Title: Sabriel ReRead
Author: Garth Nix
Series: Abhorsen #1
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Magic, Medieval fantasy, Necromancers
Pace: Fast
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 1995
I will read and reread Sabriel and the Old Kingdom trilogy forever and ever and enjoy it each and every time. There is something about this that is just like pulling on a nice, warm blanket and cuddling in. Plus, there’s now the greater Abhorsen series that I haven’t actually read yet. So not only was this reread wonderfully fun and comforting, but it will also lead perfectly into reading more of the books that I haven’t yet had the pleasure of reading. I absolutely can’t wait!
Sabriel’s journey to not only growing into her powers as the Abhorsen, but also growing into herself is one that has really withstood time well. Not all of the books that I loved as a teenager have really standed against time all that well, but this one most definitely has. And, for some reason, the fact that this is a book about a young woman, but written by a man? It just makes it that much better. I mean, Nix is able to seamlessly write a great coming of age story that appeals to generations and genders. Something that not everyone is able to do, and when I first read this, I didn’t really feel like there were many female writers writing stories of this calibre and being a coming of age story (I’m sure there were, but I just didn’t have access to them).
As I mentioned, I really love that this is the first strong women / coming of age story that I read in the fantasy genre. I would count Pierce’s work amongst this, but there is something a lot more mature about the story lines of the Old Kingdom trilogy. Sabriel is one of those books that I will definitely share with my children, it is a fantastic story and one that I absolutely adore. It is unforgettable and wonderfully enjoyable. The fact that it deals with death and the idea that everything and everyone must pass on at some point was really powerful and interesting. I enjoyed that aspect in past reads, but now, as an adult who is dealing with loss in their life, I really liked this message. And it is such an important one – everyone, everything and every moment has its time. And we all need reminders of that every now and again.
Nix is phenomenal at his world crafting and character creation. Every single aspect of this story feels lovingly created and the imagery of the world that you are inhabiting on this journey just jumps off the pages. This alone would make me absolutely adore this story and the start of this series. But then, Nix effortlessly combines this talent of description and creation with non-stop action. It is constant, it is engaging and it makes it almost impossible to put this book down. Even when I’ve already read it before and actually know what is going to happen.
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