The Novice

The Black Magician Trilogy, Book 2

By: Trudi Canavan

Narrated by: Richard Aspel

Length: 18 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's Summary

The sequel to The Magicians' Guild, one of Bolinda's top-selling audio books. The High Lord, Book 3 in the trilogy, is scheduled for publication in audio late 2008.

Sonea knows the other novices in the Magicians' Guild all come from powerful families, but she also knows she can turn to Rothen and Dannyl for help when she needs it. That is, until somone starts spreading malicious rumors about her - and Akkarin, The High Lord, steps in.

Promoted to Guild Ambassador, Lord Dannyl leaves for the Elyne court. His first order from Administrator Lorlen is to resume, in secret, High Lord Akkarin's long-abandoned research into ancient magical knowledge. Not knowing the true reason for his journey, Dannyl is soon facing unexpected dangers.

Meanwhile, Sonea has almost forgotten the High Lord's dark secret, but keeping the truth hidden may be a grave mistake.

©2004 Trudi Canavan (P)2008 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd

Critic Reviews

"...a wonderfully and meticulously detailed world, and an edge-of-the-seat splot, this book is a must for lovers of good fantasy." - Jennifer Fallon

err, yeah, the story continues, kinda

Any additional comments?

So the story continues from the first book, and 75% of the world building seems to disappear. This could probably stand on its own because there are very few connections to the first book. Unlike the first book, this book gets mired in sexual orientation...which feels forced and overly highlighted...I guess marketing thought it would be a great idea to create some buzz. If it was the main character, it would have added some dimension, but because it was a throw away character...it just feels forced. Ignoring that aspect, the book is about 38 chapters too long. There is some minor growth, but the timeline, travel times..etc, but its all so minor, that its just ugh. If you expect to hear more of the interaction with the city, you might want to adjust that expectation...that was part of world building that was thrown away...as are 98% of the characters from the city.

The performance supports this story, and I will probably get the last book just to end it...because, well, it is a nice waste of time...even if I spend a lot of time swearing at the author and proof readers...or was that marketing...one of them at least.

Amazing

Where does The Novice rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

The Novice is a great book to listen to, Richard Aspel makes Trudi Canavan's book come to life, he shows emotion and speaks clearly

Usually agree

I usually agree with most of the reviewers of an audiobook before I end up buying it. Not so much this time. This story is just "ok".

1) It drags A LOT
2) The antagonists behavior and the protagonist's reaction to it don't really draw me into the story. I think part of the problem is that we don't really get a true sense of who the antagonist is. Something just feels a bit off about the way they interact with each other.
3) The "research" plot line could be eliminated completely. Every time the audio switched over to that story I wanted to rip my eyes out. Also what's with the doubts and questions surrounding homosexuality? It just didn't make any sense, nor did the heterosexuality either. There's no passion of either kind. The author should have just stuck to the magic and left sexuality out; it wasn't believable when it was brought into the story.
3 Stars because:
a) the "magic" part of the book held my interest...
b) the book got better once I hit the 2X speed on my ipod (the narrator is a SLOW reader too)

I should have read the negative reviews...

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

Positive thoughts first. The first book was good. It had a solid story arch and interesting, clear cut character goals. You will likely buy this book to satisfy your curiosity gained from the first one. The narrator for the book did a great job of allowing the characters to have their own personality and really helped to bring the book to life. So you may also buy it because you like the narrator. That said the second book was all but dead, despite his talent. Multiple times I verbally screamed at my headphones.

What was most disappointing about Trudi Canavan’s story?

There is a rule that you cannot practice magic outside of class in the book, but apparently, as the Pirates of the Caribbean put it, “They’re more like guidelines.” The rule is broken over and over again. It would have been better if it never had existed. It ruined my suspension of belief.

Brandon Sanderson, an amazing fantasy writer, wrote this wonderful article titled Sanderson’s First Law. In it he talks about soft magic and hard magic, detailing how magic systems can have hard fast laws or be that mysterious thing that makes our pulse quicken. You cannot solve stories with soft magic because then you have Deus ex machina. Well, in my opinion, the rules are vague enough for the magic in the book for it to be considered soft magic, and the resolution is so tied to magic that I feel that’s exactly what happened at the end: Deus ex machina. (In simple English weak story telling)

Another thing that left a bad taste in my mouth was the inconsistent character decisions. Over and over again I felt like the characters were performing actions to move the story forward, not because that is what they would do. I’d tell you how but so much of the story rested on decisions that I felt were unbelievable or inconsistent for the character.

