Thomas the rhymer

Thomas the rhymer / Ellen Kushner.

Thomas the rhymer is a fictional take on the quasi-historical figure of the same name. The Thomas the rhymer ballad shares a decent amount, historically, with the ballad of Tam Lin.

Brief plot summary

Thomas the rhymer tells the story of the minstrel Thomas, his seven yeras of captivity in Faerie, and his eventual return to the mortal world. Taken in by an elderly couple both before and after his imprisonment, each segment of the story is told from the point of view of a different character.

Rosemary and Rue

Rosemary and rue / Seanan McGuire

Rosemary and Rue is the first book in the October Daye series. As a series, it’s more than a little bit similar to the Dresden files, combining fantasy and detective fiction, but I honestly prefer McGuire’s series.

Brief plot summary

October “Toby” Daye is a changeling private detective, half human and half sidhe. Forced to investigate the murder of a powerful figure in the faerie courts by the victim’s dying curse, Daye’s investigation will take her from San Francisco to the faerie realms and back, bringing her into conflict with more than one important figure from her past.

I realize this summary sounds terrible and melodramatic, that’s my fault, not this book’s.