Fantasy novels have a tendency to be focused on a land which is always locked in the early middle ages in Europe, usually an early technology age with no gunpowder, usually the story centres around a young child who somewhere near the start of the novel discovers a strange power which then is placed under the tutelage of a mage or wizard etc etc.
This book very firmly follows these prinicples, the main character is a young girl called sonea who lives in the slums of a city called Imardin, Imardin is annually purged of the homeless by the cities magicians but this year Sonea throws a rock at the magicians and penetrates the magicians defences hitting one of the magicians and cuasing the wall to collapse. Sonea then escapes and the rest of the book is a tale of her hiding from the evil magicians in the cities underworld, catacombs, warrens whatever you want to call them. As with standard fantasy, Sonea soon develops her powers and after a few mistakes starts to become more powerful, the magicians are the ones who are seeking her because they know that an untutored magic user is a danger to themselves and those around them.
In reality, this book can be looked as a battle between the rich and power manifested by the magicians and the town guild and the inhabitants of the Slum, this is prevalent in many cultures and in many books but here the simmering tensions are well crafted and only the fear of the magicians and their powers stop the inhabitants of the Slum from rebelling. What if they were able to get a magician of their own, then they could rise up against their oppressors? So the leaders of the Slum who are called the Thieves are also after Sonea but they have their own agendas and wishes.
Sonea soon develops her inner circle, those she trusts and those she can use to hide from the magicians and the thieves, her powers and understanding of the magic grows and she stars to shape her world and those in it. Previous to her only children from wealthy families were allowed to become magicians even if their powers were in truth fairly limited but with the advent of a untapped power some of the magicians realise that there is more power in the Slums than they would care to admit. The magicians themselves start to change and we start to see a split into factions of those who want closer contacts with the inhabitants of the Slums who previously they viewed as little more than animals and those who want to ruthless eliminate any possible challenge to their power.
One the more interesting angles for this book is the fact that there so far isn't a central bad guy, there are a few dodgy characters and a few with their own agendas but the book doesn't have the usual big ending which happens in many fantasy where the hero overcomes someone and in doing so develops his powers so they are ready for the next book in the series. I havent read the next book so maybe it comes in that one but this book was an enjoyable read and whilst not making me burn around to the nearest bookstore to buy the next it will make me pick it up the next time I'm browsing or at the library.
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Advantages: Very easy to read, good for both novices to the genre and those with a little more 'refined taste' Disadvantages: you will find it hard to tear yourself away.
Advantages: Very easy to read, good for both novices to the genre and those with a little more 'refined taste' Disadvantages: you will find it hard to tear yourself away.
Jun 16th, 2009
very helpful by (100%):