The story arch was muddled and confusing. It wasn’t clear until the very end of the book what the main character wanted to accomplish… or at least how she was trying to accomplish this goal.

Finally, the secondary story arch was completely unneeded. (More on this later)

Which character – as performed by Richard Aspel – was your favorite?

High Lord Akkarin was masterfully turned into a sinister friend by the narrator. I knew the High Lord wanted things to stay friendly, but at the same time I worried over why he kept his friends in the dark. That said, I never found out. (More on this later).

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Novice?

Lord Dannyl’s story arch could have been skipped entirely. If ever it was apparent that an author was trying to push his or her worldview on the reader it would be here. Preachy on the level of a pastor. The relevance to the main story plot could have been stripped out into a few summary sentences and the things happening around Sonea could have been explained more fully.

For example… what on earth is High Lord Akkarin up to? Can he be trusted? That’s what I bought the second book for. By the end of this book, I strongly believed there would be no decent explanation as to why he was keeping his friends in the dark, and by the way, there isn’t an explanation in this book for that.

Any additional comments?

Epilogue. An epilogue isn’t really part of the main story, and yet, it revealed in a few minutes, everything that I wanted to know over the course of the book. In summary, all but the epilogue was a waste of time. She should have focused on covering that content throughout the book and not half of what she did cover. I would have loved a book that focused on the High Lord, versus another novice who antagonizes her like he is 4 years old, with little believable motivation.

My advice, go buy The Way of Kings.

Bullies in Magic School

I know some others may have given this book in the series harsh reviews but the book is actually very entertaining. I think what might make others think the book is boring or not good is that the subject is about bullying, discrimination and persecution. The main characters faces an unending volley of pranks, and abusive behavior from her classmates as she discovers how much more powerful she is compared to the others. Being that she isn't from the same class as they are (she's from the slums and they are of noble birth) it becomes all too easy for others to fall in line with her bully. I like the way the author makes you as the listener/reader uncomfortable as she gives glimpses of the main characters thoughts and emotions regarding the events that unfold. On top of the bullying there is real danger that a black magician may find out she knows his secret - which is why she cannot prove her innocence when accused of thieving. I found the book very entertaining and did get some satisfaction at the end for the heroine. The only thing that might need improving is the cadence of the reading - but as this is the second book I am used to it so it doesn't really bother me at all and is only a minute problem (if any).

Weaving a web of plots and story lines.

Would you listen to The Novice again? Why?

Yes! This second book in the Black Magician's Trilogy pulls on the strings of the many different character stories and weaves them together into a compelling story.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The High Lord. One of the few characters who's story is still wrapped in a cloak of mystery. He's intriguing and beguiling and it sucks you into the story!

What does Richard Aspel bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I'm sure that Richard Aspel would add something to the right story. However, this series is not one that I actually enjoy him reading.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Not extreme, but it did certainly leave me wanting more.

Any additional comments?

Love this book and have read it and/or listened to it three times already!

Could be a lot shorter!

While I'm still interested in the characters, there is too much repeation in all of the storylines in this second book. I understand that the characters are growing in their knowledge/skills, but they are doing it at such a slow pace that it feels like the book is happening in real time and that it's been months since I started. I've decided to get the third book for my Kindles because it is easier to skim the written word.

The Magician's Guild

Very enjoyable listen. This audible book helped me through my spring cleaning. Thank you very much. Your fan.

second book is great

The first book to a bit to get into, but I really enjoyed this one! I cared about the characters a lot, and there was lots of suspense and a couple of different plots. Going for the third one now.

Great trilogy

worth the time and money spent it keep me going on all three books. wish they had more.

Enjoyable reading

Narrative: Brilliant series, I loved reading the novels the first time round and the audio versions have not diminished my love for these books. Faster pace than The Magician's Guild makes this story far harder to stop listening/reading.

Narrator: Easier to tell between point of view transitions, it has slightly improved since The Magician's Guild. The sample gives an accurate idea of what the narrator will sound like throughout the reading. As long as you do that and find you don't mind his voice, then you should be ok.

