Wings to the Kingdom

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 400 pages
• Published by: Tor Books October 17, 2006
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 076531309X
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0765313096
• Book Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 1.2 inches
• Weighs: 12 ounces

From Publishers Weekly
Eden Moore sees dead people. To be more precise, she sees ghosts; and it just so happens that in her hometown of Chickamauga, Ga., ghosts seem to be a dime-a-dozen, especially at the memorial park that was once a battlefield where thousands of Confederate and Union soldiers died in the Civil War. Unexpectedly, regular folk in the county have started seeing ghosts of the fallen soldiers-all pointing off into the distance. Eden isn't keen to get involved in the matter until her demented cousin Malachi (who tried to murder her in 2003's Four and Twenty Black Birds, the first volume in this wonderfully eccentric Southern-gothic series) calls her from the local looney-bin, even more freaked out than usual after catching sight of Old Green Eyes, the local legendary supernatural creature. What is it that connects Old Green Eyes to the pointing ghosts on the battlefield? And why is someone shooting at battlefield visitors? Those questions finally entice Eden to play detective and ask the ghosts what it is they want. Priest has brought to life a spunky mixed-race young woman, who does double duty as an able detective and off-beat metaphysical magnet.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
The Civil War battlefield at Chickamauga, Georgia, where thousands of Confederate and Union soldiers died, is the country's oldest national military park. There have long been tales of sighting Old Green Eyes, said to be the guardian of the battle's dead, and now there's a new wrinkle. To wit, sightings of ghosts trying to communicate vocally but ultimately resorting to pointing frustratedly across the battlefield. What do they want? Enter Eden Moore, first introduced in Priest's Four and Twenty Blackbirds (2005), who enlists the aid of a couple of college classmates to try to photograph and record the ghosts. All hell breaks loose as a pair of celebrity ghost hunters shows up, and also a crazed killer shooting at anything that moves on the field. The plot, which begins slowly by setting the stage, builds a roiling crescendo and climaxes in an explosive scene at the top of the tower at the battlefield's edge. The flamboyant mix of ghosts, the preternatural Old Green Eyes, and murder keeps one on edge. Sally Estes
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Reader Reviews
Priests second novel, a follow-up to her bestselling debut Four & Twenty Blackbirds, will be more accessible to many casual readers without alienating her fans, or horror buffs. Where the first novel was about the lead character, Eden Moore, and her journey to find the spooky, Florida swamp voodoo, origins of her ancestors, this book is much more about a place - a civil war battlefield - and Eden's quest to find out just what will explain the spooky goings on there. Characters lead the day, and they are as real as the people you know. No stupid decisions here, they bring up exactly the questions you would have in their situation. They aren't glib wisecracking Buffy clones either.. they are just honest. Characters, combined with Priests writing style, are the strength of this novel. Priest writes with a clear, flowing, friendly style that leads the reader along like your best buddy taking you around their favorite place. Priest is having fun doing this, and you have fun on the ride she takes you on. This isn't as complex a story as 4&20, and is a little slower, but it is a fun read, and stands up on its own without much help from the first novel. Some small characters from that first book have larger parts in this, and the large cast helps the novel move rather than slowing it down. While it would have benefited from another subplot to add extra complexity to the book I would still recommend it as a top notch ghost story that doesn't need to resort to gore and horror to make its point. This is after all about a mystery, and its a great one - especially as it has ghosts, monsters, and realistic characters. Priests third Eden Moore novel is due in late 2007, with a couple of other works planned in between. This reviewer can't wait for more.