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28th out of 79 books
—
70 voters
Dun Lady's Jess (Dun Lady's Jess #1)
by
Doranna Durgin (Goodreads Author)
When hikers Dayna and Eric find a young woman naked, terrified, and speechless, they're sure she's the victim of foul play. But the truth is much more shocking: she isn't human at all. She's Dun Lady's Jess, a horse transformed into this new shape by the spell that brought her and her rider, to whom she is utterly devoted, into this world.
Posessed now of human intelligenc...more
Posessed now of human intelligenc...more
Mass Market Paperback, 343 pages
Published
July 1st 1994
by Baen Books
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Apart from the Harry Potter books, I've read few fantasy novels. My one exception: the books of my friend Doranna Durgin. Of course, as she's been my friend for over 20 years, you can't expect me to be wholly objective in a review. So I'll just tell you what I like about her very first published book, Dun Lady's Jess, which has been reissued in a beautiful new edition by Canadian publisher Red Deer Press.
Beautiful dun mare Lady, and her rider, Cary, are running for their lives when Cary invokes...more
Beautiful dun mare Lady, and her rider, Cary, are running for their lives when Cary invokes...more
Apart from the Harry Potter books, I've read few fantasy novels. My one exception: the books of my friend Doranna Durgin. Of course, as she's been my friend for over 20 years, you can't expect me to be wholly objective in a review. So I'll just tell you what I like about her very first published book, Dun Lady's Jess, which has been reissued in a beautiful new edition by Canadian publisher Red Deer Press.
Beautiful dun mare Lady, and her rider, Cary, are running for their lives when Cary invokes...more
Beautiful dun mare Lady, and her rider, Cary, are running for their lives when Cary invokes...more
True to hype, Durgin has brilliantly succeeded at establishing Jess as genuinely horse-like in her thinking and behavior, even (maybe especially) in human form.
The weaknesses of the book lie in the implicit assumption of horse knowledge - there were definitely moments where I thought that someone unfamiliar with horses might not have been able to follow the action - and in the dialogue as the "real world" characters come to terms with the magical people who have burst into our world.
...Or maybe...more
The weaknesses of the book lie in the implicit assumption of horse knowledge - there were definitely moments where I thought that someone unfamiliar with horses might not have been able to follow the action - and in the dialogue as the "real world" characters come to terms with the magical people who have burst into our world.
...Or maybe...more
Dun's Lady Jess is now out in digital format. I made the mistake of starting it one evening and found myself wide eyed and finishing it at three in the morning. Worth every dark circle, what a wonderful story. We've all read books about people changing into animals; animals changing into people, with varying levels of comfort. No writer I've read before has put so much thought into how one would feel after a life time on four feet, to become abruptly two footed, and with a voice.
The humans who b...more
The humans who b...more
If I was a young adult reader I think I would have given this a firm four stars. As an old codger I'm inclined to give it three stars but settled on four because I DID like it enough to hunt up the sequel and its a pretty good story. I like the way Doranna Durgin does animal thinking/speaking. This book tackles the challenging concept of an animal turned into a person and back again. I think Durgin did an excellent job in that area.
I liked her worldbuilding and the way she handled magic and tra...more
I liked her worldbuilding and the way she handled magic and tra...more
This series was really intriguing - I read years ago and want to re-read. A perfect mix for me. And a twist - as instead of a woman turning into a horse - the horse turns into a woman! Enough of "another world" feel to take me into the fantasy of it, even though part of it is in "this world" there is another world that is even more intriguing
Simply a classic. If you love horses, love well-told fantasy, are a sucker for great characters and writing? This is your book. You'll not regret it. Jess is one of the best characters out there.
very well written. One of the few horse stories I read where it is clear the writer actually rides. And does dressage. I will be looking for the other books in the series.
I'd like to give it 3.5 stars but that's not an option. Good writing, with a few turns of phrase that actually made me laugh out loud. Intriguing concept and plot that i had not been exposed to before. But it had some real pacing problems; my eyes kept leaping to the next page, and the characters could have used a little more development.
Jun 05, 2010
Kaye
added it
Absolutely loved the book, the world it was set in, and of course the horses.
Doranna writes about horses so well--so vividly--this story is really magical.
Reread this recently, and the first read was long enough ago that I mostly just remembered that I liked it and not all the details. I still liked it very much! It was so good to see someone I was acquainted with before she sold her first book get her name and her work in print, and it's also good to see that she has kept going.
Apr 21, 2008
Manatee
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
anyone who loves horses
Recommended to Manatee by:
My friend Claudia
What a wonderful trilogy that follows the evolution of the main character from horse innocence through the milestones of growing up and rites of passage until she acheives balance of both human and horse forms.
May 20, 2013
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Doranna responded to all early injunctions to "put down that book/notebook and go outside to play" by climbing trees to read & write. Such quirkiness of spirit has led to an eclectic publishing journey, spanning genres over 30 novels to include mystery, SF/F, action-romance, paranormal,...more
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