A review by starbird3
The Magician's Daughter by H.G. Parry

5.0

This book came at the right time when I was in just the right mood. It was pitched to me as "if Howl from How's Moving Castle had a daughter," which sounded so interesting I had to give it a try when it became available at my library. It did take me a little bit to get invested, and there were some things that were I in a different mood I might be a little more picky about, but overall I enjoyed this read enough to give it five stars. The fact that it focused so heavily on Biddy's bond with her guardians Hutchincroft and Rowan was a breath of fresh air and I adored the three of them together by the end. 

Spoiler though, for one of the content warnings. I went looking for spoilers due to having experienced this and just wanted to be prepared for what the end result would be. Just in case spoiler tags don't work, this is your final warning, but I wanted to include it for anyone out there like me who considers being forewarned worth this particular bit being spoiled.

Ready?

Rowan does die around the climax of the book, but to borrow a phrase from The Princess Bride he is only mostly dead and Hutchincroft is able to bring him back. So yes there is parental death here, but not really. I was left unable to determine if I was relieved and happy for Biddy or disappointed that it was resolved so easily and kind of quickly.
 

The book ends on a complete note, but I still found myself sort of wishing for a sequel so I could see how Biddy continues to grow. 
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