The Good Hawk (Shadow Skye #1)

In Elliott’s debut, a series opener, alternating narrators Jaime, 14, and Agatha, 15, travel by land and sea to rescue their clan. Agatha, who has a condition similar to Down syndrome, is a proud Hawk, who watches from the walls of the clan’s Isle of Skye compound; anxious Jaime is an Angler, meant to gather food from the sea. After being forced to marry as part of an alliance, Jaime and his bride spend their wedding night on a boat—as does Agatha, who has stowed away with the idea of preventing the marriage. This renders the three safe from a raid by marauders who kill or carry off the rest of the clan to Norveg. When the trio rescues a Norvegian prince, they determine to trade him for their surviving clanspeople. As they cross Scotia, a land rumored to be home only to “terror beasts and shadow things,” Agatha demonstrates an ability to communicate telepathically with animals, while Jaime takes a leadership role despite his youth and uncertainty. Elliott, a former special needs teaching assistant, gives each vulnerable, determined teen a distinct voice and adds another layer to this character-driven fantasy via Scottish Gaelic– and Old Norse–inspired terminology. Ages 10–14. [em](Jan.) [/em]