Product Description

In the remote village of Mandryn, Tessia serves as assistant to her father, the village Healer - much to the frustration of her mother, who would rather she found a husband. But her life is about to take a very unexpected turn. When treating a patient at the residence of the local magician, Lord Dakon, Tessia is forced to fight off the advances of a visiting Sachakan mage - and instinctively uses magic. She now finds herself facing an entirely different future as Lord Dakon's apprentice. But along with the excitement and privilege, Tessia is about to discover that her magical gifts bring with them a great deal of responsibility. Events are brewing that will lead nations into war, rival magicians into conflict, and spark an act of sorcery so brutal that its effects will be felt for centuries ...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6212 in Books
• Published on: 2009-02-05
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 593 pages

Customer Reviews

A little disappointing
This books is a stand-alone prequel set 200 years before The Black Magician Trilogy. It's a must-read for lovers of the the Black Magician-universe, but I wouldn't recommend it, if you haven't read the books.

Having read all of Trudi Canavan's other works, I looked very much forward to this title.
I really wanted to love it, but I wasn't pulled into the story, and it was too easy to put down.

What really makes this book worth reading is Trudi Canavan's way of describing characters. She has a talent not too often seen in the YA fantasy genre, a talent of making characters believable. Nothing is black or white, every character has a multitude of facets. The characters are like real persons, developing throughout the story.

CONCLUSION: Good storyline, lovely believable characters, but a little slow and boring, this is a book you should read if you've read the Black Magician Trilogy and loved it, but if you haven't read Trudi Canavan before, I'd recommend the wonderful Age of the Five Trilogy.

The Magician's Apprentice - Disappointing
Let me say first of all that I'm a big fan of Trudi Canavan's work and I was really looking forward to reading her latest book. It's felt like an age since I heard she was planning a prequel, and I spent the time rereading the Black Magician Trilogy and the Age of Five. I've always felt that the Black Magician was the stronger of the two trilogies. The Age of Five seemed to lack originality somehow, but the praise and criticisms can't be addressed in this review. I shall simply say that I feel as if Trudi Canavan is writing on a sliding scale, every book becoming gradually less and less original.

The Magician's Apprentice is, in my opinion, completely unnecessary. Prequels should reveal things we never knew in order to keep our attention, but The Magician's Apprentice does not do this. I read it feeling as if I already knew exactly what was going to happen. It was predictable, almost cliche at times, particuarly with regards to romance. The lead character felt lifeless, often boring and unlikeable. Often characters seemed like they were put in just to add to the word count.

That said, it was easy to read, I finished it almost in one sitting. You don't need to think too much, you'll be absorbed into the world and you'll probably enjoy bits of it.

In conclusion, however, I have to say that I feel The Magician's Apprentice has failed on three levels. Firstly it feels unnecessary from a fan's point of view, providing no new information and a weak imitation of Sonea and Auraya as a lead character. Secondly it fails also as a good read, because the magical battles of the world Canavan has made have already been used in her first trilogy, and this is more of the same. It feels like a cash in on a popular book and totally unnecessary. And finally it fails to attract new readers, because it is simply not that interesting, it is predictable and like every other fantasy book out there. This book is unlikely to attract new readers to Canavan's works.

I am utterly disappointed. The Magician's Apprentice is a forgetable book in a world that has now been drained of all possible use. There is no story left to tell, and I hope that Canavan will create a new world and characters that are completely different from her previous books.

To conclude, I would not recommend this book to someone who has not already read The Magician's Guild. Start with Canavan's original works, they are much better. To fans of the series, you'll probably want to read this book no matter what the reviews of it say, but I would suggest you read it out of curiosity only. Don't expect a groundbreaking fantasy novel. This isn't one. It's simply more of the same.

shame...
It pains me to give such a poor review about an author I have loved so much yet this book left me feeling woefully disappointed. I didn't even finish it. I got about halfway through and realised I didn't care about any of the characters or the story itself so picked up Robin Hobb instead. the main character (can't remember her name) was like a pale husk of Sonea and Auraya from Canavan's previous work. She lacked the fire of Sonea or the passion of Auraya, with few defining traits herself. All three of Canavan's female protagonists have the same, modest backgrounds, discover unknown power and have a love for healing. It's getting boring now. It has not put me off reading more by the author, but I will approach the upcoming sequel tp Magician's Guild with a guarded attitude and, as for Magician's Apprentice, I will be sending to the charity shop unfinished.I can't recommend this to fans of Trudi old or new. How disappointing.