Medicine Road by Charles de Lint

CdeLint-Medicine RoadI can’t tell you what I expected when I first sat down and started reading Medicine Road by Charles de Lint; but I can tell you that I didn’t expect it to be utterly adorable and one of the sweetest love stories I’ve ever read.

Marking the return of the mischievous, red-headed Dillard twins, this bewitching fantasy entangles the lovely sisters in a 100-year wager in the Native American spirit world. Laurel and Bess are touring bluegrass musicians who encounter two mysterious strangers with a powerful secret in Tucson, Arizona. In addition to their animal natures, Jim Changing Dog and Alice Corn Hair have been given human forms by the powerful Coyote Woman, but in return they must both find their true human loves in 100 years or be exiled into the animal world alone. Although Alice has found her love, trickster Jim hasn’t been able to commit to one woman until he sets eyes on free-spirited Bess, just before the deadline. Battling time and a meddling motorcycle seductress, the two new lovers must risk intimacy and loss in their quest for love.

While it may be listed as an Urban Fantasy, Medicine Road at its core was a love story.  Jim was the quintessential rogue, never able to settle with one woman, until he laid eyes on Bess. It was love at first sight for him, but it wasn’t cheesy or unbelievable, it just was. Unlike in a typical romance novel, Jim knew he loved her and set about winning her over only for her love. He just had to do it in two weeks so that he and Alice would be able to remain human. (‘Cause it is hard to woo a woman when you’re a dog.)

Bess and her twin sister Laurel were an interesting duo that I immediately adored. Though they were identical in nearly every way, and had a brush with magic years ago, Laurel was more accepting of the magical world they were unwittingly pulled into than Bess was. That just made it all the more interesting for Jim to woo her.

The point of view changed constantly, giving other characters a chance to tell their story. Each character added a different side to the story and giving more to the plot than just Jim getting Bess to fall in love with him. Because of the continual changes, the plot never dragged. Other characters, such as Ramona, who were against Jim and Alice winning the wager, would go around trying to come up with ways to pit Jim and Bess against each other.

Though Medicine Road is listed as the fourteenth book in the Newford series, it can be read as a stand alone book. Bess and Laurel already had a bit of an adventure in Seven Wild Sisters, but there’s no overlapping plot between the two novels.

With it’s lyrical tone and beautiful descriptions, Medicine Road has instantly become one of my favorite love stories of all time. If you love love stories with a twist of fantasy then you have to read Medicine Road.

Read Order:

1. The Dreaming Place 12. Seven Wild Sisters
2. From a Whisper to a Scream 13. Tapping the Dream Tree
2. Dreams Underfoot 14. Spirits in the Wires
4. I’ll Be Watching You 15. Medicine Road
5. Memory and Dream 16. The Blue Girl
6. The Ivory and the Horn 17. The Hour Before Dawn
7. Trader 18. Widdershins
8. Someplace to be Flying 19. Promises to Keep
9. Moonlight and Vines 20. Old Man Crow
10. Forests of the Heart 21. Dingo
11. The Onion Girl 22. Muse and Reverie

Also reviewed by: Books without any Pictures, Neth Space, Bibliophile Stalker, Fantasy Cafe, We Know Books, ETC

About Casey 203 Articles
Casey is the founder of Heart Full of Ink, Director at Reading Until Dawn Con, and a full time cheese addict. She's been ranting and reviewing for Literary Escapism since 2010, and is part of the trio #3Bloggers1Series podcast. When she's not reading, looking for new books, or stalking authors online (waiting for more books), she can be found binge watching Netflix. But really, her life is all about DEM BOOKS!

1 Comment

  1. I read WIDDERSHINS a few years ago and put Charles de Lint, and this series especially, on my WWBL. And now I actually need to actively get them. Thank you for the reminder and the order in which to get them.

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