That was fantastic!  Is the next book already out?

Those were my exact thoughts when I turned the last page of The Circle. From the first page, I was ensnared. I sat in my round chair all afternoon, with rampant FOMO on what happens next in the small town the Sidhe call home in our world. I was reluctant to put the iPad down and make dinner, and couldn't wait to settle in later that night to finish the tale—it was truly a fun read. 

Having spent time in Ireland studying folklore and history, I was already familiar with the Sidhe of legend, and Ms. Cipriano's modern twist is a wonderful adaptation. 

The story begins with the disappearance of one of three boy cousins as they play among the Sidhe and human worlds. We learn quickly that distance is not measured linearly, and passing between the realms is instantaneous. Some Sidhe have opted for leaving their mounds in favor of life in the human world, making a small North Carolina town their home instead. Calum's family is one of these, along with his cousin Hagen's family. They travel back and forth as they wish, and must, to keep their faerie powers strong.  

One aspect of the story I enjoyed was Kenzie's Siopa Leabhar, the bookstore and cafe she runs in town. For some reason, I am always drawn to stories and book covers that feature bookstores. Most likely this is because a bookstore is one of my favorite places to be, but they are often places of stability, grounding, and constant for the characters in the stories. This one is no different. Kenzie's store is a fixture in the community; a place to stop in the morning for coffee, where the protagonists study, research, and plan, and where the Sidhe realm leaves its mark on our world in the verses encoded on its shelves. A bookstore that guides a patron to the answer to their questions? I'm in! Where do I enter?