The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! š
bobbyob's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
ferretqueennyx's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
veronica87's review against another edition
4.0
This was a thoroughly enjoyable, fresh-feeling book about 18 year old Sabriel and her quest through the land of her birth. If more YA was written like this, I'd read more of it. Of course, I should point out that this book was published in 1995, well before the genre was Twilighted and, as such, there were no uber emo teenagers angsting over their melodramatic love triangles. And thank the universe for that! Instead we get a sensible and somewhat awkward young heroine who is afraid of the dark currents swirling around her, anxious about her abilities to meet the oncoming challenges, yet nevertheless determined to deal with any obstacles as they come. Along the way she finds help and opposition in equal measure but the focus always remains on her journey. She is young and inexperienced but she's smart enough to ask questions and to accept help when it is honestly offered - no obnoxious false bravado from this young lady.
"Fear and realization of ignorance were strong medicines against stupid pride."
The story was a little slow to get moving but the writing style felt so smooth and comfortable that I didn't mind. The magic system was intriguing, as was the whole matter of dealing with the Dead, and the description of the Nine Gates painted quite a picture. It also presents a reality where a more traditional fantasy land, known as the Old Kingdom, shares a border with a more modern world - complete with cars - known as Ancelstierre. I still have some questions about how that whole situation evolved and I hope that the answers will come in the rest of the trilogy. And speaking of that, now that I know that these books are narrated by Tim Curry, I plan to finish out the trilogy in audiobook format.
P.S. I freaking LOVED Moggett!!
"Fear and realization of ignorance were strong medicines against stupid pride."
The story was a little slow to get moving but the writing style felt so smooth and comfortable that I didn't mind. The magic system was intriguing, as was the whole matter of dealing with the Dead, and the description of the Nine Gates painted quite a picture. It also presents a reality where a more traditional fantasy land, known as the Old Kingdom, shares a border with a more modern world - complete with cars - known as Ancelstierre. I still have some questions about how that whole situation evolved and I hope that the answers will come in the rest of the trilogy. And speaking of that, now that I know that these books are narrated by Tim Curry, I plan to finish out the trilogy in audiobook format.
P.S. I freaking LOVED Moggett!!
criminaljustis's review against another edition
5.0
What a bunch of good October Spooky fun. I cannot believe this book is YA but, it's definitely YA. Tim Curry does the audio book so dang well I'd recommend it to fans of the book as a re-read, if they haven't read it in a while.
meringued's review against another edition
5.0
Reread: 10/2016. Still amazing.
---------------
I am actually surprised (and more than a little angry at myself) that I had never picked up Sabriel before. More surprisingly, I had never even heard of Sabriel before this year. Sabriel is a fantasy about a strong teenage girl who has magical powers. Everything about this book sounds right up my alley.
Sabriel has been raised in a small land called Ancelstierre, a land similar to England, far from the Wall and the menancing beings of the Old Kingdom. For the most part, she has been oblivious of the doings and history of that part of her world. Unfortunately, this dangerous countryside holds the house of her father, who must remain there to carry out his work. Her father is Abhorsen, the famed necromancer who binds the dead back to the land of the dead. When her father does not show up for his moonly meeting with Sabriel, she fears he has gone missing. She must take her powers and travel into the Old Kingdom, a place she is knows little about, to find her father. To help her with her journey, a cat and perhaps malicious spirit named Mogget and a man named Touchstone join her.
When I was updating my layout, I started going through authors' websites to add to my blogroll. One of these authors was the lovely Catherine Gilbert Murdock, who wrote what may be my favorite read of the year and possibly my whole life. She has a list of her favorite books, which I suggest you meander on over and look at, and Sabriel just happened to be on the list. Catherine had an amazing quote about the series that struck me as so correct that I had to share it here:
Years after reading Sabriel, I remain awed by his ability to drop readers in the middle of this foreign world ā plop! ā and expect us to soldier along until things explain themselves.
