The
Shifu Cloth (The Chronicles of Eirie) by Prue Batten
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Back to Eirie everything seems so familiar and
extraordinary at the same time. My latest journey to that land of magic and fantasy was last year with
Lalita and Finnian (A
Thousand Glass Flowers) . Such a beautiful, gripping love story with
surprising twists and a poignant epilogue!
They have lingered somehow in this story too, THE
SHIFU CLOTH, since the protagonist is Nicholas, Nico, their son.
After his beloved cousin Isabella is kidnapped
while with him, his sense of guilt or the shock leaves him dumb, unable to
express his loneliness and sadness. His only aim in life since then is to
find Isabella and to bring her back home.
Isabella, however, now a slave living in the relatively comfortable residence of her masters but destined to live in a harem, has become an expert weaver of rare skills. What she can't do is to renounce her freedom forever. This is why she has
never surrendered to the idea of going back home and she bravely plans her own escape.
The two separate paths of Nico and Isabella
meet after a series of fortuitous encounters and discoveries. They will get
back home for a bittersweet, unforgettable finale.