Tithe is an urban fantasy novel by author Holly Black, and it's suberb. If you're into fantasy or YA lit, it's worth a look.
Reasons you should read Tithe include the super modern take on folklore – it takes place in Jersey Shore. No princesses or castles here.
Kaye is a biracial protagonist, which is pretty cool considering a lot of faerie tales are whitewashed.
It's also a more mature take on faerie lore. Instead of magical godmothers, the Faerie world is ruled by dueling factions: The Unseelie and the Seelie.
And both of the Faerie Courts are run by women, the sister queens Silariel and Nicnevin. Who run the faerie underworld?
There's plenty of imaginary eye candy, like the silver-haired bishounen dream Roiben and the alluring Kelpie shapeshifter.
Roiben is kind of like a darker, more messed-up Legolas, long hair and all. The Kelpie can look like whoever, but has a big scene where he is basically described as Michael Obiora. Heart eyes.
It's also refreshing to see a faerie story that is so rooted in the real world. Kaye's home life is a mess, and her friends deal with real struggles like being closeted, alcoholic parents, and loss of life.
And the best part about Tithe? It's the first in a trilogy, so after you finish it you can go on to read Valiant and Ironside.
TL:DR, Tithe is a dark, gritty take on faerie lore that will make you realize that if magic were real, it would be a lot scarier than we like to pretend.
