Chapter Two Hundred Forty-Seven: Silver in the Wood & Drowned Country

About a month ago, my hold on Silver in the Wood by Emily Tesh finally became available, and as soon as I was done, I regretted not having put the sequel on hold at the same time.  (I think I've finally learned that lesson, though.  I can always cancel the hold on the sequel, after all...)  This week, the sequel, Drowned Country, finally became available to me, and I devoured it as eagerly as the first book in this duology.  There are so many good things to say about Silver in the Wood  and Drowned Country that I'm going to go ahead with a list.

• Each book is short--less than 200 pages in print.  They're really more like novellas.  These days, I really appreciate a shorter read.
• The plot is engaging without being too fast-paced or stressful.  I don't want more stress from anywhere these days, especially not from my leisure reading.  Anything that can both hold my interest and not stress me out is huge for me right now.
• The writing is lovely.
• They're steeped in the natural world and folklore related to it.  While I'm generally into nature and plants and the outdoors, I think the nature-oriented setting and magic of these books has particular appeal for me at the moment, when it feels harder to safely enjoy the outdoors because of overcrowding at local parks and on local trails.
• There is romance, but it's not the only plot, and it's fairly subtle.  It's also between two male characters, which I appreciate in my general quest to read a variety of books about a variety of people.
• Finally, the covers are beautiful.  I know this isn't really a major thing, but it's an added bonus, even when reading the e-books, as I did.

There are probably other aspects to these books that I enjoyed and have already forgotten.  They really drew me into their lush, green, wild world.  They're fantasy, yes, for there is magic, but it's not overpowering... it feels more like folklore than fantasy, but folklore with character development and a modern feel to it.  If you truly don't enjoy elements of the fantastic, then these are likely not for you, but if you do at all enjoy fantasy or folklore, these are too short and wonderful not to read.