Wildwood Dancing
Encyclopedia
Wildwood Dancing is a young adult fantasy novel
written by author Juliet Marillier
and published by Pan Macmillan Australia
in 2006. The publication of Wildwood Dancing follows soon on the heels of previous highly-anticipated collections by Juliet Marillier
: The Sevenwaters Trilogy
and The Bridei Chronicles
.
, and tells the story of five young sisters from the ages of five to seventeen, in the first person
from the point of view of Jenica (called 'Jena'), the second sister. This time period would precede the writing of Bram Stoker
's Dracula
, and therefore Marillier's Night People would not be referred to as vampires.
to take a firm control over the castle
in which Jena and her sisters live.
Every full moon, the sisters go to the Other Kingdom, where they meet and dance with various magical creatures. Eventually, Cezar becomes so bent on revenge
for the death of his older brother Costi (who drowned ten years prior to the book) that he suggests felling the forest
around both his and his cousins' estates. In distress, Jena attempts to dissuade him from doing so. She also attempts to prevent Tati from seeing her Sorrow, her sweetheart
, who Jena believes to be one of the Night People.
In an effort to persuade her sister that it is not meant to be, Jena enlists the help of Bogdana, Nicolae's widow, to organise a party to find suitable husbands at the next Full Moon
. Jena and her younger sisters are all upset that they will miss the Full Moon dance, but none so much as Tati; she rapidly loses weight, and her personality fades into almost non-existence. Meanwhile, there was a killing in the village, which had all the markings of an attack of the Night people; reluctantly, Jena tells her sister of what Tadeusz had told her about Dark of the Moon at one of the Full Moon revels. Tati decides to use this portal at Dark of the Moon, where Jena discovers her with Tadeusz's sister, Anastasia. Frightened, the sisters are separated, and Anastasia takes Jena (unwillingly) to see Draguţsa's mirror. In the mirror, Jena learns of Sorrow's true heritage, as well as sees a vision of herself and a young man that she would come to love; the young man in this vision then changes into a horrible monster
, turning on Jena's younger sisters. Frightened, Jena flees back to the lakeside, where she meets up with Tati and Sorrow. Sorrow then sends the girls over the frozen lake and back to their own world, where they decide to visit the Dancing Glade the next month to both warn the Queen of Cezar's intentions, and ask if she could help Sorrow, and the girl who was revealed to be his younger sister.
After miserably failing to propose to (and being rejected by) Jena, Cezar works out that the entrance to the Other Kingdom is indeed in the bedchamber that Jena and her sisters share. Desperate for help, Jena sets out to the lake where Costi drowned, to seek out Dragutsa. She speaks to the old woman for a little, before she is given a powerful sleeping potion to put both the man and the chaperone to sleep on the night of the full moon. As Jena leaves, she gives Gogu a kiss on the nose; a bright flash throws both her and the frog apart. When she can see again, she finds a young man on the shore of the lake, whom she instantly knows to be Gogu; she also recognises him as the young man in the mirror, who turns into a monster. She realises that, despite knowing what he is, she loves him, and when he gives no answer, she runs away back home.
As planned, the sisters drug the man and chaperone in their bedchamber, and seek the help of the faerie Queen. Ileana tells Tati that she has set Sorrow a quest
, to be completed within one month; if he succeeds, they will be allowed to wed, and Tati to live in the Other Kingdom. Gogu is also there, and the faerie Queen reveals that he was bound by a spell of silence, giving him his voice back. Gogu then reveals to Jena that he is Costi, which she denies; however, Dragutsa later reveals that this is true. She had placed the boy under and enchantment to turn him into a frog. She then revealed that it was Jena's doubt that allowed Anastasia to manipulate the image in the mirror; Costi was not a monster, and Jena had broken his heart by claiming that he was, instead of trusting him.
Costi returns the next day and takes over his father's estate, and Cezar disappears; however, Jena is too nervous and guilty to speak to Costi. Eventually, Tati convinces her to go visit him and, on the day of the Full Moon, she does. She and Costi work out their misunderstanding, and return to Jena's home, where they take Tati to an injured Sorrow to take to the Other Kingdom. Eventually, life returns to normal, though they miss Tati. Jena's father returns home, and Jena and Costi look forward to their impending marriage
.
