Cat Sidhe by Jeff Chapman

Wonderfully written fantasy novel.
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Blurb: “A human spirit banished to the body of a cat.
Merliss has seen centuries of change, centuries of trouble.
Something nasty has come through one of the ley gates. It walks upright. It talks. And it looks like an oversized cat, but as Merliss can attest, it doesn't smell like a cat.
It's a cat sidhe on the hunt for slaves, anyone with opposable thumbs. Merliss travels to unknown territories to rescue a friend and encounters more trouble making her way home. The situation on the moors is far more dire than Merliss and her friends could have imagined.”

Where can we find human spirits? In this fantasy paranormal adventure, they are in the bodies of animals and birds. The main protagonist is Merliss, a human spirit banished to the body of a cat. She, the cat, is supposed to be centuries old that she alone can’t remember anymore. Already from the beginning, we meet Saerwynn, Farland’s apprentice that she is yet to discover her gifts. The main problem is their encounter with a bad creature, a cat sidhe, a witch that shifted too many times into the shape of a cat. Not at all a regular cat. A mean, killer oversized cat. Merliss decides to go after the sidhe and save Saerwynn but she falls into several traps on the way, bordering with great dangers and we are yet to find if she survived. As the story unfolds we meet other characters too, animals or humans.

The story is dark at moments. The descriptions of the places and the characters are wonderfully written. I may not be a big fan of fantasy but the author deserves my respect for his imagination and writing skills.

Type of reader: Fans of fantasy adventures searching for something new.

Quotes from this book:

“Tell me. What do you profit from our bargain?” “Why, a friend,” said the pooka without a moment’s hesitation. “The value of a true friend exceeds their weight in gold or some such wisdom.” “I’ll owe you a favor,” said Saerwynn. “There will be no debts among friends. If you must think of my kindness as a transaction, consider it a favor to Merliss, first among felines of the moor.”

“I believe your gifts will bring wisdom to your work. Time will answer. Patience before uncertainty is a hard lesson to learn. Let your gifts guide you in their own time.”

“There are many kinds of fear. Sometimes it drives you to feats you didn’t think possible. Sometimes you cower behind it. Fear is natural. You cannot suppress it, but you must be the master of your fear. If it does not work for you, it will kill you.”

My rating: 4/5.

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