Woven in Moonlight

Plot Summary: When the Llascan king Atoc used a powerful weapon to overthrow the Illustrians, the Illustrian Condesa vowed to seek revenge. She sent a decoy, Ximena, to Atoc's capital where she has been summoned to marry the king. She plans to steal the weapon and kill Atoc so she can win back the throne for the real Condesa. However, while she is at the castle she meets an imprisoned Princessa, a masked vigilante, and other Llascans who show her that they are not all bad. Can Ximena and the others find a way to stop the war and bring the right person to the throne?

Ximena is determined to do the right thing although throughout the story "the right thing" isn't always evident to her. She has served as the Illustrian Condesa's decoy for so long that she doesn't feel like she has an identity on her own. She is both a skilled warrior and a master weaver. She has the ability to weave animals that come alive.

Author Background: Isabel Ibanez was born in Florida. Both of her parents are Bolivian immigrants. She is an avid reader, everything from Harry potter to Jane Austen. When she is not reading or writing her next book, Isabel Ibanez creates greeting cards that are sold in stores nationwide (Ibanez, n.d.).

Critical Evaluation: I'm a big fan of fantasy and this was one of my favorite books I have read. The thing about the big names in fantasy is that almost all of them are based on Medieval European history and culture. Woven in Moonlight took its mythology from Bolivian history and culture. Bolivia, like many countries has had its fair share of dictators. This book is, at its heart, a book about revolution and finding common ground between different groups of people. Working together is the best way to stop fighting and find peace. Besides, as one reviewer pointed out, who wouldn't want an animated woolen sloth as a pet (Good Reads, n.d.)? 

Speed-Round Book Talk or Short Book Trailer: Ximena has been sent as a decoy so she can kill the Llascan king Atoc and regain the throne for the Illustrian Condesa. Although Atoc is a tyrant, as she befriends some of the Llascan people in the citadel will she be able to fulfill her life's work or will she realise another path forward?

Potential Challenge Issues and Defense Preparation: Woven in Moonlight is based on Bolivian culture and politics. It suggests that warring factions and people who are different can and should work to get along with each other. In the political climate we have in the United States, being kind to others and doing what we can to smooth over differences is seen as a weakness. However, the problems that some may see with the book is also its best defense. It teaches a valuable lesson about putting aside differences in favor of becoming closer to our fellow human beings.

Reason for Inclusion: I love fantasy, but I didn't want to include books based on white Europeans from the Middle Ages or Vikings, fun as those are to read. Woven in Moonlight is a fun read from a different viewpoint that has a good moral as well.

References

AJ+. (2016, October 30). Bolivian weavers bring high tech skills to medicine. [YouTube]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rr6CVRhhCY8.

Artistrimontreal. (2010, October 20). Encounters with heritage: weaving in Bolivia. [YouTube]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxy4n2QRjYs.

Geography Now. (2015, June 30). Geography now! Bolivia. [YouTube]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJx1RcIO61I.

Good Reads. (n.d.). Woven in moonlight. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40877706-woven-in-moonlight?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=XdibE4O9je&rank=1. 

Ibanez, I. (n.d.). About. http://isabelibanez.com/about.