Tansy Rayner Roberts has reviewed Magic’s Child for As If: Australian Speculative Fiction in Focus. Be warned: it’s deeply spoilerific.

Roberts enjoyed Magic’s Child as much as Mr Doctorow of boingboing did:

Magic’s Child, like the other two books in Larbalestier’s Magic or Madness trilogy, is one of those clever novels that, because it is so easy and enjoyable to read, might fool you into thinking it is slight when it is actually rich with dark ideas and chewy themes. The series is also great entry level speculative fiction, heartily recommended as a way to introduce non-fantasy readers into the genre.

My books are gateway drugs! Woo hoo!

I’m as chuffed by this review as I was by Roberts’ review of Magic Lessons and for similar reasons. Once again she’s pointed out a few things about the book and the trilogy that I hadn’t noticed. Cool, eh? But I can’t discuss ’em on account of most people haven’t read it yet. Remind me in a few weeks!

Because it was such a difficult book to write, it’s not only a relief to be getting positive responses, but a bit of a shock. I have no perspective on Magic’s Child. None at all. I’m not sure I’ll be able to read it again.1 The writing and rewriting of it (especially the ending—how many endings were there? Do not ask!) was fraught and ugly and brain destroying.

That folks are enjoying it is huge compensation for those dismal days. It’s even more pleasing that no one (so far) has accused me of doing a Pullman ripping them off with a crappy unsatisfying ending.

Because that’s the other big fear: Does the ending work? The biggest complaints about series and trilogies is that the ending ends more whimpery than bang-y, or goes off somewhere new and unprepared for, that it does not resolve all that was set up in the earlier books. I’ve been that ripped-off reader; I did not like the idea of perpetrating the rip off.

Of course it’s all early days. Magic’s Child isn’t out till March. Plenty of time for readers to hate it!

We writers are hopeless. Sensitive and crazy overprotective about our books. Melina Marchetta expresses it perfectly. When a new book comes out:

1. You want to be very cool and say that you love your novel and are very proud of it, and if your readers don’t feel the same way, that’s fine. First big lie. You want everyone to love it.
2. You tell everyone that a bad review doesn’t affect you because you know other people (your mum) loved the story. Second big lie. I received a really bad Jellicoe review and I spoke about the fact that I wasn’t going to speak about it for days and days (but it was a very very mean spirited review).
3. You tell a friend that it’s okay that they’ve never read any of your novels. Third big lie. When they’ve read that mumbo jumbo Ulysees and forced you to read Camus, then the least they can do is get the DVD out and pretend they’ve read one of your novels.

And as I said I’m particularly nervous about the reception of Magic’s Child. If me the author don’t know how I feels about it, then how can others love the poor wee thing? (Yes, I am aware of the many logical fallacies here. Not least that how I feel about the book is entirely immaterial to how anyone else feels about it. I did say we writers are hopeless, didn’t I?)

Well, these people seem to like it. Phew!

1. Except the epilogue. I’m dead fond of the epilogue. The glossary and acknowledgments aren’t bad neither. Though I’m ashamed I forgot to thank all my English teachers from primary and high school. What was I thinking? [↩]