I hate to admit this, but I had a hard time getting through this one. I've read a few of Terry Brooks' Shannara series and knew what I was getting into, or at least I thought I did.

I loved the dystopian vibe from the beginning and the medical mystery that Auris attempts to solve in regards to where she comes from, who she is (possibly Sylvan Fae; perhaps a changeling), and what does her future hold as she is trying to recover her memory. I even loved the world building of Viridian Deep, it's people including Harrow and the Seers who are seemingly obsessed with tea.

The issues I had involved Auris's behavior and constant inner monologue in the first person, the interactions she has with Harrow (first love inappropriately obsessive on Auris's part) and Ancrow (Harrow's "mother"). Auris read more as a petulant child looking for a place to belong and immediately grabbing onto the first sense of hope she gets when the Seers believe that she may be one of the Fae. Her conflict and then eventual acceptance of Ancrow's story involving her past is passive aggressive at best. I know Auris is supposed to be 19 years old in this story, but I don't remember being this angsty when I was her age.

Normally, I can handle the first person narrative if it actually helps drive the story, but in this case the story was lost in the mental-emotional flip-flopping Auris projects on paper. I mean seriously, how many pages do we need of an inner monologue regarding Harrow's roommate (who is his sister by the way) and whether or not she is his girlfriend. Just ask him what their relationship is already!

Having read a few of the Shannara books I often felt, while reading Child of Light, as though this was written by someone else... maybe that is just me. I wanted to like this story and there were good moments throughout, but the story got booged down too often... case in point, the trip to the human world.

*I received a complimentary copy of this novel from NetGalley at my request and this review is my own unbiased opinion.*

I don't DNF many books but I just couldn't finish this book. Nothing was happening, the characters were so flat, and I felt no connection to the plot. The writing felt so simple and boring.
I was given an ARC from Net Galley for my honest review

I wish I could say I loved this book. I wish I could say it was an awesome reading experience. But it just fell flat in so many ways. The FMC was annoying and boring at the same time. The side characters didn't really add much to the story. And the story itself felt flat and very one dimensional. I was really disappointed in this one

I was given an ARC from Net Galley for my honest review

I received a free advance copy of Child of Light from Net Galley in return for an honest review. My thanks for an enjoyable journey into an very different milieu.

As “ Child of Light “ begins the reader finds him/ her self in a very dark place- a prison maintained by Goblins who are brutish cruel and horrifying creatures. The prisoners are humans. Taken very young, they are worked until they either die or survive long enough to breed more slave laborers. A small group of prisoners are about to try to escape. If they do get outside the prison’s formidable walls, they will be pursued across the barren wilderness beyond. If caught, they will face excruciating death.
Our main character is a young woman named Auris. It is not a spoiler to say that her escape is successful, because that adventure comprises only the first pages of the book. Almost exhausted by her ordeal of escape, Auris is rescued by Harrow who takes her deep into the forest to a place few human ever see and survive the trip. It is the land of the Fae, the woods elves, who are the sworn enemies of Humans and Goblins.
For the middle part of the book the author builds a truly different world for the reader to enjoy. Sylvan is the name for the vastly deep green world of the Fae, a people who are green, with leafy tendrils , and hair, glittering eyes and remarkable powers. The character Auris is enlarged here; the reader learns about Auris’s past as she recovers it, for she remembers nothing of who she is at how she came to be in the prison. The tale of how she learns about and comes to terms with her real self is an , no the most important and fascinating part of the book. We learn much more about the primary supporting characters, Harrow, the Watcher or Ranger who saved her life ; his mother Ancrow, the, stern, powerful head of Council, who feels that Auris is a danger to the community; three sisters, like the wierd sisters of MacBeth, who are seers and oracles of a type and Rhonden, Harrow’s sister and fellow Ranger, who mentors Auris. It is quite a feat of storytelling to write so convincingly about an imaginary world.
At times, I thought that the lengthly exposition of the Sylvan world was a bit too slow, , but then I am used to the fast pace of heroic, or “ hard-edged “ fantasy. But it is all to bring about a stunning revelation and an apocalyptic battle. It is worth the wait. The way the Fae, armed only with bows, swords and their magic confront the Goblin army bristling with rifles, tanks, armored vehicles- the entire panoply of warfare, is great action stuff.
I do not know if “ Child of Light” is a one and done , or the beginning of a series. But this book is enjoyable on it’s fantastic own.

DNF'd at ten percent. I was surprised that it was immediately so info-dumpy without giving us an actual sense of the world. We learn a lot of useless knowledge about characters who immediately get killed off, all during what SHOULD have been an exciting and tense prison escape. The main character's internal monologue isn't very interesting, and her reactions to her situation seemed odd given the trauma she just survived. Just not one that holds up in the very competitive fantasy market, in spite of the author's big name.

