Review: Halo

Author: Zizou Corder
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Release date: 4th Feb 2010 UK
Target audience: 10+

Summary from Amazon:
Washed ashore as a baby in ancient Greece, Halo is discovered by a family of centaurs. Although her true identity remains a mystery, she is loved as one of their own. But when Halo is dragged away by fishermen, her wild adventure begins . . . Halo soon realizes that if she is to survive then she must live in disguise – as a boy. A violent war is threatening to erupt and Halo is at the mercy of the mighty Spartan warriors. And as she battles to hide her secret, Halo never forgets her quest to find out who she is – and where she really came from.

Review:
Young Halo is found washed up on the shore of Zakynthos by Kyllarus, a centaur. She is taken in by the centaurs and educated in their ways. She grows up as an adopted child of Kyllarus and develops a strong bond with her centaur brother Arko. Together the roam and explore the joys of their Greek island, until one day fishermen come and take Halo as a slave. As the story develops, Halo comes to believe that she will only be taken into slavery if she is discovered to be a girl, so she hides her true gender and sets out in search of her true identity as a boy.

I had been waiting to read this book having read an interview with the authors in Puffin Post back in January. As a historical fantasy and a novel bursting with Greek mythology, it should have been a complete hit with me. Unfortunately, most of the novel fell flat and I wondered if I would be able to read to the end.

Halo is not the most interesting of characters. She is enslaved too easily. I felt there was not enough resistance from her in the beginning. This could be attributed to her being socialised by centaurs who are a peaceful race. As the novel develops, Halo grows and becomes accustomed to the angry and violent ways of human society. I found Leonidas much more intriguing. He is a Spartan boy who breaks the laws of his training by helping Halo. He too, is a product of his socialisation as he thinks in terms of his life as duty bound to his comrades. I was quite fascinated by him (as was Halo).

The middle of the book lacked any gusto. I really don't enjoy stories that take us from one place, to another and then another. It was at this point that I started to worry about the fact that I had picked this book for my student book group. If it wasn't holding my attention, how would my rather more discerning students react? However, I put aside my doubt and carried on reading. Once I got to about page 300, I finally became interested. Halo was still hiding her gender but in doing so, she was experiencing the freedoms of Athenian men. She was riddled with guilt about her deceit but reluctant to give up that which she had proven her talent for. I wanted Halo to be true to herself but also have those freedoms that women were denied. The novel explored the issue of freedom and slavery and by the end, it did matter to me what happened to Halo. I happily raced to the end of the book and was satisfied by the outcome.

Overall, this is a read that takes patience and perseverance. The middle is lacking in pace and action but the end was exciting and enjoyable. This may appeal to fans of Ancient Greek stories. Other than the existence of the centaurs this book does not have any fantastical elements or magic and so may not appeal to fans of historical fantasies in general.