Product Description

Mindblowing new novel from multi-awardwinning author, Margaret Mahy. Roland has everything a young man could wish for -- good looks, enough money, a cool relationship with his mother, ready wit, intelligence, a sexy girlfriend, a perfect school record. So the fact that he committed a petty crime and that, somehow, one of his teachers knows about it is something he can hardly explain to himself, let alone anyone else. The teacher, Mr Hudson, uses this knowledge to blackmail Roland into befriending the school misfit -- Jess Ferret. The reason he gives is concern for her wellbeing, but even Roland finds this rather far-fetched. And when Jess doesn't respond to his confident advances, he becomes intrigued with the girl for his own reasons. Roland discovers Jess's dark secret and also finds that he has one of his own!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #470337 in Books
• Published on: 2002-11-04
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

About the Author
Margaret Mahy was born in New Zealand and has loved telling stories all her life. She has published well over a hundred titles and won several major prizes and awards, including The Order of New Zealand, for her internationally-acclaimed contribution to children's literature. She has twice won the prestigious Carnegie Medal, (The Haunting, 1982, and The Changeover, 1984). Margaret lives in the South Island of New Zealand, in a house which she partially built herself, overlooking Governor's Bay.

Customer Reviews

Well-written and compelling tale of magic.
Much more sinister than Harry Potter. Mahy successfully interweaves reality with the supernatural in this tale of personal discovery. The characters are well-drawn and the plot is a real page-turner. Fans of more 'complex' children's/teen literaure (Pullman/Garner etc.)will enjoy this book.

Alchemy by Margaret Mahy
This is Mahy's latest novel and like her others, once you begin reading it, you just want to read on. I'm not sure why, but it reminds me of the Harry Potter books in a way. There's the supernatural and the completely normal world of school all blended together in a sort of eery way... It's NOT the same as Potter but somehow if you like Potter, then you'll enjoy this too.