Gather Her Round

The Hum and the Shiver is one of my favorite books of all time, but the others in the series have had diminishing returns for me. This one, however, was my favorite since that first one. I love reading this series while in Tennessee, as it feels like I walk outside into the Fae woodlands. Also, conceptually this book is Jaws but with with a pig and also Fae, so sort of playing to my wheelhouse. There's a few points I thought were a bit glossed over, but all in all a nice incentive to finish off this series. If you'd given up after Chapel of Ease, I'd say it's worth coming back for this one.

This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
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Man, it's hard to write much that doesn't boil down to: It's the new Tufa book by Bledsoe – it's great, go read it. Which is essentially a tautology followed by a natural conclusion. And isn't that interesting (then again, I never promised you interesting, Dear Reader).

So, what sets this one apart? Well, there's the pretty mundane nature of the inciting incident (mundane meaning not magical, not mundane meaning ordinary), the framing device, and the . . . I don't want to say resolution (because there are a few – and yet none), I guess the way things end.

The framing device is perfect for a Tufa novel – Janet Harper, a noted musician and actress is at a story-telling festival and brings her guitar onstage to use with her story – one that's true, but that no one in the audience will believe, as much as she says it. She does change the names of the participants (which makes her different than Ray Parrish) to protect everyone involved – including herself (see Ray Parrish).

Janet tells the story of Kera Rogers, who goes for a walk one morning to go play a little music, relax a bit, sext a little with a couple of guys, think a little about cutting out one or both of the guys when she's attacked by a wild animal and is never seen again. At least not most of her – a small body part or two shows up. The community is horrified that this happens and her parents grieve the end of her young life. Duncan Gowan is one of the boys she was involved with – and thought he was the only one – is wrecked by her death and learning that she was also sleeping with someone else.

The rest of the tale traces the ripples from this event over the next few months (almost a year) – and the next victim to fall prey to the animal – Kera's family moving on, Duncan getting involved with another woman, the hunters that come in to track the beast (which will also hopefully prevent any police investigation). One of the hunters gets involved with a Tufa we've known since the first book, and is introduced to the real culture of Needsville.

While all this is going on, we get the best picture of how things are going with the faction formerly led by Rockhouse Hicks, now led by Junior Damo, and it's clear to everyone that Junior is not the new Rockhouse – which is mostly good, but there are some real drawbacks. Mandalay Harris takes it upon herself – even though the dead are Junior's – to get to the bottom of what happened. Sure, it was a wild animal attack – but is that all it was? Her methods aren't exactly anything you'll find in a police procedural, but produce results that Gil Grissom and his kind would envy.

The best parts of these books is the way that people like Junior, Mandalay, Bliss, and Bronwyn are secondary characters; while people we've never met (or just barely) like Kera, Duncan, Janet, and Jack Cates (the hunter) are the focus. Yet somehow, we care about them almost as much – and through the eyes and experiences of the new characters we learn more about our old friends and see them grow and develop. Bledsoe is fantastic at making each of these books very different from the rest, yet clearly part of a series.

Like every novel in this series – this can be your introduction to the world. Actually, this one may be a better intro-book than any but the first (even as I write that I can think of arguments against it, but I think I can stick with it). You don't have to have any advance knowledge of this world to appreciate 98% of the book.

There's heart, magic, fun, wonder, vengeance, a dash of romance and mystery wrapped up in this novel – expressed through very human characters. The humanity shown by these people who aren't all that human shines through more than anything else.

I haven't been as taken by a series of books and a writer's abilities as I have Bledsoe and his Tufa novels in quite some time. There's something about the world Bledsoe has created in his fictional Cloud County and this race of displaced fairies, the Tufa, which makes me desperate to know more. I want to know all their secrets!

In the Tufa books, Bledsoe has a whole people to take stories from, a sort of Spoon River Anthology of backwoods rural folk. There's no central character to his stories, usually. Instead, the community of Needsville and the Tufa people become the protagonist. This means that Bledsoe can approach the community from any angle. There is a multitude of characters that can grace his pages, and endless wealth of stories to tell.

In GATHER HER ROUND, the fifth outing in Cloud County, the community of Tufa have been struck by a tragedy: a monster pig, bred and raised domestically but released and gone feral, has killed one of their own. Hard to think a catalyst like this could turn into a love story, but the Tufa say that all songs are love songs.

Like the other books, Bledsoe's prose is tight and effortless. It compels you to read more. His affection for his characters is evident, and his grasp on the community as a whole is total. The greatest travesty is that it takes a year (or more) for a new Tufa novel to emerge from this fertile landscape he's created and I'm stuck waiting, desperate for the next one, the images and ideas of the most recent book plaguing me like an earworm that gets stuck in your head and leaves you humming the same song for weeks.

All of these books are fantastic. GATHER HER ROUND is no exception, a five-star novel in every way, shape, and form. Alex has said that the sixth trip through Cloud County is on its way. I will have to wait patiently for it to arrive, because I'm sure it will be another must-read novel.