Rating: 
Summary: Jilly's Story
Review: For long-term fans of Charles de Lint's popular Newford novels, the central character of Jilly Coppercorn is engaging but enigmatic. So now she gets her own novel. It's a good story, well-written, compelling, and easy to read while giving you plenty to think about after you close the covers. So why is there some dissatisfaction nagging at me?
Don't get me wrong. It's a great book, about a great character in great situations. I recommend it to fans and neophytes. But there's a little bit of a something...
Jilly is struck down in a hit-and-run accident, leaving the vivacious painter bedridded and half-crippled. And that's on the first page. The story unfolds both forward and backward, letting us in on backstory we've never been privy to before, both on the character and the universe. Some characters are held in reserve: characters spotlighted in this book are given short shrift in the next novel, "Spirits in the Wires," and vice versa. But this story focuses on the characters who color every de Lint book without often getting their own showcase.
The theme running through this book is how awful incest and childhood sexual abuse are. I know this and agree wholeheartedly, but the book goes over the theme time and again, like a wound the author can't stop handling. In this book, a single abusive character is the motivation behind nearly everything that happens both to Jilly and her personal antagonist over the course of decades. Human beings are deeper and more complex than this. A writer of de Lint's skill owes his characters more than he's willing to give them.
And I'm also bothered by one fact. If the dates de Lint gives are accurate, the principals in the book must all be pushing fifty, yet many are still looking for that one true love in their lives. Shouldn't there come a point when the characters graduate from that sort of rootlessness to a more mature identity? The characters act like they are in their early thirties, when this emotional meandering would be exactly appropriate, yet the dates add as much as two decades to their ages. It's time for the characters to settle down with one person and move on to the next identity crisis, which a writer of de Lint's ability should be able to execute adroitly.
That said, the character conflicts are engaging, the plot moves foreward at a good pace that varies from cautious to lickety-split very effectively, and the payoff does feel earned. This book is good both as an introduction to Newford and an extension for established fans. So much is so deeply linked that any synopsis would give away key facts, so let's put it this way: the characters who are central to Newford go through meaningful personal changes in this book that will effect future novels.
Highly recommended, despite the two problems mentioned above, this book expands on the ambiance that is Newford without destroying the magic and mystery. It isn't even necessary to have read the other Newford books to get what's going on. Subtle and enjoyable, this is a fantasy book for a grand audience and fantasy fans alike to savor and reread.
Rating: 
Summary: Urban fantasy at its magical best
Review: Here is another fantastic novel by the master of the urban fantasy. This one is about Jilly Coppercorn, a painter who seems to peek her head in on most of de Lint's stories, whether they are short stories or novels. De Lint sets a majority of his tales in the North American city of Newford, and whether Jilly has a small or large part in the story, she is at Newford's heart; all the characters seem to have been affected by Jilly's kindness, charm and buoyant good nature. Jilly is the Onion Girl, however, and we see a much darker part of her than ever imagined before. This book is about the past, and how it can come snapping back to us, teeth blazing, when we least expect. This is one of those Chihuahua-smooshing burglar-stunning kinds of books, but it reads as fast as a 250 page-sized version. As usual, there is magic, and creatures far older than you or I, who were old when the world was created. But the thing I admire the most about de Lint's fiction, and this book is no different, are his characters. They are the ones who help out at soup kitchens and take in stray cats and bring people in off the street. These are people who have seen hard times themselves and go out of their way to help others. It is the simple fact that these people are good, in the purest sense of the word. And at the end of the novel, I truly wished Jilly was a real person that I could phone up and tell exactly how much I admire and love.