Fantasy literature
Fantasy literature is fantasy in written form. Historically speaking, literature has composed the majority of fantasy works. Since the 1950s however, a growing segment of the fantasy genre has taken the form of films, television programs, graphic novels, video games, music, painting, and other...
written by author Juliet Marillier
Juliet Marillier
Juliet Marillier is a New Zealand-born writer of fantasy, especially historical fantasy. She currently lives in Western Australia. While Marillier writes mostly for adults, her recent books have included Cybele's Secret, a sequel to her novel for young adults Wildwood Dancing. Cybele's Secret won...
and published by Pan Macmillan Australia
Macmillan Publishers
Macmillan Publishers Ltd, also known as The Macmillan Group, is a privately held international publishing company owned by Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing Group. It has offices in 41 countries worldwide and operates in more than thirty others.-History:...
in 2006. The publication of Wildwood Dancing follows soon on the heels of previous highly-anticipated collections by Juliet Marillier
Juliet Marillier
Juliet Marillier is a New Zealand-born writer of fantasy, especially historical fantasy. She currently lives in Western Australia. While Marillier writes mostly for adults, her recent books have included Cybele's Secret, a sequel to her novel for young adults Wildwood Dancing. Cybele's Secret won...
: The Sevenwaters Trilogy
The Sevenwaters Trilogy
The Sevenwaters Trilogy is an historical fantasy series by Juliet Marillier which was first published as a series of three novels between 1999 and 2001...
and The Bridei Chronicles
The Bridei Chronicles
The Bridei Chronicles is Juliet Marillier's third series of historical fantasy novels. They depict the tutelage by Broichan, rise to power, and reign of King Bridei I of the Picts in the sixth century....
.
Setting
Wildwood Dancing is set in early 1500s TransylvaniaTransylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
, and tells the story of five young sisters from the ages of five to seventeen, in the first person
First-person narrative
First-person point of view is a narrative mode where a story is narrated by one character at a time, speaking for and about themselves. First-person narrative may be singular, plural or multiple as well as being an authoritative, reliable or deceptive "voice" and represents point of view in the...
from the point of view of Jenica (called 'Jena'), the second sister. This time period would precede the writing of Bram Stoker
Bram Stoker
Abraham "Bram" Stoker was an Irish novelist and short story writer, best known today for his 1897 Gothic novel Dracula...
's Dracula
Dracula
Dracula is an 1897 novel by Irish author Bram Stoker.Famous for introducing the character of the vampire Count Dracula, the novel tells the story of Dracula's attempt to relocate from Transylvania to England, and the battle between Dracula and a small group of men and women led by Professor...
, and therefore Marillier's Night People would not be referred to as vampires.
Plot
One winter, Jena's father sets out to the coast to recover from a serious illness that would kill him if he remained home for the winter. In his absence, he leaves his house, his younger daughters, and his half of the merchant business he and his cousin run in the hands of Jena, and her elder sister Tatiana (called 'Tati'). It is when Jena's father's brother Nicolae dies, that things begin to go wrong for Jena and her sisters: Cezar uses his newfound power of being master of his father's estateEstate (law)
An estate is the net worth of a person at any point in time. It is the sum of a person's assets - legal rights, interests and entitlements to property of any kind - less all liabilities at that time. The issue is of special legal significance on a question of bankruptcy and death of the person...
to take a firm control over the castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
in which Jena and her sisters live.
Every full moon, the sisters go to the Other Kingdom, where they meet and dance with various magical creatures. Eventually, Cezar becomes so bent on revenge
Revenge
Revenge is a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. It is also called payback, retribution, retaliation or vengeance; it may be characterized, justly or unjustly, as a form of justice.-Function in society:Some societies believe that the...
for the death of his older brother Costi (who drowned ten years prior to the book) that he suggests felling the forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
around both his and his cousins' estates. In distress, Jena attempts to dissuade him from doing so. She also attempts to prevent Tati from seeing her Sorrow, her sweetheart
Sweetheart
Sweetheart can be:*The term of endearment applied to a person's significant other**Childhood sweetheart*Forgetful of bringing drinks to fellow coworkers*Sweetheart , recorded by Rainy Davis and re-recorded by Mariah Carey and Jermaine Dupri...
, who Jena believes to be one of the Night People.
In an effort to persuade her sister that it is not meant to be, Jena enlists the help of Bogdana, Nicolae's widow, to organise a party to find suitable husbands at the next Full Moon
Full Moon
Full moon is a lunar phase.Full Moon may also refer to:- Literature :* Full Moon , a novel by P. G. Wodehouse* Full Moon o Sagashite or Full Moon, a manga* Full Moon Press, an American small-press publisher...
. Jena and her younger sisters are all upset that they will miss the Full Moon dance, but none so much as Tati; she rapidly loses weight, and her personality fades into almost non-existence. Meanwhile, there was a killing in the village, which had all the markings of an attack of the Night people; reluctantly, Jena tells her sister of what Tadeusz had told her about Dark of the Moon at one of the Full Moon revels. Tati decides to use this portal at Dark of the Moon, where Jena discovers her with Tadeusz's sister, Anastasia. Frightened, the sisters are separated, and Anastasia takes Jena (unwillingly) to see Draguţsa's mirror. In the mirror, Jena learns of Sorrow's true heritage, as well as sees a vision of herself and a young man that she would come to love; the young man in this vision then changes into a horrible monster
Monster
A monster is any fictional creature, usually found in legends or horror fiction, that is somewhat hideous and may produce physical harm or mental fear by either its appearance or its actions...
