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Summary: An amazing breath of origional air!
Review: I don't know why it took me nine years to discover this amazing novel written by the absolutely brilliant Garth Nix! From the first page, I was joyfully absorbed in the world of the Old Kingdom, necromancy, and the dead. Garth NIx has truly created an unforgettable world full of believable characters, situations, and an interesting form of magic called charter magic. The writing has it's own subtle touch of origionality, and Garth Nix gives you the feeling that your in good hands and are in for a good read. The plot was superb, amazingly constructed, and I can say with authority that is one of the finest YA novels out there to this date. I must now eagerly wait for my copy of Lirael to arrive!
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Summary: something NEW!!
Review: Finally, a breath of fresh air in the fantasy genre! Garth Nix has crafted a truly impressive story in his Abhorsen Trilogy, which starts with the book Sabriel.
The story opens with our main character, Sabriel(duh), ensconced in a seemingly normal boarding school for girls.
The normalities end there.
Her father is the Abhorsen for the Old Kingdom. To put it succinctly, he is in charge of making sure dead things stay dead. To do this, he uses a bandolier of seven bells, each of which has a different power and purpose, be it Ranna, who brings silence, Mosrael, the waker, Astarael the final bell, who brings death to all who hear its tone, or any of the others. With these bells, he controls the dead, and sends them back into death. He does this in the Old Kingdom, a land which seemingly borders England.
In the Old Kingdom, however, nothing works quite like it does in the rest of the world. All electronic gizmos, be it automated rifles or electric lights, stop working as soon as one crosses the border. Magic also comes into play, with a mind of its own and a dangerous bent.
Sabriel has to leave the safety of her boarding school in the "real world", and pass over into the Old Kingdom after her father disappears. She has with her one of her father's bell bandoliers. For, if her father should be dead, it will be her responsibility to take on the duties of the Abhorsen and keep the dead where they belong. She is joined on her search for her father by a strange cat-creature who calls himself Mogget, and who may not be what he seems. As she gets deeper and deeper into the Old Kingdom, she quickly realizes that she is up against much more than she had first thought, and that a dangerous evil is stirring, against which she may play a part....
This book is a must have for fantasy lovers. It is original and highly enjoyable, and Garth Nix avoids most of the typical fantasy stereotypes. It may not be your type of thing if you prefer princesses and fairy-godmothers and happy ponies, but if you are looking for something unique, and don't mind it a little dark with a little gore, you will love these books. And while it is admittedly a little dark,it isn't overpowering. You never get the feeling that Mr. Nix is actually a member of some fringe cult who is trying to impose his beliefs on the rest of the world. It is merely a land he has created, with a bit of an edge to it. And after all, the main characters are engrossed with making sure that what's dead REMAINS dead, and fighting against those who would have it otherwise.
All in all, this book definitely deserves five stars. It would be a great addition to the library of any fantasy reader from teenageer to adult. (Garth Nix has a website, www.gathnix.co.uk)
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Summary: smithys review.
Review: Five stars are not enough. I'd give it a thousand if I could! But since I am limited to only five, I suppose five will have to do. :)Sabriel manages to take its readers into a deep unknown world, so unlike the other fantasy worlds we've visited so many times in different books. Sabriel is an original. It is purely the idea of Garth Nix and no other. It would be difficult to find another fantasy novel such as this. Sabriel carries no similarities to that of Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings, therefore making each new page and chapter a new and interesting read. The language itself is graceful and descriptive, making it superior to all other fatasty novels I have read. Sabriel is a modern fantasy classic that can be enjoyed by all readers, both the young and old.
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Summary: Not another dumb fantasy book...
Review: I am a big fan of fantasy and read a lot of it. After a while, so many of them run together; they all seem to have a similar plot line, similar magical insturments ect... Not so with Sabriel. Garth Nix weaves an entirely original tale set in an entirely original land. I thouroughly enjoyed this novel and would recommend the entire series.
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Summary: Great book
Review: I really loved this book.It was exelent with all the myterious characters like Touchstone,it's an awesome adventure with many twists and new challenges for Sabriel to overcome.I do have to admit though that they wouldn't stop runnig into the dead...it gets a little bit tyring after a while.I also think that the ending was a bit sudden...Touchstone and Sabriel don't even kiss at the end witch i thought was unusual(at the end of most books i read there is a looooooooooooong kiss at the end).And there was one part i could not understand,what was Touchstone really doing with the maid at the hotel that they stay at.But as i said before i loved all the characters...as specialy Touchstone because I'm a big fan of twin swordsmanship.I also like Mogget for his arogence.He was really funny but i preferd him as the cat not the firey monster thing.But all these things made up a great book in the end(at least i think so)and i loved it.Good job mister Nix a great accomplishment.
