Aenir (2000)

I love Garth Nix's books. He's really good at quickly building up a world that has enough detail for you to know roughly the rules you're playing by, and what's going on, without telling you everything in a massive infodump. Aenir advances the plot without giving too much away: I haven't guessed the end, as I so often do with books.

It's also a really quick read. I'd be happy with more detail, more character development, but it's pretty fun as it is -- unfortunately, I don't have much to say about the way it is. It's aimed, I think, at younger kids than Nix's other stuff: it's more simplistic. But it still keeps my interest, too (and I'm arguably an adult, whatever my parents think!). ( )

Excellent world-building and character development, use of previous foreshadowing and further foreshadowing
- No substantive critiques

The third in the series. Though still picaresque at times, the action now coalesces around some central concerns. At the level of the characters' preoccupations, both Tal and Milla have quests to fulfill, and dreams of their own power and failure to contend with. At the level of the story, both characters continue to become more distinct, more differentiated, and more complex. An important theme is that of surpassing one's parents and community in skills and knowledge. Both shift their roles and take on aspects of each other's culture. Both draw on previous knowledge (here, moreso Tal, though in the previous volume it was Milla).

Nix fills in some information about this world's history, which is not only absorbing but central to the plot. He manages a great deal of exposition in ways that do not interrupt the narrative. The reader, Tal, and Milla learn about parallels and connections in their people's histories. At the same time, the protagonists both become more similar, and retain their own characters Milla's logic and thinking are distinct from Tal's. Tal learns more about his family, Milla learns more about her ancestors, and Master Sushin lurks in the background, an excelent villain.

The binding of the Spiritshadows is evocative of the relationship between magicians and demons in Stroud's Bartimaeus trilogy; the evocation of a dimly-seen and grand ancient history is similar to Brin's in Glory Season. I'm looking forward to book 4. ( )

While the spirit world Aenir is teeming with what should be strange and dangerous creatures, the more interesting part of this tale is what happened 2000 years ago. While the Chosen and most of the Icecarls are unaware of the existence of the other and the Chosen seem to believe that Aenir exists for the sole purpose of providing them with Spiritshadow servants, Milla has learned otherwise. In the past, Chosen and Icecarl came together to fight a war against Aenir. The war ended with the Chosen creating the Veil which covers their world and the Icecarl casting a Forgetting and binding the Aenirans to their world. Why do the Chosen and Icecarls remember none of this ? What has any of this to do with Tal and his family who are so obviously being persecuted ? Why was the Codex stolen and hidden these past 22 years ? And what of the mysterious disappearances of the Chosen over the years ? Tal may have solved a small part of the puzzle when he himself was lured by an ancient Chosen into a trap and discovers the bones of other young Chosen, but what was the old man's purpose ? What will Tal and Milla find fleeing from the Empress's guards into the lowest levels of the Castle where the Chosen rarely enter ? I can't wait to find the answers to these questions. ( )

Nix-7th Tower-Aenir- Tal n Mirra fight monsters to get the Codex, bring it back to the castle ( )

One of the elements of writing in this genre that Nix is particularly gifted at is creating original fantasies and worlds. This series is no exception. However, in comparison to some of his other works, especially The Abhorsen Trilogy, the exploration of this world and the characters within is weak at best. The story is interesting because Nix presents the audience with a new mythology, but he rushes through the plot, circumnavigating what could be some really amazing explorations of the world he’s created. As a result, it’s more difficult to imagine this parallel universe and its characters and creatures, and it doesn’t draw the reader in nearly as much as it could.This series breaks one large story into several books, and since each of these is easily around the high 100s and low 200s in page length, Nix could have spent more time giving description, metaphors, and poetic/aesthetic language to flush this world out. This would make everything significantly more engaging for the readers, and ultimately, foster growth and interest in the books, the fantasy, the world, and the characters therein. Ultimately, there’s just nothing to bite into.-Lindsey Miller, www.lindseyslibrary.com ( )