What if at the edge of death, you were given a new life?
Ten-year-old Sam is about to be chosen to carry on a magical tradition that's been hidden for centuries. When he crosses paths with the precocious Arabella, neither knows a series of events has been set in motion by strangers hundreds of miles away.Â
A destiny will descend upon them in the form of a feral Wolf, followed closely by a mighty woodsman and shapeshifter named John. Sam's journey will take him from loss to transformation as he is forced into a world where men are made through truth and myth, and women hold the mystical powers of nature.Â
Will Sam be able to embrace a new family, or will his killer instincts lead to his fatal downfall?
What if at the edge of death, you were given a new life?
Ten-year-old Sam is about to be chosen to carry on a magical tradition that's been hidden for centuries. When he crosses paths with the precocious Arabella, neither knows a series of events has been set in motion by strangers hundreds of miles away.Â
A destiny will descend upon them in the form of a feral Wolf, followed closely by a mighty woodsman and shapeshifter named John. Sam's journey will take him from loss to transformation as he is forced into a world where men are made through truth and myth, and women hold the mystical powers of nature.Â
Will Sam be able to embrace a new family, or will his killer instincts lead to his fatal downfall?
The Woods Outside Cunningham’s Plantation
South Carolina, Winter 1909
He was on a dead run.
Branches scraped at his arms.
Barking swelled in the distance.
In a moment, the dogs—and the men behind them—would be upon young Sam.
Fear shot through his body.
His bleached and bloodied shirt caught the moonlight and made him stand out against the trees. With his good arm, Sam pulled his shirt over his head and flung it to the ground. His dark African skin would prove an advantage in the night.
He splashed across a shallow stream and scrambled up an embankment into a small clearing, suddenly trapped by thick underbrush and briars.
There was nowhere to go.
He turned back, only to hear the barking grow louder. The water churned with the sound of what must have been a dozen dogs. At the age of twelve, this was how his life would end.
Or not.
High in the sky, the full moon threw her jagged beams through the tops of the trees. Pain pulsed a rhythm through Sam's mangled arm as a song of strength stirred deep. Blood dripped from his elbow as he raised both fists, ready to face what was coming.
Moonshine: Path of the Raven starts weaving two narratives that seem separate at first glance, but quickly intersect in an unexpected way.
One story starts with a death, as a man called Arthur draws his last breath in a small logging town in New York State. The people around him, while saddened by his death, start a ritual that will carry on his legacy.
The other thread introduces us to Sam, a hard-working and musically talented young boy working with his dad at the plantation of a rich family in South Carolina.
John, one of the lumberjacks from Arthur's town, follows an enchanted wild wolf and a sassy raven that will lead him to the one chosen to continue Arthur's magical bloodline. For young Sam, reality is about to shed several layers of mundanity and reveal a world of magic. In the small logging town of Forge, there is a place for him in a community that embraces a different pace of life: powerful lumberjacks shapeshift into wolves guided by the phases of the moon and strong, nurturing witches harness the natural forces around them. They ensure safety and longevity for their people using rituals and the guiding light of truth, honesty and education.
In order to take his rightful place in the community as the heir to Arthur's legacy, Sam must undergo his own transformation and understand his own growing powers and limitations.
The story introduces a very unique world of folklore and magic, and Forge is an exceptionally enchanting place that acts like a balm compared to the harsh reality of racial tensions, twisted power dynamics and personal tragedy that Sam experiences at the plantation. It's heartwarming to see so many kind and supportive adult characters in a young adult book. Sam himself is an absolutely disarming character that is impossible not to root for as he expresses his wonder for a world so far removed from his upbringing and yet centered around the core values instilled in him.
One of the strengths of the book is that it never overexplains the grand scale of things, instead gently taking the reader along and letting them make their own conclusions about where the story is going and what the significance of certain events is. In this way, the story becomes a mystery and adventure for the reader as well as they piece the intentions of the adults together.
The exploration of the themes of inheritance, legacy, community and found family is powerful and sure to present some really good values to young readers. While there are some more graphic scenes, especially in the context of magic and rituals, they are an integral part of the folklore embraced by the characters and gritty, but never gratuitous.
Overall, Moonshine: Path of the Raven is a refreshing take on coming of age fiction that follows the beat of its own drum and introduces the kind of magical journey not often represented in this genre.