Tithe by Holly Black

I had mixed feelings about reading this, as other urban fairy tales have failed to capture my attention and imagination enough to carry on to the end. However it has been recommended so many times now that I decided to give it a go. I liked the opening and settled in to enjoy the story, and was certainly engaged enough to be thoroughly disgruntled when I reached the ‘reveal’ (I hate spoilers, so won't say in case you haven't read it, but you’ll know what I mean when you get there). Anyway I didn't want to read anymore and put the book aside.

My disappointment was down to my preferences, not the writing or the plot line. I just couldn't get the vision of Kaye out of my head and that really put me off. Still, a couple of days later I was back, I had to know what happened to Kaye, Roiben and Corny.

‘Tithe’ is well written, and moves along at a decent pace. It is a dark, gritty and bloody novel, with evocative imagery, set not in the fairy world of just the sweet and kind, but of the equally harsh and cruel. A world of the Seelie and Unseelie Courts. a fairy world that is political, capricious and violent, where characters are cruel for their own pleasure and amusement.

The characters are interesting and well drawn, though I would have liked more detail and insight into Roiben. He's interesting and attractive but edging on the two dimensional; I felt I knew him least. This reflected on the romance with Kaye which I felt lacked depth. I’ve moved on to ‘Valient’ and ‘Ironside’, so it must be good…its certainly enjoyable, and I'd recommend it as a good read.