A fantastic sequel

This book takes up where The Magician's Guild left off. Sonea begins her training at the univercity under the kindly guardianship of her mentor, Rothen. She must deal with contempt and hostility from both her teachers and her classmates, and all the while, the shadow of High Lord Akkarin and his terrible secret looms over her. This book is somewhat darker than the previous story, but the author's excellent characterisation and engaging style are just as evident. A must-listen if you liked the first book.

Amazing

I have read this book and also got it from audible, it is brilliant if a little hard to get in to. But worth the effort. Cant wait for all her other books to become unabridged on audible.

Long-Winded Filler

Story – 3/5

Truth be told, I found that this book went on for quite a while with not a lot actually happening. It was entertaining enough, which is why I give it a 3/5 for story, but I do think a young adult would enjoy this more than I did. I was waiting for something big to happen at the end, but I was left very under whelmed. There was very little action in it, and centred a little too much on the bullying aspect at the guild between novices rather than moving the over-arching story along.

Trudi Canavan’s strongest point is making very likeable characters. They can be a bit one-dimensional at times but this could be down to the target audience. The world she has created is also quite good, with the magic system, social classes, and politics being detailed enough to make the reader want to learn more.

I have heard that the 3rd book in the trilogy is the best of the 3, and redeems the other 2 books, so I will definitely persevere (plus I bought all 3 together in the sale).


Performance – 3/5

Richard Aspel’s reading is consistent with the first book in the novel. If you didn’t like that, you won’t like this. I don’t think he is quite as bad as other people are making out though, and if you are laid-back about this sort of thing like me, you will no doubt be fine with him. If you are still unsure, you can always return the book and get another

He tends to read the novel like it is only children that will be listening, which is wrong to do. He over emphasises the thoughts and speech of the characters, making the younger people sound very whiney. His voice acting gives each character a distinctly recognisable voice though, and he does well to set the atmosphere of the scenes.


Overall – 3/5

Better than the first book!

What made the experience of listening to The Novice the most enjoyable?

This is the second book of the Magician's Guild series. I found it much faster to get into than the first and the storyline was much better. This book has got me wanting to download all of them in the series! The only fault I would say is about the narrator. He tends to leave big gaps between sentences and it sometimes seems like the book has stopped, the a few seconds later he'll start again. Not a major issue, just a bit annoying!

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

The only fault I would say is about the narrator. He tends to leave big gaps between sentences and it sometimes seems like the book has stopped, the a few seconds later he'll start again. Not a major issue, just a bit annoying!

Brilliant story

Fantastic story from a brilliant author. This has been sadly let down by the awful narrator. His accent and pronunciations are quite dismal, I persevered with the book due to the story.

absolutely great

i love these novels, theare great to listen too and always have a twist in them

Good listen

Reading was a bit slow, but playing it back at 1.25x to 1.5 was better for me. Enjoyed 1 & 2, starting on 3.

Very up and down.

Sadly the downs of this book put me off it quite a lot. The first half was shatter shot swapping from character to character to quickly, sometimes within 5-10 minutes. Second issue was the 2nd tier character from book one being having a bigger role in this one. He was dull in first book, and no better in this one. The whole lad/gay subplot felt forced and more like an author ramming identity politics at the reader. The characters are often showed to be unbelievably dumb, as if the reader can see through the plot while characters with the same information are acting like they see nothing it gets annoying.. I found this really highlighted by the main characters response in the epilogue to the events there. The book has it's good points and why I've given it an average rating. |However, for me it is more a young adults book. Older readers may find the plot holes too obvious, and find the main character is quite a bit of a Mary Sue (google it) type character. I really wanted to love the magic in the book, but frankly in a book about it she does make it quite dull at times. Small tastes are shown, but I'd like to have seen more.

This didn't grip me

At times reading the Novice was quite laborious. There is a great deal of pointless retrospection, irrelevant information or depth of detail, sometimes it was almost boring.

There isn't enough humour in this series, there is some, but very little. It has too much infilling, , it could be a lot more subtle and conversational. Infilling - as per Acrylic nail top up's: the art of seamlessly closing the gap made by time between one treatment (book) and the next. Unless done with care, it creates lumps.

To bone up on subtlety and humour, the author couldn't do better than read and study Jodi Taylor's second book in the Frogmorton Farm series. This really is a brilliant example of how to update the reader on the story before the second book in a series. The infilling is really slick, it's virtually seamless. No, actually it *is* seamless.