Magyk

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Magyk
Author Angie Sage
Cover artist Mark Zug (illustrator)
Country USA
Language English
Series Septimus Heap (Book 1)
Genre(s) Fantasy novel
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date 2005
Media type Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages 564 (+32) (paperback edition)
ISBN ISBN 0-7475-7820-6 (UK paperback edition)
Preceded by NA
Followed by Flyte

Magyk is a fantasy novel by Angie Sage. It is the first book in the Septimus Heap series. The sequel, Flyte was released in March 2006, the third book in the series is called Physik, released in March 2007, and the fourth is called Queste.

Contents

[edit] Plot introduction

Septimus Heap, the seventh son of the seventh son, is pronounced dead by the midwife on the night he is born. That same night, his father, Silas, finds a newborn girl with violet eyes in the snow. The Heaps take the baby girl into their home, name her Jenna after Silas Heap's mother, and raise her as their own.

[edit] Plot summary

The book begins outside of a castle, in a living district also known as "The Ramblings". Here, we find Silas Heap trudging through the snow with some herbal medicines for his wife Sarah Heap. Just outside the castle Silas finds an infant baby girl with violet eyes, stranded in the snow, and wrapped in a blanket. He hides her in his cloak and takes her with him. Upon returning to a castle, he learns about the succession of Marcia Overstrand as "The ExtraOrdinary Wizard". He meets her in an alley way before he gets back and she tells him to keep the baby he found, raise her as his own and if anyone asks, acknowledge her as his daughter. Just as he is out to enter his house, the matron midwife runs out carrying his newborn son Septimus Heap (who has been predicted to have extraordinary powers as he is the seventh son of a seventh son) wrapped in cloth and pronouncing him dead. Silas names the baby girl Jenna and does exactly what Marcia had told him to do. The story revolves around the events of the time ten years after this incident, starting when Marcia comes to take Jenna in her to protection to stop her from being assassinated. At which point, Marcia also reveals Jenna as the previous Queen's daughter. Marcia takes Jenna away to protect her from an Assassin. Marcia saves Boy 412, a mysterious boy in the Young Army, outside the wizard tower from freezing to death, and takes him with them to her room in the tower. Silas, Nicko, and Maxie then come to visit Jenna in the tower. But before they are there for an hour, the Assassin arrives to kill Jenna. Marcia defends Jenna, and they all escape the tower through the rubbish chute. The chute leads them to a dump next to the docks where Nicko helps the group sail away on the Muriel, which is given to them by Sally, Sarah Heap's friend. Secretly in return, Marcia lends Sally her KeepSafe. The Hunter, a henchmen of the Supreme Custodian, is the sent to chase them. Marcia uses a Reverse Spell to Project the Muriel, the boat that they're sailing on, and distract the Hunter, upon which he loses the groups trail, and has to return to the castle. Nicko aided by Silas, sails the group to an island where Aunt Zelda's cottage is in the marshes. Zelda Heap is the Aunt of Jenna and Nicko. On the island, Boy 412 wanders around the marshes, falls into a pit with a large cavern in it, and finds a ring that glows when he places it on his finger. He keeps the ring a secret for sometime though. Marcia then walks with Boy 412, and shows him a charm that Alther, the old ExtraOrdinary Wizard gave to her when she was his Apprentice. Marcia sees that Boy 412 has potential, and asks him to become her Apprentice, but he refuses. Aunt Zelda also helps Jenna, Nicko, and Boy 412 make shield bugs to protect themselves. Marcia then tries to use her Midnight Minutes to protect herself when she goes back to the Wizard Tower because of a letter that said that she should go back. But then she gets captured by the Custodian Guards because she got her Midnight Minutes wrong. A few more weeks pass until the Hunter discover the groups location with Aunt Zelda, in the marshes, and returns to assassinate Jenna. Jenna and Boy 412 defend themselves by using shield bugs, and Aunt Zelda uses a Freezing Spell on the Hunter. Soon after the Hunter was frozen, they try to figure out the identity of DomDaniel's Apprentice, who claims to be Septimus when they capture him. Nicko firmly denies it after seeing what treachery the apprentice could do. Then, the Apprentice escapes and tells DomDaniel of their location. A bit after that, Aunt Zelda tells Boy 412 that the ring is the legendary Hotep-Ra's dragon ring which gives him control over the Dragon Boat. Aunt Zelda gives Boy 412 a book with the legend of Hotep-Ra. The legend says that Hotep-ra, the first ExtraOrdinary Wizard, was being pursued by people planning to kill him. Therefore, the dragon became a boat to save her mastser and before Hotep-Ra died he put the boat in his hidden temple. Afterward, Boy 412 soon begins to become interested in the art of Magyk, and the mysteries surrounding the ring. Aunt Zelda later tells Boy 412 that the cave in which he found the ring is connected to a secret cavern containing Hotep-ra's temple, and within it, the Dragon Boat. The boat was used by Boy 412, Nicko and Jenna in order to save Marcia and stop DomDaniel from being the ExtraOrdinary Wizard again. The boat somehow talks to Jenna inside her head because she the Princess and only Boy 412 can make it fly and steer it. They rescue Marcia, and Boy 412 agrees to become Marcia's Apprentice. Later, they discover during the apprentice banquet that Boy 412 is really Septimus Heap, the seventh son of the seventh son.

