Customer Reviews

The Wizard Heir

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Like The Warrior Heir, this novel gives a refreshingly new view of magic, the classic story starter. We begin to see more of the underlying major plot of political warfare that was barely tapped into last spring, a power struggle that both contrasts and mirrors our own world. Not many authors can practically restart a story with a new protagonist and setting, and weave it into what we the readers already know, but Chima does so with such spectacular ease it causes one to wonder why so many series stick to one point of view, thus limiting the richness and variety in the writer's universe.

Chima has a flawless balance of almost every element you can find in a good story. She has no qualms about scaring her readers, but isn't so ruthlessly horrible that sensitive readers are afraid to finish the series or even the book, as is the tendency of authors like Rowling. The density of the individual and overall stories does not choke a casual reader like Herbert's masterpiece Dune and while a careful reader can guess early on the identity of the Dragon and of Seph's parents, it's not a matter of clear and obvious assertion from page one as was found in Paolini's Eldest, but a matter of educated guessing with the several plausible options.

Not to mention the diversity of Chima's endless supply of characters, new and old. Any girl who tires of the stereotypical heroine will be pleased at the power and skill each female character that defines their personality and place in the story, though the men are by no means left plain in comparison. But what makes them stand out more than their magical powers ever could is how real the characters are, in emotion, thought process and personality.

Living up to its predecessor and even surpassing its brilliance, The Wizard Heir has something for everyone to enjoy, from funny and unconventional romance to hair-raising situations and a surprisingly fitting happy ending. Readers can expect to close on the last page absolutely dying for next spring, when we can continue the story with The Dragon Heir, and beyond.

First off, you should read the Warrior Heir first. It's a great book and you'll be less confused about the different guilds. But The Wizard Heir far surpasses all my expections. I read all 458 pages in one day. I just couldn't put it down. Most of the characters from Warrior Heir return in this companion book, but not until later. The main character is a 16 year old wizard named Seph who doesn't know how to use his powers. Because of this he his shuffled around from private school to private school because of various mishaps until he eventually ends up at the Haven where nobody is ever expelled. The action really picks up here and won't say any more because I hate spoilers. But totally buy this book, it is worth every penny. You won't be dissappointed.

"Seph is a wizard, orphaned..." That's all I needed to read. Great, I thought, another Harry Potter rip-off. Boy was I wrong!

I first stumbled upon The Wizard Heir when leaving a bookstore after doing research for my own project. There was table situated right next to the door, it was covered with hardcover books that featured enticing cover art. The opened the book, read the jacket flap, and left the store disgusted. I had only just finished mourning the loss of Harry Potter and here was arrogant Seph McCauley trying to fill the void.

I didn't actually know what the story was really about, or that it was the companion novel to another novel, The Warrior Heir. Eventually I became curious about what I thought was a rip-off and did an internet search. Soon I had landed on the author's website (http://www.cindachima.com/). I read the first chapter of The Wizard Heir (available in PDF form on the author's web site) and before I knew it I had purchased The Warrior Heir and was singing Cinda Williams Chima's praises (to reluctantly use an appropriate cliche).

Just like it's predecessor, The Wizard Heir does not disappoint and Seph McCauley is certainly not Harry Potter. The similarities stop at "...wizard, orphaned..."

Chima brings to life a new cast of characters and, to the readers delight, brings back the players from the first novel.

As I said of The Warrior Heir, "In an age when reading is less and less popular among both children and adults, Cinda Williams Chima has presented us with the next great series that will entertain people of all ages without the need of electricity. Though labeled a a novel for 'Young Adults,' the series will appeal to adults as well as teenagers."

Whether your a pre-teen, that role falls to a younger sibling, or even if you're a parent, you will not be disappointed by The Wizard Heir.

Should you read The Warrior Heir first? Yes.

Why? It's a great book! Besides, reading the whole series always makes things clearer. Having said that, Chima has an interesting way of catching up new readers or refreshing the memories of those who have read the first book. As the protagonist is not the same character as in The Warrior Heir, the author reminds the reader of important details through the education of Seph McCauley. Seph is new to the world of the Weir (the details anyway) and as he is educated by new and returning characters alike, so is the reader. Ingenious!

