The Forgotten Ones (The Danaan Trilogy, #1)

by Laura Howard

• ISBN10: 0615809057
• ISBN13: 9780615809052
• Publish Date: 15 May 2013
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Finding Bliss Publishing
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 196
• Language: English

Reviews

[Angie]

The Forgotten Ones was pretty good. It's an interesting mix of Irish mythology and folklore, where the fae are the descendants of a goddess. It's also New Adult, but it's not a romance! In fact, Allison doesn't have time for romance, nor the will to start up one despite her longtime crush on Ethan. She just wants to finish college, go to grad school, get a good job, and take care of her mother, giving her grandparents a break. But then, a man who looks just like Allison shows up at her door asking for her mother. Allison instinctively knows that this is her father, the man who left her mother alone, pregnant, and in the beginning stages of schizophrenia.

Of course, Allison's father is one the fae and explains that he can help her mother. At least before she disappears and is taken by some evil fae. The plot of The Forgotten Ones is mainly focused on Allison trying to bring her mother back to the human realm with the help of her newly found father and some other fae. Ethan also gets tangled up in all of this as leverage. The fae in this series are not totally evil, although we are told that some practice dark magic and are bad. They more treat humans as playthings and don't really care happens to them when they're done. There are exceptions like Allison's father though. For the most part I was more interested in the magic and world-building, since the plot was too easily resolved.

I did like the The Forgotten Ones. I found the Irish tales of the fae to be really engaging, and I liked learning about how they use their magic. I also liked how the story was focused on family rather than a romance. Allison clearly loves her mother, even though she's never known her from before the sickness took over. She just wants to do what's best for her, but now that the fae are in their lives, it may be more difficult.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[Kim Deister]

I am a sucker for all things Celtic and faery, so I was excited to find this book. There is no denying the fact that the cover is gorgeous and it drew me right to it. But it was the words inside that kept me reading!

Allison and Ethan... I loved the tension between them, the relationship. I think that most of us could identify with Allison and her doubts. She was a bit of a loner, most of the time preferring to spend her down time alone and with a book. This is something I understand! She had responsibilities and burdens that most others her age did not and those things shaped her into who she was. And Ethan... the object of her heart. I thought he was patient and kind and thoroughly loyal to Allison, all of the things a good Book Boyfriend should be!

Any time you have faeries, you have magic, yet there was no magic for the first half of the book. I have never read a faery lore-themed book structured like this and I really enjoyed the anticipation that it created. The first half or so read more like a contemporary romance, rather than fantasy. I really liked that because it gave me the chance to get to know the characters a bit better. But then the faeries descend and the magic begins!

I love, love, love Celtic faery lore and this book fed my obsession. The story Laura tell has the markers of established Celtic lore, but she creates her own mythology within them. There are twists and turns and tons of unexpected moments. The ending came with a lovely cliffhanger that makes me more than ready for the next book!

Some Quotastic Goodness

--I caught a glimpse of my mother staring out the den window. She held her violin loosely under her chin, and the bow dangled from her fingertips. Her jaw was slack, her eyes locked on something in the trees beyond me (Loc. 29).

--I’d never fit in, I’d rather just be alone or sit in the backyard with a book while Gram worked in her garden (Loc. 155).

--“I’m perfectly happy with a good book and a bowl of Double Fudge ice cream (Loc. 160).”

--His lips just brushed against mine, soft as a feather. He brought his hands up and cradled the back of my head (Loc. 806).

My Recommendation: If you love contemporary romance, faery lore, and fantasy... you will love this book!

[inlibrisveritas]

The Forgotten Ones centers around 21 year old Allison O’Malley, who is trying to juggle working and taking care of her schizophrenic mother but gets way more than she bargains for when her father shows up and brings a whole lot of trouble with him.The Forgotten Ones is a pretty decent start to a series with a rich mythology and fast paced plot.

I do wish I had enjoyed this one more as I hate being firmly in the middle of my rating scale, it some how becomes harder to put together a review. There were many things about The Forgotten Ones that I did like, but I’m also hoping to find more in the second book. The plot is fairly fast paced and starts out with a more contemporary feel to it, there are some fantasy type elements mixed in but they don’t come into play until the second half. I loved reading about the Tuatha and it was clear that Howard really did her research on them, but at the same I wished I had gotten a better sense of what makes some of them tick. I’ve sort of come to accept that the Fae just ARE. They are not necessarily evil or good, and most of the time they are written as self serving individuals and while I do think that applies here I would have loved to know the Tuatha characters more. The pacing is pretty good for most of the book, except for a few moments where it either fell flat or moved too quickly. The plot in itself was pretty entertaining though and I loved the unique quality of the story.

There is a bit of romance in this book, but it doesn’t take center stage and it’s also not insta-love so it gets huge points from me there. Ethan is an incredibly sweet guy and I really liked seeing Allison open up with him after years of trying not to. Of course after the Tuatha enter the picture things get a bit hectic, but I’m sure we’ll see more of him in the second book. I can’t say I connected with Allison, but I did enjoy reading about her and it’s clear she’s no cookie cutter female.

Overall The Forgotten Ones was a good start to a series that has me ready to read the next one! It’s pretty entertaining and has a lot going for it, so I’m looking forward to seeing if any of the areas I had trouble with improve and what is going to happen now that Allison knows about the Tuatha.

[bookishzelda]

I really enjoyed this book and was immediately addicted to the characters, especially Allison and Ethan. This was definitely a great spring read as well because the writing felt so light and flowing. The action and the plot were well balanced. Nothing happened to fast or to slow, it had great pacing.

Like I said the book is full of great characters. Looking at just the Mortal realm we have the group of “friends” I put the quotes because I think that Allison would use that term loosely. There is her cousin Nicole who is her best friend. Then we have Nicole’s boyfriend Jeff who also happens to be the brother of Ethan. Then there is Sean who grew up in the house across the street and of course Rachel. Although Rachel is friends with Nicole, she has a lack luster relationship with Allison. I think they would claw each other’s eyes out if they could but they manage to tolerate one another.

There are some great fairy world characters as well. Liam, Allison’s dad, of course but there is also Aodhan who almost seems like he becomes a protector of Allison. I think it has more to do with her human status than anything else but it’s kind of sweet. You can tell he is one of those characters that you will love in the series. There is also Niamh who I really liked. I just felt like she is going to play out to be a decent ally. There are many other characters both good and bad and with different degrees of what they consider to be wrong and right when it comes to human interaction.

I like the description of Tír na n’Óg, the image in my head is that people seem almost drunk when they wander around there. Not so much the Fey themselves but humans that enter into it. This is how I’ve always interpreted the fairy realm myself. I kept thinking in my head that Allison shouldn’t eat the food and then remembered wait that’s the underworld. LOL.

I loved the relationship between Allison and Ethan. I firstly loved the fact that it was something already in progress when we join the story. Secondly the thing I like is that they’ve kind of had a crush on each other since they were young kids. Plus the interaction between them is just too cute! You can feel the attraction and chemistry between them. I wanted to keep reading their exchanges. I can tell you the ending of the book stressed me out a bit.

There is also a strong family presence, which is always nice to see. Especially with the type of story this is. Family is a common theme for both the mortal realm and the fairy realm.

The ending definitely left you wanting to know what happens next and there are plenty of unanswered questions that I’m sure we will find answers to as the series goes on. I really liked this story and was actually a little sad it was so short. I mean that as a complicate Laura Howard because I liked her writing so much. I want to know so much more about some of the characters and I can tell you I will definitely pick up book 2 because I need to know what happens with Allison and Ethan!!!