Sabriel is the daughter of the Abhorsen, a high necromancer whose main duty is to reverse the ills done by evil necromancers that are hell-bent on rai..Show More »sing the dead and letting them rule the earth. She lives in a world where realistic early 20th century Great Britain co-exists with the ?Old Kingdom?, a place of magic, sorcery and fear of the undead. A border, guarded by soldiers from both realms, separates the two kingdoms. When Sabriel was five-years-old, her father sent her to a special school in the new kingdom, just near the border so that she would be protected from his enemies, but close enough to the border to learn the ways of the old kingdom. In this school his daughter learns necromancy and magic as well as ?real world? lessons such as etiquette and combat.

When the Abhorsen appears to Sabriel one night speaking through an undead minion, she learns that he is trapped in the world of the dead and she sets-off on a journey to free him. Along the way she learns of a great undead leader whose powers have grown to the extent where he may break the boundary dividing the land of the dead and the living, and no one in either kingdom will be safe from his rule.

As an aside, one of my favorite characters is an elemental of sorts who had been forced into servitude by an Abhorsen from centuries past. He has taken the shape of a cat, and though he has many ?cat mannerisms?, he speaks and is highly intellectual. His sarcastic comments and sharp wit made me laugh out loud on several occasions. He is Sabriel?s constant companion, a great help and a great pain in her behind all at the same time!

I could not stop listening to this book! Tim Curry reads it and there is no better voice for the undead than he! I highly recommend it. It is the first in a trilogy, and all three books have been received with high praise.

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