The Foretelling

August 8, 2005
In this alluring novel, Hoffman (Green Angel
) evokes the pure, strong emotions of women in an Amazon tribe, through the poetic narrative of their heir-to-the-throne. Princess Rain feels a greater kinship to horses than to humans. Shunned by her mother (whose rape—by 50 men—led to her daughter's conception) and envied by other children, Rain leads an isolated existence, spending most of her days practicing marksmanship and horsemanship. By the time she enters her first battle, she is physically and mentally prepared to strike down her foes, but unlike the rest of her army, she finds no pleasure watching her enemies die ("When I walked through what was left of them, I felt something rising inside me.... Mercy
"). Meanwhile, haunted by a dream of a black horse—a common symbol of death—she fears that her people, who equate compassion with weakness, may one day rise against her. Written as a series of impressionistic vignettes, the novel raises intense issues (especially regarding the spoils of war) and may be best appreciated by more sophisticated readers. Hoffman's prose eloquently expresses the beliefs and rituals of a lost civilization and offers a sympathetic portrait of a young leader who chooses kindness over cruelty. Ages 12-up.

October 1, 2005
Gr 6 Up -This atmospheric coming-of-age fantasy tells the story of a teenager who is destined to become queen of the Amazons. The product of a rape and shunned by her distant mother, Rain struggles to find her identity and prove herself. Her first-person narration is accessible while evoking a sense of otherworldliness. She talks of animals and people as -sisters. - The story unfolds at a measured pace with little dialogue, but the language makes it compulsively readable. Readers will be drawn in by Rain's attempts to win her mother's approval even as the teen begins to question the Amazonian way of life and see a new future for her people. Like the best of myths, this story finds truths in details and emotional insights. Not for everyone, but a treat for fans of Tamora Pierce and Hoffman's other novels." -Adrienne Furness, Webster Public Library, NY"

Copyright 2005 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2005
Gr. 7-10. "Some stories are born out of misery and ashes and blood and terror": Hoffman's fourth novel for young adults, told in spare, lyrical vignettes, is one of these. In an all-female tribe of warriors, who kill all male babies and reproduce through sex with prisoners of war, the daughter of the fierce queen yearns for her mother's approval. Burdened by stigma (Rain was "born in sorrow" after the queen's rape) and by dark prophecies, the girl finds comfort in honing her battle skills and in developing friendships with other outsiders. After her mother dies bearing her second child, it falls to Rain to determine the future of her community--and her own. Many teens, particularly girls, will identify with Rain's self-doubt even as the young woman senses within herself "a kernel of something that was made out of fire." At the same time, the alien setting and fablelike narration offer limited opportunity for readers to remain connected with the characters. This will particularly attract girls intrigued by the gender reversal premise and book-report writers drawn by the slender length.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2005, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2006
Rain, daughter of the queen of an Amazonian band of horsewomen warriors, begins to question her tribe's combative, isolationist, man-hating traditions. Her developing understanding of leadership, and her realization of the need for her people to change, are organic and thoroughly steeped in the idiom of her primitive people--a subtly inflected characterization that holds the center of this high-action survival and battle drama.

(Copyright 2006 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)