Book Blog: THE GLASS CASKET

McCormick Templeman's THE GLASS CASKET (Delacorte Press, 2014) was the perfect book to read on a dreary, rainy day. The story began with a mystery; the type of mystery and foreshadowing that's found in the opening of fairy tales. With the mood set, I was entranced by this dark and special story.

In the woods above the quiet mountain village of Nag's End, five soldiers of the king are mysteriously killed. Village elders presume it was a wolf attack, but Tom and his brother Jude are convinced that no animal could have inflicted the horror that they saw up on icy Beggar's Drift. Tom's best friend, Rowan Rose, is warned by her scholar father not to succumb to the others' fear of witches, goblins and wood sprites. But it becomes hard to ignore the strange goings-on ... Twists and turns keep readers in suspense as Rowan, Fiona, Tom and Jude navigate a convoluted path through sibling rivalry and friendship en route to adulthood. With stylish prose, richly developed characters and well-realized world building, Templeman plumbs archetypes of folklore to create a compelling blend of mythic elements and realistic teen experience. ..
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2013-11-13

What I loved most about Templeman's writing was her ability to create a sustainable atmosphere of suspense. I could imagine hearing this story around a campfire under the stars with a chorus of woodland creatures and insects providing the score. It is one thing to be a good storyteller, and quite another to be a good storyteller and a wonderful writer. Templeman chooses her words not only for their beauty and clarity but for their ability to convey fear, confusion and even evil. She paints the action in such a way that draws you into an entire scene - without pausing for long on a sentence or fragment of dialogue. You want to know what's about to happen.

I highly recommend this novel and will be looking for McCormick Templeton's writing in the future.

3 comments

Cool! I haven't heard of this one yet. Thanks for the review.

Mythic mystery? I'm in! Thanks for highlighting this one for us, Robin!

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