A review by cclift1114
Angel Mage by Garth Nix

4.0

Garth Nix is truly an amazing world-builder. Once again he’s created something completely unique and yet understandable. I loved the idea of people being able to control the powers of angels, mixed with a Three Musketeers tribute. I also liked how, aside from our four main protagonists, you couldn’t quite tell where the other characters stood. They felt very human in that they embodied both bad and good qualities. No one was an out-and-out villain, and love was the redeeming element for those who seemed to be the antagonists. The characters were likable and relatable, with a good peppering of humor throughout an otherwise more serious story. In true Garth Nix fashion, the book is full of strong female characters. In this world, just like Nix’s others, sexism doesn’t even exist because there’s no question of women being able to do exactly what men do at the same level. By extension, Nix also lets us experience a world in which LGBTQ characters are not othered, but allowed to show their love and affection. Although this is a fantastical world filled with angels and magic, the story and the characters reflect our real world.