This is exactly how I felt in the beginning of the story. Garth Nix makes understanding his world nigh impossible without just girding your loins and shouldering through the book. I had no idea wtf Free Magic was, or Charter Magic was, or what the different types of death creatures were, or what a Charter Stone was, or or or. You see I could go on for days. But I am perfectly fine with being confused with a world, and I could feel it in my bones that Sabriel would be a winner if I kept with it for a little while longer. Boy, was I right. I appreciated the fact that Sabriel knew next to nothing about the Old Kingdom. Her ignorance was part of the reason of the little explanation given. The author was waiting to reveal all of the big secrets until Sabriel was ready. The two different magic concepts were explained, quite literally, on the run.
One interesting aspect of the story hit me on the head while I was reading reviews on Goodreads, after I had finished the book. Sabriel has ZOMBIES. Like big, scary, people-eating, back from the dead ZOMBIES! I hadn't put together that some people might see the creatures that came back from the realm of dead as zombies. I didn't see the relation at all while I was obliviously reading. For hardcore zombies fanatics out there, I wouldn't necessarily be putting Sabriel automatically on my to be read list because the of the zombies. Maybe I didn't think of zombies right away because I don't think of zombies as intelligent. They have a desire to feed, and that's all they have. They don't recognize power or hierachies, while the creatures in Sabriel are intelligent, without a doubt. They can think and reason. They know why they have to feed. They know they must follow creatures more powerful than themselves. A brain does not a zombie have. And they devour souls, not body parts. But potatoes, patatoes.
The character of Sabriel is ahmazing. She is strong and capable of handling herself, while still taking care of those around her or that may have gotten between her and her enemies. She is an independent woman and worthy of admiring. I would have liked to see more of the women in her world, for comparison. Its hard to tell if the world in which Sabriel inhabits accepts more 'modern' women and if Sabriel's attitude would be commonplace in the Old Kingdom or Ancelstierre. Somehow I guess not, but that is just my experience with most fantasies set in monarchies such as the Old Kingdom. However, my favorite character, without a doubt, was Mogget. An evil spirit wrapped up in a snarky cat. Can I spell amazing and wonderful any more ways?
Spoiler
I loved how Garth Nix portayed him as mysterious and shady. The wool was pulled over my eyes completely. I was so willing to believe Mogget was not malacious. Even when he attacks Sabriel, I was shaking my head, saying to myself, "There must be some better explanation of this attack." Yeah, I am an idiot. Even then, it's wonderful how Sabriel must lean on Mogget after he has tried to get rid of her forever.The only character who I felt was a little lacking, was Touchstone. He didn't seem real enough for me, and therefore the romance wasn't my favorite. It's easy to call, seeing as how there is basically only one boy and one girl throughout the entire novel. And the first time Sabriel sees him, Touchstone is naked. That always signifies sexy time and helps things along.
marygrace_'s review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
sashreads's review against another edition
4.0
What an action packed story! I loved how it combined high fantasy with today's world. Like you could use magic to fly but there are also cars and tanks rolling around
charlotekerstenauthor's review against another edition
āDoes the walker choose the path, or the path the walker?ā
So Whatās It About?
Sent to a boarding school in Ancelstierre as a young child, Sabriel has had little experience with the random power of Free Magic or the Dead who refuse to stay dead in the Old Kingdom. But during her final semester, her father, the Abhorsen, goes missing, and Sabriel knows she must enter the Old Kingdom to find him.
With Sabriel, the first installment in the Abhorsen series, Garth Nix exploded onto the fantasy scene as a rising star, in a novel that takes readers to a world where the line between the living and the dead isn't always clearāand sometimes disappears altogether.
What I Thought
I feel like this is the book that everyone recommends when someone asks for a YA book that isnāt ātoo YA-y.ā At least Iāve heard great things over the years and was expecting something truly special. For me, Sabriel was a bit of a letdown - and Iām not alone in thinking that because this was a buddy read with Lakshmi and she felt somewhat similarly!
