The Magicians' Guild

I'd been aware of this fantasy series for a few years and picked this up from the local library. When I flicked through the book in the library the first paragraph captivated me and made me decide to read it:

"It is said, in Imardin, that the wind has a soul, and that it wails through the narrow city streets because it is grieved by what it finds there. On the day of the Purge it whistled amongst the swaying masts in the Marina, rushed through the Western Gates and screamed between the buildings. Then, as if appalled by the ragged souls it met there, it quietened to a whimper."

The story focuses on a slum girl called Sonea who accidentally discovers she has magical powers. In Imardin it is forbidden for an untrained magician to be loose show more in the city so the Magicians' Guild must track her down and either train her as a magician or block her powers so she cannot use them. However, the Magicians' Guild is traditionally made up of members from the ruling classes of Imardin and there are many who do not want to see a slum dweller become part of the Guild.

Trudi Canavan, in her first novel, has managed to create an intriguing fantasy world complete with intrigue, rival guilds and an exciting plot hook at the end of the novel to anticipate the rest of the trilogy. I particularly liked the characters she has created; some fantasy authors seem to write characters so annoying that they set my teeth on edge but the characters in The Magicians' Guild were wonderful. One reviewer wrote that they wanted one character (Rothen) to be real so that they could meet him and I completely agree.

I gave this book four stars and immediately went back to my library to grab the next in the series. show less

First of all I must say that although I only rate this novel three and a half stars, I enjoyed this book a lot and I am about to start the second installment of the series today.
"The Magicians' Guild" starts with a very poignant scene that draws you in immediately. After that, the world of Kyralia is established within a few chapters: The rich and poor citizens, the thieves who live in an underground system of tunnels, and the magicians, who are supposedly there for the safety of the city but are hated by the poor. Sonea, the protagonist, is one of those poor townspeople and her family has just been evicted from their home. She fiercely hates the magicians, so it is a shock when she discovers that she can perform magic, too - and it is show more an even bigger shock to the magician's guild because no one of lower rank is expected or desired to be a magician and it would upend the social design of Kyralia if it became known that there are common people who are capable of working magic... Thus, Sonea has to flee.
What I liked about this book is the style that is flowing and easy to read. It is also a book with many shades of grey and not a strict good/bad characterization, which I always appreciate. Sonea is a great character and the world building is plausible and thorough, including the sociological aspects that really stand out.
Unfortunately, though, I found the first two thirds of the novel dragging a lot sometimes. I just wanted the story to proceed and Sonea's situation to change. There were also too many characters in the beginning, and it was a bit confusing. I would have wished for a more distinctive description of characteristics in the beginning.
However, I loved the last third of the novel and there are all the positive points I mentioned before, so I will definitely continue the series. In addition, this book ends with a really exciting revelation, so I cannot wait to see what happens next and to learn how Sonea develops and, hopefully, grows more confident. show less

First of all I must say that although I only rate this novel three and a half stars, I enjoyed this book a lot and I am about to start the second installment of the series today.
"The Magicians' Guild" starts with a very poignant scene that draws you in immediately. After that, the world of Kyralia is established within a few chapters: The rich and poor citizens, the thieves who live in an underground system of tunnels, and the magicians, who are supposedly there for the safety of the city but are hated by the poor. Sonea, the protagonist, is one of those poor townspeople and her family has just been evicted from their home. She fiercely hates the magicians, so it is a shock when she discovers that she can perform magic, too - and it is show more an even bigger shock to the magician's guild because no one of lower rank is expected or desired to be a magician and it would upend the social design of Kyralia if it became known that there are common people who are capable of working magic... Thus, Sonea has to flee.
What I liked about this book is the style that is flowing and easy to read. It is also a book with many shades of grey and not a strict good/bad characterization, which I always appreciate. Sonea is a great character and the world building is plausible and thorough, including the sociological aspects that really stand out.
Unfortunately, though, I found the first two thirds of the novel dragging a lot sometimes. I just wanted the story to proceed and Sonea's situation to change. There were also too many characters in the beginning, and it was a bit confusing. I would have wished for a more distinctive description of characteristics in the beginning.
However, I loved the last third of the novel and there are all the positive points I mentioned before, so I will definitely continue the series. In addition, this book ends with a really exciting revelation, so I cannot wait to see what happens next and to learn how Sonea develops and, hopefully, grows more confident. show less

This was a favorite series of mine back in high school and I'm pleased to say it remains a favorite. It was almost like reading the book again for the first time because I'd forgotten all but the bare bones of the story. Sonea is probably your generic, fantasy underdog character, but she's one I enjoy reading about. Canavan's world-building is great and I find myself easily caught up in the drama of the guild. I also enjoy the way Canavan weaves relevant topics like class and sexual preference into her characters and world. To me, this is one of those fantasy books that feels timeless. If you enjoy the magical school atmosphere, but you don't want the detail of daily courses and homework (a la HP), this is a series you should check out. show more It still gives the university atmosphere but focuses on the bigger picture. show less

I stumbled across this book series through my friend who is passionately obsessed with everything Canavan, so naturally, as a good friend I decided it was time to check it out. Okay, he said it was a fantasy with gay moments and I was instantly hooked. It's hard not to want to get your hands on a book like that. Good fantasy is exciting enough but good fantasy with gays? Oh, yes.

