The Faerie Ring (Faerie Ring, #1)by Kiki Hamilton

The year is 1871, and Tiki has been making a home for herself and her family of orphans in a deserted hideaway adjoining Charing Cross Station in central London. Their only means of survival is by picking pockets. One December night, Tiki steals a ring, and sets off a chain of events that could lead to all-out war with the Fey. For the ring belongs to Queen Victoria, and it binds the rulers of England and the realm of Faerie to peace. With the ring missing, a rebel group of faeries hopes to break the treaty with dark magic and blood—Tiki’s blood.Unbeknownst to Tiki, she is being watched—and protected—by Rieker, a fellow thief who suspects she is involved in the disappearance of the ring. Rieker has secrets of his own, and Tiki is not all that she appears to be. Her very existence haunts Prince Leopold, the Queen’s son, who is driven to know more about the mysterious mark that encircles her wrist.Prince, pauper, and thief—all must work together to secure the treaty… (goodreads.com)

I liked The Faerie Ring a whole bunch, though I didn't love it to pieces like I hoped I would. This could be because I'm in Cranky Reading Mood lately and I am finding that stories I normally go ga-ga over aren't quite doing it for me.Thing is, The Faerie Ring is a great story set in the 19th century and it has a cast of characters that I cared quite a bit about. If I had to pick one thing that didn't work for me, it was that I didn't feel like I was in 19th century England. That element of the story was faint. Paul Crilley's Invisible Order is a smilar setting and yet I felt more transported into the past with his book that I did with the one I'm writing about right now.Other than that, I enjoyed most everything else with the story. Tiki (which was a little too close to the author's name for my liking) was a very kind and thoughtful main character. I loved her family of street kids as well. I was concerned for little Clara when she took ill and was kidnapped by the delightfully creepy Larkin. Nothing fills a story with awesome more than a deranged faerie. (Also, I really love the name Larkin!)I am certainly happy that I bought this book and that it's just one more 2011 debut book that did not disappoint. I have to admit, I am a person who tends to stick to the same authors over and over again. I don't like to take chances on new authors because I'm a creature of habit. The YA Debut Author Challenge has helped me branch out and taste what else is available in the literature world. If it weren't for that I don't think I'd be wandering the stores picking up new authors off the shelf. I do once in a while, if a cover catches my eye, but for the most part, I stick with my "safe" authors. I am now at the point that I have a whole slew of new "safe" authors because I gave them a chance. Kiki Hamilton has made that list and I look forward to more books in this series as well as anything new she might put out.I realize this is a rather vague and lame blog post about the book, but I just don't know what to say about it that won't reveal things from the story that I want you to enjoy and experience for yourself! It's a lovely book that will keep you reading from start to finish without wanting to put it down. You will feel a range of emotions during the journey and when you're done, you'll wish it was NEXT YEAR ALREADY. Book two, please.PET PEEVE ANNOUNCEMENT: Can I just take a moment here and send a little note out to publishers about something that's become quite the pet peeve of mine? *ahem* I am TIRED of series titles that are the SAME AS THE FIRST BOOK. Ugh. This first book is called The Faerie Ring, right? And the SERIES is titled, The Faerie Ring. This makes me cranky. I'm feeling especially cranky right now because of a whole lot of stupid going on in my personal life, so it's branching out into other aspects of my life. Can we please try and find some creative way to differentiate between the title of the first book in a series and the name of the series itself? It's not that hard, people. Come on. I feel like the entire package of books in a series should be called something other than the title of the first book. Am I the only one this bothers? Am I just being too picky? IT JUST REALLY BUGS ME! That is all. Thank you for your time.The Faerie Ring

1. The Faerie Ring
2. The Torn Ring - 2012
3. The Tara Stone - 2013
4. The Endgame - 2014