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Fairywing
High School sucks! It sucks even more for Drusilla Bonnet, a transgender witch. Catching the eye of Michael Prince, an attractive new comer isn't helping matters. Drusilla is torn between following her heart, and her fears, Drusilla must navigate the difficulties of home and school life alike. All while trying to keep her sister Mary from spinning out of control. Between dunking on Michael Prince and fighting for Mary's affection George Geppetto has a lot on his plate. When the bodies start to pile up the four of them must work together, or be lost in the trees forever.
- GenresFantasyContemporary
236 pages, Paperback
Published December 5, 2020
2 people are currently reading
16 people want to read
About the author
D.H. Torkavian
5 books8 followersD.H. Torkavian was born in the dead of winter under the auspicious sign of the quarter moon. Most of her family was woefully unprepared for the baby bundle of transgender realness. Her mummum was the only one who understood her growing up. At a young age Mummum thought her the finer points of being a proper Norwegian house wife and witchcraft. All of this was done in secret. Her childhood was split between New Jersey and California as her mummum fell ill.
When Mummum died, D.H. Torkavian was devastated. At the age of 12, D.H. Torkavian began writing to cope with the loss, despite not being able to read or write. Despite this hurdle, D.H. Torkavian pressed on and was eventually published in her high school newspaper and literary magazine. In college she was a top editor and contributor for her college literary magazine, Rewrites.
D.H. Torkavian has also been a contributor for The Press of Atlantic City, Heaven Sent Gaming, and The Geek Initiative.
D.H. Torkavian currently holds court in coffee shops in the Pacific North West. She is often found drinking hot chocolate and hoping for rain.
When Mummum died, D.H. Torkavian was devastated. At the age of 12, D.H. Torkavian began writing to cope with the loss, despite not being able to read or write. Despite this hurdle, D.H. Torkavian pressed on and was eventually published in her high school newspaper and literary magazine. In college she was a top editor and contributor for her college literary magazine, Rewrites.
D.H. Torkavian has also been a contributor for The Press of Atlantic City, Heaven Sent Gaming, and The Geek Initiative.
D.H. Torkavian currently holds court in coffee shops in the Pacific North West. She is often found drinking hot chocolate and hoping for rain.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
March 23, 2021
I have never written one of these before - so please be kind.
I loved Fairywing. I was privileged to get to proofread this book before publication. I have been looking forward to this publication day ever since. Each character is well rounded and have interesting story arcs. There are layers of meaning and nuance throughout the book. Fairywing is magical in every sense of the word. This is the perfect little book for curling up on a rainy day or to take out to the park to read amongst the shady trees.
I loved Fairywing. I was privileged to get to proofread this book before publication. I have been looking forward to this publication day ever since. Each character is well rounded and have interesting story arcs. There are layers of meaning and nuance throughout the book. Fairywing is magical in every sense of the word. This is the perfect little book for curling up on a rainy day or to take out to the park to read amongst the shady trees.
March 24, 2021
This is a fun read. The characters are realistic and fun. It was great to see a transgender character find love and for it to end happily ever after!
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February 16, 2022This is not a normal genre for me, but it was a fun read. I was pulled in by the characters, especially Drusilla and Michael. It was great to see their relationship develop.
March 24, 2021
I had the honor and opportunity to read this book before it's official release date and I loved being a part of the process. I am not an avid reader, but this book had me within the first two pages. It throws you straight into the mystery of a magical world where puzzling out the motivations of the characters is its own adventure. The character depth and personalities are a big draw for this story, as well as the world-building. The conflicts between the characters and the town are intense, with plenty of comedic relief and opportunities to let the story breathe. Highly recommend reading this book!
September 13, 2021
I applaud the author for their accomplishment. Publishing a book is a journey and quest all its own. I sadly wasn't able to finish this novel. That being said, I learned some things because of this novel. I learned I had some triggers that I was unaware of. I also learned that I need to interview Trans members of my community so I can do a better job as an author giving my books diversity. This novel has made me think about how I handle some members of the LGBTQ characters in my novel. Please give this novel and try. Me not being able to finish the novel was on me as a reader, not the author.
July 18, 2021
brilliant fantasy novel
I really liked the main characters and always love a fairy tale setting so this book was made for me.
I really liked the main characters and always love a fairy tale setting so this book was made for me.
October 20, 2021
(Disclaimer re my memory: I meant to review this back when I first read it and it was fresh in my mind, but better late than never! See the end for potential triggers for readers and bias disclosures on my part.)
