Author R.R. Russell once spent a lot of time sketching unicorns. In
this post, Russell will go into detail about her fascination with these
mystical creatures and why they play such a significant role in her novel.
In Wonder Light, Twig, a
twelve-year-old girl sent to live at a pony ranch for troubled girls on a
misty, isolated island, witnesses the birth of a baby unicorn. Her encounter
with the unicorns and the people of Lonehorn Island changes her world.
When I was young, my walls were covered
with posters of unicorns, leaping and shimmering with rainbow colors. They
seemed to belong in a different, brighter world. They were beautiful, powerful,
and free. I loved to look at them and to draw them, but I never really believed
in magical, horned creatures bounding through the clouds. So when I sat down to
write a book about unicorns, I made them the sort of real, wild animals that
could live in this world—the kind that Twig, a lonely girl with a rough
past, could believe in.
Twig is the last person who’d dream of
discovering wild unicorns. She doesn’t believe in magic or miracles. She’s
never even dreamed of having a pony like other girls. She just wants to be left
alone, and she’s given up on dreaming. She’s almost given up on herself. But
Twig discovers that these mysterious creatures, who at first seemed to be
ghosts—always slipping into the shadows, hiding in the mist—really want to be
known. To be understood.
She’s the only one on the ranch who understands
who the unicorn filly born in the stable really is. Why she’s so different and
why she struggles to fit in with the ponies. But Twig learns she must do more
than just care for this impossible creature. Nighttime howls fill the
mist-shrouded darkness of the island. Something’s out there, hunting, waiting
to attack. Twig must become her unicorn’s rider, and she must face the howling darkness
with her. Together they must fight to save the last free herd of unicorns.
R.R. Russell lives with her
family in the Pacific Northwest. She grew up traveling the world as an
army brat and now travels the country as a coach with a non-profit judo
club. She loves to read and draw, and like Twig, once spent a lot of
time sketching unicorns. Visit her at rrrussellauthor.com.
Deep in the heart of a mist-shrouded island, an impossible secret is about to be discovered.
Twig
is used to feeling unwanted. Sent to live on a pony ranch for
"troubled" girls on a misty, haunted island, Twig is about to discover
the impossible — someone who needs her.
Jolted awake from a bad
dream, Twig follows the desperate whinny of a terrified horse out to the
stables. There in the straw is a bleating little scrap of moonbeam. A
silver-white filly with cloven hooves and a tiny, spiraling horn.
A baby unicorn.
Now
Twig knows what secret is hiding in the island's mist: the last free
unicorn herd. And a mysterious boy named Ben who insists that this
impossible creature is now Twig's to care for. That she needs Twig's
love and protection. Because there's something out there in the deep,
dense shadows that's hunting for them...
Wonder Light is a story about Twig, who has had a rough childhood. Through the book we know that she's had a rough time of it and feels like an unwanted child, but we don't get the full story until later. We see as she goes from a quiet, angry girl, to a girl who wants to make a difference and protect those she's come to love. We see her blossom, though I wish we had seen more of that aspect of her than it being so much about the unicorns and what's going on with them. I wish that her past had been explored a bit more, though that might come later.
I enjoyed the setting on an island in the Pacific NW. It's very cool to think of a pony ranch for troubled girls on an island and them being the only inhabitants (and the husband and wife that run the ranch, of course). The setting was very vivid and easy to imagine. I live in the Pacific NW, so that may be why, but I did feel the descriptions were very well done.
The book takes place over about a year (or close to it) and it skips stretches of time. This allowed the book to move at a faster pace, but I would have actually enjoyed a touch more time with Twig in her environment and exploring her regular life and not this 'other' stuff going on. I would have liked to know a bit more about her past as well. And while I enjoyed the other characters quite a lot, aside from Ben, I felt like they weren't terribly fleshed out and I wouldn't have minded getting to know them better. However, this might be more of a positive for the younger readers that are searching for a fast read that gets to the heart of the story without all the extras to read. It's certainly a fast read with plenty of action.
Any girl who loves unicorns would likely enjoy this book. I also think this series has potential to be really great. I'm certainly curious to see where things go and will definitely read the second book to see if more of the fantasy element is explored (which I expect it to be).
This is a book that I felt was a tad too 'scary' for my 8 year old (she's super sensitive though) so I would think maybe 9 or 10 and up might be the best age. Every reader is different though. I think in a year or so my daughter will understand more of the fantasy elements of it and might not be so sensitive to parts that might scare her now.
Being as I'm not the target age for this book, I know I'm not connecting with it like a 10 year old might. So just keep that mind. It's a great book that plenty of girls will absolutely love. In particular girls who come from troubled homes (or are in foster care) and may be looking for a character that shows incredible strength after living through some traumatic events.
Disclosure: I got this book at ALAMW. All opinions expressed are my own and I was not paid or influenced in any way.
This is my Clean Sweep ARC Challenge post, which started yesterday, May 1st.