When Auris and her friends bust out of a prison run by goblins, their reasons are clear: as teenagers they are abused, starved, beaten and/or eaten, and when they age out, adult prison is somehow worse. The scene is thrilling and full of energy. It sets a vibe that unfortunately devolves into a slow burn after Auris is found near dead, wandering the desert. Her rescuer, Harrow, is a Fae and he will take her home. Their home. Because even though Auris is human and looks nothing like the green-skinned Harrow, he believes she is also Fae.

There are many inconsistencies and stretches of the imagination in Child of Light that give it a messy narrative, beginning with Auris and how she ended up in a teen prison in the first place. She has no memory of her life before prison but she somehow knows how to operate the automatic machine guns, shoot an arrow, throw a knife; there are words in her vocabulary that she shouldn’t know, but does. And it takes a very very long time before the book gets to any explanation. Meanwhile, page after page, we hear about Auris’ lack of memory but…

Not as much as we hear about Auris’ feelings for Harrow, her rescuer. Page after page, she moons over him; his feelings, his possible feelings, does he like me, who is Ronden, maybe I should ask, I miss him, does he like me at all, and why does his mother hate me. I needed Auris to be the strong woman who got herself out of an ungodly prison situation, buck up, and focus on herself first. She survived years in prison and eleven days in the desert, she’s tough and resilient; ditch the crush and show it.

The Fae distrust humans--understandable--but everyone, except for Harrow’s mother, immediately accepts Auris. I wanted more pushback from the group as a whole; create that tension and then make her work to prove herself. And the paradox between the magical Fae world and the technological human/goblin world feels disjointed and just doesn’t jell, it was like reading two different books.

The world building is rather vague. The goblin world is desert, prison, guns, security systems, violence. Humans live in cities and are somehow tolerant of the vicious goblins but don’t like the peaceful Fae. The Fae live in the forest, use magic to protect their part of the world, have refrigerators (magic powered?), free restaurants, free housing, hand weapons and a couple of worm holes that pop up when needed in the storyline. Do not get me started on the water sprites and how they travel underwater. None of this is explored in depth and I feel the author missed a chance to build a fantastic multi-faceted world. He set the stage but forgot to build the set.

After the fast paced beginning, it’s a slow burn towards the frenzied ending. It’s an okay book but it just didn’t engage me. I think it’s a stand-alone but I can see it becoming a series.

(Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review)

This is an epic new fantasy series that will make for an amazing tale to come. This was adventurous and fantastical and I can't wait to see what happens next.

Another fantastic novel from Terry Brooks. Loved the world building and its a great start to a new series!

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Child of Light started off great. It was dark, creepy, and we were in a goblin prison. We didn't know much but we knew that kids were trying to escape. In it, you will meet Auris. No one in her group really knows why they are in this prison. They just have a similar goal: Escape.

Things don't really go as planned, but then again, they never do. She winds up barely surviving and runs into Harrow. Now he's a Fae and she's something interesting. From their first hello, their lives changed forever.

Remember how I said we didn't know much about this prison. Well, we definitely don't know much about Auris's past. Until we start to get little clues as to who and what she potentially is. At times, I liked her journey to figure out who she truly is. I just wished that things didn't come so easily. For example, the magic.

Other than that, I didn't really know who to trust. Things just felt off at times and I would just sit back and think they were suspicious. Towards the end, we got some more action and betrayal to spice things up. Some of it was a little predictable but I did end up enjoying it all.

In the end, it was an interesting book that had potential to be better in my eyes. I think I would have liked it staying on the dark route instead of the family one. Still happy that I got the chance to jump into this.

Terry Brooks has delivered yet another new magical series, this one aimed more toward teens. I'm a big fan and was very excited to read an ARC from Net Galley. Auris Afton Grieg wakes in a goblin prison with no idea why she's there or where she came from. She does know she is soon turning 18 which means she'll be moved up to the adult breeding farm. Auris works with her friends to escape, but ends up being the only survivor, rescued by Harrow, an alien stranger who claims to be an Fae, a species thought to be extinct. More, he thinks Auris is Fae too. They travel to Harrow's homeland to try to find some answers. Brooks has crafted another unique world full of danger and magic. A new generation can enjoy a new series, and fans of his other work will love this as well. Perfect for holiday gifts!!!!

I am very new to Terry Brooks. In face, this is my first experience with his writing. The first fourth of the book drew me in and really engaged me. I liked the premise and the ideas, I think where it missed was in the world building and maybe a bit of the character development. I'm not sure if this is typical of Brooks writing where the reader just needs to assume the characters know things without explanation. I also rolled my eyes at the trope of the innocent girl who falls in love immediately. It's not my favorite. Those personal pet peeves aside, I think the story over all was solid. It was an interesting read and I will probably read more if a sequel is made to the book. Overall, this was okay for me, but I'm sure my library patrons and fans of Brooks' other works will like it.

