duology captured my heart as an adult like nothing since some of Orson
Scott Card's work when I was in college. It's a rare fantasy book that sticks close to the harsh realities of ancient Celtic life, mixed with Elven folklore and narrative surprises (namely, that as the point of view moves to the elf, time rushes by so that human characters have suddenly died and theirs war long over and we're moving on to their descendents' lives and their wars and intrigues), expertly done. Some have said in their reviews that there's not enough action. This surprises me. I find most fantasy novels more build-up than execution, and The Dreaming Tree is an exception.
Because of the way time can suddenly jump ahead, I find a great deal of action relative to the fantasy norm. The second book is a bit slower in this regard, admittedly (as it sticks pretty much to one set of characters), but on the whole I found the content swiftly communicated, highly original, and lacking the usual fantasy cliches.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
BOOK ONE
The Gruagach
ONE
Of Fish and Fire
TWO
Beorcs Steading
THREE
The Harper
FOUR
The Hunting
FIVE
The Hunter
SIX
Setting Forth
SEVEN
Meara
EIGHT
The Luck of Niall Cearbhallain
BOOK TWO
The Sidhe
NINE
Midsummer and Meetings