[edit] Characters in Magyk

Major characters are listed in bold.

  • Marcia Overstrand : the current ExtraOrdinary Wizard
  • Stanley : the Long-Distance Confidential Message Rat (Rat 101)
  • Zelda Zanuba Heap : The Keeper, also known as Aunt Zelda
  • Silas Heap: the Patriarch Heap and seventh son of Benjamin Heap
  • Sarah Heap : the Matriarch Heap
  • Simon Heap : 1st son of Sarah and Silas Heap - becomes antagonist in later books
  • Sam Heap : 2nd son of Sarah and Silas Heap
  • Erik Heap : 3rd son of Sarah and Silas Heap
  • Edd Heap : 4th son of Sarah and Silas Heap
  • Jo-Jo Heap : 5th son of Sarah and Silas Heap
  • Nicko Heap : 6th son of Sarah and Silas
  • Jenna 'Heap'  : She is the Queenling, but was raised by the Heaps unknowingly
  • DomDaniel's apprentice : he is supposedly the dead (seventh) son of Sarah and Silas or "Septimus Heap", His name is in actuality Merrin Meredith, the Midwife's son
  • Boy 412, of the Young Army : The protagonist of the series, he is the actual Septimus Heap.

Boy 409 Said to have drowned in a Do-or-Die exercise, he is rediscovered and named Wolf Boy in book II Flyte

  • DomDaniel : The Necromancer and ex-Extraordinary Wizard.
  • Alther Mella : The Ghost of the old Extraordinary Wizard, who aids Jenna and Septimus
  • Galen : Sarah Heap's friend in the woods who is a garden witch
  • Maxie : Rightly named Maximillion, this faithful dog that belongs to the Heaps has no real part in the book, but he makes Marcia go crazy mostly at Aunt Zelda's cottage.

[edit] Major themes

The novel has a large focus on Magykal (sic) ability, family, and belonging.

[edit] Literary significance & criticism

Magyk has received mostly positive and generally praiseful reviews and comments from Publishers Weekly, and The Times who stated that it was 'A real discovery'.

Publishers Weekly also commented:

“ The author introduces several subplots, summarized rather than dramatized then eventually reveals the real Septimus in a clever, if predictable, turn of events, making way for the next installments. Ages 9-up[1]. ”

There were some negative points raised by VOYA commenting the two things about the book that were most annoying was: the lack of a map inside the book and overly coincidental events [2]. Other reviews from The Daily Telegraph and Kirkus Reviews commented the novel was "Full of hurtle-paced humour" [3] and "A quick–reading, stand–alone, deliciously spellbinding series" [4]. Author Clive Barker also commented that:

“ Septimus Heap: Magyk is a book full of wonders, charms, and surprises. Beautifully written and richly imagined, it invites us into a world we never want to leave. Marvelous[5] ”

The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books said "This first book in the Septimus Heap series is a cheerful, clever offering." [6]

[edit] Trivia

The author includes a section about the number 7 in the "Extras" section of the paperback edition. This includes a list of hidden sevens. For example:

  • There are 49 chapters: 7 times 7 = 49
  • Boy 412 (4 + 1 + 2 = 7)
  • The Heap's new address: Corridor 223, Room 16 (2 + 2 + 3 = 7, 1 + 6 = 7)
  • In Chapter 28 (which itself is a multiple of 7), the Apprentice learns up to 13 times 7. Thirteen is the number that is one away from fourteen, which is also a multiple of 7.
  • Rat 101 is used to give "homage" to George Orwell's "1984" (see Nineteen Eighty-Four).

[edit] Film adaptation

Warner Brothers have bought the rights to produce a film adaptation of the book. Karen Rosenfelt will produce the film, with Sage also serving as an executive producer.[7] The Movie is supposedly to be released on 2011 or 2012.

[edit] Release details

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ Publishers Weekly's review of Magyk available at [1]
  2. ^ YOYA's comments (Voice of Young Advocates), retrieved from: [2]
  3. ^ Blurb printed on Magyk the paperback edition
  4. ^ Kirkus Reviews comments readable at [3]
  5. ^ Clive Barker's comments of Magyk available at [4].
  6. ^ The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books review of Magyk [5]
  7. ^ Stax. "Warners Snatches Septimus", IGN, 2007-07-13. Retrieved on 2007-07-14. 

[edit] External links