Od Magic

By: Patricia A. McKillip

Narrated by: Gabrielle de Cuir

Brenden Vetch has a gift. With an innate sense he cannot explain to himself or describe to others, he is able to connect to the agricultural world, nurturing gardens to flourish and instinctively knowing the healing properties each plant and herb has to offer. But Brenden's gift isolates him from people and from becoming part of a community - until the day he receives a personal invitation from the Wizard Od. She needs a gardener for her school in the great city of Kelior, where every potential wizard must be trained to serve the Kingdom of Numis. For decades the rulers of Numis have controlled the school, believing they can contain the power within it, and have punished any wizard who dares defy the law. But unknown to the reigning monarchy is the power possessed by the school's new gardener, a power that even Brenden isn't fully aware of, and which is the true reason Od recruited him.

©2005 Patricia A. McKillip (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"With lyrical prose, well-limned characterizations, vibrant action, a sense of the wonder of magic, and a generous dollop of romance, this is a story that will bind readers in its spell." (Booklist)

"World Fantasy Award-winner McKillip demonstrates once again her exquisite grasp of the fantasist's craft....[A]n otherworldly delight" (Publishers Weekly)

"Lyrically told, the novel evokes an enchanting atmosphere and thoughtful tone...." (KLIATT)

Not her best, but solid and refreshing

Once again, Patricia McKillip breathes fresh air into a genre drowning in Lord of the Rings clones and D&D adventures gone bad, and while this isn't her strongest work, it's still a great listen.

Few if any fantasy authors capture the sense of wonder and fairy like she does, even the ones who are excellent for other reasons. Her style is evocative of the time pre-Tolkien: closer to the King of Elfland's Daughter than to Dragonlance.

Gabrielle de Cuir's narration is as excellent as ever: I am always happy to see her name crop up.

A confusing flurry of whimsy

The whole story and all it’s parts are about defining the undefinability of magic. It reads like a painting in the mind’s eye of the artist. The entire point is to convey a small piece of the very wonder that is in its most essential essence inexplicable...an impossible task tackled by combining depictions of dance, movement, light, emotions, mystery, scholarship and prejudice. It reminds me of some foreign independent films in such that the slower pacing and vagaries are too much for most reader/listeners to have the patience. All the various story threads do eventually converge but not until the end. It’s a lot to hold on to in your head as the pieces collect for the puzzle.

There’s a magic school that, over the centuries under power hungry paranoid royal rule, has gone awry with itself. There are over a half dozen characters who bumble about, each on their own journeys of self discovery that cross each other’s paths...eventually contributing to a kind of self correction in magical philosophy. The key word being—eventually. Most of the time I found myself either confused or annoyed. However, overall it was a pleasant literary escapade which the author wrapped up neatly in the end.

The natural tone & pacing was way too sedate for me. I listened at 1.3x & sometimes even 1.5x to get through it tolerably. Even at those speeds the narration was cleanly understood.

Lacked PAM's usual magic.

How can I, who have never written a book dare to judge this? I shall leave it at this: I kept reading because I liked the author's other books, but omg it dragged.

I like the author.

I'm struggling with the narrator because she sounds like she's on stage and over dramatic.
I don't know if i'm going to be able to finish this.

Great Book, interesting story

A very enjoyable listen with a story that follows a different sort of progression. A very good book overall.

Good with only a tiny flaw.

Story is great, but they chose the wrong reader. She has a great voice, but her breathy reading kind of slows it all down. Still, a decent book.

Beautiful, atmospheric world building

Patricia McKillip has a gift for using words to paint fantasy worlds of wonder and magic. This book weaves the threads of several lost souls and their stories into a beautiful portrait of love and magic and belonging. It’s like being part of a lovely dream that is so real you never want to wake up.

ignore bad reviews

A Charming story, charmingly told. The author deftly weaves a complex story that manages to work out okay in the end . The ending is just what you expect from a fairy tale. Don't read it if you prefer gritty reality.

Note, I listen to it at 120 speed. Some of the people that disliked the reader might have benefited from speeding it up.

So much more could have been

While the book was interesting enough to just keep my interest, the characters were as detailed and the story line could have been so much deeper. I kept waiting for it but it never materialized. More of a YA book.

What it is is a great story

The shoe and school tropes are common enough. What is not common is a story not shrouded in mystic could-be-this-could-be-that babble; a story not bogged in conflagrations of generals, ogres and swords. Just wonderous human drama of real people, albeit not commoners. Flipping the school theme on its head, codified magic needs to be freed. Maybe homeschooling of wizards would be better.
The reader voices the characters just fine except when she flat-tones in an attempt to add intensity. High speed listening (+ a few choice stitches of thread) cures that.