13 Treasures

Harrison, Michelle. 13 Treasures. 2010. 355p. 478 mins. ISBN 0-316-04148-3. Available both at FIC HAR on the shelves of the library and as an audiobook from Overdrive.

Tanya is blessed (or cursed, depending on how she feels) with the second sight, the ability to see beings from the fairy world that have crossed over to the human world and dwell among us. Ever since she could speak, she’s been trying to tell the world about the fairies that surround her, to no avail. No one believes her, and the fairies always exact their revenge by playing mean tricks on her.

Now a teen, Tanya is getting into more trouble at home as fairies discover yet one more diary she has been keeping. When her mother finds her bedroom wrecked, and with Tanya once again unable to explain what happened, she decides it’s time for Tanya to live with Florence, her grandmother for a while. Elvesden Manor is a large country house on the edge of Hangman’s Wood, in the middle of nowhere. The woods are filled with deep holes, referred to as catacombs, and many a person have fallen to their death. Tanya remembers the woods and the manor being filled with fairies, and she shudders at the thought of going back. Aside from Florence, the manor has three other human residents: Fabian, a boy her age; Warwick, Fabian’s father and the groundskeeper, and Amos, Fabian’s crazy grandfather.

The fairies at Elvesden Manor are not happy to see Tanya again, but on her first day she discovers a book about fairies in the house’s library, and an old newspaper clipping that talks about the disappearance of Morwenna Bloom over fifty years ago. Warned not to wander in the woods, Tanya and Fabian nonetheless enter them when they pursue Oberon, Tanya’s dog. Afraid that Warwick, who is out hunting in the woods, will shoot the dog, they try to follow it but become hopelessly lost. When they are found by a girl about their age wearing a green outfit, Tanya realize that Morwenna is stuck in the fairy world and needs help escaping.

But as the fairies continue their campaign against her, Tanya will need allies. Whom can she trust with her secret of second sight?