The Magician's Apprentice - Trudi Canavan

I'm not a big fan of fantasy novels. I've read and enjoyed the classics - Lord of the Rings, His Dark Materials, Harry Potter, Dune - but in general I prefer my fiction to be set in a world I recognize! However, I'm always open to trying new writers and when a colleague leant me the Black Magician trilogy last year, I really enjoyed it and became an overnight fan of Trudi Canavan. I've since read reviews that say it's full of fantasy fiction clichés but since I haven't read that much fantasy fiction I didn't notice. Anyway, I was really looking forward to reading the prequel to the trilogy and after climbing slowly up the waiting list at my local library, I finally got ...  Read the complete review

It seems that wherever you go in fantasy circles at present, Trudi Canavan's work comes highly praised. Reviews of her current and past work speak of it in glowing terms and readers have clearly felt the same way, giving her high marks on websites like Amazon and propelling her to the top of the ''Sunday Times'' bestseller lists. Here at The Bookbag, however, we're a more discerning bunch and previous reviews of her work have criticised her weak character development. Having had my first taste of her work, I can see both points of view, but would agree more strongly with the latter. Tessia's father is a healer in the village of Mandryn in the land of ...  Read the complete review

The Magician's Apprentice is a stand along prequel set 200 years before Trudi Canavan's Black Magician Trilogy, and it is stated in the book that it is the ideal introduction to that trilogy. However, I will say from the start that I disagree with that. Personally I would recommend reading the trilogy first before approaching this novel. The reason is simply that a lot is mentioned in the Magician's Apprentice that will spoil the impact of twists in the trilogy, whilst once you have already read the trilogy this book throws up some nice twists and tidbits that will have you relating back to the trilogy. The Magician's Apprentice was written after the trilogy, and this in ...  Read the complete review