#1 New York Times bestselling author Johanna Lindsay presents
a powerfully romantic Regency-era tale that is breathtaking in scope
and wondrously passionate.
When Sebastian Townshend, son of the eighth Earl of Edgewood, was banished from his family due to the tragic results of a duel, he vowed never to return to England. Now living on the continent, Sebastian has forged a new identity as a deadly mercenary, The Raven. But his former neighbor, Lady Margaret Landor, has different plans for him. Back in England, Sebastian's father has had several accidents and Margaret suspects foul play and deception that reach as far back as the infamous duel. Convinced that only Sebastian can set the situation to rights, Margaret arranges a scandalous bargain with him that includes Sebastian's returning home as her husband. As the newlyweds uncover a deadly scheme, a fierce passion blossoms between them, which neither anticipated -- and neither can resist.
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The Stolen Child: A Novel
List Price: $23.95
Our Price: $16.29
Your Save: $ 7.66 ( 32% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Nan A. Talese
Book written by: Keith Donohue
Average Customer Rating:  
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The Stolen Child: A Novel - book description
Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9780385516167
ISBN: 0385516169
Label: Nan A. Talese
Manufacturer: Nan A. Talese
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 336
Publication Date: 2006-05-09
Publisher: Nan A. Talese
Release Date: 2006-05-09
Studio: Nan A. Talese
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Editorial Reviews:
Inspired by the W.B. Yeats poem that tempts a child from home to the waters and the wild, The Stolen Child is a modern fairy tale narrated by the child Henry Day and his double.
On a summer night, Henry Day runs away from home and hides in a hollow tree. There he is taken by the changelings—an unaging tribe of wild children who live in darkness and in secret. They spirit him away, name him Aniday, and make him one of their own. Stuck forever as a child, Aniday grows in spirit, struggling to remember the life and family he left behind. He also seeks to understand and fit in this shadow land, as modern life encroaches upon both myth and nature.
In his place, the changelings leave a double, a boy who steals Henry’s life in the world. This new Henry Day must adjust to a modern culture while hiding his true identity from the Day family. But he can’t hide his extraordinary talent for the piano (a skill the true Henry never displayed), and his dazzling performances prompt his father to suspect that the son he has raised is an imposter. As he ages the new Henry Day becomes haunted by vague but persistent memories of life in another time and place, of a German piano teacher and his prodigy. Of a time when he, too, had been a stolen child. Both Henry and Aniday obsessively search for who they once were before they changed places in the world.
The Stolen Child is a classic tale of leaving childhood and the search for identity. With just the right mix of fantasy and realism, Keith Donohue has created a bedtime story for adults and a literary fable of remarkable depth and strange delights.
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Spotlight customer reviews:
Customer Rating:
Summary: Story of a Changeling
Comment: This was an interesting book written from two points of view: the child who was stolen and the changeling who replaced him. The changeling struggles with the fear that he will be discovered throughout his entire life, even into adulthood. The boy who was taken is slowly raised in the changeling ways, waiting for the day when he, too, will replace a child. However, as the modern world encroaches on the wilderness, the continued existence of the changelings is threatened.
I found the book to be unique, though a bit tedious in a few places. His use of music as a stimulant for memory is quite interesting. The way that Mr. Donohue weaves the lives of the two boys together is what really makes the book unique.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Regarding Henry
Comment: These days the changeling myth has lost much of its fearsomeness, although parents who learn of it probably have fleeting thoughts about how terrible it could be. With The Stolen Child, author Donahue takes this ancient scenario out of the fantasy realm and into the real one. To immerse one's self into the narratives of Henry, the stolen child now trapped in a time warp, and other Henry, the hobgoblin who stole his identity and his very life, is to delve into the profound psychological effects that such a switch, if possible, might cause. Living forever and never aging sounds enticing, until the consequences, the gains and losses, are considered in their entirety. Similarly, the strain of pretending to be, and ultimately becoming, somebody else, would be equally burdensome.
The Stolen Child is a tale that can be experienced on several other levels. There is the practical,eg, how could such an exchange be accomplished? There is the philosophical, eg, how could one be one's self and someone else at the same time? And would it be worth trying to adjust to the changes? There's the emotional, leaving one's home/family/clan and breaking/forming different bonds. And of course there's the simple adventure of it all. Real Henry's situation is complex enough, but the substitute Henry must cope both with his new life and with several others as they become manifest to him.
Donahue is a skilled writer, creating enthralling characters, plots, dialog, and consciousness. More than a coming of age story, it's a study of human nature and basic needs. This debut novel is reminiscent of some of Neil Gaiman's work, though with less of the magical and more of the existential. But like Gaiman, Donahue explores the archetypal themes of loss, love, identity, survival, and moving on.
Here's hoping for a new Donahue release, sooner rather than later!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Haunting for Mothers
Comment: I am an avid reader, but have never written a review. As a mother of two small boys, I have never been so profoundly haunted by a book in my life. Deep melancholy is the only word that comes to mind. This book completely captures the intangible bond between parent and child. While I am incredibly conflicted about recommending this tragic book to others, on the other hand, I will never forget the indescribable sadness I felt while reading it.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A Must Read
Comment: I loved this book. I thought about the characters a lot while reading and it was not an easy decision on whom to root for. I think a good fantasy story makes you wonder just a little bit if there's maybe any truth to it at all and this book did that for me. It was fun to suspend my disbelief for a while. At times, the story was scary in a fantastic way. I highly recommend this book.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Wonderful story.
Comment: The Stolen Child is a magical and wonderful story. It's fascinating to read of the lives of the two switched boys and how each are driven in the end to find out about the other. I loved it.
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