Wayfinder
by C.E. Murphy

published by Del Rey
ISBN: 978-0-345-51607-7

Rating:
5 bookmarks (out of 5)

Wayfinder is the conclusion to the story begun in Truthseeker, and picks up right where that book ends. For those who haven’t read the first half of the tale, or don’t remember it well, there is a brief recap included to get you up to speed. However, Truthseeker is well worth the time, and also highly endorsed.

Wayfinder is set almost entirely in the Barrow-lands (faerie), as Lara Jansen struggles to master the innate power of the truthseeker. Originally just able to determine whether someone was lying to her or not, the scope of Lara’s power continues to expand, even as she endeavors to ferret out several different truths.

There is the original quest that drove elven prince Daffydd out of the Barrow-lands and into our world seeking a truthseeker. There is the question of what happened so very long ago that created The Drowned Lands, a section of the Barrow-lands that has been underwater for as long as anyone can remember. And Lara has acquired an ancient artifact along the way that she needs to master, before someone misuses it and destroys one world or the other.

The seelie and unseelie are at the precipice of full-out war and only mortal Lara has any hope of stopping it before the barrow-lands are totally annihilated. Will she survive the attempt? And what about the developing romance between her and Daffydd–is there any hope for love between mortal and immortal?

This is a beautifully crafted tale, and a wonderfully complex world of magic and music. I was cheering for Lara through every bump and bruise, watching her learn and grow into her power. Despite the numerous plot threads and tangles, everything is tidily resolved by the ending, yet I was still left wanting more.

Highly recommended, as are all of C.E. Murphy’s books.

I was lucky enough to win an arc of Wayfinder and I got to read it early (thank you Catie!)–most folks will need to wait until September. I don’t envy you.