First I've read or heard of Sharma. A completely random buy, think I pulled this off the shelf because someone at the store had stuck a "recommended" tag under it.

Too short; it all ends a bit abruptly. But this is some gorgeous writing, and I'll be keeping my eye out for more from her. ( )

More historical fiction than fantasy (historical fantasy?) but a quick, enjoyable read. ( )

Ce roman court de Prya Sharma, son premier écrit traduit en français, est une œuvre plutôt atypique au sein des littératures de l'imaginaires. Cet imaginaire n'apparaît qu'en filigrane tout au long de cette histoire puis fait une apparition puissante, rapide mais attendue pour mettre un terme plutôt positif au récit sombre, douloureux et cruel de la jeunesse de Gideon Belman. Ces années d'apprentissage sont d'un criant réalisme, serrant le cœur du lecteur qui suit ce jeune enfant évoluant au sein d'une famille où chacun fait preuve tour à tour de médiocrité, méchanceté et stupidité. Une œuvre poignante, touchante, où la poésie du décor s'oppose à la rudesse des habitants. Cette première traduction donne vraiment envie de pouvoir en apprécier d'autres. Message aux éditeurs en langue française ! ( )

https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3570220.html

I thought it was really good. It's set at some point in the past (people travel by coach). The author says that "Despite the fantasy elements it’s about rural poverty, sibling rivalry, thwarted ambition, and abuse." The viewpoint character is a teenage boy whose family is forced to move back to his father's ancestral farm in Cheshire; there are murky local legends about the legacy of the Orme (dragon), but vicious present-day family dynamics as well. Intensely and convincingly done, and recommended. ( )

3.5 An adult fairy tale with a sense of justice. Set in coastal England in the 1700s (?), it is a simple tale with some profound truths. Gideon Belman is just 10 when his family (father, John and mother, Clare) leave their home in the city of Bath to move to the small farming village of Ormeshadow and Ormesleep farm. John had been a man of letters, a private secretary, but circumstances (revealed later through Clare's characterization) required them to return to the family land and farm Ormesleep run by John's domineering, angry brother Thomas and his downtrodden wife Maud. 2 boys cousins do not make Gideon welcome and everyone settles into new roles and hard work. Gideon's only bright spot is his relationship with his father who is kind, upright and intelligent. He has raised Gideon on the folklore of the region: long-ago tales of the Orme, a dragon who settled into the landscape and whose back forms the rocky ridge that defines the area; she is waiting for the right time to rise again and her belly of the hills below are full of treasure. Though Gideon is feeling too old to believe these stories, they are a bond and a comfort. When tragedy strikes his family and all relationships and roles shift, the stories are the only thing that keep Gideon going. He has become a pawn and a work source for the farm and has no rights or recourse. But his father's example of steadfastness and honor see him through to a magical conclusion that rights all wrongs. Well crafted, but a few things were hard to buy into and would benefit from some discussion. ( )