Rating:
Summary: Loved it...but not as much as others
Review: I am a fan of Charles de Lint and can't imagine actively disliking anything he writes, but I have to admit that this is not my favorite de Lint novel. Jilly Coppercorn has long been one of my favorite de Lint characters, but in The Onion Girl, de Lint tells me more than I wanted to know about Jilly. The magical veil is somehow ripped away, and I am face-to-face with a character I maybe don't like as much as I thought I did.And, speaking of characters, there is an almost dizzying array of them and there were times when I had trouble keeping score. I didn't feel as though I got to know any of them in this novel -- there simply wasn't enough space for anyone in this pantheon to fully develop. I think that the lack of character development contributed to a sense of disbelief and some real confusion about the actions of some of the characters, especially Wendy and Raylene. In spite of all of this, I did enjoy the book and I remain an avid fan of Charles de Lint, all of his people - fairie and otherwise -- and all of his worlds!
Rating: 
Summary: Another disappointing Newford novel
Review: I am about 250 pages in new "Onion Girl" novel. I must say that this novel is a major disappointment. Mr De Lint lost the sense of wonder that seemed to permeate his earlier books like "Moonheart","Spiritwalk", "Little Country" and even too long but brilliant "Memory and Dream". Enough with political correctness please. How many times can we read about poor runaways and beautific homeless people with crazy gleam in their mismatched eyes and one foot in the Otherworld?
It seems to me that Mr De Lint developed a template for his novels and now seems to mix familiar formula, pick another character from his rich Newford managerie of characters and let the book roll off the presses. What a waste of an effort. Jilly Coppercorn was one of the most intruguing characters in his Newford collection "Memory and Dream". I still fondly remember her appearance in "Stone Drum" story. "Onion Girl" is heavy, sentimental and totally lacking in any charm.
I am deeply disappointed in this book, just like most of his recent Newford novels, like "Trader" and "Someplace To Be Flying".
Don't waste your money like I did. Wait for this book in paperback in a used bookstore. Maybe if writers who gave up on originality would feel the pinch of decreased sales, then they would feel motivated to give us something original instead.
If you need your new De Lint fix, read "Granny Weather" short story in new Year's Best Fantasy and Horror edited by Terry Windling instead.
Rating:
Summary: new to De Lint... and loved the book
Review: I like fantasy literature, and I definitely liked this book, which I received for Christmas. I'm going to look for Charles De Lint next time I'm at the library or the bookstore. I like the idea of there being hidden magic in the ordinary world, visible to those who know how to look.
It's true this story dealt with unsettling material -- if it were a TV show it would probably be meant for "mature audiences." And I can definitely see how it would be upsetting for survivors of abuse. But I personally had no problem with it.
Interestingly, I read Neil Gaiman's _American Gods_ right before I read _The Onion Girl_, and the two have a minor character in common.
Rating:
Summary: A personal favorite!
Review: I stumbled across this book in my local library, and it was the title that caught my attention more than anything. Charles de Lint is a new author to me, and with his writing has opened up a whole new world of magick and intrigue. Our tale begins in Newford with the main character, Jilly Coppercorn, becoming a victim of a hit-and-run. Lying in a hospital bed, confused and paralyzed, she escapes to the world of dreams. "The Onion Girl" takes you on one hell of a ride, as it's told from the eyes of Jilly, and her younger sister, Raylene. Having run away from a life of abuse and pain at a young age, and leaving Raylene to suffer as she once did, Jilly begins to regret not going back now that Raylene has resurfaced in her life. Two sisters - one dream world. One doesn't want to share it, and is determined to go to extremes to ensure that it belongs to her alone. The other just wants to know the baby sister she left behind. Charles de Lint has done an amazing job with "The Onion Girl," and it is a favorite of mine due to the way he writes, and describes things. Things get slow here and there, but the intensity of Jilly's story makes it worth the slow spots. Definitely worth 5 stars.
Rating:
Summary: New fantasy fan falls for DeLint!
