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Amazon.co.uk Review
There is a way into Faerie, beyond the fields we know, and it lies in a village called Wall, somewhere in the early Victorian era. Every nine years there is a fair on the other side of the wall, where Faerie sells its wares to the mundane. Farmer Duncan Thorne had his moment of mad love with a witch's bondservant; Tristan, his son, turned up in a basket nine months later. Now Tristan is old enough to fall in love, and promises Victoria a falling star... This is a fairy story in the tradition of George MacDonald and Hope Mirlees; a book of passion and terror and wit which reminds us that Faerie is not a safe place, or a fair one. And at its edges there lurk other stories--Neil Gaiman's work in comics and television has previously shown his capacity to evoke mystery and glorious magic by telling us just enough and no more, but he excels himself here. Charles Vess's illustrations, (Vess collaborated with Gaiman on key episodes of The Sandman), have charm and occasionally more--the stars dance, Pan looms from the forest, a witch queen rides a chariot driven by goats and Tristan journeys by candlelight leagues at a step. --Roz Kaveney

Susanna Clarke
‘In prose that dances and dazzles, Gaiman describes the indescribable: the eerie colours, ravishing scents and dangerous laughter of Faerie’

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56 Reviews 5 star:  (36) 4 star:  (17) 3 star:  (3) 2 star:    (0) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review (56 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews   39 of 39 people found the following review helpful: An Adult Fairytale, 13 Aug 2007 By  C. Green "happily low brow" (Faringdon, Oxon, UK) - See all my reviews          If you exclude 'Good Omens' when I was about fifteen (during my Terry Pratchett phase) Stardust is the first Neil Gaiman novel I have read. I have subsequently gone on to read 'Neverwhere' and 'American Gods' is on my wish list to be purchased when I have made some headway through the backlog of books by my bed. The fact that I am willingly investing time and money on Gaiman's back catalogue is testimony to how much I enjoyed Stardust. A true 'adult fairy tale', this is not a Harry Potter or Lyra adventure that has been written for children but is read by adults. With a modicum of proper sex, plenty of deaths, and the odd bit of swearing this is very much aimed at grown ups (although it will also be suitable for most teenagers). That doesn't mean however, that it lacks magic. Stardust is a book teeming with a sense of wonder, enchantment and mystery. From witches to sky pirates to magical candles to very human (and slightly irritated) falling stars, the book creates a wholly original, fantastical world. It also does it with style, wit and a sense of poetry. There is none of the flat prose style that can often hamstring fantasy novels. The narration flows in such a way that you find yourself swept along with the story, entertained as much by the language as by the action it describes. Nor does the book try to explain everything; Gaiman apparently being aware that the fun of magic and fantasy is as much what you're not shown as what you are. Readers are trusted to suspend their disbelief and just go with concepts such as witches who can turn people into goats and goats into people or a fantasy realm beyond a wall in Northern English village. It helps that the central story, of one young man's quest for a gift for the woman he believes he loves and the journey of growth and self discovery that results from it, is both a familiar and an a compelling one. Although it is a slight tale, Gaiman is careful to give his characters real depth & humanity, even the inhuman ones, allowing readers to invest in their stories. By the end you find yourself caring for their eventual fates and cheering a resolution that is emotionally satisfying without being pat. Of course some readers may find the whole concept somewhat ridiculous, or be put off by the fact that Stardust is unabashed fantasy. This isn't however, some doorstep sized, sub-Tolkien epic tome. With a story with true heart, moments that will make you laugh (or at least snigger) out loud, a hint of real darkness, and a true sense of adventure, this is a book that should have something that appeals to all adults...young and old  Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? (Report this)   28 of 30 people found the following review helpful: A quest in faerieland, 19 Feb 2006 By  Stephen A. Haines (Ottawa, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews       In fantasy writing, the quest is an established cliché. Neil Gaiman has the enviable ability to rise above clichés, presenting the story of a real man in bizarre circumstances. Although born of a faerie mother, Tristran's only power is persistence, a quality any human can emulate. He seeks a fallen star, which any of us would assume would be but a bit of iron rock. This one, when finally retrieved, turns out to be an astral nymph of very human temperment. Along his way, Tristran skirts a dispute over a royal inheritance, encounters a witch of supremely wicked deviousness and helpful gnome. The cast is as complete as any fantasy tale. Gaiman manages to breathe fresh spirit into this array of characters, lifting them from the common images often found in such tales. My introduction to Gaiman was his collaboration with Terry Pratchett in Good Omens. Without prior experience of his work, it was difficult to separate the input of each author. This book demonstrates PTerry's wisdom in choosing Gaiman to relate that tale of Armageddon. Gaiman has a fine prose style and draws his characters with skill. His wit is excellent, demonstrated in his resolution of the problem of how to have a week of two Mondays. This is a fine read for young and older alike. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]  Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? (Report this)   18 of 19 people found the following review helpful: Shimmering Stardust, 19 Jun 2007 By  E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews       This review is from: Stardust (Paperback) Fairy tales tend to lose their sparkle when they're made into books for adults. But Neil Gaiman creates his own sparkling fairy tale in "Stardust," an entrancing fantasy tale that never loses its magic. With beautiful prose, likable characters, and a mesh of the grotesque and the ethereal, this is Gaiman's reworking of fairy tales -- with a slight wink to the readers. Years ago, Dunstan Thorn fell in love with a beautiful slave from across the Wall. Nine months later, he got a baby boy on his doorstep. His son Tristan grows up unaware of his heritage, and longs for the beautiful, frosty Victoria Forester. When she rejects him, he makes a rash promise -- he'll pursue a fallen star over the Wall and bring it back to her, if she gives him her hand.