Chalice by Robin McKinley

Marisol was a beekeeper who could hear the Earthlines under the demense of Willowlands, and since the rise of the master, they have been groaning in pain, pushed to the limit by the master's uncaring attitude. So when he and his Chalice, the person who seals the Master's covenants to the land, die in a fire fueled by wine and uncaring, the former Master's brother must return from the Temple of Fire, where he was given over to be a disciple. Unfortunately, the high rank he attained in the temple has made him something other than human, but his strong connection to the land ensures that he will return and try to save the home he once loved of the tragedy of installing a new ruling family.

Marisol, meanwhile, had to deal with her beehives overflowing with honey and the increase in numbers of the large bees that provide her with the best honey in the demense, and two goats who now overflow with milk. These all point to her new role in Willowlands, that of the new Chalice. But powers like hers haven't been seen before. Most Chalices have powers over water or wine. Even milk and blood are not unheard of, but Marisol's power is over honey, and no one is really sure what that means for the future of Willowlands.

When the Heir finally returns to becomes Lord, he accidentally burns Marisol's hand, which she attempts to conceal, having known that a Lord who purposefully hurts his Chalice is to be killed. Though Marisol is afraid of the new lord, she also feels that he is the best chance to save the Willowlands. But as everyone tiptoes around this new, strange, almost inhuman figure, Marisol finds herself growing closer than anyone to him: he heals the burn he accidentally gave her when he arrived, since it will not heal on its own, and being that they are the two newest entrants to the circle which rules the Willowlands, are are in no way used to the powers and responsibilities they hold, they decide to help each other as much as they can to save the land they both love.

But when it seems that the Seneschal and others on the council are ready to sell the new Master to his overlord to have a more human-looking Master, can Marisol find a way to save the Willowlands in one of the parchments she has been reading so desperately? Or will her own inexperience lead to the downfall of the Willowlands and all she holds dear?

This story was amazing. It sucked me right in from the very first page and never let up. It was so good and engrossing that it only took me about an hour or so to read the whole thing. You are so caught up in Marisol's worries, perceptions and point of view that you completely identify with her and the problems that she is facing, from the mundane (overflowing milk from her nanny-goats and overflowing honey from her hives) to the more political (she talks with the overlord-decreed heir to the Willowlands for hours, leading people to think she accepts him, when she was only too polite and unsure of her power to tell him to get lost).

As well as the strictly fantasy story of the transfer of power between the land and the man who is its Master, it is a story of love and tenderness between Marisol and the Master, who goes nameless for most of the story. The interweaving of these two threads left me breathless and the hope that someday, I'll be able to write this well.

This story is a triumph, and I will be recommending it to everyone I know who loves good stories. Once you start, you'll have an impossible time putting it down. Definitely worth the read.