Book Review: Scent of Magic by Maria V. Snyder

Avry of Kazan is a healer in the Fifteen Realms, a land torn apart by a deadly plague.  Healers were once reviled, accused of standing by and doing nothing to stop the devastation of the plague. Now war ravages across the land while the megalomaniac King Tohon leads an undead army in his quest to be sole ruler over all the realms.

Scent of Magic is the second novel in Maria V. Snyder's Avry of Kazan trilogy. The events of debut Touch of Power closed with Avry's close brush with death and in Scent of Magic, Avry and lover Kerrick decide to take advantage of the prevailing belief that Avry succumbed to the plague. They decide to split up with Avry heading south to infiltrate the holy army of Estrid and continue on her quest to reconcile with her sister.  Meanwhile,  Kerrick returns to his realm of Alga in the hopes of mobilising his army to join the fight against King Tohon.

Can they succeed in time to stop Tohon’s evil plan and restore order and unity to the Fifteen Realms?

The Avry of Kazan series is based on such a fantastic premise and no one writes this type of fantasy better than Maria V. Snyder. The problem is that like so many of her other series, this one seems to be suffering from a doomed mid-trilogy story.

I wanted to love Scent of Magic, I really did.  I thoroughly enjoyed Touch of Power and gave it a 5 star review. Indeed, I had waited with bated breath for Snyder to release the sequel but I admit that I was disappointed. I’m keen to read the final book in the series though so I am going to list the five issues I had with Scent of Magic which ultimately ruined the novel for me and I’ll leave the reader to make up their own minds.

I read a lot of series and I’d say the bulk of them are trilogies. There is always going to be a fair amount of info-dumping as the author tries to remind readers of the events of the previous novels and perhaps even snag a few new readers. The problem here is that there is a massive amount of info-dumping in the form of awkward conversations and a fair amount of telling the story instead of allowing it to tell itself.

The next three points all have to do with how much Avry’s character and how her circumstances changed between the first and second novels. I wouldn’t exactly call it character development but rather pretty convenient shortcuts the author took to tell the story.

The entire story in Touch of Power hinged on the fact that healers were outlaws and were subject to imprisonment and execution. Scent of Magic is set in an unspecified medieval time, without the marvels of modern communication. Even if Avry was vindicated at the end of the previous novel, there is no mention of that suspicion, fear and hostility towards healers in this novel.

After spending a relatively short period with Kerrick and his men in the previous novel, we are now to believe that a trained healer has now become a master tactician and is able to teach an entire army about guerrilla warfare and slipping through forests undetected.

In many ways, Avry is just a different person. Gone is her confidence and competence that saved her life so many times in the past. In Scent of Magic, Avry is an unreliable narrator and so much of the story revolves around her frankly paranoid impressions of who does and doesn't like her and the errors in judgement she makes about other characters. Those mistakes would have gotten her killed in the previous book and almost do in this one.

My final qualm has to do with creative liberties and the suspension of disbelief. The Avry of Kazan series is a fantasy series and like all fantasy series, the author is going to take a fair amount of liberties and the audience is going to have to take a leap of the imagination. My problem is that the entire resolution of this book depends on a syringe, a 19th-century invention that is absolutely out of place in this medieval type society.

So there you have it, repetition, incongruous characterisation and inconsistencies, an unreliable narrator and modern inventions in a medieval world all served to undermine Scent of Magic and make it a disappointing read. I am really hoping that Taste of Darkness will be an improvement in the way that Fire Study was but I won’t hold my breath.

I give Scent of Magic 3 out of 5 stars.

You can buy Scent of Magic at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com. This review contain affiliate links.

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Book Review and Interview: Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder

In the land of the Fifteen Realms, healers are not afforded the respect that you would imagine. Instead, they are feared and reviled, blamed for the devastating plague that swept through the realms, leaving devastation in its wake. When 20-year-old Avry of Kazan uses her magic to heal a dying child, she knows that she faces certain death if caught but she places a higher premium on the young and innocent life that she is saving. 