Review: I stumbled upon Charles DeLint's "The Onion Girl" while doing some research on fantasy books for a college project. Being new to the genre, and reluctant to read fantasy, I had no idea what to read. The book's title and the cover art by John Jude Palencar enticed me, and once I started the book, I could not put it down. The story's main character, Jilly Coppercorn, is struggling to heal from an accident. The circumstances that lead to her accident are shrouded in mystery, leaving her to find the clues and piece them together, a difficult task when one's bones are broken. Lying in her hospital bed, she learns to "cross over" into another world she has only heard of. Jilly experiences a catharsis as a result of her other wordly adventures, and she makes a surprising choice that heals her body and soul. DeLint's prose is inspiring, as his descriptions make the natural supernatural, and the extraordinary accessible to us mere mortals. His blend of urban streets, the wilderness, and dreamscape create a seamless trip through dimensions. The characters are quite likeable, and are varied in personality, from policeman to artist to shapeshifter. "The Onion Girl" quieted any preconceptions I had about fantasy writing, and I would recommend this book highly to those who are curious about the genre, but don't know where to start.
Rating:
Summary: Incredibly disappointing (this review contains spoilers!)
Review: I usually love Charles De Lint's writing, and when I heard he was writing a book about Jilly Coppercorn's story, I was thrilled. What a letdown. His writing is still beautiful, although without the usual sense of magic and a bit more heavy-handed, hence the two stars, rather than one. In other novels, such as "Memory and Dream", magic blends more seamlessly into the story, in this book, the Dreamlands sequence seemed very either-or. I also think there were too many characters. It was hard for any one of them to develop - it almost seemed cluttered. As one reviewer has already stated, I didn't buy Raylene's transformation, either - she's depicted as this ice-cold, half-insane killing machine, and all of sudden, she *stops*, and sacrifices herself for Jilly? It seems incredibly implausible. Also, for several books, De Lint has been teasing us with the possibility of a relationship between Jilly and Christie, and then demolishes that possibility with Daniel, who really appears more like a cardboard cutout. And where did Sophie's sudden reluctance to take Faerie seriously come from, let alone all of Wendy's doubts? Finally, the ending felt very incomplete and tacked on - he was working toward this major climax, and then undercut it. I hope I like Charles De Lint's next book better, because I found this one very disappointing.
Rating: 
Summary: A medley of his greatest hits... too bad.
Review: I've always enjoyed deLint's Newford books because there was always a feeling of community to them. Events that happened in previous books were referred to at least in passing, and usually in such a way that you didn't miss anything even if this was your first Newford novel. I didn't get that feeling reading Onion Girl. It referred to too much, leaving me feel not only like I was missing something, but that I was missing my motivation to be interested. There was such a strong sense that so much had come before, but very little to explain, so I had no real introduction to the characters. Too much was assumed. Sophie and Jeck? Who? Wendy? Angel & Joe? Hunh? Did I miss something? I've read his short story collections and I can't remember a one of them. Of course, it doesn't help that of all the characters in Newford, I've never been especially interested in Jilly Coppercorn, the focus of this book. From the first, she's struck me as a cipher: a happy-go-lucky artist who believes in everything in a magical city and rarely ever has a bad day and de Lint's later attempts to flesh her out with an overwhelmingly dark history have always felt heavy handed. It has, in fact, been no small relief that his more recent works haven't involved this character. This obviously isn't the case this time around. In the end, I can't help but feel that this is a collection of his "greatest bits" put together with great force into a medley. Spirit world? Check. Animal people and fairies? Check. Lost sister? Check. Jilly? Check. Great danger? Oh yeah. Skeptic who reluctantly comes to believe in magic? Check. Heck, even the Crow Girls have a cameo. After a while it feels less like an original novel and more like a collage of moments woven together mostly to reward long-time fans and that's very disappointing. Check it out from a library if you're curious, I doubt I'll be in any great rush to reread it, let alone buy it for myself at any point in the future.
Rating:
Summary: i couldn't put it down
Review: if you have read forests of the heart you'll love this. i had walked by it for months and kept picking it up thinking about buying it so finally I did. and I loved it.
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