Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale by Holly Black

A brave girl with special talents. A handsome supernatural hero. A risky plan to stop brutal murderers with magical powers. Does this sound familiar?

In many ways, Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale by Holly Black is reminiscent of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series. In both, there’s magic, danger, and romance, and the basic components of the stories are similar. However, in Tithe, the heroine has more serious problems than Bella’s clumsiness, and the hero, with his mysterious allegiances, is far more complex than Edward.

In this novel, sixteen-year-old Kaye’s life is not easy. She has never lived in the same place for long, and since her family is often short on cash, she had to drop out of high school in order to work at a Chinese restaurant. Her mom is a struggling rocker whose latest boyfriend tries to murder her. And now, to top it all off, Kaye’s just discovered that she is a fairy.

When a group of fairies convince Kaye to help them gain their freedom from the rule of the evil Unseelie court, life becomes even more confusing, dangerous, and frightening. Then there are complications: Kaye starts to fall for the mysterious Roiben, a dark knight, about whom it is rumored “He as likely to be kind as to kill you.”

Despite its similarities to Twilight, the combination of the haunting and the beautiful make Tithe a standout novel that will likely leave readers wanting more. (And if that’s the case for you, you’re in luck: there are two sequels, called Valiant and Ironside.)

~Marissa