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Summary: This is a great book!
Review: If you've read the plot description-- which is something like "Sabriel travels to the Old Kingdom to rescue her necromancer father from the Land of the Dead"-- you might think that this is a pretty junky horror-fantasy novel. Trust me, it's not! Yes, it's got un-dead monsters and things like that, but when you're into the story you're totally believing it and you don't stop for even one moment and say, "Wow, this is so trashy." Instead, the story is very beautiful and believable. Unlike many books, I could really feel the danger of the situations and I even felt afraid for the characters. This book looks long, but it moves very quickly. The unusual mix of technology and magic reminds me of Philip Pullman's "The Golden Compass", but other than that I don't see why everyone compares these two books. They're not similar in any other ways I can think of, but I would say that if you liked The Golden Compass, read Sabriel, and vice versa. I thought TGC was much better in fact, but Sabriel was still great. I really liked Sabriel as a character, and I loved the idea of the necromancer's bells-- brilliant! The cover art by Leo and Diane Dillon is beautiful. I hope Garth Nix is planning to write a sequel, or at least another book set in this world-- something like Tamora Pierce's Wild Magic series, which are a different story but let you know what happened to Alanna. It could be Sabriel's daughter, a future Abhorsen? It seems like some things were left undone. They never went back and saved those children, or helped the fishing village. Did they? Recommended for ages 13- up, especially girls. I am 15. PS. No, my e-mail address is not varied from Sabriel's name. I chose it before I read this book.
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Summary: ~Loved It~
Review: Jeez... there are a lot of reviews.
Anyways I loved the book. The fantasy.. the way the Abhorsens were good necromancers could travel between Death and reality well sort of, but yeah great book. Read all three and liked um all! Never really ever make sense when i try to SO just trying to make a point about all three being good. And its a really good visualization type book.
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Summary: Sabriel
Review: Most magic books imitate each other, with the same classic plot. Sabriel is wonderfully different, featuring a young necromancer called Sabriel, whose father, Abhorsen, has been trapped in the realm of Death. Accompanied by a familiar-like animal called Mogget, presently in the form of a cat, and a confused young man whom Mogget calls Touchstone, Sabriel travels in the place called the Old Kingdom, hoping to reunite herself with her father. Pursued by several nasty Dead creatures, Sabriel is exciting, interesting, and believable. This is a fine novel that holds the power to transport you into another world, one that you will want to visit again and again.
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Summary: The Ultimate Fantasy
Review: Sabriel is the kind of fantasy book that glues your hands to the book. It draws you in further and further as the plot undergoes bumps, surprises, and spectacular twists. At times it can cause chills to run up your spine.
It's about an 18 year old girl who is just graduating college, but she's far from normal. She dwells in the dark and dangerous art of necromancy. Her family line is one known as the Abhorsens, who unlike most necromancers, who raise the dead, put those that should not walk in life, back to death. When her father doesn't show up for his monthly visit, Sabriel gets a disturbing message from a dead servant, telling her that his life is in danger, as he is trapped in the dark depths of death, itself. Sabriel ventures into the mystifying and dangerous Old Kingdom, where she grew up when she was little, in search of her father. Sabriel learns along the way a disterbing amount of information about necromancy, charter magic, and the dark world known as the Old Kindom.
Sabriel finds more then she ever thought she would while journying through the Old Kingdom, including deep love, dark magic, and an unspeakable evil.
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Summary: A Tale of Dark Secrets, Deep Love, and Dangerous Magic.
Review: Sabriel, daughter of Abhorsen, must leave Wyverley school when she discovers the horrid news that her father is missing. She must cross the wall to a world she has never set foot on and pursue a dangerous mission with only her two friends as companions. Mogget- bound by a unknown perhaps dangerous spirit and Touchstone- imprisoned by magic and after many years set free by Sabriel. The three must travel deep into the old kingdom and in some instances- travel into the chill of death and try to save her father before it's to late... before he crosses the ninth gate. This is a breathtaking book that takes you out of this world and into a spine-tingling new world. The action and adventures come at a non-stop pace. It's a definite page-turner. Give this book a chance and you won't regret it! If you enjoyed this book you definitely should get the sequel 'Lirael'. It's worth spending the extra money for the hardcover.
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