Customer Reviews

Magician of Hoad

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Although targeted for young adults, this is a book that can be enjoyed by all ages. We enter the world of Heriot Tarbas, a strange boy working on a farm near the ruins of an old castle. He has been suffering from strange ailments since childhood, and when he sees a horrible vision in his village he realizes that there is something deep inside him that has been awakened and won't go away. Heriot Tarbas thinks that he is cursed, and later he sees himself as a monster. But eventually he realizes that all the unusual changes he is undergoing amount to a rare gift, and that he must find himself if he is to find any true happiness. The author's themes of identity are rich with depth. The land of Hoad seems to be a kingdom out of a fairy tale, replete with a wise King, a mighty Hero, and Magicians with unusual powers. Yet as the story unfolds we find that many of these conventional aspects are different beneath the surface. Even a wise King can make grave errors in judgment when love for a son unfit to rule supersedes his reason. Meanwhile a mighty hero, who all seem to look up, hides a dark and twisted past. Magicians whose powers seem unlimited discover that to wield magic is to harness a fickle power, neither limitless nor omniscient.

The story becomes fascinating with the level of complexity Mahy imbues in her four main characters, and how she illustrates their fates intertwining. Her characters easily shrug out of any conventional mold. Her characters are incredibly human and drawn with a level of nuance that you won't find in many fantasy books. Mahy's descriptions are often poetic, and her imagery is powerful even as it sometimes stretches credulity. Some readers may find the imagery and dialogue of the main characters a little confusing early on. Readers will be rewarded for their persistence, however, because as the story continues Mahy's imagery becomes more and more comprehensible, like a special language all its own. Mysterious words and events have a way of being fully revealed so that by the end of the book the reader is left feeling not only satisfied, but fulfilled.

The Magician of Hoad is the story of a boy, Heriot, a boy that is discontent with his place in the world, has always seemed to not fit in. Then one day he finds out that he is actually so much more than he expected. He is a magician, but not just any magician. He is to become the official Magician of Hoad.

But the boy, realizes quickly that he does not want his destiny to be determined by his new title. He wants to be the man he decides he wants to be. He realizes that his powers can be a dangerous thing and that some people would stop at nothing to control them, and if they can't, they would destroy them.

Ultimately this seems to be a coming of age story. Heriot spends his life trying to find out who he really is and what he is really supposed to do. He realizes that neither of these have answers that anyone can give him but himself.

3/5