Mairelon the Magician [Turtleback]

Patricia C. Wrede (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2002

Kim, a streetwise girl disguised as a boy, and Mairelon, an itinerant magician dressed as a dandy, share adventures in a Regency England that is populated with sorcerers and riddled with magic.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This delightful romp is set in an alternate Regency England, where a royal college of wizards flourishes and the government includes a minister of wizardry. Kim, a girl raised to thievery on the London streets and now disguised as a boy, teams up with Mairelon the Magician after she is hired to search his caravan. Mairelon turns out not to be the simple marketplace phony Kim first thinks him, but Richard Merrill, a member of the gentry and a true magician. He is looking for a group of silver implements, necessary for a truth spell, that he had been accused of stealing from the royal college of wizards years before. He has found one piece and is given a lead to another, supposedly secreted at a country estate. Kim and Merrill, along with his grumbling servant Hunch, travel down to Essex, encountering the inept Sons of the New Dawn, breaking into a house party where others beat them to their prize, discovering a variety of forgeries and getting mixed up in a murder and the elopement of an heiress. Kim finds she has a true talent for wizardry and escapes the fate awaiting a young girl in the streets of this alternate early-19th-century London. Wrede's ( Snow White and Rose Red ) confection will charm readers of both Regency romances and fantasies.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

YA-- This historical fantasy borrows many of the conventions of the historical romance to create a frothy tale that should appeal to a broader audience than would a straightforward fantasy, romance, or historical novel. Kim is surviving the streets of some London in never-never land by disguising herself as a boy and working at the least objectionable and illegal tasks offered to her. She knows that her age is bringing her masquerade to an end, so when fortune throws the mysterious, but apparently honorable, Mairelon in her path with the offer of a job and a destination, she takes the opportunity. From this point, the plot plunges headlong into a convoluted story involving magic, disguised noblemen, sacred vessels, and a ``put all the subjects in the same room and we'll solve this mystery'' conclusion. Trying to stay one guess ahead of Kim and one behind the dashing Mairelon will keep the pages turning. Although Kim is a somewhat vague conception, Mairelon qualifies as a fully realized romantic hero. The novel ends with Kim entering wizard training and her realization that now, ``anything might happen. Anything at all.'' Savvy librarians will interpret this as the beginning of a series with crowd-pleasing potential. --Cathy Chauvette, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Turtleback: 312 pages
• Publisher: Demco Media (November 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 060634327X
• ISBN-13: 978-0606343275
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (44 customer reviews)

More About the Author

PATRICIA C. WREDE has written many novels, including Sorcery and Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot and The Grand Tour coauthored with Caroline Stevermer, as well as the four books in her own series, the Enchanted Forest Chronicles. She lives near Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Charming, June 21, 2002

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mairelon the Magician (Paperback)

Recently brought back into print by Starscape books, "Mairelon the Magician" is a delightful Regency period fantasy by the author of the famous "Forest Chronicles." Though this book has a radically different setting and a very different manner, Wrede's style is quite recognizable.

A "skinny toff" hires the street thief Kim to sneak into a street magician's wagon and look around for a silver platter. Kim, a teenage girl who disguises herself as a boy, is all too willing to do so for the grand sum of five pounds. But when a silent explosion hits her inside the wagon, Kim reluctantly is convinced that Mairelon the Magician's magic is real. Mairelon hears her story about the man who hired her, and then asks her to come along as his apprentice and assistant. Kim, with the less savory characters of London closing in, agrees quickly.

She soon is told what the deal with the silver platter is: It is the Saltash Platter, a magical silver dish that a lot of people seem to want. She and Mairelon go on a secret expedition through the English countryside, where they find an ever-complicating mystery around the Platter. The wizard and the lock picker must unravel the mystery and find out who is responsible.

