I’ve been on a bit of a YA literature kick. Earlier this month, I read three of Sharon Shinn’s young adult novels, and liked them very much.

The Safe-Keeper’s Secret and The Truth-Teller’s Tale are the first two books in a series that will conclue when The Dream-maker’s Magic is published in May. The Safe-Keeper and the Truth-Teller have complemetary roles in society. In The Safe-Keeper’s Secret, Fiona and Reed the children of Damiana, the woman who listens to people’s secrets without ever disclosing the information entrusted to her. Reed’s birth is also a secret, as he was brought to town just as Fiona was born and Damiana adopted him. Fiona grows up expecting to be a Safe-Keeper like her mother, but Reed doesn’t seem to be able to settle on any particular direction in life. As they grow older, the secrets that surround their family start to unravel. The Truth-Teller’s Tale focuses on the story of twin girls who are nothing alike, Eleda is a silent safe-keeper and Adele is a talkative truth-teller. A truth-teller can detect when someone is lying, and is incapable of telling a lie. Although one can see why a village might need a safe-keeper to act as confessor, Shinn shows how it might be handy to have a Truth-Teller around - if you need to find out the truth it would be quite handy to ask someone who will never tell a lie. Eleda and Adele’s grow up as the daughters of innkeepers, but their best friend Roelynn is the daughter of a merchant who aspires to reach nobility. As the three girls grow older, truth-telling and secret-keeping will set a chain of events in motion that change all of their lives. Of the two books, I liked The Truth-Teller’s Tale more because the confusion caused by identical twins in opposite roles seemed to drive the plot forward in a slightly less predictable fashion than the events in The Safe-Keeper’s Secret.

Summers at Castle Auburn was my favorite out of the three books. Corie is the bastard child of a nobleman, and she spends most of her time in a small village learning herbalism and from her grandmother, the village Wise-Woman. In the summer she goes to visit her half-sister Elisandra at Castle Auburn. Elisandra dotes on her half-sister, but she doesn’t always have time to visit because she’s engaged to the future king of the country, Prince Bryan. Elisandra seems a little cool about the prospect of becoming queen, perhaps because even though Bryan is very cute and all the girls in the castle (including Corie) have a crush on him, he happens to be a vain, spoiled, and narcissistic idiot. During her visits Corie begins to change her opinions about castle life. Her beloved Uncle Jaxon delights in the hunt for Aliora, who are mystical people bound to serve the nobility. Prince Bryan grows more and more obnoxious, and some of Corie’s noble relatives seem determined to marry her off to cement some political alliances. Corie’s sense of humor and training as a Wise-Woman helps her navigate society as she begins to find out who her true friends really are. I’d recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading Robin McKinley books like The Hero and the Crown.