The Star Child by Stephanie Keyes

The Star child is the first book in the Star Child series. If you love Young Adult Fantasy books then this is the book for you!

 

Kellen St. James is a 17 year old loner. He always has been. He has a poor, unloving relationship with his father and desperately misses his deceased mother. He feels all alone in the world but feels he doesn't need anyone. After graduating he makes the decision to move to Ireland after he has been left his grandmother's house in her will. Since he was a small child, Ireland has been a special place for him and the place where he first met the mysterious Calienta. He has dreamed about her every night of his life since then but who is she?

 

Upon his return to Ireland, Kellen finds himself part of an age old Celtic prophecy and Calienta reappears in his life. Together the pair must battle faeries and gods in an attempt to save the world and fulfil the prophecy that will map out Kellen's future. A future that includes Calienta.

 

This was a great book and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Being from Northern Ireland I have visited some of the places described in the book. I adore Celtic folklore and Stephanie Keyes has clearly done her research for this book. The story moves along at a pretty fast pace, which I liked. It also explores the intense feelings around first love, loss, loneliness, broken relationships and grief, all experiences which many teens may encounter at some point in their lives. However, rather than feeling sorry for himself, Kellen uses these life experiences to become a stronger, more independent person. He is mature beyond his years. Many young people might have used the sadness in their lives to follow a different path. But, not Kellen.

 

Stephanie Keyes has created some wonderful characters in this book and a wonderful world of fantasy. There's lots of adventures and challenges in this story which leads the reader into a magical world. I look forward to reading the next in the series The Fallen Stars, which is released on 12th April and continues on with Calienta and Kellen's adventures. You can read my review for The Fallen Stars on 15th April.