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If they do not stop her, she will soon kill again. And this time, her target is not an ordinary mortal. Susan looked at the phone, and thought about calling the police. But after a single second more of careful but lightning-fast thought, she followed him. A different practical yet magical Susan (Terry Pratchett’s creation) whom “our” Susan sometimes brought to mind.

I typically don’t know much about my characters when I begin a book, and I learn about them as I’m writing. Merlin is first described at the very beginning of the book, and it felt right to go into detail about his clothes, and Susan’s uncertainty about whether he was a man or a woman, and everything else just seemed to fit from there. The book includes all manner of creatures – do you have a favourite, and what were your inspirations and thoughts behind them? A Suitable Present for a Sorcerous Puppet'" (from Swords and Dark Magic anthology edited by Lou Anders and Jonathan Strahan) Garth Richard Nix (born 19 July 1963) is an Australian writer who specialises in children's and young adult fantasy novels, notably the Old Kingdom, Seventh Tower and Keys to the Kingdom series. He has frequently been asked if his name is a pseudonym, to which he has responded, "I guess people ask me because it sounds like the perfect name for a writer of fantasy. However, it is my real name." [1] Biography [ edit ] This novel works as a stand-alone, but I'm hoping Nix has some ideas for sequels percolating. I would gladly spend more time in Susan Arkshaw's London. The slight shake wasn’t because he’d disincorporated crime boss Frank Thringley. It was because he wasn’t supposed to be there at all and he was wondering how he was going to explain—It was truly remarkable that an entire book could be written in a tell, not show way and still get published. It was very much like “this happened, then that happened, and oh yeah that too”, which kept me disengaged from the entire book. Nicholas Sayre and the Creature in the Case" (2005). A novella produced for World Book Day and originally entitled "The Creature in the Cave". Reprinted under the new title in the collection Across the Wall: A Tale of the Abhorsen and Other Stories.) stars, rated up for an overall enjoyable read. Edit on reread - I'm glad I rated this up, I enjoyed it much more the second time around. I think where I ran into trouble is that for the most part, it's a series of events. It doesn't necessarily feel like the characters have much agency or effect on anything that's happening - they just defend against a series of issues. But on reread, at a slower pace, it's definitely an enjoyable book - just likely not everyone's storytelling cup of tea. After reading the absolutely abysmally plotted and paced Angel Mage, I was walking into this one with some trepidation. I love classic Garth Nix, in that I love Sabriel and the original Abhorsen trilogy, but I haven't been able to find as much joy in any of his other works. Pediculus humanus capitis. A louse,” replied the young man, who was reloading his revolver, hitching up his waistcoat to take rounds from a canvas bullet belt. “Made bigger, obviously. We really have to go. Name’s Merlin, by the bye.”

DNF at 30%. It feels like such a slog that I'm not interested in pushing through. Based on the premise I should have loved this book, but it's a lot like The Starless Sea- really wonderful idea but terrible execution. It's weird and not in an enjoyable or humorous way.

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The writing style is simply not enjoyable. Other reviewers have brought up the excessive amount of ellipses that result in stilted and unnatural dialogue, and interrupt the flow of reading. Added to this is the unbelievable fact that the reader is told everything and shown nothing. I find this very surprising coming from a seasoned writer. Every character is described in excess with boring and unnecessary details. Their entire wardrobe is listed in full each scene, along with an accent that I'm supposed to just read the dialogue in, as no mannerisms to show this are included in what they say. I don't care a whit about Susan, who has completely unrealistic reactions to what happens. Merlin should be the best character ever but is just a charicature as opposed to a real character. Además de conservar la paz entre lo mágico y lo no mágico, los libreros, como bien dice su profesión, se dedican a los libros. Me he anotado un montón de títulos y cuando buscaba qué estaba leyendo qué personaje me gustaba ver que el libro tenía relación con su personalidad también.

I read this on the strength of the title alone and I am very glad I did. It was funny, it was clever, and it was totally entertaining. It's not Sabriel levels of awesome, but it was an enjoyable read with an interesting magic system (although the loophole ending is foreshadowed from a mile away). In addition to his work as a fantasy novelist, Nix has written a number of scenarios and articles for the role playing field, including those for Dungeons & Dragons and Traveller. These have appeared in related publications such as White Dwarf, Multiverse and Breakout!. He has also written case studies, articles and news items in the information technology field, his work appearing in publications such as Computerworld and PCWorld. [4] It’s lighthearted and fun and playful — and entertainingly satisfying. Will it change your life or make you ponder big deep questions? Nope. Will I forget it after a few weeks? Probably. But was it pleasantly entertaining and perfectly fine for a few nights after a long day of work, like a nice cup of cocoa? Ab-so-lute-ly. A Suitable Present for a Sorcerous Puppet", in Swords and Dark Magic, edited by Lou Anders and Jonathan StrahanBy a third of the way through, I still didn’t understand anything about the world. Honestly, I’ve finished reading and I still feel lost. All that said, this is not a "heavy" read. It's one of those books you'll find yourself staying up late to finish—and not regretting that choice the next morning. El año pasado leí "Magia Angelical" y fue sin duda de mis mejores lecturas del 2021. Quería volver a leer al autor por ello y dado que la sinopsis también me llamaba la atención, todo perfecto.