Bayou Moon / Iona Andrews

Bayou Moon by Ilona Andrews
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

2020 Re-Read

The first book of the series was based on Cinderella. This one starts as The Taming of the Shrew and ends as Beauty and the Beast. During the first section of the book, we have changeling William, feeling sorry for himself, getting a new assignment, and then trying to conceal his furry nature from Cerise. She is undercover as a homeless person, on her way home to the Mire. She has a sharp intelligence, a sharp wit, and unfortunately a sharp odour as part of her disguise. She is also unconvinced that a nobleman can be anything but useless in the swamps. William is determined to be awesome enough to impress her.

Eventually, however, both William and Cerise have to drop their disguises. Just like the Beast, William has given his heart and is willing to die if Cerise is unwilling to accept him. Unlike Beauty, Cerise gets both aspects of her beloved, the wolf and the handsome nobleman.

These old story patterns have been with us a long time and as soon as we encounter one of them, we instinctively know where the story is headed. Not all fairy tales end happily, so there are losses along the way. Despite that, this couple gets their HEA. And Iona Andrews readers get the background that will stand them in good stead for their Innkeeper series.

ORIGINAL REVIEW:

One of the main things that I love about the Andrews’ female main characters is that they are very self-sufficient & competent to run their lives. They are acknowledged to be high functioning people by their families & circles of friends. Not only can they handle the vicissitudes of life, they can defend themselves and their dependents.

Another reason that I love their books? The humour. In this book, when Cerise and William first meet, they are both “undercover.” She thinks he’s an ass and secretly calls him Lord Leatherpants. She is smelling rather pungent, and William not-so-secretly calls her the Hobo Queen.

William leaned forward and pointed at the river. “I don’t know why you rolled in spaghetti sauce,” he said in a confidential voice. “I don’t really care. But that water over there won’t hurt you. Try washing it off.”
She stuck her tongue out.
“Maybe after you’re clean,” he said.
Her eyes widened. She stared at him for a long moment. A little crazy spark lit up in her dark irises.
She raised her finger, licked it, and rubbed some dirt off her forehead.
Now what?
The girl showed him her stained finger and reached toward him slowly, aiming for his face.
“No,” William said. “Bad hobo.”

There are, of course, the obligatory rocks in the romance road. As Shakespeare told us, the course of true love never did run smooth. But that line is from Midsummer Night’s Dream and the plot line of this story is more Taming of the Shrew.

View all my reviews