The Gold-Son

Gr 7 Up—Cursed at birth by a leprechaun, Tommin discovers the truth behind his insatiable desire for gold at 16 when he meets Lorcan, the one who cursed him. As Tommin gets to know a mysterious human girl named Eve, he begins to want something besides gold for the first time. Together the captive pair, along with a servant named Copper, scheme to escape from Lorcan and experience true freedom. The story centers on preventing Tommin from being forcefully turned into a leprechaun and losing his humanity. Narrated in alternating chapters by Tommin and Eve, this tale skips over key character growth because of a 200-year gap between the story's two parts. Taking place mainly in Ireland, this stand-alone novel uses traditional leprechaun fables to flesh out the fantasy world. Tommin has an uncanny ability to craft shoes, and leprechauns bury gold to produce rainbows, which satiate their cravings for gold. Noble effectively brings the Irish brogue to the page, especially in the scenes set during modern times when Tommin uses it to charm gold from humans. However, uneven pacing and clunky execution get in the way of the intriguing plot.