Ballad by Maggie Stiefvater

James is "away" at boarding school: basically high school, except with dorm rooms and musical prodigies. He is surprisingly alone; it seems there is no Bagpipe Student Coalition. He cannot deny it, he is only here for one reason. Dee. But despite the awful events that happened over the summer, the once best friends are still on awkward footing, to say the least. His love for her is slightly pushed to the back burner when Nuala enters the scene. James had hoped to leave behind the Other World forever. It seems, however, that Thornking-Ash, the prestigious academy, has some secrets, and unfortunately for James, he is about to stumble upon them all.

Ballad is the sequel to Lament. If I didn't write a review of Lament (OMG how did I not review that one?) then here is the summary: OhemgeeitwasthebestbookI'vepossiblyeverread. Seriously. So here is my review of Ballad:

OhemmgeeitwasthebestbookI'veeverread. Seriously. This book made me want to find Maggie Stiefvater, buy her a throne, and sit at her feet so that some of her writing magnificence would float down to me. I can't begin to tell you how close I am to making an "I Heart Maggie" tee shirt. This book, was fantastic.

At first I was less than thrilled because it changed from Dee's to James' point of view. But it took me 15 pages to fall head-over-heels in love with James. And I quote: "We played our roles according to where we sat in the orchestra. Brass players: jerks. Woodwinds: snobby cliques. Strings: overachievers with their hands up all the time. Percussion: class clowns. Bagpipers: me." Ahhhh his POV is so great! James is a snarky little know-it-all who manages to belong in the front and back row of the classroom. He is a still wounded from his heartbreak over Dee, but he hides behind humor. Everything he says is golden.

Then Nuala comes around, and I like her. Immediately. I'm not sure what more there is to say.

The book is full of Faerie legends, which I love, but James has a pretty good grasp on reality, and you don't see much of the Fey, with the exception of Nuala, but she was so different from the rest of them that it was like a whole new world.

Ballad is full of mystery and suspense. It's got a looming quality to it, although the tone is generally upbeat. James is hilarious and keeps up the comic relief, so it never felt too dark.

My favorite part of Ballad was the snark. It came from James mostly, but Nuala gave it right back. Even outside of dialogue, in James' head, it was a great place to be. Honestly, I cannot name one bad quality in this book. I would recommend it to anyone who liked the first, but I think even if you read them out of order it won't mess you up TOO bad. (You should still read Lament first, though.) So, seriously, you have to read these.

On a side note: I am naming my children after Maggie. (Boy: Stief. We'll call him Steve.) Love her!

5 million/ 5
Shay-la <3