KEY POINTS:
The indomitable Margaret Mahy's latest young adult novel is proof that a master story-teller can reinvigorate the most tired genre. Fans of the sword-and-sorcery epic won't be troubled, but I had a sinking heart at the prospect of yet another fantasy set in a medieval-style world of magic powers and warring kingdoms.
However, gloom was banished straight away as Mahy took us right into the troubled head of her protagonist, Heriot Tarbas, a farmboy blessed and cursed with the ability to read others' minds. With each revelation of Heriot's true self, Mahy establishes this as fantasy with a deep, psychological dimension.
As Heriot's gift sees him torn away from his simple life to live at court as adviser to the King, Mahy introduces us to her convincing world. Hoad is a warlike country, ruled by a King trying to introduce a long-lasting peace. It's a complex balancing act between his own powers and that of the aggressive and ambitious Hero, whose official position is designed to balance his own.
In the prologue, Mahy tells us her story will bring together five vastly different characters - Heriot, "mad" prince Dysart, noble girl Linnet, city urchin Cayley and the complex, villainous Hero. "They had been such separate lives, it would have seemed impossible that they would ever lock together," she writes, then immediately sets about weaving the strands of her story into a rich whole with consummate skill, the structure of the novel a dazzling conjuring act in its own right.
Like most young adult novels, it is a coming-of-age story, as Heriot figures out how to pull together his divided self and where to direct his powers. It's a journey also taken by Dysart, Linnet and the city rat Cayley, an intriguing and charismatic character who brings a splendid, visceral twist to the tale. With its elliptical and enigmatic style, The Magician of Hoad is a challenging read - a slip in concentration can leave you mystified. And at times, because it is told so much within the emotions and senses of the characters, the heightened imagery feels relentless - you hanker for a little plain cloth amid all the embroidery.
Its description on the jacket as "dark, cerebral fantasy" is justified by its meditations on political power and, in Heriot's dark and wonderful visionary magic, the nature of imagination and fiction. But it is also a rare thing among novels for teenagers - a joyously earthy celebration of the transformative power of love.
The Magician of Hoad
By Margaret Mahy (HarperCollins $39.99)
* Frances Grant is an Auckland reviewer.
