ThrowBook Thursday: Paper Crowns by Mirriam Neal

Look at that cover art. Love it. Adore it.

Last year, my friend Mirriam passed along a draft of her WIP, Paper Crowns, after I'd expressed an interest in reading some of her writing (specifically one having to do with wyslings). I flew through it, loving every minute. When she announced its imminent publication, I was overjoyed. I knew this was a book to be shared with the world, and now it would be.

I've just finished my reading of the final, published version, and I'm pleased to say that I loved it even more the second time through.

My initial impression of Paper Crowns, in summary, was "this is a fun, wild romp through Faerie." That impression still holds true.

So why should you read Paper Crowns?

The main characters are vibrant (both in the sense of being three-dimensional, and in the sense of Hal being a blue-furred cat).

The secondary characters are worthy of their own books. (At least one gets his own sequel, still in the works.)

There's magic and mayhem and snark abounding.

There are wizards without hearts and wizards with hearts.

There are Celtic gods and elementals with large voices.

There are good guys and bad guys and several whose moral positions you won't ever be sure of until the last pages.

There are living creatures of ice and paper. Imagine origami on a grand, Gandalf's fireworks scale.

You will not want to abandon this book because it always keeps you laughing.

Basically, if you enjoy fantasy, humor, or faerie stories, you should try this book.