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Details
SHAPESHIFTER
Published: April 2010
Paperback: 256 pages
Publisher: Orca Book Publishers
Cover Design: Teresa Bubela
Cover Art: Juliana Kolesova
SHAPESHIFTER
Published: April 2010
Paperback: 256 pages
Publisher: Orca Book Publishers
Cover Design: Teresa Bubela
Cover Art: Juliana Kolesova
The Inside Story
Oh deer!
Is there any animal on earth easier to imagine as a shape-shifting woman than
our beautiful North American white-tailed deer? I can’t think of one, and when I
started writing about Sive that’s exactly what I was picturing. Just look at those big,
soulful eyes and expressive ears. It wasn’t long, though, until I realized that the red
deer, the species native to Ireland, looks quite different. It was a bit of a
disappointment, quite honestly; not that red deer are ugly, but they seem so much
less graceful and more, well, goatlike. So imagine what you like -- there’s no harm
in a little creative license!
My information about how deer see colours came mostly from hunting websites. It
makes sense, I guess; hunters are concerned with both camouflage and safety,
so they have a keen interest in what their gear will actually look like to a deer. Still
it felt weird to be cruising sites dedicated to killing my heroine’s animal double!
Oh deer!
Is there any animal on earth easier to imagine as a shape-shifting woman than
our beautiful North American white-tailed deer? I can’t think of one, and when I
started writing about Sive that’s exactly what I was picturing. Just look at those big,
soulful eyes and expressive ears. It wasn’t long, though, until I realized that the red
deer, the species native to Ireland, looks quite different. It was a bit of a
disappointment, quite honestly; not that red deer are ugly, but they seem so much
less graceful and more, well, goatlike. So imagine what you like -- there’s no harm
in a little creative license!
My information about how deer see colours came mostly from hunting websites. It
makes sense, I guess; hunters are concerned with both camouflage and safety,
so they have a keen interest in what their gear will actually look like to a deer. Still
it felt weird to be cruising sites dedicated to killing my heroine’s animal double!
From Readers and Reviewers
"The enchantment of Bennett's interpretation of the legend of Sive is a perfect match to her prose which, at times, is as liquid as
we imagine Sive's songs to be."
VOYA
"A wonderful tale, so masterfully told... When I turned the last page, I sighed with pleasure and regret that the story was over."
Maree Anderson, mareeanderson.com
" ... a boldly written, tightly plotted, and hard-edged novel ... The book is unflinching in its emotional effect ..."
Quill & Quire
"Shapeshifter has an awful lot going for it. The story is compelling, the characters involving, the plot twists make sense, and the
suspense is really, really suspenseful."
Paperjam
"The story itself is beautiful and adventure-filled and Bennett's magic transports us... Bennett's voice here is confident, her
direction clear, she never misses a beat of this rich and gorgeous tale."
January magazine
"I was completely in love with this story from start to finish... One of my favourite reads all year."
wordpress.com
"A great story, and one I have to praise highly to anyone who enjoys the type of high fantasy which brings out the truly bright
and noble in every station of life."
CM magazine
"The enchantment of Bennett's interpretation of the legend of Sive is a perfect match to her prose which, at times, is as liquid as
we imagine Sive's songs to be."
VOYA
"A wonderful tale, so masterfully told... When I turned the last page, I sighed with pleasure and regret that the story was over."
Maree Anderson, mareeanderson.com
" ... a boldly written, tightly plotted, and hard-edged novel ... The book is unflinching in its emotional effect ..."
Quill & Quire
"Shapeshifter has an awful lot going for it. The story is compelling, the characters involving, the plot twists make sense, and the
suspense is really, really suspenseful."
Paperjam
"The story itself is beautiful and adventure-filled and Bennett's magic transports us... Bennett's voice here is confident, her
direction clear, she never misses a beat of this rich and gorgeous tale."
January magazine
"I was completely in love with this story from start to finish... One of my favourite reads all year."
wordpress.com
"A great story, and one I have to praise highly to anyone who enjoys the type of high fantasy which brings out the truly bright
and noble in every station of life."
CM magazine
| For a look at some of the actual locations in Shapeshifter (as they appear today, of course), click this photo. |
Excerpt from Shapeshifter
WHEN SHE FIRST SAW Far Doirche, it was not the handsome
green-eyed sorcerer who caught her attention, but the ragged
boy who trailed at his heel...
(click to read more)
WHEN SHE FIRST SAW Far Doirche, it was not the handsome
green-eyed sorcerer who caught her attention, but the ragged
boy who trailed at his heel...
(click to read more)
Red Deer
White-Tailed Deer
| Photo: The Forbidden Corner |
| Photo: c. iStockphoto.com/ Raymond Truelove |