Review: The Caller by Juliet Marillier

From Goodreads: Just one year ago, Neryn had nothing but a canny skill she barely understood and a faint dream that the legendary rebel base of Shadowfell might be real. Now she is the rebels’ secret weapon, and their greatest hope for survival, in the fast-approaching ambush of King Keldec at Summerfort. The fate of Alban itself is in her hands. But to be ready for the bloody battle that lies ahead, Neryn must first seek out two more fey Guardians to receive their tutelage. Meanwhile, her beloved, Flint, has been pushed to his breaking point as a spy in the king’s court - and is arousing suspicion in all the wrong quarters. At stake lies freedom for the people of Alban, a life free from hiding for the Good Folk - and a chance for Flint and Neryn to finally be together.

My Rating: 3.5 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: Although I personally wouldn’t consider Juliet Marillier’s Shadowfell series to be very memorable, I have continued reading it because it’s a solid trilogy, especially if you enjoy slow, traditional fantasy.

The Caller begins with Flint having reached his breaking point after witnessing the events at the end of Raven Flight, and no longer willing to work as an Enforcer for Keldec. Meanwhile, in order to fulfil her quest of becoming the most capable Caller that she can be, Neryn sets off to meet the two Guardians that she hasn’t trained with, the White Lady and the Master of Shadows. On her way to seek the Master of Shadows though, Neryn finds out that Keldec has found a Caller of his own and has started using his Caller to amass an army of fey to fight for him. The task of overthrowing Keldec just became that much harder for the rebels!

In comparison to the previous two novels in the series, The Caller had a much faster pace, which I liked. I also thought Marillier did a good job of making Neryn realize that Keldec’s men and servants aren’t all evil and that many of them don’t approve of his tyrannical ruling. It would have been nice though if the conflict between Keldec and the rebels hadn’t been resolved as quickly or easily; it wasn’t very realistic, and the finale could have been so much more epic in my opinion!

The Caller was released by Knopf Books for Young Readers in September 2014. 

Comments About the Cover: I like the background as it makes it pretty clear that the novel is a fantasy. I have mixed reactions about the model’s pose though; it makes sense because Neryn is a Caller, but it drives me insane that I have no idea what she’s Calling.