This book takes place about 6 months to a year after the warrior heir and its about another young man who is a wizard (obviously) and he ends up in a some strange place but it has a pretty good end so I would read it if you read the warrior heir

This is the second installment in Ms. Chima's "Heir Chronicles."

Joseph (Seth) McCauley has spent the last three years getting kicked out of one exclusive private school or another.

He lands at The Heavens, a private school for the "difficult" children. The Heavens is run by Dr. Gregory Leicester--a wizard himself--who has controlled of fourteen "alumni"--all of the wizards who have had their wizard stones fused with Dr. Leicester to augment their power.

Dr. Gregory Leicester tries in vain to get Seth to join his stone with him. Seth is tortured and made miserable until he finds help from another wizard, Jason Haley. Since Seth is very powerful, but has not been trained, Jason helps him survive the torments by Leicester until Linda Downey, an enchanter gets Seth to Trinity, Ohio, which was made a sanctuary by the last tournament.

Linda, she discloses to Seth that he is a Weirlind, part part of a society of magical people that comprises sorcerers, wizards, enchanters and warriors. At their helm sits the feuding houses of the Red Rose--lead by Geoffrey Wylie--and The White Rose, lead by Dr. Jessamine Longbeach. Everyone has a Weirbook with their ancestry on it but since Seth is an orphan he borrows Jack's to train as a wizard (Jack is part wizard but with a warrior stone).

Last year--the first Heir book--the control of the Hoards and their guilds have been in disarray. There was a tournament at Raven's Ghyll and an army of ghosts showed up, the players, Jack Swift and Ellen Stephenson, revolted and the rules were changed in favor of the lesser members of the guild, thus making wizards less powerful.

Leander Hastings, who was involved with Linda and trained Jack to fight at the Raven's Ghyll, has called a council. Hastings wants to preserve the new order, but Claude d'Orsey, the prior head of the guild is plotting with Leicester and his alumni to restore the old order. A second council is called to approve a new constitution and all the players are caled. It is meant to be a trap to the Hastings group, but Seth, his friends Jason and Madison Moss join forces to save the day.

This book sets the third installment since the constitution was stolen from the council and could be enforced unless someone stops the thief.

Readers will be thrilled with this exceptional second installment of the series. Chima uses her pen a wand and crafts a rich web of magic. You'll be taken by her pitch perfect blend of high fantasy and small town reality.

Better than Harry Potter--Chima brings to life the clash of magic and the ordinary that most authors would need an entire series to create. She has created an epic battle between good and evil.

Could not put the book down!

I was pleasently surprised about how well written this book was as well as being very different from Harry Potter.It will appeal to both teens and adults.It is a page turner . You don't need to have read Warrior Heir first, since Chima provides the reader with a sort of plot summary of that book. Wizard Heir follows a young wizard named Seph McCauley who falls constantly into trouble due to his untamed powers and becomes a target for one wizard , Gregory Leicster, who seeks to obtain Seph's power for his own evil purposes. The book also weaves into its plot wizard politics and the different casts of the gifted, enchanters , warriors and wizards.

"The Wizard Heir" is the sequel to "The Warrior Heir" a fairly good book that I read some time back, and the second in a trilogy.

Chima's stories can be rather predictable, as I believe I already covered in my review of the first book. Before even picking up this book, I read the excerpt included at the end of "The Warrior Heir" and the description on the cover of this book. Before I even opened this book, I figured out the mystery of the parentage of Seph, the new protagonist replacing Jack for this book. After finishing it, I can say that my first instinct was 100% correct. Does that say something about it?

However, I'm not the kind of reader who has a book ruined for me just because I know the twist that's coming. If anything, it strengthened my interest, because this new wizard heir fellow suddenly had a connection, in my mind, to two characters I was familiar with from the first book, not just some random new guy tossed up who I had no connection with, butting out the characters I actually did like. I'm glad I did, because after reading through this book, I came to like Seph a lot. In truth, I think it was an improvement to shift to his POV, now. Jack was still a bit too much of a Standard Teenaged Male Protagonist, and I think I like him better when he's put into the role of a secondary character who still has an important role to play but is no longer the protagonist. We see his POV here still, along with several others, but Seph's is the main one. I approve of the way Chima handles her POV characters, and it is a much needed relief after "The Wheel of Time" which despite its quality suffered from the problem of too many POV characters who simply weren't interesting. Chima enriches the story with her careful selection of these characters rather than bogging it down with them.