It is no surprise then that in these desperate times the child's parents turn Avry in and she is scheduled to die at dawn. In a dramatic sequence, Avry is rescued from her prison cell by the powerful yet mysterious Kerrick who wishes to use Avry's healing powers to save the dying prince Ryne. Not only is Ryne the man believed to have unleashed the plague unto the realms in the first place, saving him will undoubtedly kill Avry, placing her in an almost impossible situation.

Touch of Power is the intriguing new fantasy novel by prolific young adult author Maria V. Snyder.  It is the first book in a trilogy and as you can see from the interview below, Maria is already working on a sequel.  It is a high fantasy novel set in a medieval-type world but it is will appeal to fans of urban or low fantasy too.

I enjoyed every minute of this novel and could not put it down.  Much of Touch of Power takes place in small forests and villages as Avry, Kerrick and his men make their way to through the Fifteen Realms, across the Nine Mountains to where Ryne is located.  In their quest, they must avoid carnivorous plants, man-eating beasts, blood-thirst mercenaries and undead warriors.

All the while, Avry locates her long-lost sister and it isn’t the tearful reunion you’d expect.  She learns more about her healing power and about the people that trained and worked with her.  Mostly, she must learn to trust these men, this band of fighters who will kill her if she does not help them.

It is a long time since I have been completely immersed in a fantasy novel, to the extent that I lived and breathed a world, but that is certainly true of Touch of Power.  In fact, the last time I was so impressed by a book in this genre was when I read Maria V. Snyder’s Poison Study.  In many ways, this novel is similar to Poison Study in that it has a strong, magical protagonist and is set in lands torn apart by war, strife or political wrangling.  There is enough here though to set Touch of Power apart from Maria’s former books and in fact, I’d recommend all of them.

I especially enjoyed the concept of healing in this story and the various source of magic.  I loved Kerrick’s abilities but won’t reveal too much for fear of spoilers.  The Death and Peace Lilies (the aforementioned carnivorous plants) were an incredibly interesting idea, as was their part in the story.  I liked both the protagonists Avry and Kerrick, which makes a change from others novels I’ve read recently where I simply wished one of them would perish.

I would recommend this book to all lovers of fantasy romance or young adult fiction, including fans of the Harry Potter series, the Vampire Academy series, The Old Kingdom Series or The Twilight Saga.

I give Touch of Power five out of five stars.

Touch of Power is a Mira Ink book.  

Buy Touch of Power at Amazon.co.uk ¦ Amazon.com

Buy Poison Study at Amazon.co.uk ¦ Amazon.com

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I’d like to thank Maria V. Snyder for taking the time to answer six of my questions.  Her answers were really brilliant.  At the bottom of the post, you can see an animated book trailer.

Touch of Power is a great title and I thought it was very subtle within the context of the book.  Are you able to tell us the titles of the next two books in the series and what they will be about?

I can't take any credit for the titles.  We, as in me, my editor, my agent and a number of others at the publisher came up with dozens of titles that were all rejected for one reason or another.  Touch of Power was suggested by my editor (a hybrid of a couple others) and she added Scent of Magic and Taste of Death as the next two books to seal the deal.  After two months of emailing, we all agreed that it was a perfect trio of titles.

I'm working on Scent of Magic now and it's focusing on the war between Estrid and Tohon, while Avry seeks to reconnect with her sister.  I've no idea what Taste of Death will be about until I finish SOM. I'm not a planner, but a seat of the pants writer, discovering as I go.

What was your favourite chapter in Touch of Power to write?  And your least favourite or most difficult?

The first and last chapters tend to be my favourites.  The first because it's a new beginning and I'm excited about the story and just want to dive right in.  The last because, by that time, I'm so sick of the story and just want to write my two favourite words, “the end!” And because of the feelings of satisfaction and relief of having finished another novel.

The most challenging aspect to write was the rumors about the plague.  I needed there to be a misunderstanding between Kerrick and Avry about the plague, and it was hard to keep it going and make it logical at the same time.  I'm a stickler for logic!

One of my favourites aspects about your books is that you touch on serious issues in your books including war, massacres, sexual assault, slavery and political upheaval within the context of your stories.  Are there any topics that you haven't covered yet that you would like to cover in future books?  What story would you like to tell?

