Theresa Tomlinson and her husband live in North Yorkshire. Over the years Theresa has acquired an outstanding reputation for her historical novels. Shortlisted twice for the Carnegie Medal and for the Sheffield Children's Book Award, she takes a keen interest in the north-east coast of England. Recent visits to Turkey have fuelled her enthusiasm for the ancient mythology of that part of the world. Her scrupulous research has resulted in two epic stories in which classic tale and imaginative re-enactment make a stunning impact.
Gr 8 Up-Readers who followed Myrina, the teen leader of a tribe of women warriors in The Moon Riders (HarperCollins, 2006), will be delighted to see her returning after the Trojan War, following new challenges to keeping her people together. Once again Iphigenia, daughter of Agamemnon, needs to be rescued from peril, and Myrina, accompanied by two young Moon Riders, hurries to her rescue. But aiding Iphigenia this time comes with a cost: Myrina must leave the Moon Riders just as they are beginning to settle in new lands, and she must leave a man she is growing to love. The description of the countryside around the Black Sea and near the Bosphorus is lovely, and Tomlinson's attention to the details of horse gentling are delightful. Unfortunately, though the Moon Riders themselves are warrior priestesses full of mystic talents, the subdued tone of the book holds little urgency, and the events of the plot seem less dire than the characters imply. The attempt to make the dialogue feel archaic instead feels stilted and false. Because of the time that has passed since the first book, nearly all of the characters are adults, including Myrina, and the issues of tradition and keeping a whole people true to their history, as handled here, seem somewhat out of place in a young adult novel. Teens who enjoyed the first book will be happy to accompany the characters into their adult lives, but other readers may be better served by Adele Geras's Ithaka (Harcourt, 2006).-Alana Abbott, James Blackstone Memorial Library, Branford, CT Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.
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