, turning on Jena's younger sisters. Frightened, Jena flees back to the lakeside, where she meets up with Tati and Sorrow. Sorrow then sends the girls over the frozen lake and back to their own world, where they decide to visit the Dancing Glade the next month to both warn the Queen of Cezar's intentions, and ask if she could help Sorrow, and the girl who was revealed to be his younger sister.
After miserably failing to propose to (and being rejected by) Jena, Cezar works out that the entrance to the Other Kingdom is indeed in the bedchamber that Jena and her sisters share. Desperate for help, Jena sets out to the lake where Costi drowned, to seek out Dragutsa. She speaks to the old woman for a little, before she is given a powerful sleeping potion to put both the man and the chaperone to sleep on the night of the full moon. As Jena leaves, she gives Gogu a kiss on the nose; a bright flash throws both her and the frog apart. When she can see again, she finds a young man on the shore of the lake, whom she instantly knows to be Gogu; she also recognises him as the young man in the mirror, who turns into a monster. She realises that, despite knowing what he is, she loves him, and when he gives no answer, she runs away back home.
As planned, the sisters drug the man and chaperone in their bedchamber, and seek the help of the faerie Queen. Ileana tells Tati that she has set Sorrow a quest
Quest
In mythology and literature, a quest, a journey towards a goal, serves as a plot device and as a symbol. Quests appear in the folklore of every nation and also figure prominently in non-national cultures. In literature, the objects of quests require great exertion on the part of the hero, and...
, to be completed within one month; if he succeeds, they will be allowed to wed, and Tati to live in the Other Kingdom. Gogu is also there, and the faerie Queen reveals that he was bound by a spell of silence, giving him his voice back. Gogu then reveals to Jena that he is Costi, which she denies; however, Dragutsa later reveals that this is true. She had placed the boy under and enchantment to turn him into a frog. She then revealed that it was Jena's doubt that allowed Anastasia to manipulate the image in the mirror; Costi was not a monster, and Jena had broken his heart by claiming that he was, instead of trusting him.
Costi returns the next day and takes over his father's estate, and Cezar disappears; however, Jena is too nervous and guilty to speak to Costi. Eventually, Tati convinces her to go visit him and, on the day of the Full Moon, she does. She and Costi work out their misunderstanding, and return to Jena's home, where they take Tati to an injured Sorrow to take to the Other Kingdom. Eventually, life returns to normal, though they miss Tati. Jena's father returns home, and Jena and Costi look forward to their impending marriage
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
.
Notable Characters
- Tatiana: (16) "Tati". The eldest sister, she is known as the beautiful sister. She falls in love with Sorrow, "captive" of the night people.
- Jenica: (15) "Jena". The second sister, and main character, she is known as the sensible sister. The story is told from her point of view.
- Iulia: (13) Jena's younger sister. She is a bit of a flirt.
- Paula: (12) The scholar of the family. Jena's younger sister.
- Stela: (5) The youngest sister.
- Gogu: The frog who is Jena's best friend, and most trusted advisor. He is actually Costi under an enchantment.
- Teodor: Jena's father. He is a widower, as his wife Bianca died giving birth to Stela.
- Nicolae: Teodor's brother and business partner, he is very kind to all of the sisters.
- Bogdana: Nicolae's wife, the epitome of propriety.
- Costin: (20) "Costi". Eldest son of Nicolae and Bogdana. He was believed to have drowned in the Deadwash ten years prior to the events of the book.
- Cezar: (18) Younger son of Nicolae and Bogdana. He is the main antagonist of the book.
- Ileana: The faerie Queen and ruler of the Other Kingdom.
- Marin: Ileana's consort.
- Grigori, Sten, and Anatolie: Friends of the sisters from the Other Kingdom.
- Sorrow: A young man who wandered into the Other Kingdom and was trapped by the Night People. His younger sister's name is Silence.He falls in love with Tatiana.
- Tadeusz: The leader of the Night people who is attracted to Jena.
- Anastasia: A woman of the Night People, referred to as Tadeusz's 'lover, sister, and friend'.
- Draguţsa: The witch of the Wildwood. Cezar blames her for Costi's death.
- Florica and Petru: Jena's family's beloved and elderly servants.
Trivia
- The main storyline is derived from a traditional fairytale from central Europe. The most well-known version is by the Brothers GrimmBrothers GrimmThe Brothers Grimm , Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm , were German academics, linguists, cultural researchers, and authors who collected folklore and published several collections of it as Grimm's Fairy Tales, which became very popular...
called The Twelve Dancing PrincessesThe Twelve Dancing Princesses"The Twelve Dancing Princesses" is a German fairy tale originally published by the Brothers Grimm in 1812 in Kinder- und Hausmärchen as tale number 133...
.