Book Review: The Magician's Daughter

The Magician’s Daughter by H. G. Parry (Redhook, 2023).

I’m always in a quandary when a new H. G. Parry book comes out. I want to read it as quickly as possible, to get all her wonderful new characters and worlds and scenarios into my brain just as soon as I can. And I want to read it as slowly as possible, to savor every last delicious bit of it like a rich gourmet meal.

Parry’s newest novel, The Magician’s Daughter, is no exception to the rule. Unlike her first novel, which was a work of literary fantasy, or her next two novels, which were historical fantasies (and which I reviewed here in summer 2021), The Magician’s Daughter is wholly fantasy. It has ties to a few different legends—the vanishing island of Hy-Brasil, the story of Robin Hood, the myth of the Púca (which, sadly, is not in this case a giant invisible rabbit that goes out drinking with Jimmy Stewart). But in the main, the story of Biddy, who lives on the island with her somewhat-Robin-Hood-like guardian, is all Parry’s own. With this story, then, the author demonstrates that her powers of invention are as strong as her gift for creating appealing characters, settings, and dialogue.

Sixteen-year-old Biddy knows little about who she is—only that she was an orphan who washed up on the island’s shore as a baby—and even less about the world outside the island. She was raised by Rowan, a kind but secretive magician, with help from his rabbit familiar, Hutchincroft. Magic has always been a part of her life, but Biddy herself is an ordinary human being with no powers. But when Rowan disappears and doesn’t come back, and then again when a flock of bony magical creatures unexpectedly attacks the island, Biddy finds herself called upon to perform extraordinary feats, armed only with her courage, a few charmed objects belonging to her guardian, and her devotion to her home and family.

As I intimated earlier, Parry’s writing has always been wholly delightful to me. She shapes her worlds with both pathos and humor and gives us characters who grab our hearts and hold on to them. Like all the best fantasy writers, she infuses her fantasies with a feeling of realism, a sense that of course this or that magical event could happen (and probably has).

But here, in some ways, I felt a new maturity in her writing—especially in her characterization of Rowan. Parry is skilled at creating charming and noble heroes, whom I’ve always enjoyed, but here she pushes further, giving us a hero who’s charming and noble and also, sometimes, foolish or deceitful or even cruel. In the midst of the cataclysm that drives her from her serene island to the hectic streets of London, Biddy has to learn to see and to reconcile the different sides of her beloved father figure. Nearly everything she’s ever known or believed is pulled apart and put back together to create a new picture—not as bad as she fears at first, but far more complex than she ever could have imagined—which she must learn to accept if she’s ever to love and trust again. It makes this tale a sensitive and poignant coming-of-age story as well as a breathlessly exciting fantasy.

Already I can’t wait to see what Parry does next—but in the meantime, we have this splendid book to tide us over. Read it quickly or read it slowly, but read it.

(Image copyright Redhook.)

Book Links:

The Magician’s Daughter on Amazon
The Magician’s Daughter on Bookshop