This book was enjoyable throughout, a definite improvement in characterization and story over "The Warrior Heir," thanks in no small part to the characters having already established themselves in the first book, and the unimportant ones having reduced or nonexistent roles. (Goodbye, Fitch. Sure won't miss you.) Seph had the bulk of the character development, though not all of it, but that wasn't a problem, since with a few exceptions, this was more about seeing the characters I already knew in action than watching them make serious changes. I think Chima is quite a bit better about writing about established characters than developing new ones, as I didn't think much highly of the character development in the first book. However, Seph's is definitely an improvement.

I enjoyed the ending as well, particularly as the penultimate chapter carried a revelation regarding the identity of the Dragon that I hadn't seen coming. I'd thought I had the obvious suspect nailed early on, only to have that expectation brilliantly dashed in what was perhaps the one twist that wasn't predictable. I was impressed.

All in all, "The Wizard Heir" is an improvement over the first book and well written for what it is. Will I get the third book, "The Dragon Heir"? Probably, and if not immediately, eventually. In terms of story and such, this series is not really extraordinary, which is why it doesn't rate five stars from me. It's good, but not particularly great, and I don't really feel any rush to go get the last book. However, I do plan to finish it eventually, as Chima is obviously improving as an author.

"The Wizard Heir" gets a solid four stars, with hopes here that the third book will improve even farther.

The Wizard Heir follows the story of sixteen-year-old bad boy Seph, an orphan who can't seem to stay on the straight and narrow. He discovers that he is one of the Weir, in fact, he is a wizard. In now-traditional Harry Potter style, Seph is sent to the Havens, an school in rural Maine that appears to be a school for troubled teenage boys, but is actually a front for a wizard training school run by Headmaster Leicester. WhenSeph finds that Leicester is not what he seems, the young wizard devotes his time to defying the headmaster and finding the truth behind his mysterious birth.

A considerable improvement on its predecessor, The Warrior Heir, The Wizard Heir actually follows a different main character than the first book, but takes place in the same world. Characters from the first book even make appearances. This may throw off some younger readers, but I thought it was a great concept. It helped to keep the series fresh and made it easier for first-time readers to understand because the author finds the opportunity to re-introduce the world. Honestly, this book should be considered more of a companion novel to The Warrior Heir than a direct sequel.

Overall, I thought that it was a fun read. It was exciting and fast-paced at the beginning and end, but seemed to drag horribly in the middle. It was so bad that I even considered putting the book aside and trying again later. While this does give the opportunity for the reader to seeSeph in a different environment and to see what previous characters have been up to, I was hoping that it would be a little more interesting.

Thankfully, near the end the action picks up again. Seph learns the truth about his parents' death, his birth, and the reason why Leicester wanted him so badly. I was particularly surprised to see the highly political nature of the novel's climax. Even though it had been hinted at previously in the series, the turgid world of wizard politics suddenly took center stage and gave the novel a different dimension. I didn't expect this from a young adult novel, and even though Chima explains the political climate with perfect clarity, some younger readers might have trouble figuring out what was happening. I, however, think that this is the strongest point of the novel and hints at the great potential that Chima has as a writer.

Still not the best young adult fantasy series out there, but enjoyable, fun, and well thought out.

This is a brilliant read , a gripping combination of magic and adventure,I just couldn't put it down. It's darker than most books but with a storyline that keeps you reading.The main character in the story is seventeen year old wizard Seph Mc Cauley who causes a LOT of trouble(You'll see!) and is shunted from place to place and school to school until he comes to a new boarding school called the Havens. It does get a bit predictable towards the end but it's still fairly exciting and it leaves an opening for another book at the end.I would definitely recommend this for anyone aged thirteen and up who liked the Harry Potter series. (It is a lot darker than the Harry Potter books,just to let you know.)

This is an excellent book series. I have read the first one and the second one. I look forward to reading the rest.