When it comes to magical / paranormal creatures, fairies are definitely not my favorite. That being said, I was surprised how much I enjoyed this book. It was a quick and fairly entertaining read, and I breezed through the 197 pages in just one afternoon. 
 At the same time, I wished the mythology was explored more in depth. It was evident to me that Laura Howard did her research well - the Danaans (Irish fairy folk) are creatures often mentioned in old Irish tales. I enjoyed reading about their attributes and abilities: flawless beauty, magical powers, unmatched intelligence. But I also wanted to learn more about their origin and purpose, history and politics. The Danaans are passionate, often hot-tempered and power thirsty. They plot against each other, use humans for their own purposes (toying with their emotions and driving them crazy), cheat and lie. The intrigue plays a big role in their daily lives. And they often come off as cold and ruthless. Don't get me wrong, reading about their evil plottings was very entertaining, I just wanted to learn more about the motivations behind them. 
 For most part of this book, the romance takes the back seat. And that's a good thing. I was glad that the developing relationship between Allison and Ethan - as sweet and enchanting as it was - did not overshadow the rest of the story. To me, the most fascinating part of the book involved the mystery behind Allison's mother sudden descent into mental illness. I found it both absolutely terrifying and oddly intriguing. 
 As far as characters are concerned, I felt that Laura Howard did a good enough job introducing all the protagonists, though not so much fleshing them out further. With the exception of Allison and her mother, the characters - at least in my opinion - lacked emotional depth. The first part of the book - the part that focused primarily on Allison, her mom and their daily struggles with mental illness - was fantastic. It was creepy, moving and emotionally affecting, and it really made you want to find out more. But it all went downhill from there. The moment we're introduced to the Danaans and get thrown into the fairy world, we're being bombarded with confusing names, bits and pieces of mythology and the never-ending intrigue. All that makes the plot rather difficult to follow and you kind of find yourself wishing for more simplicity and less chaos. 
 All in all, while I did enjoy the mythological backdrop and the family dynamics depicted in The Forgotten Ones, I also found myself wishing for more in-depth exploration of some of the aspects of the story. This is definitely a good book and a promising beginning to a great new series, it just needs some polishing and further character development. I'm confident that fans of paranormal fantasy - and fans of fairy lore in particular - will enjoy this one even more than I did!