[Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.]

This was EXTREMELY difficult to follow. I understand the author was trying to show that there are two worlds here that are connected, but the result was a bit of a jumbled mess of keeping track of who was who and who was where at any given time. It made it hard to enjoy the story. ( )

Dark, spooky fantasy a little heavy on the angry-adolescent-protagonist but otherwise very readable. ( )

4.5 stars. I agree with another reviewer who felt the ending was a little bit forced and muddled in light of how Pollack let this beautiful mythic tale grow and branch in unexpected ways. It was the RIGHT ending, but I would have been cool with 20 more pages to get there.

Otherwise...man, what an amazing read. Full of allusion, magic, the fear of magic, betrayals...everything. I loved this so much and just was THERE with Simon and Jack and Matyas and Veil. I was even regularly frustrated at all the characters and still found myself sympathetic to all of them. (Okay, not the Child Eater, who was scary as heck, but all the main characters) This was a sheer delight to read. ( )

This book is set in a fantasy world, and in our world. It follows the life of Matyas in fantasy world. He is the son of an Inn Keeper and he wants more from life. Like exploring magic and learning how to fly. Then there is Simon in our world, a troubled child. But his parts are actually more about his dad. How he grows up wanting to be normal, falling in love with someone not normal, and having Simon. And wanting him to be normal too. Cos the Wisdoms are not a normal family. They see things.

I did enjoy the fantasy part more, I do love fantasy so that makes sense. It was an interesting world, magic system and how the tarot cards were everywhere. Matyas on the other hand was an idiot at times, filled with hybris and more. But that did not matter cos it was him and it worked.

Simon's parts were more sad. He wanted to please his dad. But nightmares, knowing things, he was just so young and his dad should have told him the truth. And it's here we see more of those missing children. What is going on? How are the world connected?

Fantasy, and paranormal. Two worlds, different POVS, it all makes it into an interesting mix. ( )

Wow, I hardly know where to start with this one. The book was very different from what I expected. The spooky title left me expecting something very dark and tense. THE CHILD EATER is not that. In fact, it only goes into the realm of creepy once or twice, and only briefly. In tone it's more magical realism with a every-day sort of feel and pacing.

The words Rachel Pollack puts together are magical. Frequently brilliant. And the reader is tugged along through two different worlds that are remarkably dissimilar.

**I don't think there is much in the way of spoilers here, but if you want to approach the book 'cold' skip the next paragraphs until you get to MY THOUGHTS**

Matyas comes from a magical world that is more primitive than our own. His parents, for example, own a grungy inn which is dependent upon his child labor. And poor Matyas is worked like a slave and he is an unhappy young man until he gets the notion to go to the big city to learn at the magicians academy how to fly. The promise of flight and the ability to escape his circumstances becomes his obsession.

In a world that is similar to our own, we meet Jack and his son, Simon. Unlike Matyas, who rejoices in the fact that he is imbued with magic, Jack and Simon are tortured by the knowledge that sets them apart from normal people. Jack shuts himself off from his magical insights at a young age, and he makes Simon a bit of a mess with his ridiculous must-appear-totally-normal attitude.

The worlds of Matyas, Jack and Simon would remain forever separate if not for The Child Eater. He's a character that moves between worlds and who kidnaps delicious children. I won't say more but the book reveals his past and present, and the worlds' histories interweave at the end to bring the story to fruition.

My Thoughts
There are parts of this book that are brilliant. The wordsmithing is rich. The concept is wondrous. I didn't however ever like any of the adult male characters, nor the pacing. First there was Jack and the fact that we got to revisit the same situations over and over as he realistically anguishes over his personal foibles.

Then there was Matyas, who like Jack, just seemed incapable of moving on. Matyas is uneducated and untrusting at the beginning of the book, and semi-educated and untrusting in the middle of the book, and educated and untrusting at the end. I hated him for that. For heaven sake's, you've been with your mentor for a good long while, stop trying to second guess her and wonder what she's scheming! What an asshat.

I'm sure this is all sophisticated literary-device-stuff that literary readers like that silly Ruth Graham will lavish praise on, but I just like a good simple story with characters that don't annoy the hell out of me, and the artfulness got in the way of that.

The story in THE CHILD EATER is WONDERFUL. A I sincerely believe that if had read it along with three or four of my bestest reading buddies that I'd be giving it 5 STARS. The author's wordsmithing is excellent. She uses THE best imagery and tone for this story, and I think if I had had someone to discuss the literary devices with I'd be more overwhelmed than I currently am. As it is, I feel like a good 50 - 75 pages could have been omitted without any harm.

Miscellany:
THE CHILD EATER is not a scary book. It's not even a book that is fraught with tension. It is instead a book of magic and mythology and the reader will come out at the end having felt like he has learned about another world.

THE CHILD EATER, imo, will require readers of more patience than I have. Readers who can tolerate imperfect characters. (You can see from my comments how I feel about them.) To be honest I skipped from the 53% point in the book to the 80% point and felt I had missed nothing. I was caught up in a few paragraphs.

I do recommend the book to the patient and mature. Of which I am neither.

--review copy