So I'm pretty new to fantasy and I figured starting with YA fantasy would help ease me into the genre. This story was the perfect way to do that! I truly felt immersed in this world and like I never knew what was going to happen next. It was truly magical and such a fun read.

Child of Light is a fantasy story about a girl who finds out she is part Fae. The beginning of the story had a lot of promise and it rolled along nicely, but boy did it slow down once the main character gets to the Fae village. I think part of my issue with it was the main character was so unlikeable at times it was a chore to read and even harder to care what happens to her. All in all, it is an ok storyline though with a few great characters.

As a big Sword of Shanara fan, I eagerly looked forward to Terry Brooks new book. Some fans of Brooks will appreciate his storytelling in Child of Light. Unfortunately, written in present-tense (a form that I dislike), the characters feel less than fleshed out. The female leading character (maybe intentionally?) is often weak, and contradictory. And the action sequences which Brooks usually handles adroitly, were confusing and choppy. The timeline of events was confusing. I just could not fully invest in the tale of this (should be) interesting world.

After Auris bravely escapes from being imprisoned by goblins in the middle of a wasteland, she is rescued by Harrow, a Fae. Auris remembers nothing of her life before her imprisonment, but she knows she feels at home in the Fae community and is increasingly attracted to Harrow. Together they set out to uncover Auris's origins, and to overcome the enmity of Harrrow's mother. Brooks has created a vivid new world for this first book of a new series, but I found it repetitive and in need of editing for length.

As someone who has been a fan of Terry  Brooks for a long time now, I was both excited and somewhat hesitant to read this newest book and series of his. I was excited because Brooks was one of my go-to authors growing up and is one of the reasons I love the genre the way I do, but I was also hesitant because, and I honestly hate to say this, but I really haven't enjoyed the last three or four books he's released. It's now been a few weeks since I finished Child of Light and I'm really not sure how I feel about this book yet and I'm not sure if that unsureness will go away with this book.

Now,  I really don't mean that as a negative criticism of the book itself because I'm pretty sure my feelings on this were caused by the unrealistic expectations I had going into the story. Child of Light was as beautifully and masterfully written as every other Terry Brooks book is and was full of interesting new characters and locations to get to know. I thought the overall story and all of its characters and locations were great and I don't think there was anything specific I can point at and say I didn't enjoy.

My main issue is that despite the fact that I knew going in that this was a completely new series set in its own world, I was still somehow expecting something kind of Shannaraish and that is entirely on me for expecting that. Instead, we get something that manages to distance itself quite well from all of his other books. The problem for me is that Terry Brooks is one of what I call my "comfort authors". Someone who's books  I read because of how familiar they all feel to me and I generally know what to expect from the story when  I go in and this book

That all being said  I'm still really looking forward to the next book in the series and I'm sure that I'll enjoy it and the rest of the series much more now that I've appropriately adjusted my expectations. Despite my mixed feelings about this book I won't hesitate to recommend it to people looking for something new to read!

I received this book in exchange for an honest review.

I am not a type to read fantasy, but on the rare occasions when I do, Terry Brooks is my only "go to" guy. I have enjoyed all his books, starting with "Magic Kingdom for Sale/Sold" and this one was no exception. Starting off a new series, we have Auris escaping from a Goblin prison and making her way to the land of the Sylvans, who are Fae creatures. Why did she feel compelled to travel to them, and who is she really? Because all her memories before the prison seem to be gone. This story, of course, is spent mainly setting up the characters, the world and some of Auris's background. While I felt this book was a bit long (especially for reading on a Kindle) I did like it. Thanks, Netgalley for letting me read this book.

3.5 stars
A new Terry Brooks book that is reminiscent of his Shannara world but with a new twist. When you take a woman who believes she's human and learns to live life beyond anything she imagined, you have a story that keeps you engaged. As always, the characters are the star of the show in Child of Light. I did feel like the middle was a little slow and I wanted to hurry through to the end, but there were some nice twists that I never saw coming. The story world itself is a mix of old and new, adding science and modern technology to a land of magic. All in all, I enjoyed this book.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley. I was not required to leave a positive review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

Child of Light
By Terry Brooks

An interesting twist on Fae, human, and goblin relationships. The story of the separation of humanity and magic. The fae have retreated from humanity because of their relationship to the natural world. The farther man gets from nature the more cut off from magic they are. This struggle between acceptance of nature and magic is played out most profoundly with in the family, the fae mother who was captured and tortured by humans to find their connection to magic. Many connotation to humanities abuse of nature, women and children. The book looks into the real relationship of family and acceptance. Brilliantly done.

I am a huge fan of Terry Brooks and was through the moon excited to see a new series coming from him. He is, in large part, responsible for kick-starting my love of fantasy reading. I absolutely loved Auris as a strong female main character for this story. It was such a pleasant surprise to read. Once I started reading, I was immediately caught up in this amazing new world with all these wonderful new characters. Terry Brooks is a master of his craft, no doubts there. I do hope we get more from this world!