Because Connwaer sacrificed his locus magicalicus to defend his city, he is no longer a sorcerer. How could he be, without anything to channel the magic through? But when Conn experiments with pyrotechnics (blowing things up... not the best pastime), he thinks he can hear the magic speaking to him. It's urgent, and its scared. Conn knows it has something to do with the shadowmen that are threatening his city of Wellmet, but how could he do anything?A pyrotechnic experiment gone wrong guides him in the right direction: he's banished.
Based on the cover, I would say The Magic Theif: Lost is a cheesy kids book lacking orginiality and full of cheesy lines and and a cheesy plot. But my thoughts after actually reading the book are quite different.
Yes, TMTL is a kids' book, so don't expect deep writing. But despite that, the plotline really is interesting. I'm almost rather embarrassed to say I couldn't put it down. (I actually tried to hide the cover and the big font when I took it places, so I could read it without people knowing I was intensely interested in a kids' book about a magic theif.... haha). It's the classic story about the classic gutterboy who is more than he seems, but what I liked was that Conn didn't lose his gutterboy nature and become "super magician" and civilized. He's spunky and sucks at swordcraft. But, he's excellent at picking locks and pockets, which are talents a gutterboy would have. He doesn't change. He's still the gutterboy, but a sorcerer gutterboy. I rather like that.
The dialogue is easy and witty.
There's a strong sense of good and bad.
The prose doesn't run off in different directions, but keeps track.
It's in first person, but there isn't gushy details of Conn's feelings.
In all, if I had read The Magic Theif: Lost when I was younger, I'm sure it would have been one of my favorite books. Now, I like it for a good story, but I can only see it as a children's book:it doesn't have the deep nature of the good YA books. It's for children.
So I'll have to rate this two ways:
Rating: 5 for children, 3 for YA
Clean?: Clean
Length: 389 Pages (large font, hugely spaced)
Most Like: I don't know many childrens' books, but how 'bout a YA... The Lighthouse Land?
Released: May 2009
Did you read the first book before this? If so was it better/not as good/same...?
ReplyDeleteNo, I didn't read the first book, but it definitely makes me want to read it, if that is any kind of answer ;)
ReplyDeleteI want to read this book NOW! LOL. I love half children/half YA books like this with their design and plot. It just doesn't seem wrong (to me) to like fantasy when reading these books. Like, for example Harry Potter was a children's book. And it evolved from then.
ReplyDelete