The Halfling by H.D. Gordon – A Book Review

Posted August 6, 2020 by Booksandblurbs in Reviews, Urban Fantasy, YA / 0 Comments

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The Halfling

(The Aria Fae Series – Book 1)

by H.D. Gordon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

SuperHero Urban Fantasy, YA
Available on Kindle and Kindle Unlimited

Down & Dirty

Excommunicated and exiled, 17 year old Aria Fae is just trying to survive the human world… and the last year of high school. Free on Kindle Unlimited.

What is it about?

(Blurb from GoodReads)

HALF HUMAN, HALF FAE, TOTAL BADASS.

17-year-old Aria Fae is no stranger to danger. She’s super fast and strong, and has supernatural abilities that come along with being half faerie.

In order to help a friend, she disobeyed her superiors and has been kicked out of the secret supernatural organization that has trained her since infancy. Now, Aria is alone in the concrete jungle of Grant City—the human world where she will never quite fit in.

She’ll soon find that Grant City is full of dangers. Women are disappearing from the streets, and a new drug called black magic is turning people into supercharged maniacs.

When she meets Samantha Shy, a young computer genius, the two become fast friends, and decide to combine their abilities to make a kickass vigilante team.

But Grant City is a dark and dangerous place, and the monsters that dwell there are not going to go down without a fight.

Author’s Note:

Though the characters in The Aria Fae Series are all young adults, they deal with some disturbing themes and strong language that may be uncomfortable for some readers. For younger readers, parent discretion is advised.

Thoughts on The Halfling

This is a superhero-esque Urban Fantasy that feels like the start of something huge. It has all the right elements of a Super Hero novel, from the make shift team to the desire to ‘clean the city’ – along with the prerequisite super powers, though these stem from Fae blood, not any accident or alien intervention.

From the first chapter, this novel hits the ground running and drags the reader along for the ride. The characters may be young, but they don’t seem, or read, young. In fact, Aria is far too mature for her supposed age, and living alone at 17? Who in their right mind would rent to a 17 year old? Regardless, it’s obvious that Aria as seen and dealt with some sh*t, and little of it is good.

I kept getting the impression that there was a series previous to this one, where more foundational information could be found. The Queen, the reasons for her exile, the history of the Halflings – it’s all a bit confusing for now and I fear I am missing half the story. That aside, it is interesting enough to keep going, even if I am lacking previous knowledge. Hopefully Book 2 will make up for that and clue me in.

Perspective

First Person, Single POV

Ending Type

Episodic

Rating

PG-16

Romantic Dynamic

Not sure? M/F if anything – this is an UF and thus focused on action. Romance is a subtle plot point, but the story would read the same without its inclusion.

Character Age Range

Aria is 17, almost 18, but one of her side-kicks is 15.

My Final Verdict on The Halfling

A touch confusing, yet still thrilling, this is a Coming-of-Age SuperHero Urban Fantasy with all the foundational promise of some of the bigger names. Action filled and subtly sweet, it’s a book you an enjoy no matter your age. Free on Kindle Unlimited.