2 out of 4 stars
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The Lost Clan is the second book in the Rowan Wood Legends series written by Olivia Wildenstein. Unlike others that give a brief summary of the first book, this one jumps right in, which would make it difficult to understand for first time readers of the series. I was able to decipher a rough understanding of the story which follows a nineteen year old girl name Catori Price as she comes to terms with her two warring identities. She has both fae and hunter, two ancient opposing tribes, blood running through her veins. While she straddles the line between fae and hunter she finds herself caught in a love triangle between a fae prince, Ace Wood, and a hunter, Kajika. Will she pick a side or be the one to finally bring peace to the two tribes?
The story doesn’t answer that question. Rather, it focuses heavily on the love triangle and anger the two men have toward Catori. There are just too many angry men. I understand the tribe has been fighting for hundreds of years but I found myself growing annoyed, not only at them, but also at Catori for putting up with it. For example, there is a scene where Kajika learns that his late wife had an affair with a fae before she died. When the fae finds Kajika to apologize, Kajika tells him hurtful lies which results in the fae’s suicide. When Catori tries to help the fae, Kajika throws a temper tantrum because he was the one who deserves sympathy. How dare she try to save that man’s life when he just had his heart broken! Later, in a graphic and uncomfortable scene, Kajika has sex with a woman out in the open while making direct eye contact with Catori. When he is finished “using” the woman he confronts Catori screaming that she had betrayed him. Catori, while uncomfortable with his actions, does not seem to have a spark of anger in her, at least, not as much anger as she should have. Not only was he trying to hurt Catori, but he used a woman like a piece of meat and then threw her away when he was done with her, surely that calls for some type of righteous anger. Sadly, instead of anger we are met with guilt from our main character for “hurting” her friend. This is a horrible message to be writing for young girls and is what I like least about the book.
While I was annoyed at our protagonist occasionally, she did have some good qualities. She feels fleshed out and real. When her grandfather became ill her family treated him with “tea” and when he later died of what turned out to be cancer, she decided to become a doctor. That is a good backstory and I wish it would have been explored more. I also admired that she didn’t choose a side. She had enough self confidence to stay both fae and hunter. But there was one huge problem with this character that I couldn’t get past, she drove while under the influence of alcohol. While the author did not necessarily promote Catori’s actions she normalized it, which is worse in my opinion. Again, what type of message are we sending to the young adults who read this? That it’s okay to drink and drive if your under distress. That message is harmful and dangerous.
I enjoyed Catori’s back story and I also enjoyed learning about the two tribes’ cultures.The best parts were always when we learned something new about the hunters and faes. The fae’s world has some interesting concepts and imagery, like the castle built on mist. Catori learns that in the fae world royals live above the mist while the poor live below. That would have been interesting to see. I might have enjoyed the story much more if it was set in that world rather than our own. However this did not come without its problems. Throughout the book the two tribes used their own languages. It was confusing and slowed down the pace of the story. I had to constantly go back to the beginning and look up what the words meant.
Overall, I would give the book 2 out of 4 stars. It was decently edited with only two or three errors so it does not deserve a lower score. Fans of Twilight or Vampire Diaries might enjoy this story but, due to the harmful messages it may send, I would not suggest young adults read this book which is why I cannot give it a higher rating. The story has potential but it needs a major rewrite before it gets there!
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Rowan Wood Legends
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