I don't focus on issues when I'm writing.  I focus on the characters, their situation, and their motives and desires.  Those issues/topics develop as I write the story so I never plan on them.  After the healer series, I don't know what I'll write next :)

Following on from the previous question, what inspires you to write about those topics?  Do you conduct a lot of research beforehand?

I think these topics bubble up from my unconscious.  I'm concerned about the environment and about over-population and wars so these will always creep into my writing.  I don't think anyone in this world should go hungry and so Yelena helps Fisk, a beggar boy and Avry gives all her money to a street rat.  I don't conduct any research prior to writing.  Since I discover the story as I write, I'll mark places where I need to do some research and then continue with the story.  Once I'm done, I'll do the research and then fill in the blanks when I revise (or correct errors).

Do you find that your characters gain a life of their own, dragging you along for the ride and practically writing the story for you?  Or do you find that you have to coax the stories out of them?

It depends on the character.  Some decide they're not going to follow any of my preconceived notions and do their own thing, while others are happy to play along.  And some are down right difficult.  Devlen in the Glass books would not cooperate at all.  He caused me the most trouble and I had a terrible bout of writer's block because of him!

Out of all of your books, who is your favourite character and why?  And your least favourite?

Janco from my Study and Glass books – no doubt!  He’s just a fun, quirky character that goes off on unusual tangents and I love writing about him.

Finn and Walsh from the Glass books are my least favourite characters.  They do despicable things and are very controlling and manipulative.

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Book Review: Outside In by Maria V Snyder

Outside In is the sequel to Maria V. Snyder's dystopian, young adult novel Inside Out.  In Inside Out, it was established that the Insiders were living in a giant structure that was hurtling through space and that Outside did not represent blue skies and green fields but rather Outer Space. Using live sheep and vegetables grown through hydroponics to feed the population, the systems of Inside were self-sustaining and everything was recycled to further perpetuate the system.

Inside was divided into two main population groups: the uppers who controlled the systems and the lowers who performed the manual labour. The Travas family and the Population Control Police controlled the population of Inside with brutal and often lethal means and the seeds of discontent amongst the uppers and lowers were sown.

Inside Out reached its climax with the uprising and rebellion lead by a scrub named Trella and Outside In begins after those events. The Travas family are all locked up and Trella hopes to return to a quiet life while the newly formed Committee runs the affairs of Inside.

Trella's quiet life does not last long, however, as a series of attacks rock Inside (literally), thus putting Inside’s support systems into grave jeopardy.  Added to that, affairs between Trella and her boyfriend, Riley, are strained as he struggles to understand why she won't stand up and be a decent leader to her followers.

I had read Inside Out in February this year and gave it a 5-star review on Blogcritics as I’d found it innovative, imaginative and exciting.  It is reasonable to say, therefore, that I started reading Outside In with pretty high intentions.  Unfortunately, the book simply didn’t match up to those expectations.  Perhaps it was intentional and mirrored Trella's desire not to get involved, but the first half of Outside In truly dragged. It felt mechanical and stilted, as if the events in the book were being reported, rather than a story told. 

This resulted in a lack of depth in the novel.  Snyder has received criticism from readers in the past for constantly rehashing the events in her previous novels (this was especially true of Fire Study, the last in the Study series). With Outside In however, I felt that Snyder did not do enough to recap readers on the structure and systems of Inside and the various characters.  Characters are constantly introduced to the story and Snyder makes constant reference to the unique structure of time in Inside but it all seemed rather confusing and distracting given her lack of detail and depth.

Both books fall into the romantic fiction corner of the young adult market and perhaps most telling was that I did not relate to any of the men in the book, especially Riley who is meant to be Trella's love interest. There was simply no chemistry between Riley and Trella and in fact, I spent most of the book convinced that she was going to land up with another character Logan to whom she showed far more interest, respect and attention.

As a whole, Outside In felt extremely rushed as if Snyder realised she had dragged to the middle of the book and then needed to conclude the book in a certain time frame or page count.

Gone was the expert storytelling and weaving in of clues to be found in Inside Out or Poison Study from Snyder's Study Series. Instead, the reader was simply told of the constant betrayals and mutating loyalties of the characters in the book. Ultimately, the reader was left not knowing who to believe or, indeed, what the truth actually was. This was certainly complicated by the shallow characterisation in the book.  It was impossible to gleam the characters' true motives or intentions as no real depth or purpose was written into their actions.

