Nobody’s Goddess

McNulty’s opening entry in the Never Veil series is a complex exploration of gender roles, romance, and stereotypes in a village where women are revered. Readers first meet Noll as a 12-year-old tomboy, angry that her male childhood friends are finding their “goddesses,” their true loves. Each goddess is destined to be loved by only one man, and males must remain masked from birth until his goddess “Returns” his love after she turns 17. To be seen without his mask by a woman who isn’t a blood relation means instant death. Noll chafes against these rules and despairs when her lifelong friend Jurij, whom she loves, finds his goddess in Noll’s sister. Just before Noll’s 17th birthday, the lord of the village finds his goddess in her, a situation neither party appreciates. The next months are a whirlwind of time-bending adventures that immerse readers in a maelstrom of plot twists and allusions to “Beauty and the Beast” and other fairy tale love stories, while Noll’s understanding of gender-based social and cultural dynamics develops. Books two and three are also available. Ages 14–up. (BookLife)