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In Sabriel, Garth Nix introduced us to the Old Kingdom, a world plagued by the Dead and haunted by magic gone bad. Lirael: Daughter of the Clayr happens fourteen years later, with Sabriel settling for a secondary role and Lirael, the title character, taking the lead. Second books in trilogies tend to be disappointing, and for Lirael, the odds are even tougher because Sabriel is a tough act to follow. Nix, however, manages to break away from the trend and come up with a satisfying and equally engaging follow-up. In some ways I’d say it even surpassed its predecessor, although overall Sabriel is still the better read. Lirael lives in a part of the Old Kingdom called the Clayr’s Glacier, inhabited by a race of psychic women called the Clayr. At fourteen, she has yet to receive the Sight – the ability to see into the future and every Clayr’s birthright – and as more of her peers become true Seers, she feels increasingly alone, abandoned, and out of place. Her despair brings her to the brink of suicide, only to be stopped by an offer to work at the Library to get her mind off things. Here she meets one of her first real friends, a being she calls the Disreputable Dog. She also spends most of her free hours reading books about magic and necromancy, teaching herself spells far beyond her years.  
At the other side of the wall, in non-magical Ancelstierre, Sabriel’s son Sameth is struggling to come to terms with his inevitable fate as the future Abhorsen. His sister Ellimere, on the other hand, seems to breeze through her duties as Queen in waiting. Controlling the Dead did not come as easily to Sameth as it did to his mother, and when a mysterious necromancer tries to kill him on the way to the Old Kingdom, his limited knowledge and skill could barely save his life. The Dead are unusually active in the Old Kingdom, and Sameth is sent across the wall to learn more and battle the evil that Sabriel suspects is responsible. Likewise, Lirael is sent off to a lake that has been mysteriously obscured from the Clayr’s view for some time. The two meet somewhere along the cold river and take on the journey together, battling everything from legions of Dead fighters to flocks of rotting, undead crows. Anyone who has read a young adult novel before will be familiar with the coming-of-age, journey-to-self-discovery theme, but Lirael has more than a few surprises between its pages. As lead characters, Lirael and Sameth are well-developed and likeable. The Disreputable Dog and Sameth’s talking cat, Mogget (who played a bigger role in Sabriel) add a lighthearted humor to the story that keeps it from dragging, despite being the longest book in the series. As usual, Nix sketches his Old Kingdom with concise yet vivid descriptions, creating a backdrop as real and magnificent as before. Ellimere is the one flop in the otherwise excellent cast of characters. Her haughty, miss-perfect attitude is one we’ve all seen in teen movies, and she simply isn’t interesting enough. Luckily she isn’t a major character, and she conveniently slinks back into her own world after delivering her few minor lines. Lirael finishes with what may be a major disappointment to its readers – a major cliffhanger for the third book, Abhorsen. The story doesn’t end, although some of the issues are resolved in the last few chapters. That’s why it’s important to have the final book ready while you read Lirael – you’ll be wanting to pick it up as soon as you finish this one. |
