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sneezy_5000's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
Loved this. Not sure why my library catalogues it as children's fiction, because this is definitely young adult lol. This was a much needed foray away from the romcoms and romantasy I've been reading lately.
aradne's review against another edition
5.0
I normally can't handle dark books, but I really love Sabriel.
Sabriel is able to walk in death and bind undead things that manage to make it back into the world of the living. She calmly handles the scary and impossible things happening in her kingdom, even though she feels ill-prepared and as though her father should be the one handling the situation.
I really can't do it justice. It's one of those books that has made it into the category of books that I will reread.
Sabriel is able to walk in death and bind undead things that manage to make it back into the world of the living. She calmly handles the scary and impossible things happening in her kingdom, even though she feels ill-prepared and as though her father should be the one handling the situation.
I really can't do it justice. It's one of those books that has made it into the category of books that I will reread.
clcheatle's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
ludwigvandingus's review against another edition
most of the time when i read ya books that i should have read when i was 12, i strongly dislike them and have an unenjoyable reading experience. this i think is the exception. what an excellent book. most importantly it has no trappings of ya literature having been written in the 90s before the prose style developed its stereotypes and ya books condescended to their adolescent readers and avoided interesting turns of phrase
anushb's review against another edition
2.0
Sabriel is the daughter of the mage Abhorsen, born in the Old Kingdom but residing safely in the bordering Ancelstierre, for the Old Kingdom has become a hostile place, swarming with the dead. It is the Abhorsen's job to banish the dead to the land of Death and make sure they stay there, but when he goes missing, Sabriel embarks on a quest to the Old Kingdom to find him. In the Abhorsen's house, she finds Mogget, a powerful Free Magic creature bound to serve the Abhorsens for generations. She also meets and frees Touchstone, a Charter mage who was imprisoned on a ship. Together, they have to find Sabriel's father and free the people from the dead, especially one who is the most powerful of them all and has high ambitions.
I picked up this book in high school, and put it aside when it didn't capture my interest. I finished it the second time around, but my first impression was not proven wrong. The novel features a powerful heroine, and the fantasy concept is interesting, but the writing is much too dry and the story did not draw me in. The Old Kingdom is not supposed to be an inviting place, but the descriptions were more dull than depressing. Nix paid some attention to world-building, but I was left feeling like I did not really get to know and feel interested in the world that Sabriel inhabits. Perhaps with a younger heroine (Sabriel is 18) and less sexuality, the book would be great for middle grades, but it was disappointing as a young adult novel.
I picked up this book in high school, and put it aside when it didn't capture my interest. I finished it the second time around, but my first impression was not proven wrong. The novel features a powerful heroine, and the fantasy concept is interesting, but the writing is much too dry and the story did not draw me in. The Old Kingdom is not supposed to be an inviting place, but the descriptions were more dull than depressing. Nix paid some attention to world-building, but I was left feeling like I did not really get to know and feel interested in the world that Sabriel inhabits. Perhaps with a younger heroine (Sabriel is 18) and less sexuality, the book would be great for middle grades, but it was disappointing as a young adult novel.
aninnocuousbunny's review against another edition
3.0
Slow and not so much my style, but it improved somewhat at the end. 3.5/5
archivist_augie's review against another edition
5.0
Reading this series in middle school/high school was difficult because I could only rely on the school library and they never had the first book in stock, and when I did get the first book it was missing pages.
Being able to read it now as an adult in its whole form is an absolute delight. The mix of technology and magic within the series is fascinating to me and very much reminds me of howl's moving castle.
Sabriel as a main character makes me extremely happy. I enjoy how she's portrayed and I don't think she's dull or flat in the slightest. It's just the writing style of the book to have moments of deep diving into world building and then moments of nothing but actions. All in all I feel like it's a good series to read if you're wanting some old-school fantasy with the hero's journey very prominent.
Being able to read it now as an adult in its whole form is an absolute delight. The mix of technology and magic within the series is fascinating to me and very much reminds me of howl's moving castle.
Sabriel as a main character makes me extremely happy. I enjoy how she's portrayed and I don't think she's dull or flat in the slightest. It's just the writing style of the book to have moments of deep diving into world building and then moments of nothing but actions. All in all I feel like it's a good series to read if you're wanting some old-school fantasy with the hero's journey very prominent.
syan22's review against another edition
decided to read this on a whim since lirael and abhorsen, the sequels, were my favourite books growing up. sabriel starts off really slowly, and it didn't really pick up until after she saves touchstone - buuuuuuut there were bits of horror and action that kept me going, especially those mini cliffhangers at the end of chapters. all of the lore i knew from the sequels were (re)introduced and i find the old kingdom universe absolutely fascinating, especially the capital, belisaere, and how it was still a functional city despite corners of the city being inhabitable and overrun with the ~Dead~
pacing was an issue and it ended a little too abruptly for my liking but eh it was fun given that sabriel is the OG of the series i loved so much - and strangely didn't read as a teen
Spoiler
i didn't buy their romance, which felt kind of oddly paced and placed, but they're sweet nonetheless i guess? but love? huh? oh but i did love "i love you... i hope you don't mind"pacing was an issue and it ended a little too abruptly for my liking but eh it was fun given that sabriel is the OG of the series i loved so much - and strangely didn't read as a teen