The Magickers - Emily Drake Book Review

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"The Magickers"
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Review Summaries

"When Jason Adrian is injured during soccer tryouts, he is devastated that he cannot go to soccer camp with his best friend. He was certain that he was doomed to spending summer eating Jell-O with his grandmother. But his English teacher unexpectedly comes to his rescue and he is off to Camp Ravenwyng. His overprotective stepmother cannot really find anything wrong with a camp for creative and imaginative students, so Jason finds himself on a funky little bus with a small group of kids and two weird-looking counselors. This bus ride is Jason's first tip-off that Ravenwyng isn't an ordinary camp - not when they suddenly went from nowhere to somewhere and night and day became totally confused in the process. Jason quickly finds that this is just the beginning. All of the children at camp were chosen because of their magicial potential and they are being trained to use that magic. As if that wasn't enough, he has to deal with a shape-shifting fellow camp kid, a disappearing best friend and a traitor in their midst. For he discovers that Camp Ravenwyng is the new battleground between the Camp Ravenwyng Magickers and their ancient enemy, the Dark Hand of Brennard and that a member of the Dark Hand is at camp plotting evil deeds... I resisted buying this book for quite some time because I thought it was a total Harry Potter rip off and it both is and it isn't. Jason and Harry have many similarities: their age; they are both being raised by someone other than their parents: Harry an aunt/uncle, Jason a stepmother/stepfather; they both know nothing about magic until they go to school/camp; they both have two best friends: Hermoine/Bailey and Ron/Trent; a klutzy boy in camp: Neville Longbottom and Henry Squibb; they are both sorted into their areas: Harry by the sorting hat and Jason by the wishing well; both have weird scars: Harry the famous lighting bolt on his forehead and Jason a weird moon shaped scar on his hand; both are mysterious targets for evil beings; both have the power to work miraculous things and end up saving the day, etc. This is really too bad because once Susan Drake got past the whole "be as close to Harry Potter as possible without plagarizing" at the beginning of the book, she was able to create a delightful fantasy book. There are some differences, the main one being the way magic works and what it is used for. The evil characters are also different and include both animals and humans. There are also some unexpected surprises in the book. The book is well-written and the reader empathizes with the characters almost immediately. The plot is pretty fast paced and there are plenty of little details to keep the reader amused with sub-plots while they wait for the serious action to occur. If you enjoyed Harry Potter, you will like this book, but I still feel bad that she "borrowed" so many ideas from J.K. Rowling.

Crested sapwood supportable noradrenaline runout. "
Debbie, Resident Emily Drake Scholar

"This book is about a normal boy who turns out to a magicker and gets sent of to camp. He finds out not everyone gets to be a magicker though.

Crested sapwood supportable noradrenaline runout. "
Rosie (Rosio), Resident Emily Drake Scholar

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Overall Review

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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot

Composition of Book
Descript. of chases or violence - 15%
planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 45%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 25%
Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 15%

Tone of book - very upbeat - suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - fantasy story on current Earth
Coming of age Yes
Youngster becomes - a powerful magician
Is this an adult or child's book? - Kid's book (ages 7-14) - Adult or Young Adult Book

Main Character
Identity: - Male
Profession/status: - student - mage/magician
Age: - a teen
Has magical/special powers? Yes
Magical/mental powers of main character: - can talk to animals - teleportation - can cast many different spells
Eccentric: Yes - obsessed
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events? Yes
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings - middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - very athletic - average physique

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male - Female
Age: - a teen - long-lived adults
Profession/status: - mage/magician
Has magical powers? Yes
Magical/mental powers of main antagonist: - can talk to animals - teleportation - can cast all sorts of spells
Eccentric: Yes - eccentric
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a moderate amount - an average amount
How sensitive is this character? - soggy whimpering jelly muffin - mean, arrogant
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence - Very much smarter than other characters
Physique - average physique

Setting
Terrain - Desert - Water - Forests
Earth setting: - 20th century - current (early 21st century)
Takes place on Earth? Yes

Style
Person? - mostly 1st
Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment
scientific jargon? (SF only) - some scientific explanation
How much dialogue? - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog

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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).

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