Sixteen-year-old Deirdre Monaghan is a painfully shy but prodigiously gifted musician. She’s about to find out she’s also a cloverhand—one who can see faeries. When a mysterious boy enters her ordinary suburban life, seemingly out of nowhere, Deirdre finds herself infatuated. Trouble is, the enigmatic and conflicted Luke turns out to be a gallowglass—a soulless faerie assassin — and Deirdre is meant to be his next mark. Deirdre has to decide if Luke’s feelings towards her are real, or only a way to lure her deeper into the world of Faerie.
LAMENT: The Faerie Queen’s Deception by Maggie Stiefvater.

I was a little wary of this book at first. Reviewers had claimed that it had a modern-day fairy-tale-romance similar to the Twilight series. I love the Twilight series, and I didn’t want to be disappointed because someone was trying to throw Stiefvater’s novel on that bandwagon. However, I was intrigued and needed a book to read, so I gave it a go.At first, the book seemed too cliche and campy, but the story sucked me in. I was eager to finish – to figure out how Deirdre’s narrative continued. The story kept me going and it was an easy, quick read that I would recommend to any faerie (and music!) enthusiast cooped up during the next few wintry months. It’s perfect for curling up with a warm, fuzzy blanket and a cup of hot cocoa with marshmallows. Mmm. Enjoy!

For those of you interested, Stiefvater has three beautiful harp/flute mp3s available for download on her website. The songs were inspired by Lament. Also, I’m very happy to say that there is a sequal: Ballad. I loved it.