It sounds dry and lackluster, but never is. Wrede sets the plot in a world quite like our own, but with a magic tinge, such as a mention of the Wizards' College, the attempts to get the Platter, and a real magician performing in the streets. However, she never overburdens the reader with her cleverness, as too many authors are prone to do. The plot is complex, but not overly so. And whenever it seems in danger of becoming too dry or serious, Wrede provides a humorous situation or line to lighten the mood.

The humor is quite different than in the Forest Chronicles. It's drier, wittier, slightly older in tone: The verbal sparring between Mairelon, Kim and Hunch; Mairelon's frequent grammatical corrections; several fake Platters floating around; and a cluster of pseudo-druids who dump their hodgepodge rituals when they find that they don't have the "Sacred Dish." The dialogue is entirely realistic and filled with old London street slang, such as Kim informing someone that he is "bosky."

Kim is an intriguingly tough heroine, with clear vision and a wish to get out of the streets where she has spent her life. Mairelon is witty and smart, but never strikes the reader as cocky or obnoxious. He's too pleasant for that. Hunch is crabby and perpetually suspicious, but somehow interesting anyway. The other supporting characters, in true Wrede style, range from menacing to mysterious to almost comical.

Sadly, there is only one sequel to this fun fantasy. Fortunately, Starscape will be reprinting "Magician's Ward" later this year, so that more readers can enjoy further adventures in Wrede's magical Regency period. A delightful mystery/fantasy, and definitely worth the read.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars the ending makes the book, September 4, 2004

By 

kgm "katiegm" (CT) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mairelon the Magician (Paperback)

First of all, speaking up for the "young readers" whose abilities seem to be taken so lightly by other reviewers...Any kid who actually is a "reader" will have no trouble with this book. I didn't. For me, the ending was what made this book get 5 stars. I have read and reread the book, and every time end up reading the ending out loud to myself, complete with voices to fit each character, and hardly being able to for laughing so hard. Fainting, gunpoint threats, elopement, surprise, and confusion are all packed into the climax. The atmosphere is extremely farcical, which is why I have no problem with the stereotypical characterization of some minor characters- it's supposed to be like that, and it just makes it more funny. I recommend the sequel for those who have no problem with a romance aspect and more civilized adventure. And also read Sorcery and Cecelia.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Magic and mayhem, November 5, 2002

By 

agtpeach (PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mairelon the Magician (Paperback)

Secrets run wild in this Regency Era fantasy flavored with elements of mystery and farce. An unusual combination to say the least, as is the pairing of Mairelon, the gentleman magician, with Kim, the master lockpicker. The hilarious, whirlwind plot revolves around the chasing and stealing of a set of magical silver objects, involving a disgruntled dwarf, a French ex-patriate, wannabe druids, a country house party, and the Bow Street Runners.

Patricia Wrede departs from her fantastic Enchanted Forest Chronicles by setting this story in semi-real Regency England, but the quick wit and light touch are still here with the bonus of exceptional period detail. Kim's thieves' cant (slang) is interesting to decipher, contrasting nicely with Mairelon's toff's (aristocratic) education. They make for rather amusing conversation, as you can imagine.

In the midst of all the comedy and adventure, there are glimpses of the great class divide and the dark underbelly of the London streets. A street thief didn't have a bright future, a girl's was much, much worse. Wrede does an excellent job of recreating London¡¯s seamier side without becoming morose or harsh. Kim is a wonderful heroine - tough, shrewd, wise, spirited, but tinged with a bit of sadness.

Overall, the mood is bright and witty, the humor a little wry, a little goofy, and a little sweet. Particularly charming is the unpretentious Mairelon, who is very much an absent-minded-professor type. The supporting characters are zany and lively. The plot defies summary because it is complicated by many characters and places, but it's a surprisingly swift and smooth read - primarily due to Wrede's keen descriptive skills. It was such a page-turner, I went out and got the sequel, The Magician's Ward, the next day because I was afraid it would end all too soon. A satisfying, fun read, it will be over before you know it (or wish it to be).