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madame_medusa's review against another edition
5.0
So far, this has been my favourite of the "Abhorsen" series to read. There was something refreshing about Clariel as a character and once I realised where her plot line was going ... I transformed into a stunned goldfish on my train ride to work.
It was also great to spend time in the Old Kingdom and understand more of Nix's world-building. I really appreciated every little detail, especially coming in from previous novels set in the future after Clariel's story.
I just, I just really loved Clariel. I loved the silly lessons at the academy, I loved the strained relationships with her family. I even loved the Free Magic creatures...
It may sound strange but it was one of those books that when you read a line, you were suddenly inspired to get back into working on your own book. I know that doesn't sound like the ultimate compliment that it actually is--but it is.
It was also great to spend time in the Old Kingdom and understand more of Nix's world-building. I really appreciated every little detail, especially coming in from previous novels set in the future after Clariel's story.
I just, I just really loved Clariel. I loved the silly lessons at the academy, I loved the strained relationships with her family. I even loved the Free Magic creatures...
It may sound strange but it was one of those books that when you read a line, you were suddenly inspired to get back into working on your own book. I know that doesn't sound like the ultimate compliment that it actually is--but it is.
eqicbunny's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
a_proud_bibliophile's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
xmy_wxldmxn's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
slow-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? Yes
3.25
songwind's review against another edition
3.0
Set up
Clariel by Garth Nix is the fourth novel of the Old Kingdom series of stories.
Clariel is the only daughter of a wealthy and successful goldsmith. As the story opens, her family has moved from the backwater town of Estwale to the capital city of Belisare to further her mother's career. Clariel's mother is distant and absorbed by her work. Her father is ineffectual and totally dominated by him wife. Clariel herself is short on people skills, and is at her happiest when alone or with select others in the wilds.
Clariel immediately feels trapped and smothered by the teeming capital city. Her chief desire is to return to the country, to live with her aunt Lemon or to be alone in the Great Forest. Unfortunately for her, Clariel's parents begin inserting her into Belisare society. She is sent to the Acadamy, a school for the children of the wealthy and politically connected.
Clariel's family is connected both to the royal family, and to the Abhorsens - two of the three pillars of the old guard. The Goldsmith's guild is preeminent among the city's trade guilds, and at the head of a new, nontraditional order that has gained much power in the Old Kingdom.
It isn't long before Clariel and her family are being pulled between these two forces. To top it off, Clariel finds she has inherited the Rage, a berserker fury known to affect some descendants of the Abhorsens. Overwhelmed, under-supported and confused, Clariel decides to do whatever she can to escape the city and live the life of a forester - with her parents' consent or without it.
Review
I liked this story, but it's definitely the weakest entry into the series. Clariel's attitudes and actions, while believable for a thwarted teenager, become grating after a while. The narrative itself feels too long in places, and rushed in others. I believe this is because Nix is telling three interconnected stories, and at least two of them could carry a book on their own.
The story of Clariel is a tragedy in the classic sense. This is implied by the subtitle (The Lost Abhorsen) but it still feels out of place in the series. Furthermore, Clariel herself is very different from the other protagonists of the series, and those differences mean that a lot of the basic aspects of the other Old Kingdom series books are absent.
All in all, I enjoyed listening to this book, but it wasn't the sort of book I had hoped for when I learned that a fourth Old Kingdom novel was forthcoming.
Clariel by Garth Nix is the fourth novel of the Old Kingdom series of stories.
Clariel is the only daughter of a wealthy and successful goldsmith. As the story opens, her family has moved from the backwater town of Estwale to the capital city of Belisare to further her mother's career. Clariel's mother is distant and absorbed by her work. Her father is ineffectual and totally dominated by him wife. Clariel herself is short on people skills, and is at her happiest when alone or with select others in the wilds.
Clariel immediately feels trapped and smothered by the teeming capital city. Her chief desire is to return to the country, to live with her aunt Lemon or to be alone in the Great Forest. Unfortunately for her, Clariel's parents begin inserting her into Belisare society. She is sent to the Acadamy, a school for the children of the wealthy and politically connected.
Clariel's family is connected both to the royal family, and to the Abhorsens - two of the three pillars of the old guard. The Goldsmith's guild is preeminent among the city's trade guilds, and at the head of a new, nontraditional order that has gained much power in the Old Kingdom.
It isn't long before Clariel and her family are being pulled between these two forces. To top it off, Clariel finds she has inherited the Rage, a berserker fury known to affect some descendants of the Abhorsens. Overwhelmed, under-supported and confused, Clariel decides to do whatever she can to escape the city and live the life of a forester - with her parents' consent or without it.
Review
I liked this story, but it's definitely the weakest entry into the series. Clariel's attitudes and actions, while believable for a thwarted teenager, become grating after a while. The narrative itself feels too long in places, and rushed in others. I believe this is because Nix is telling three interconnected stories, and at least two of them could carry a book on their own.
The story of Clariel is a tragedy in the classic sense. This is implied by the subtitle (The Lost Abhorsen) but it still feels out of place in the series. Furthermore, Clariel herself is very different from the other protagonists of the series, and those differences mean that a lot of the basic aspects of the other Old Kingdom series books are absent.
