Life on Hy-Brasil, off the west coast of Ireland, is nearly idyllic. Biddy would say nearly because, life on a remote island with only her guardian and his familiar can be a bit lonely, especially since that guardian regularly leaves the island on mysterious and dangerous errands. But in The Magician’s Daughter, by H.G. Parry, Biddy finally gets her chance to leave the island, only to find out what she’s been hidden from all these years. This book had me completely hooked and its spectacular ending is beautiful, poignant, and the perfect conclusion to an absolutely outstanding story.
There are few rules on Hy-Brasil. Never talk to the púca. Don’t use any of the magical items in Rowan’s study if Rowan isn’t there to supervise. Other than that, Biddy is free to roam and read her days away. Rowan’s nightly travels—from which he sometimes comes home injured—worry her. Biddy is sixteen and magic-less, so there’s not a lot she can do other than worry…until one night when Rowan doesn’t come home and, shortly after that, the day when Rowan’s magical fight with the Council arrives on Hy-Brasil in the form of menacing birds made of nothing but bone. After she and Rowan fight the birds off, she manages to coerce the mage into finally telling her what’s really been going on.
Biddy and Rowan’s world used to be full of magic. Wild magic could be harnessed for spells or, if left alone, change the luck of people whose lives it entered. Perhaps someone in desperate poverty would find food from nowhere on their tables or gold in an unlikely place. Someone sick might finally find that tubercular cough fading to nothing. But, seventy years before our story takes place, magic started to grow scarce. Mages hoarded every scrap they could find. In the United Kingdom, the Council hunted and kept any hint of magic in the isles. Rowan, however, turned rogue on them. He would steal and distribute magic to the poor, the sick, and the powerless. This is why the Council’s head, the sinister Vaughan and his monstrous henchman, Storm, very much want to kill Rowan.
Once Biddy’s in on the secret, she refuses to let Rowan fight alone. That’s also when the plot ramps up. There are magical fights, daring escapes, cunning plans, and a lot of tests of loyalty and love that had my heart aching for Biddy. I don’t want to give away anything else, for fear of ruining The Magician’s Daughter. So I’ll wrap this up by saying that you’ll love the characters, get swept away by the plot, and be astonished by the originality of it all. At the risk of being corny, I declare The Magician’s Daughter to be an utterly magical read.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley, for review consideration.