I don't read a lot of self-published novels, and I read even fewer novels about teenagers in contemporary high school settings (even with magic) - these days I mostly read scifi about legal adults and/or artificial intelligences - but the blurb intrigued me and I ended up reading it in a binge in one afternoon despite really struggling with finishing ANY books lately, so clearly I found it really compelling!
Dru and Mary in particular feel like very real people and have a complicated sister relationship (probably facilitated by some trauma bonding due to their shitty home life), and I loved how their relationship and characters developed as they dealt with some of their issues and tried to survive (literally) high school. I really, really love Dru, who is wounded, prickly, and angry as fuck (love me some righteously angry female characters!) but who learns that she doesn't actually have to push everyone away to protect herself emotionally.
The writing is easy to read and the dialogue in particular is snappy; it's also pretty well proofread, aside from a few repeated errors I found slightly distracting. There were several bits that made me laugh out loud. The plot progresses from interpersonal high school issues to things getting more and more supernaturally weird and then SUPER weird at the end, in a way that definitely made me curious about the world and want to see more of it. I did find the pacing a little odd at times - it was a little hard to follow the climax because things went from slightly weird to SUPER weird very abruptly, many things happened at once, and I'm not sure all the loose ends were tied up. I also thought Michael was described physically more like a 20-something gym rat than a high school boy and I found his pretty hard to buy for a minor in a world that seemed to be superficially like ours but with witches, but overall, I found the book to be emotionally resonant about some pretty heavy trauma, I enjoyed the characters and especially Dru and Mary's relationship, and I'm looking forward to seeing how Torkavian's work evolves in the future. Also, I loved that Mary got a
Potential triggers for some readers:
Bias disclosures: I've met the author briefly and chatted but don't know her well.
I don't read a lot of self-published novels, and I read even fewer novels about teenagers in contemporary high school settings (even with magic) - these days I mostly read scifi about legal adults and/or artificial intelligences - but the blurb intrigued me and I ended up reading it in a binge in one afternoon despite really struggling with finishing ANY books lately, so clearly I found it really compelling!
Dru and Mary in particular feel like very real people and have a complicated sister relationship (probably facilitated by some trauma bonding due to their shitty home life), and I loved how their relationship and characters developed as they dealt with some of their issues and tried to survive (literally) high school. I really, really love Dru, who is wounded, prickly, and angry as fuck (love me some righteously angry female characters!) but who learns that she doesn't actually have to push everyone away to protect herself emotionally.
The writing is easy to read and the dialogue in particular is snappy; it's also pretty well proofread, aside from a few repeated errors I found slightly distracting. There were several bits that made me laugh out loud. The plot progresses from interpersonal high school issues to things getting more and more supernaturally weird and then SUPER weird at the end, in a way that definitely made me curious about the world and want to see more of it. I did find the pacing a little odd at times - it was a little hard to follow the climax because things went from slightly weird to SUPER weird very abruptly, many things happened at once, and I'm not sure all the loose ends were tied up. I also thought Michael was described physically more like a 20-something gym rat than a high school boy and I found his pretty hard to buy for a minor in a world that seemed to be superficially like ours but with witches, but overall, I found the book to be emotionally resonant about some pretty heavy trauma, I enjoyed the characters and especially Dru and Mary's relationship, and I'm looking forward to seeing how Torkavian's work evolves in the future. Also, I loved that Mary got a
Potential triggers for some readers:
Bias disclosures: I've met the author briefly and chatted but don't know her well.
July 18, 2021
A very readable high-school/fantasy/mystery/love/queer story that used familiar fairy tales to create a unique novel.
April 23, 2021
4.5 stars! This was a really fun debut from DH Torkavian and I enjoyed it! Drama, magic, and camaraderie, three things I love. The ensemble cast was juggled really well and I loved the loving yet antagonistic sistership between Drusilla and Mary. Also, I loved how she snuck in all these great nursery rhyme and fairytale easter eggs throughout the story.
I hope the author explores this world some more in later books. I have so many questions about how the magic works, where it fits in with our world, and if other fairytales are lurking about. A super fun book!
I hope the author explores this world some more in later books. I have so many questions about how the magic works, where it fits in with our world, and if other fairytales are lurking about. A super fun book!
July 14, 2024
DNF at page 64
There is no character in this book that I like.
There is no character in this book that I like.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews