The Wicked Lies of Habren Faire

Anna Fiteni’s The Wicked Lies of Habren Faire is a YA fantasy adventure that mixes Welsh mythology with a nineteenth-century setting. The story begins in Cardiff, where sisters Sabrina and Ceridwen watch their father sentenced to ten years’ transportation for joining a miners’ protest. With their grandmother, the girls return to their village facing poverty and an uncertain future.

Sabrina, the younger sister, has grown up caring for Ceridwen, who is delicate and often unwell and expects her own life to be one of service and struggle. That changes when Ceridwen disappears one night, and Sabrina follows her into a strange world that is nothing like the one she knows but is full of the stories she has been told growing up.

This new realm is full of creatures taken from myth and faerie tale. Sabrina comes across giant toads, mermaids, horses, and elves, each encounter carrying danger as well as discovery. The story moves quickly from one episode to the next, giving the sense of a journey through a shifting, unpredictable landscape. While the fantasy elements provide plenty of colour and atmosphere, the story never completely lets go of its historical roots. The shadow of the mine disaster and the harsh realities of class and survival remain in the background.

Sabrina is the heart of the novel, and her journey is as much about her own identity and self-discovery as it is about rescuing her sister. She begins the story certain that her life will be narrow and predetermined by her appearance, but as she navigates the faerie world she gradually learns to recognise her own abilities and strength and bravely completes what at first appears to be an impossible quest.

Fiteni draws on Welsh myth to give the story a distinct flavour. The settings and creatures feel rooted in tradition but are made accessible for today’s readers, with all the elements of the fantasy genre. The book is written in a straightforward style that keeps the pace brisk and the action easy to follow, which will appeal to readers who enjoy plot-driven adventures with romance and fantasy.

The Wicked Lies of Habren Faire doesn’t linger too long on any single scene or idea, preferring to keep the story moving. But it remains an engaging read, balancing a sense of history and of Wales across time, with the excitement of faerie tale adventure. It will likely appeal to fans of folklore-inspired fantasy and readers looking for a story that combines myth, romance, family, and fast-paced adventure.