Whispers Underground aka the Peter Grant thread

[CryHavoc]

Are these books somewhat on the order of Harry Potter-type, young adult lit that adults like too?

The target audience is older than Harry Potter. They're more explicit in terms of language, sex, and violence. I'd have read them in middle school or high school without being horrified or anything (though I was reading ASOIAF around that time, so perhaps bad example), but what with the explicitness and occasional detour through social housing policy and historical architecture, I don't think that's the intended audience. They do read sort of fast and snappy in the way that YA sometimes does, though.

I'd probably describe them as a funnier, more upbeat "real world" fantasy in which the main character has a lot of genre savvy.

[Tears of Lys]

Sounds like my cup of tea. Thanks!

[williamjm]

I am a bit disappointed that in Foxglove Summer we never got the perps motivations explained. All the tidbits hinting at the larger plot and history were juicy, but the actual case, while interesting as long as it lasted, ended rather abruptly and left a lot of loose ends.

Like,

What's the deal with the fairies interest in Derek Lacey's offspring, who are all sensitive to them? Does he have fairie blood himself way back, and is it the reason for his popularity with the ladies? Is Zoe a changeling too, unbeknowest to herself? Why did the queen swap the 2 Nicoles, then wanted to swap them back, then agreed to take Peter instead of either/both of them? What's to stop her from going after the girls again after Peter leaves, or some other children/people? Why on earth was the Marstow house attacked? Etc., etc.

I did have similar questions and I thought the ending could have gone into a bit more detail, although I don't necessarily think we need everything answered - in the past I felt the series was sometimes a bit guilty of trying to tie up every loose end in a contrived way such as the interrogation at the end of the Whispers Underground where the murderer's confession felt a bit redundant since we knew the key points already. I think we could at least have heard Peter's theories about why things happened the way they did.

I did wonder if the modern-day swap wasn't entirely what the Queen intended. While it does seem she brought Hannah and Nicole to her for reasons that aren't explained maybe she didn't intend the two Nicoles to swap places again, perhaps the Nicole that had been with the Fae wanted to run off to the 'Real World' and knew enough about the Fae by then to managed to escape? The unicorns definitely don't seem happy about Peter and friends taking the children when they first find them which wouldn't make sense if a swap had been intended. The Queen then makes a deal with Victoria to get 'her' daughter back. The unicorn attack on the Marstowe's house could either be a distraction or maybe she partially blames Hannah and wants revenge.