In love with the beautiful Victoria Forester – Tristran will do just about anything to gain her hand in marriage. While stargazing under the moonlight, the two watch a star fall from the heavens. Tristran makes a rash deal with Victoria – if he brings her the star, she will grant him his wish.
There is just one problem. The star did not fall in his quiet hometown of Wall – where the people pride themselves on their very prudent and traditional lifestyle. The star fell into the neighboring land of Faerie – where no resident of Wall has ever dared to visit. For Faerie is a magical land, full of strange creatures where any number of dangerous things can (and most likely will) happen.
So our amorous young protagonist leaves the safety of Wall behind and ventures into the magical world of Faerie. As he embarks on his journey, Tristran discovers that his fallen star is more than just a lump of rock – and maybe he is more important than he could have ever imagined.
Neil Gaiman’s Stardust is more than just a great fantasy novel…it’s a fairytale. Filled with cunning witches striving to eat the heart of a beautiful maiden, great lords plotting to gain power, talking trees, flying ships and not to mention our lovesick hero - who despite his boyish faults, has such charisma you just can’t help but like him.
Stardust is a masterpiece. The characters are well defined and the dialog is witty and cleverly written. Gaiman has a gift for writing adventurous tales that are also light-hearted and very humorous at times. The plot can be very PG-13 and probably not appropriate for young readers. At just over 300 pages, Stardust is a short read, but a wildly enjoyable one. I would consider Neil Gaiman’s Stardust a must-read for any fiction/fantasy reader and a staple to any book collection.