A review by jmvaughan
Sabriel by Garth Nix

3.0

Like all of Garth Nix's books, Sabriel is nearly crushed under the weight of all its ideas. There are so many ideas, and they're all so enthralling, that I found myself much more interested in things like the magic system or the different gates in death than in the story or characters. It all felt like little more than an excuse for Nix to explore and explain this fascinating world he created. Admittedly, Nix is an incredible worldbuilder, but it's all for naught without characters we care about, without real humanity. That is what this book lacked, and what all of his books have lacked, in my opinion.