♥ Amazon Top 10 Book of the Year
An epic tale of faerie, full of love, lies, betrayal and (most of all) friendship. Werlin’s themes include abusive relationships, religious tolerance and the intricacies of female friendship. A heartbreaking story of the difference between being ordinary and extraordinary.”
—Romantic Times (four stars, Sept. 2010)
Top Ten Autumn 2010 Kids’ Indie Next List: “What on the surface is a highly enjoyable story of suspense involving a covert mission of faery siblings and the mysterious debt that must be paid by a human teen, becomes a subtle yet vital examination of dating violence and esteem issues in adolescent girls. This should be on high school reading lists everywhere. Extraordinary, indeed!”
—Beth Simpson, Cornerstone Books, Salem, MA
“National Book Award finalist Nancy Werlin has crafted an enchanting novel of friendship and loyalties, where family history determines the fate of many and a generations-old pact requires a sacrifice of the greatest proportion. With underlying themes of self-discovery and allegiance, there is more to Extraordinary than first meets the eye.”
—Amazon September Best of the Month
“Characterizations are arresting and complex: Phoebe, thoughtful and loyal, is bravely compassionate; Mallory, divided and determined, elicits reluctant sympathy; and Ryland, controlling and manipulative, is scarily realistic. Werlin’s intricately constructed plot combines fairy lore, family history, and coming of age in an engrossing, often suspenseful story that moves smoothly to its inevitable end. Phoebe’s intellectual and emotional transformation from ordinary to extraordinary is of her own volition, which makes her the compelling force of this bittersweet fairy tale.”
—School Library Journal, starred review, Oct. 2010
“Medieval Jewish history, ethical questions, faeries, modern romance. Whew! In the hands of a less talented author, this would be a hot mess. Happily, Werlin crafts her characters so deftly and unrolls the story so cleverly that … readers will be under the spell till the end.”
—Booklist (July, 2010)
“A present-day teen’s search for self collides with a magical faerie world in this suspenseful fantasy … Werlin smoothly blends contemporary realism and fantasy, here basing the story on the real historical figure Mayer Rothschild and spinning his family’s extraordinary success into a supernatural bargain. … Phoebe’s final reckoning with the faeries tests her own inner strength; ultimately her survival depends on it — just as in the real world.”
—Horn Book (Sept/Oct, 2010)
“[A] history of the powerful Rothschild family, and by extension, much of modern Jewish experience, set into a story about a life-and-death deal made with the Fairy Queen. Weird, but it works.”
—L.A. Times (Sept. 12, 2010)
“Beguiling . . . This proudly Jewish fantasy offers a compelling tale of friendship and a refreshing antidote to faerie stories about that one special girl deserving of supernatural love.”
—Kirkus (Sept, 2010)
“Werlin adeptly explores the interconnections between the realms of humans and faeries, creating not only a rich fantasy world but also an examination of family, religious heritage and friendship that transcends genre. Werlin’s faerie novels are haunting, suspenseful and provocative; readers are sure to hope for another opportunity to venture with her into the faerie realm.”
—BookPage (Sept. 2010)
“[As] an avid mystery and fantasy reader, I can’t recall a single book with a Jewish main character that wasn’t about being Jewish, rather than about finding magic or solving crimes…. It starts out as a compulsively readable tale of friendship and loyalty, then gradually turns into a mesmerizing psychological thriller.”
—Leah Cypess, The Jewish Advocate (Sept. 3, 2010)
“Exquisite development of the main characters. Mallory is, simply put, a piece of work, a hero and a villain at once, and her actions and the concluding scene will have readers questioning what they themselves would do under extraordinary circumstances.”
—BCCB (Oct, 2010)