As the book rushes towards its end, the great battle, resolution and conclusion take about fifteen pages and it seems like few of the great questions are really answered.  It is frustrating to say the least and it is hard to ascertain whether Snyder is setting the reader up for another book in the series or whether the answers were altogether too vague and insubstantial to leave an impression.

As impressive as it is that Snyder has managed to produce eight novels in six years, it is important that Snyder focus on quality as opposed to quantity.  Poison Study and Inside Out were fantastic novels introducing rich and wonderful worlds full of detail, imagination and innovation.  Perhaps this level of disappointment would not be possible with a less talented author but Maria V. Snyder is talented and I hope that she slows down somewhat and focuses again on weaving exciting and complex stories.

Outside In is not a stand alone novel and it would be hard to follow the events if the reader had not read Inside Out first.  However, the reader could certainly get away with enjoying the first novel and leaving out the sequel altogether.  I give Outside In two out of five stars and would possibly hesitate before reading a third novel in this series.

You can purchase Outside In by Maria V. Snyder at Amazon.co.uk ¦ Amazon.com

I'd recommend that you first purchase Inside Out at Amazon.co.uk ¦ Amazon.com

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Article first published as Book Review: Outside In by Maria V Snyder on Blogcritics. This review contains affiliate links

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Book Review: Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder

Magic Study is the second novel in Maria V. Snyder's popular young adult series, The Study Trilogy.  Despite saving Commander Ambrose's life at the end of Poison Study, the execution order has been upheld and Yelena has fled Ixia and escaped to the land of Sitia.  She must uphold her promise to Master Magician Irys to learn to control her magic or forfeit her life.  Joining them on their journey are several children rescued from General Brazell’s realm at the end of Poison Study.  At the beginning of Magic Study, the travellers arrive at the Zaltana clan and Yelena is reunited with her family fourteen years after being stolen from them.

Her parents are overjoyed to see her, if not a little overprotective, but Yelena encounters hatred and bitter resentment from her brother Leif.  With Irys engaged in returning the last of the stolen children to their families, Yelena heads out with Leif for the Citadel where the council of Sitia are seated.  Consisting of four master magicians plus a representative of each of the eleven tribes of Sitia, the council will decide if Yelena qualifies to become an apprentice in the art of magic at the Citadel. 

However, trouble finds them en route to the Citadel as Leif believes Yelena is a northern Ixian spy and he sells her out to Cahil, the last remaining member of the deposed Ixian royal family.  So it is that Yelena becomes embroiled in a struggle to prove herself to her brother Leif, to Cahil, and to the staff and students at the Citadel.  She is a stranger and an outsider and nothing is familiar to her.

At the same time, Yelena’s considerable magical powers begin to emerge and it becomes clear that she may be the only one who can fight against a surge in attacks against the students at the Citadel.  In a riveting adventure that sees Yelena travel to the distant Avibian Plains and the realm of the Sandseed clan, Yelena fights to uncover the identity of the person committing the attacks before she becomes his next victim.

Magic Study is a worthy sequel to the fantastic Poison Study.  I appreciated the change of setting and found the description of life and society in the Citadel to be as inventive and imaginative as life in the castle in Poison Study.  While Yelena’s relationship with Valek is central to the story, I appreciated the maturity and relative independence in the relationship.  While both Yelena and Valek are incredibly talented in their own fields and no doubt have their strengths, this is a match of equals and not of dependence. 

I loved the description of the desert landscapes, the plains and of the Sandseed clan.  I loved the similarities with Shamanism but also the distinctive social structure and beliefs of the Sandseed people.  I also loved the various aspects of Yelena’s magic and the notion of a soulfinder.

Unfortunately, as brilliant as the story, landscapes and magic were, there were two aspects of the story that I really, really didn’t like.  The first was Yelena’s ability to talk to her horse and the horse’s ridiculous name Kiki.  This aspect of the storyline felt hackneyed and Disneyfied as it was but was compounded by the portrayal of Kiki’s speech and thoughts as broken and monosyllabic.  It was a classic English-centric premise that really irritated me.  Similarly, there was horrible display of middle-class privilege where Yelena singlehandedly solved the problem of poverty and begging street children by teaching the street children a work ethic.  Once taught the value of an honest days’ work, the street children were able to save their families and even obtain work for their parents.  Um, no.  Children should be children and it is not their job to go out, find work and feed their families.

