Book Review – Lirael
Author: Garth Nix
Publisher: EOS
Binding: Paperback
Publication Date: 2001
Award-winning author Garth Nix’s follow-up to “Sabriel” is “Lirael.” Taking place some fourteen years after the first book, “Lirael” splits time among many characters of this dual-world. Here again are Sabriel and (her now husband and king) Touchstone. This sequel introduces their children, Ellimere and Sameth, as well as the title character.
Lirael is a daughter of the Clayr, one of the important magical families of the Old Kingdom. She is separated from extended family by her strange looks and—even worse—her inability to See. Unlike the other Clayr, Lirael has no power to see into the future and, it seems, she is unlikely to ever gain it. What Lirael does have is cleverness and curiosity, along with a talent for magic. Yet these traits are not enough to overcome Lirael’s dismay at being different, and she becomes a loner within the Clayr’s glacier home. Her only refuge is the library. Filled with knowledge and dangers (both remembered and forgotten), the library is a place of seemingly endless proportions. Exploring the library, Lirael’s magical abilities grow. She even creates a companion, the Disreputable Dog (a magical talking dog whose loyalties and motivations are not always clear and who is reminiscent of the cat Mogget from Sabriel).
Meanwhile, there is trouble in the Old Kingdom. The Abhorsen Sabriel and King Touchstone have worked hard over the years to drive the Dead from the land. Yet trouble is springing up everywhere and they wonder if it isn’t all part of a larger plot to destroy the Charter (the magical force that holds the Old Kingdom together and keeps evil at bay). Fighting these troubles keeps them away from the castle and, eventually, from the Old Kingdom.
Popular, athletic, and Kennedy-esque Prince Sameth is finishing school in magic-less Anclestierre when danger strikes. He barely escapes, injured in body and soul. Now with a paralyzing fear of Death, how can he fulfill his role as the Abhorsen-in-Waiting, helping his mother rid the Old Kingdom of the ravenous Dead? In the Old Kingdom, it seems, Sam is nothing but a lonely bungler who would rather tinker in his workshop making toys. Meanwhile, super-organized Princess Ellimere must run the Old Kingdom in the absence of their parents.
And the villains make their appearance too… Chlorr of the Mask and the necromancer Hedge are formidable enough. But is there an even greater evil behind them? What exactly are they trying to accomplish? How (and why) has Sam’s friend Nick from Anclestierre become wrapped in this conspiracy?
“Lirael” is the rare case of a sequel superior to its predecessor. While it brings back most of the characters from Sabriel, those characters have evolved from fairly standard archetypes into more realized characters. The interesting dual-world set up in “Sabriel” also become richer and questions left unexplained in the first book (such as how Nix’s magic system works) are answered here. Nix’s egalitarian world has realistic (and flawed) male and female heroes, and that’s refreshing (particularly since Nix has none of the heavy-handed “political correctness” of some). Best yet, Nix packs much more action and suspense into “Lirael.” Those that found Sabriel to be a page-turner will find Lirael irresistible.
Like “Sabriel,” “Lirael” can be enjoyed by readers of almost any age. Unlike “Sabriel,” however, “Lirael” is not a stand-alone novel. Its story concludes in “Abhorsen.” Thus, my only warning: do not jump into “Lirael’s” thrill-ride unless you already have “Abhorsen” sitting on the nightstand!
About 
Recent Comments