Sonea is a young slum girl who lives in a world in which magic is real but limited to those belong to the Magician's Guild and it's been centuries since anyone but children of the wealthy Houses were allowed to study as novices under the magicians of the Guild. It's been so long that most people seem to consider magic limited to those of the Houses. But they show more couldn't be more wrong.

Sonea's hometown has an annual event called The Purge; a brutal and embarrassing day for those of the lower social classes. The magicians gather to purge the city of its unwanted population; forcing them into the slums that surround the area within the city wall. During this year's Purge, she runs into some old friends who decides to throw stones at the magicians to demonstrate their rage. It doesn't hurt them anyway, the magicians have shields that protect them from the crowd. Nothing can go in without them allowing it. Well, at least not until Sonea throws a stone driven by pure rage... and manages to knock out a magician.

She manages to get away with the help of her old friends but life as she knows it is undoubtedly over. The magicians are looking for her all over with seemingly no intentions to stop until they've found her. Sonea, on the other hand, is determined not to be found. But being in hiding turns out to be harder than originally thought, especially as her magical strength seem to grow...

Oh boy, am I glad I decided to give this book a try. I'm usually quite skeptic about fantasy books as it's probably the genre I'm most picky about but this book really caught me right away. The concept was quite interesting and I found myself on Sonea and her friends' side quite quickly. Not just because of the fucked up society they seem to live in but also because they were all so lovely and well-written. Sonea reminded me a lot of Aria Stark (in all the good ways) and it was hard not to enjoy her adventures. She's funny, complex and troubled. I just wanted the best for her, and I still do. I'm definitely Team Sonea.

I have two complaints though; the first one is the lack of gay even though I've been assured there will be more lots more gay in the second book. The other one is that it felt a bit repetitive when they were trying to find her but then it got so repetitive that it was actually more amusing than boring so I'm not sure this qualifies as an actual complaint. I'm, however, kind of disappointed I'm not a magician. It seems awesome. Maybe not Harry Potter awesome but still... c'mon. show less

Another new author for me; I've seen Trudi Canavan's books around before, so now I've finally dipped a toe in and read one. I whizzed through this one, because I've been hanging onto my library books for so long, I can't renew them anymore, and I have to say that (at just over 500 pages), this was quite easy to read. It's nicely written; engaging, but not too complicated, and the language and plot flow smoothly.

In the country of Kyralia, magicians are supposed to be taken from all walks of life to be trained in the Guild, but for a long time, the practice has been that only those from the Houses are tested for the gift, and so it is assumed that only the rich can become magicians.

Every winter, the Guild magicians hold purges in the show more capital city of Imardin, to indiscriminately clear the slum areas, and this causes resentment amongst the slum dwellers. One year, Sonea throws a rock at the magicians with all the weight of her anger behind it, and it breaks through the magicians' shield to knock a magician unconscious. Stunned that the unthinkable has happened, other magicians reflexively respond with fire. Knowing she has been seen and fearing for her life, she goes into hiding, at the same time trying to learn how to use her burgeoning powers - unaware that they will destroy her unless she is taught to control them. The magicians of the Guild have to search the slums in a race against time to save her and the people around her, to try to convince her to trust them and to return with them to the Guild so that they can help her.

(June 2012)
4**** show less

This is the start of a very interesting world. It's created internal tension, external tension, and the threat of problems due to its many character conflicts. The difficulty became the slow build of the story line to reach the point of moving at a decent pace. It isn't until you near the end that you see the need of the building the author did early on. The normal trope appears here: powerful magic user who didn't know gets sought for their new found power.

One gripe: Too many names ending with the similar end sound. Sonea, Tania, Dania... The characters might be different but the names blended together.

There was little question who the focus bad guy would be in the book. It was telegraphed, dropped in front of the reader. Sure, some show more red herrings were offered, but they didn't hold well enough to distract. The overarching plot bad guy, on the other hand, they were a surprise.

I'm saying this is a worthy start to a series and I'm interested to see where the author goes from here. show less