Many years ago Christine Starlight's parents were killed in a dreadful car accident, an accident that left Christine with a seriously injured back, living her life in pain. If it wasn't for the support of her lover, Jude, she may have given up years earlier.

When a beautiful young woman, Mayfridh, arrives out of nowhere and announces that she is Christine's childhood friend, May, who disappeared when she was a young child Christine is understandably rather sceptical. But with the application of a little fairy magic Christine soon realises that Mayfridh is telling the truth.

Mayfridh then announces that she has spent the intervening years living in faeryland as its Queen, but explains that the world of faery and man are joined during the fall season, when the occupants of faery find themselves living in the Autumn Castle. When the season changes and the last leaf falls from the tree they will aware in the Winter Castle and be left with no memory of their human friends. To allow Christine to visit the Autumn Castle she gives her the means to travel between the two worlds.

Immanuel Z, a billionaire entrepreneur, offers annual scholarships to young artists, providing them with a home and money allowing them to fully explore their talents. Part faery he has grown up detesting their race and spends his life tracking down faeries, killing them and then using their bones to produce his own gruesome sculpture. When he meets Mayfridh he instantly recognises her for what she is and decides that he must possess her bones in order to complete his artwork.

When he follows Christine and realises that she can travel freely between the lands Immanuel sees this as the answer to his dreams – the ability to visit faeryland and gather as many bones as he wishes.

Can Christine and her friends discover the truth about Immanuel before he can kill any more faeries? Will Jude be able to resist his growing attraction towards Mayfridh? Will Mayfridh similarly be able to resist her feelings or are the two destined to be separated when faeryland moves to the Winter Castle?

The Autumn Castle is a wonderful enchanting story. Mayfridh, queen of the faeries, has a wonderful naivety that is so beautifully written. When she first visits the human land her reactions to the freedom to chose clothing and hair colour are spontaneous and convincing. You really believe it is the first time she has been given the ability to make choices for herself.

When you, the reader, discover something about Christine's lover, Jude, that Christine is unaware of, the writing makes you feel as though you've just seen your best friend's husband "playing away from home". Would you tell her the truth or just leave her happy in her ignorance?

Then there is Immanuel. It is a long time since I read a character that I disliked so much. He is a sick twisted individual that has an almost psychopathic need to hurt faeries. He considers them to be unclean and can actually smell their presence. I don't think I have ever wanted a character to come to a sticky end more than Immanuel!

If you haven't already guessed, I loved The Autumn Castle. It isn't often you get to read something truly original but this is one of those occasions.

An enchanting, magical tale that weaves a glorious technicolour web of fantasy.

Synopsis
Berlin in autumn: Christine Starlight is living in an artist's colony in the crumbling urban shadows of the old east.  Her lover Jude is a painter whose patience and beauty have eased her long battle with chronic pain.  But Christine begins to be haunted by dim recollections of her childhood, of a little girl's unexplained disappearance and the mad flapping of a blackbird's wings.

Then her life is rocked by the return of her childhood friend, a crimson-haired faery beauty who presides over a land where a witch lives in a well, a shape-shifting wolf is the queen's counsellor, and fate turns on the fall of an autumn leaf.  As Christine grows addicted to Mayfridh's world, where mortals feel no pain; so Mayfridh grows addicted to Christine's, and falls deeply and dangerously in love with Jude.

But while jealousies, betrayals and secrets begin to unpick the threads of their happiness, they are unaware of the ghastly threat which stalks them: the cruel and brilliant billionaire Immanuel Z, who is hunting faery bones for a grand sculpture...