The Magician’s Daughter by H. G. Parry: review

5/5 stars on Goodreads

The Magician's Daughter by H. G. Parry

The Magician’s Daughter is a fantasy growth story set in the early 20th century England and Ireland. World has been filled with magic wielded by mages for the benefit of ordinary people who don’t quite know it exists, though it doesn’t seem to be a secret as such. But for the past seventy years it’s been all but gone, after the cracks in the universe through which it had seeped in closed.

Biddy is almost seventeen and all she’s ever known is a tiny island where she lives with her guardian Rowan, a mage, and his rabbit familiar Hutch. She’s happy but restless, longing to see the world. But more than that, she longs for magic that Rowan scraps from all over the country, but she’s an ordinary person. The island is shielded by strong magic (though how, since the magic is gone, isn’t explained), and Biddy knows it’s to keep them safe. She just doesn’t know from what. Until she does.

Rowan has been hiding from the mages for seventy years (mages age slower and he seems maybe forty), but now they’ve found him. To prevent them from finding the island too, he and Biddy go on offensive that brings them to London and puts Biddy in danger. His enemies come after her and even allies can’t be trusted.

Biddy holds the key to the return of magic inside her. Problem is, the person who put it there doesn’t remember doing it. So, it’s up to her to save the day.

This was an excellent story, compact and complete. Biddy was a wonderful heroine who longed for a great destiny she’d read in books, but who comes realise that world isn’t quite as black and white as in them. Perhaps the best part of the book was how she came to question everything she knows about Rowan, understand that even parents make mistakes, and learn to trust him anew.

Since this was a growth story, the book doesn’t end when the action does. It ends when Biddy has come to a solution about her life, whether to stay on the island or enter the greater world. It made for a longish ending, but it was justified and satisfying. All in all, a great read.

I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.