My Five Word TL:DR Review: I practically inhaled this book

Oh my, I think my little socks have been blown off.  I absolutely loved Greenteeth.  I saw a lovely review for this on a blog that I’ve come to trust very much (thank you Books Bones and Buffy) and decided I had to give it a shot.  I was actually trying to be careful this month but the fae elements of this really appealed to me and so I threw caution to the wind.  My giddy aunt – I’m so glad I did.  I mean, if I hadn’t picked this up I would have missed this perfect little nugget – I don’t suppose I’d ever know just how much I’d be missing it, but even so – I would have been gutted – even if I wasn’t aware of it.  Moving swiftly on.

This is a story full of myths and magic, high and low fae, a terrible evil that must be overcome and a witch, a goblin and a Jenny (swamp or lake hag – sorry Jenny) who go on a quest.  First of all, who doesn’t love a quest?  Second what a great cast and; third just read this if you need a quick injection of fae trickery.

So, I’ve not heard of a Jenny Greenteeth before – although having gone away to check out some more I must have done because apparently there’s one in Pratchett’s Wee Free Men.  Anyhow, Jennyies inhabit lakes and the like (they’re all called Jenny apparently), they have green skin, slimy hair and wicked teeth.  They were quite possibly dreamt up as a way to scare children so that they wouldn’t wander away from home and drown.  Anyway, I absolutely loved Jenny, whose bark was definitely worse than her bite.  She was grumpy and curmudgeonly, although she keeps an orderly lake and a spick and span cave, and she’s become used to living by herself (her daughter having left for different waters many moons since) although she begrudgingly confesses to missing some of the characters from the story when they become absent.

The plot.  Well, as the story begins Jenny is disturbed when something large is thrown into her lake and goes to investigate (perhaps it will be a nice snack) – instead, it’s a woman.  Seemingly thrown into the pool by the village folk.  They have something of a standoff (whilst the woman continues drowning and Jenny ponders the situation) and then Jenny whisks her off to her secret lair.  An underground cave where she stashes all the goodies that end up lost or abandoned in her environment.

I don’t really want to go into everything, best that you discover the tale for yourself.  Its a quick read and easy to become absorbed in.

The other characters.  Temperance is the witch, a good witch I hasten to add, no dark arts here, who is determined to return to her family.  She has the notion that she can cast a ‘forgetting’ spell and return home safely, however, a powerful predator has taken up residence in her sleepy little village and it’s going to take something much stronger than a hedge witch and two lower fae to dislodge it.  Brackus is the travelling salesman type goblin, he can acquire anything from Kelpie hair to strange candles.  He has a soft spot for Jenny and the two have a constant stream of banter in which they attempt to show how much they dislike each other but fail spectacularly.

What I loved about this.  Everything.  The pacing was spot on.  I mean, the story pretty much gets off to an immediate start and the writing is just lovely.  I really enjoyed the dialogue and the way everything unfolds in such an easy and natural way.  I really liked the characters and this is so character focused which is a real must for me.  Jenny is certainly not without her faults, she constantly reminds Temperance and readers that she’s a monster and not to forget it, but even so – I simply liked her.

On top of this, there’s the quest of course.  Our characters travel, through the use of fae gates and roads, to the high court seeking the aid of the Fae King.  There are lake giants, fae dogs and everything is eventually tied together with some lovely olde English lore.

To be honest, this felt like the perfect book at the perfect time.  A coming together of the planets in perfect alignment if you will.  It felt cosy but also drifted into tense territory on occasion and particularly during the concluding chapters and, well, put simply, it made me happy – which is not something to be scoffed at. I eagerly await information about what Molly O’Neill is planning next.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks.  The above is my own opinion.

My rating 5 of 5 shimmering stars