Keturah and Lord Death -- Martine Leavitt

Keturah -- beautiful, sixteen, the village storyteller -- follows a hart into the forest and quickly loses her way.  After three days, she is exhausted and starving.  She knows that death can't be far away.

But when he finally comes for her, she finds that Death is a young man -- melancholy and brooding, lonely and not without compassion.  Keturah tells him a story, and they strike a bargain:  He will allow her to live one more day.  If, in that time, she hasn't found and married her One True Love, she will return to him, finish her story, and become his Queen.

Keturah becomes a Scheherezade of sorts, spinning out her story and escaping Lord Death again and again.  But her fellow villagers are aware of her new acquaintance. The relationship terrifies them.  Rumors fly.

And a plague is coming.

Keturah and Lord Death has a bit of everything -- bravery, love, romance, comfort, magic and sacrifice.  The storytelling is such that, given the right reader, it'll make a fantastic audiobook. 

Though it isn't technically a retelling of another story (as far as I know), I'll be recommending it to readers who are drawn to Donna Jo Napoli, Robin McKinley and older fans of Gail Carson Levine.  I'm also going to try it on some of my Twilight girls.  Stylistically, they're very different books, but the dark romance is similarly attractive.

The prologue suggests that Keturah herself is telling the story at a village gathering -- she is a storyteller, has the same name as the heroine, the names of her friends at the gathering are the names of her friends in the story -- and that the story of Lord Death is entirely her own creation. By the end, I was so wrapped up in it that I was convinced that the story was a true one -- it just HAD to be -- I just couldn't bear to think of Keturah and Lord Death as imaginary creations. 

Mark of a good storyteller, no?

Comments

[Emmaco]

Sorry for the belated comment. I just finished re-reading Leavitt's wonderful Dollmage and vaguely recalled you had reviewed one of her books. This one sounds great as well - thanks for the heads up!

[Wasabi]

I read this book and it was oh-so amazing. I was a Twiligh fan too, so I definitely recommand it. Although it did not break my heart nor had any funny incidents, it was very compelling and beautiful. I double dare you to read it!

[Adelaide]

I am a Twilight girl lol. This book was recommended by the same teacher who led me to Twilight. This is another story of an ordinary girl falling for an impossibly dark but beautiful man. Defintely worth the read.

[Wren]

Also a Twilight fan here. This book was amazing, I highly recommend it. Definetly one I'll be rereading.

[Maddie Unknown]

Personaly I LOVED this book and I read twilight and also loved that.

[Coannis Blane]

LOL! I just relized on the cover there kissing. LOVE IT!

[vam]

I am a twilight fan, but this is the only book that has me re-reading over and over again. No matter how many times, every time I read it I feel like it's the first time picking up the book.
Though I wish the story could have been longer I have to say it's a must read.

[E]

I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!!!!!!
If there was an audition for it i would definatly enter!!!