Northlander is a moving, layered fantasy with many unexpected plot twists, rich world building, and deft character development. Northlander is a book that continues to surprise the reader. At first it seems a standard, cliched us vs. them: the evil Northlanders are prejudiced against the good Southlanders. But it turns out to be so much more than that. I can't say too much without giving away some of the surprises, but this is a book painted in a rich palette of many shades of gray, not just black and white.

Read my entire review ( )

This little gem of a book was actually mentioned, and if I recall, only in passing, by Angie @ Angieville in a post about various goodies that she read last year. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. I'm old and forgetful. Anyway, I found a copy and for some reason I stuck it away on the shelf and forgot about it. It wasn't until I was craving a bit of traditional fantasy fiction that I went looking for it again. I'm oh so glad that I did.

Ellin and her father find themselves in the precarious position of healers to the king of the Northlands. Normally, being in the employ of a king would be a position of some honor but not if you are from the Southlands. It is a crime for a Southlander to lay hands on the king, let alone use their much feared magic to heal him. When the deed is done and the king has recovered, Ellin and her father are arrested, for the king fears their magic more than he appreciates what they sacrificed to save him. With the help of the most unlikely accomplices, Ellin will have to learn to harness the magic that evokes such fear in Northlanders. Ellin is powerful, much more powerful than anyone imagines, powerful enough to be feared by her own people as well.

I fell instantly instantly in love with little Ellin. She's headstrong, stubborn and at times a bit reckless- just the traits I look for in a heroine. Rather than feel compassion for her plight, Ellin's strength did not allow for any pity. You want to cheer for her, not caution her. When the story began, Ellin had no idea about her powers, or that such a talent even existed. A nice, tidy set up for a good fantasy. I like to grow with my characters, especially the ones that encounter things that are in sharp contrast to reality. Rather than being thrown in the middle of a story where the fantastical was already underway, discovering the magic along with Ellin allowed for better understanding of her world and more importantly, how it viewed her powers.

This is a relatively short little novel, and a quick read but that doesn't mean that it hasn't been nicely detailed. Burden fully develops each and every character that comes on the page making the supporting cast just as alive as Ellin. I loved, loved, loved the king's sons. They were all so very unique and likeable. I caught of hint of Alaric maybe becoming troublesome in the future but I'm going to hold out hope that he pulls through. And though it might be a little premature- I'm Team Finn.

I have the sequel The King Commands sitting right here next to me, begging to be read. It has the most awful cover perhaps in existence but I'm already in love with the story so I'm not deterred. ( )

A strong ethnic divide between north and south, with southerners repressed andsouthern healing forbidden to any but their own people. One young girl finds herself in the middle.

Not awful, but it didn't engage me much. ( )

Reviewed by Allison Fraclose for TeensReadToo.com

The Southling Ellin has been summoned with her father to the Northland kingdom. In a land where they are despised for their red hair and feared for their magic, their hand in the healing of the Northland king is a secret. However, the healing powers that have been banned by law may be the only thing that can save the ailing king.

On a crucial night, Ellin must fight against the prejudice that threatens to keep her from fulfilling the oaths that her father, as a healer, took, and that she will take on the day she is of age. Her determination manages to pull the monarch through the worst, but, while she learns that the potential for peace among individual Northlands and Southlings exists, she and her father are forbidden to return to their homeland until the king regains consciousness.

The friendships that she forges will bring her through a time when all she once understood about her life is destroyed, and she must find a way to come to terms with the power she's inherited and the truth she has grown to understand before a war sweeps away everything she has left.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story, and recommend it to all who have found themselves on both sides of a drawn line. The characters are easy to identify with, and the plot rich and relevant. I will be keeping an eager eye out for Book Two. ( )

Ellin is being trained as a healer and must accompany her father to the Northlands, where Southlanders are hated. Ellin saves the life of the kind and befriends his sons, but finds herself tossed in jail for using her healing powers. She escapes but finds herself persecuted and hunted even in her own lands. Well written, captures the attention from the first paragraph. I'm looking forward to a sequel. ( )