| Book Review | Jennifer Hairfield |
The
Foretelling
by Alice Hoffman
The Amazon women were a strong and powerful people of their
time. They rode horses before the world of men did and they
never lost a battle. They were frightening to watch in
battle: half woman, half horse, all warrior. This story is
about a young Queen-to-be named Rain, the offspring of a
rape of fifty men. Unfortunately, Rain's life is full of
solitude and training. Because she's the Queen-to-be the
rest of the tribe leaves her alone and treats her with
respect except for her mother, the Queen, who won't even
acknowledge her.
The reader follows Rain through puberty when she gets her
first tattoo through her first kill to her mother's death.
We go with Rain in her coming of age and her internal
conflict about becoming Queen after her mother. But is her
life all that's cracked up to be? Does she wish to be a
normal warrior in the tribe instead of the Queen-to-be?
Whatever this author pens she always creates
well-characterized characters and a very touching story. The
pacing was done very well too. I just wish it was longer.
What happened after Rain was made Queen? What about her
lover and baby brother? Do they come back? Does the world of
man finally defeat the Amazons? How gruesome would that
fight be? Being a writer myself I can see why she stopped
the story where she did but it would have been nice to have
the questions answered instead of being left hanging. But as
usual, Alice Hoffman has created another great story that
will leave a lasting impression on its reader.