Customer Reviews

Sabriel

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

This was my first fantasy novel that a friend introduced me to and now I'm hooked. Great book if you want to escape life for a moment and read about magic and other things. I'm greatful to be able to now say I own the series. :D

"Sabriel" by Garth Nix is a unique and memorable fantasy. For those of you who feel that dragons, unicorns, and bards are a bit overdone nowadays, this fantasy offers up a heroine who binds the dead with a bandolier of bells. The Geography of Death is lovingly delineated, from the prologue where Sabriel is born and dies and is rescued from the First Gate of Death by her father, to the book's final quarter where Sabriel rescues her father from the Fourth Gate of Death. Unlike Dante's Inferno, Death in this fantasy is a river, a waterfall, pools of black water, strange currents that suck the spirit from the flesh.

Sabriel herself is an English schoolgirl, recently graduated from Wyverley Academy with a "first in English, equal first in Music, third in Mathematics, seventh in Science, second in Fighting Arts and fourth in Etiquette. She had also been a runaway first in Magic.."

A visitation from the Dead sends Sabriel on a quest through the magical Old Kingdom, in order to reunite her father's body with his spirit which is trapped within the Fourth Gate of Death. She has to do battle with a really nasty necromancer-Adept, and rescue a prince who is a bit of a figurehead at first but who finally develops into a memorable character in his own right. Sabriel is both helped and hindered by a very non-cuddly cat named Mogget.

"Sabriel" was first published in 1995, and there are two sequels now: "Lirael," and "Abhorsen." By all means, read this trilogy if you love good fantasy.

This is a new Author for me, and I am impressed, the story line is fairly simple, straight forward, us against the really bad guy,lacking the multiple sub plots that can sometimes be distracting. I like the original form of magic used here too. There is plenty of action and cliff hangers to keep you turning pages. My only complaint is the use of the word Charter as a noun and an adjective without ever fully explaining the true nature of Charter magic. Maybe it will be explained more as we continue in book two. I bought the box set trilogy and I am glad I did.

How have i never heard of Garth Nix before?

How have you never heard of Garth Nix before? (My wife says she's heard of Garth Nix before...)

If you can, don't walk, but run to your Amazon accoutn and buy this book today. You won't be disappointed!

Sabriel is the heir to her father's legacy, the person with the singular task of keeping the Dead sealed in Death. She grows up on the border between a world very much like our own and the Old Kingdom, a place where the rules of nature bend and change to the magic of the Charter. On her quest to find, and restore, her father, she will find love, face evil, and walk the paths of the Dead.

Nix keeps the plot moving, and barely a page is wasted. Pick up this book on an empty Saturday, clear your schedule, and sit back for an enjoyable read.

Sabriel is a great book.

I was surprised that there are not a ton of reviews.

Sabriel is finishing high school in a early 1900s Britain type setting, when a cryptic messenger sends her father's sword and bells. Turns out Sabriel is from the magical border kingdom that nobody believes in. Her father is a necromancer that puts dead people back to dead (a good necromancer). Sabriel goes to rescue him, and adventure ensues. It's a coming of age, unsure teenage girl, meets boy and fights evil type thing.

I won't tell you more, as I don't want to ruin the plot. I would recommend this more for a teenage girl, but I am an adult man who read this some years ago and still likes it. It is appropriate for young adult readers. It has doesn't overly use gory details, or scare; but it does deal with death more than the average young adult novel.

The next books in the series are also good.

LOVE this book! Readers of all ages can enjoy it in my opinion. It can be read as a stand alone or as the first in the series. For everyone who enjoys action, magic, characterization, suspence, strong females, and a touch of romance.