors or Malora's people, Orion and the other Highland centaurs abstain from meat, wear clothing for modesty and pursue the arts. Menial labor falls to the impoverished Flatlanders and the subservient catlike Twani, and horses are merely beasts of burden, but a sports-movie conclusion ultimately dispels the inter-class tension. With safety, Malora's compelling quest for survival becomes a montage of high-society indulgence punctuated by scenes of existential angst and more horses. Malora is alternately "the Daughter" of the Plains, Mountains and Centaurs, but labels do not constitute an inner journey. Characters are plentiful but underdeveloped, pacing is uneven, present-tense narration is ponderous and worldbuilding is exposition-heavy. The abundance of capitalized words and named characters (and horses) merits a glossary, character list and the Edicts of Kheiron. Does not gallop apace. (Fantasy. 12 & up)
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February 1, 2012
Gr 6-8-Living in a rural, post-technological society in the distant future, Malora is ordered by her mother to leave on her dead father's horse and never come back when her community is attacked by the carnivorous giant monsters called Leatherwings. Malora lives in the wilderness, along with a herd of horses she cares for and loves, until they are captured by centaurs. Once in their city, she is treated as a pet and a relic of the almost-extinct human race. With their aromatherapy and gorgeous cloths, the creatures see themselves as being at the apex of culture. While there is a sense of danger and suspense at the start of this adventure, the pace eases once Malora arrives in the city. The protagonist and the centaurs who become her friends are clearly drawn. The desert setting is geographically ambiguous, with horses, centaurs, and a faun living alongside African animals, such as lions and ostriches. This first entry in a series might have appeal for horse lovers, although the centaurs are more human than equine, and may be enjoyed by enthusiasts of stories about mythological creatures.-Sue Giffard, Ethical Culture Fieldston School, New York City
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