And so it was that a really good novel worthy of five stars became a three-star novel in my opinion.  It is a pity as I know this book could have been better than this.  I did enjoy the ending and the way that the story was resolved and will certainly read the final book in the series, Fire Study, but I have to be honest and admit that I was vaguely disappointed in this one.

Buy Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder at Amazon.co.uk¦ Amazon.com

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Article first published as Book Review: Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder on Blogcritics.

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Book review: Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder

Young adult fiction has experienced quite the renaissance in recent years as it merged with the realms of fantasy and science fiction. Tales of wizards, witches, fairies, vampires, werewolves, banshees and even angels abound and the market has been left gasping for more magical creatures.

Maria V Snyder's Study Trilogy is slightly different. Published on Harlequin Teen's popular Mira INK imprint, the Study Trilogy is a fantasy romance series set in the mythical kingdom of Ixia and neighbouring Sitia.

Poison Study opens with Yelena in chains in a dark dungeon with nothing to distract her from the horrifying memories that haunt her.  Yelena has killed a man and under the laws of Ixia, no mitigating circumstances can save her as murder is punishable by death. She has spent a year confined to the dungeons of the castle where the Commander of Ixia, Commander Ambrose, and his troops are based.  Her time is up though and she is scheduled to be the next prisoner to hang. 

Yelena is dragged through the castle and brought before Commander Ambrose’s security chief Valek who offers her a choice.  She can pay for her crime and be hanged, or she can become Commander Ambrose's chief food taster.

In a world of intrigue, sabotage and poison, it is not much of a reprieve as Yelena could be fatally poisoned at any moment but she grasps at the chance to live and begins to train under Valek. Valek is an expert assassin and is also an expert in the detection of sabotage and subterfuge.  He imparts his valuable knowledge on poisons and poisonous substances which Yelena must learn quickly or face the fatal consequences.

As Yelena begins to make friends and allies, she also begins to make enemies and must choose carefully who she trusts. The biggest threat comes from General Brazell, as it was his only son that Yelena admitted murdering. As this threat manifests and whispers of an uprising emerge, the horrific details of the events leading up to Reyad's death emerge.

Poison Study is a deeply imaginative story and I felt thoroughly emerged in the life, politics and culture of the palace and Territories of Ixia.  Maria V. Snyder has created a complex and interesting world and I thoroughly enjoyed reading as she described in intricate detail the structure of the military oligarchy as well as the levels of organisation within the castle that must keep it going on a day to day basis. 

The author states that she had great fun acting out the complex fighting scenes in the book (she is trained in Issinryu karate); this is apparent as Yelena learns to fight and defend herself and the fight scenes are fast-paced and exciting.  Likewise, all of the various elements of the story add to a rich and multi-layered story including the description of fitness and acrobatics; food and food tasting; cleansing and ritual; and, of course, the castle and military life.

It is hard to believe that this book was written by the same author that wrote Inside Out (reviewed on Blogcritics in February).  Granted, both books are excellent stories set in complex societies; both Ixia and Inside are plagued by tyrannical, military-style rule where excessive levels of control are imposed on citizens; and both books feature a strong female protagonist.  The similarities end there though as Inside Out is a science fiction novel set in a future dystopia and Poison Study is a fantasy fiction set in a medieval kingdom far in our distant past.  The writing style is also completely different in the two books and I could barely recognise the author’s style even though I was reading the novels barely a month apart. 

This ability to create completely unique, imaginative yet believable worlds and to weave great stories within those worlds puts Maria V. Snyder up there with my favourite authors Anthony Horowitz and Garth Nix.  There is no doubt that I will soon be ploughing my way through Maria V. Snyder’s complete works and I cannot wait to begin Magic Study.

I read the UK edition of the book and I far prefer these covers to those found elsewhere around the world.  They are quite stunning and make a great set sitting on my bookshelf.  Your can see the cover of the UK edition at the top of this post and just above is the second of the US editions (the covers had to be redesigned as the original model moved back to Russia). 

