R – Faith & Fairies

Title: Faith & Fairies
Author: C.S. Haviland
Publisher: LegendMaker Scriptoria
ISBN: 0-9759355-0-X
Copyright: 2005 C.S. Haviland
Pages: 254

A sacred number is three. In the pages of C.S. Haviland’s Faith & Fairies, you’ll find a particularly interesting, and perhaps sacred, trio – Terry, Scott and Ronnie.

The three boys are all orphans, picked up by a grandfatherly fellow and brought to the “hidden valley” of Haviland’s Hollow. Here there be secrets, and Terry – a tough street wise teenager – immediately gets the boys involved in a dark mystery reminiscent of the fairy tales of old. Along the way, they unlock the secrets and stumble, literally, into another world.

Quote pg. 127 para 1 & 2
“A subterranean slave yard was built into a colossal cavern, half of it reinforced by steel-and-brick columns and support struts. Most of the slaves were preservers, and some were muplets. But the most fearsome sight to behold was the animal that watched over them.

Her name was Horde Kaa, and she was the monster of monsters. She was a massive, black, reptilian creature with a long muscular neck, glowing red eyes, massive horns, and terrible fangs. She was at least fifty feet long, and her mouth was large enough to swallow a grizzly bear whole. Flat dorsal scales stuck out of her spine and ran down her neck, back, and tail, and at the tip of her tail was a diamond-shaped plate. On her back was a pair of leathery black wings, folded upward as she sat on her haunches like a dog. She scanned the cavern for disobedience, eyes never flinching.”

It is quite likely going to turn my curiosity into a raging hurricane but the author never completely disallows his familial involvement in the mysterious legend of “Haviland’s Hollow” and it’s apparent existence in New York state. The back cover of the book claims: “Based on a family legend you’re forbidden to hear…Set in a hamlet you’re forbidden to see…Unless They invite you.” There is even a disclaimer on the Faith & Fairies website, involving what should happen if one stumbles across the tiny town. The author plays it up for all it’s worth, and for one, I am beginning to fall for it.

I very much want to travel to New York, explore the state in hopes of finding Father Tree and the Woodkeepers. In the meantime though, I’ll just not-so-patiently wait for the sequel…
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Jodi Lee, aka ierne, is a 20+ year veteran of pagan paths. A single work at home mom, she is currently hard at work on her first novel.

http://www.jodilee.ca