All in all, I enjoyed listening to this book, but it wasn't the sort of book I had hoped for when I learned that a fourth Old Kingdom novel was forthcoming.
eidiya's review against another edition
4.0
Not my favorite of the Old Kingdom books, but I liked it nonetheless.
kberry513's review against another edition
4.0
As I started reading this I had a thought - does Clariel turn out to be Chlorr of the Mask?!? I'm intrigued. The more I read, the more I'm worried about it.
I feel for Clariel, although I'm a bit concerned about her propensity for Free Magic....Add that to her berserk nature and the results could be catastrophic.
I'm really upset at the way the king is acting like a spoiled child and about whatever has happened to his granddaughter- the city is devolving fast. I have to say, I'm a little surprised at how fast things have turned, though. Clariel and her family were just there for dinner and it turned into a bloodbath, starting with her father being shot by a crossbow and ending with her mother's decapitation. That's about where I am right now, so we'll see how I feel at the end.
*
Well, I was right - Clariel is Chlorr of the Mask. This one was kind of a bummer...I mean, things end up sort of kind of okay for Clariel, having been tricked by the Free Magic creatures (including Mogget) but the whole time I was screaming at her in my head, going "whyyyy are you so dumb! They are clearly evil!" but all the characters in her life who should have been teaching her important things, her parents, her Charter Magic teacher Kargrin who uses her as bait before even really teaching her anything, the captain of the guard Gullaine who tries halfheartedly to teach her to control her berserk-ness, the king who is like a petulant child waiting for his granddaughter to return to rule, his granddaughter for shirking her responsibility and hiding with the Clayr, the Clayr for not making Tathiel return sooner, Bel for not explaining that Mogget shouldn't be trusted, and the Abhorsen(s) who have been shirking their responsibility for generations. I was mad at literally everyone involved. I was also a bit mad that Clariel seemed like she was too lazy to learn Charter magic and that's why she liked Free Magic -all she had to do was will something to be.
I did like the way Clariel was an independent woman who eschewed romantic entanglements - that was a bit refreshing and I think it's nice to see representation of asexuality in literature, without making that the central conflict of the story. I was a little disappointed that Bel fell for Clariel so quickly and completely, but I suppose that was inevitable...I also like that it wouldn't have been a big deal if she'd been into women.
I didn't like how Tathiel came swooping out of nowhere and had been with the Clayr the whole time. It seems like the whole thing could have been entirely avoided if the Clayr had at least just told everyone where she was. It felt a bit deus ex machina-esque, but to be fair - this was Clariel's story and from her perspective, it would have been that way.
This was my least favorite installment in this series, but I think it's because there's no happy ending.
I feel for Clariel, although I'm a bit concerned about her propensity for Free Magic....Add that to her berserk nature and the results could be catastrophic.
I'm really upset at the way the king is acting like a spoiled child and about whatever has happened to his granddaughter- the city is devolving fast. I have to say, I'm a little surprised at how fast things have turned, though. Clariel and her family were just there for dinner and it turned into a bloodbath, starting with her father being shot by a crossbow and ending with her mother's decapitation. That's about where I am right now, so we'll see how I feel at the end.
*
Well, I was right - Clariel is Chlorr of the Mask. This one was kind of a bummer...I mean, things end up sort of kind of okay for Clariel, having been tricked by the Free Magic creatures (including Mogget) but the whole time I was screaming at her in my head, going "whyyyy are you so dumb! They are clearly evil!" but all the characters in her life who should have been teaching her important things, her parents, her Charter Magic teacher Kargrin who uses her as bait before even really teaching her anything, the captain of the guard Gullaine who tries halfheartedly to teach her to control her berserk-ness, the king who is like a petulant child waiting for his granddaughter to return to rule, his granddaughter for shirking her responsibility and hiding with the Clayr, the Clayr for not making Tathiel return sooner, Bel for not explaining that Mogget shouldn't be trusted, and the Abhorsen(s) who have been shirking their responsibility for generations. I was mad at literally everyone involved. I was also a bit mad that Clariel seemed like she was too lazy to learn Charter magic and that's why she liked Free Magic -all she had to do was will something to be.
I did like the way Clariel was an independent woman who eschewed romantic entanglements - that was a bit refreshing and I think it's nice to see representation of asexuality in literature, without making that the central conflict of the story. I was a little disappointed that Bel fell for Clariel so quickly and completely, but I suppose that was inevitable...I also like that it wouldn't have been a big deal if she'd been into women.
I didn't like how Tathiel came swooping out of nowhere and had been with the Clayr the whole time. It seems like the whole thing could have been entirely avoided if the Clayr had at least just told everyone where she was. It felt a bit deus ex machina-esque, but to be fair - this was Clariel's story and from her perspective, it would have been that way.
This was my least favorite installment in this series, but I think it's because there's no happy ending.
kberry513's review against another edition
3.0
After getting to listen to the other Abhorsen books as read by Tim Curry, it was a bit of a disappointment.
Also, since I knew for sure the whole time that Clariel becomes Chlorr, I had much less patience for her as a character. I still feel bad for her, because she was tricked by many people in her life, but she still made a TON of poor decisions of her own and I felt like slapping her across the face for being so dumb.
Also, since I knew for sure the whole time that Clariel becomes Chlorr, I had much less patience for her as a character. I still feel bad for her, because she was tricked by many people in her life, but she still made a TON of poor decisions of her own and I felt like slapping her across the face for being so dumb.
eemoolee's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I think this was an attempt to humanize a villain character but I didn't enjoy her to start or through her development