I do think it has aesthetic in droves, from all the bells with cool names and the awesome paperwings to the cozy little house and the descriptions of the many, many creepy undead. I think the writing is generally pretty elegant and suits the tone well. Iām also interested in the basic premise of a land divided by magic vs technology; I loved Mogget and his very cat-like nature.
One of the main problems I have, however, is that I think the entire plot would have been well-served by a slightly more coherent explanation of the magic - what exactly is the difference between Charter Magic and Free Magic? How do the Charter Stones and Charter Bloodlines work, exactly? Maybe Iām just dumb, but it all felt rather foggy to me. I get wanting to avoid infodumping and wanting to introduce the world gradually, but I think itās possible to have a bit too much restraint and the result can feel like new rules get thrown at you as soon as theyāre necessary and everything feels a bit jumbled.
My other big complaint is that Touchstone is incredibly boring and the romance with him and Sabriel comes out of absolutely nowhere. As a final note, Sabriel kills a bunch of slaves who are being forced to build a bridge to her dadās house and Mogget states that heās enslaved by the Abhorsens, but we donāt really get much, like, moral compunction about any of this. I almost feel like Sabrielās reaction to crashing the paperwing is more extreme than her reaction to killing a bunch of enslaved people. Then, when they reach the capital, sheās all outraged when she finds out that slavers are killing people to protect themselves from the dead. Hmmm. Hm.
Overall itās a unique YA fantasy with great ambience and really, really cool ideas. It didnāt blow me away, but Iāve certainly read worse.
So Whatās It About?
Sent to a boarding school in Ancelstierre as a young child, Sabriel has had little experience with the random power of Free Magic or the Dead who refuse to stay dead in the Old Kingdom. But during her final semester, her father, the Abhorsen, goes missing, and Sabriel knows she must enter the Old Kingdom to find him.
With Sabriel, the first installment in the Abhorsen series, Garth Nix exploded onto the fantasy scene as a rising star, in a novel that takes readers to a world where the line between the living and the dead isn't always clearāand sometimes disappears altogether.
What I Thought
I feel like this is the book that everyone recommends when someone asks for a YA book that isnāt ātoo YA-y.ā At least Iāve heard great things over the years and was expecting something truly special. For me, Sabriel was a bit of a letdown - and Iām not alone in thinking that because this was a buddy read with Lakshmi and she felt somewhat similarly!
I do think it has aesthetic in droves, from all the bells with cool names and the awesome paperwings to the cozy little house and the descriptions of the many, many creepy undead. I think the writing is generally pretty elegant and suits the tone well. Iām also interested in the basic premise of a land divided by magic vs technology; I loved Mogget and his very cat-like nature.
One of the main problems I have, however, is that I think the entire plot would have been well-served by a slightly more coherent explanation of the magic - what exactly is the difference between Charter Magic and Free Magic? How do the Charter Stones and Charter Bloodlines work, exactly? Maybe Iām just dumb, but it all felt rather foggy to me. I get wanting to avoid infodumping and wanting to introduce the world gradually, but I think itās possible to have a bit too much restraint and the result can feel like new rules get thrown at you as soon as theyāre necessary and everything feels a bit jumbled.
My other big complaint is that Touchstone is incredibly boring and the romance with him and Sabriel comes out of absolutely nowhere. As a final note, Sabriel kills a bunch of slaves who are being forced to build a bridge to her dadās house and Mogget states that heās enslaved by the Abhorsens, but we donāt really get much, like, moral compunction about any of this. I almost feel like Sabrielās reaction to crashing the paperwing is more extreme than her reaction to killing a bunch of enslaved people. Then, when they reach the capital, sheās all outraged when she finds out that slavers are killing people to protect themselves from the dead. Hmmm. Hm.
Overall itās a unique YA fantasy with great ambience and really, really cool ideas. It didnāt blow me away, but Iāve certainly read worse.
lucas13's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0