I enjoyed every last page of Poison Study and would recommend it to fans of J K Rowling, Stephenie Meyer, Rachel Vincent, Julie Kagawa, Anthony Horowitz and Garth Nix.  I give Poison Study 5 out of 5 stars.

Buy Poison Study at Amazon.co.uk ¦ Amazon.com

Article first published as Book Review: Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder on Blogcritics.

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Book Review: Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder

Maria V. Snyder is a best-selling author best known for her award-winning Study Series.  She published her first novel, Poison Study in 2005 and followed up with Magic Study in 2006 and Fire Study in 2008.  The Glass Series was a spin-off trilogy featuring characters from the Study Series and included Storm Glass and Sea Glass (both published in 2009) and Spy Glass which was released in 2010.  Both young adult series were set sometime in the past, in a world of fantasy, magic and sorcery but Maria now returns with powerful dystopian novel, Inside Out.

Trella is a scrub, a nobody.  Her sole purpose in life is to keep the pipes and air vents of Inside clean in order to benefit those living in the upper levels.  Inside is divided between those living on the upper and lower levels.  The Uppers are the privileged and fortunate, those people permitted to live in spacious family units in the upper levels of Inside.  Those living on the lower levels experience overcrowding and squalor and must work to support the systems that keep the inhabitants of Inside alive.  There are literally thousands of Scrubs living on the lower levels and they live in constant fear of being caught by the Population Control Police and being recycled as fertiliser.   Yes, that’s right, fertiliser.  Inside is a contained unit, like a box and sheep are farmed and vegetables produced using hydroponics and they will use anything they can use as fertiliser.  

Nobody knows how big Inside is but Trella estimates that her world is approximately 2,000 metres long by 2,000 metres wide by twenty-five metres high.  She knows this because Trella prefers to be alone, to escape the corridors of the lower levels teeming with other Scrubs.  She spends her time in the pipes and hidden spaces between the levels and knows the layout of Inside like no one else.  This is how she comes to meet Broken Man.  He is literally broken and was the victim of a horrendous accident that left him confined to a wheel chair.  It was around the time that he was cast out from the upper levels and exiled to the lower levels so perhaps it wasn’t an accident after all?  Her best (and only) friend Cogon introduces Broken Man to Trella as a prophet and he tells Trella that he knows the location of Gateway, the mythical door between Inside and the outside world.  They know nothing about Outside and certainly don’t know for sure whether Gateway exists but Broken Man assures Trella that he can prove it to her if she risks everything to retrieve his discs from the upper levels.

Trella should have just said no.

Inside Out is an incredibly imaginative, dystopian novel.  There are so many astonishing levels of innovation in Inside Out including the design of Inside; the structure of the working week and division into time scales divisible by ten; the social structure and hierarchy; and the detail of the hydroponics and self-sustainability of Inside.  Perhaps the best aspect of the novel are the two powerful, incredible twists in the story and the novel ends with the promise of further twists. 

The book is strangely compelling considering the claustrophobic atmosphere of Inside and I found myself unable to put it down.  There were jaw-dropping moments where my heart was pounding out of my chest and that is no small feat for a young adult novel! At the beginning of the novel I had thought that Trella was a rather flat character but towards the middle of the book it emerged that this was by design, that individuality and free-thinking had just about been engineered out of the Scrubs.  All told, it is an enjoyable and exciting book and really well-written.

The sequel to Inside Out is called Outside In and was released February 15 in the USA and will be released in March 2011 in the UK.  Many young adult authors are concentrating on series and sequels at the moment and it can often be disappointing or tiresome to reach the end of a novel and discover a cliff hanger.  This was not the case with Inside Out and in fact, the book could easily be read as a stand alone novel.  I am looking forward to reading the sequel though as I know further twists are on the way.

I would recommend Inside Out to all fans of young adult, teen romance or dystopian fiction and give the book five out of five stars.

Buy Inside Out at Amazon.co.uk¦ Amazon.com

Buy Outside In at Amazon.co.uk¦ Amazon.com

Article first published as Book Review: Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder on Blogcritics.

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