Children of the Shaman

By Jessica Rydill

Book Overview

A brother and sister venture out from the sheltered coastal town where they were raised, into the magical kingdom of La Souterraine. Only then and there do they learn what their heritage means, to them, and to those around them...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0451459113
• ISBN13: 9780451459114
• Release Date: February 2003
• Publisher: Roc
• Length: 355 Pages
• Weight: 1.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 4.4" x 6.9"

Customer Reviews

Interesting and Unique Fantasy

Thirteen year old Annat is a shaman by birth. Within her own people, the Wanderers, shamans can heal, protect, and enter bodily into other realms. Outside her people, however, shamans are looked upon with suspicion and mistrust. Annat is largely untrained in her powers, but when her aunt falls sick, she and her brother are sent to live with the father they barely know. Annat is finally able to train as a shaman under the tutelage of her father, Yuda, but the family soon turns down a dangerous path. Yuda has been assigned to investigate strange occurrences and brutal murders in a small northern town. Strange, old magic seems to be at play in the area, and soon after arriving, Annat’s brother Malchik disappears. Annat and Yuda’s search for Malchik will take them on a strange journey through a mystical land of winter, where they must find Malchik and stop the evil being responsible for the town’s troubles. This was an interesting and well-crafted fantasy. The story exists in a slightly offset historical Russia/Eastern Europe, with a good dose of Judaism and Jewish mysticism. The Russian fairy-tale setting is in vogue at the moment, with books such as The Bear and the Nighingale by Katherine Arden, and Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo creating well-deserved buzz. Rydill’s inclusion of Jewish history, religion, and folklore set her book apart and add a touch of realism and historical grounding in a fantasy tale. In all, the book is well written. The character of Annat is well-realized, sometimes to the detriment of the other characters, who can feel a bit flat. The journey through the fairy-tale realm borrows from Eastern European and Russian folklore, and is for the most part exciting and fun reading. I did find that the book began to drag a bit towards the end, but overall I found Children of the Shaman a diverting fantasy. Fans of the fantasy genre, especially those who enjoyed The Bear and the Nnightingale or Shadow and Bone will likely enjoy this book. Anyone looking for a fantasy featuring a strong female lead (Children of the Shaman reminds me a lot of The Green Rider by Kristen Britain) shoudl also consider this book for their TBR. A copy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review

A Wonderful Surprise

I received this book as a cheap gift from a dollar store, and had my doubts about how good it would be. Happily, my doubts were unfounded. For those who get tired of the standard fantasy genre that uses a medieval setting and the requisite elves, dragons, and evil wizards, this will be a nice change of pace. The early industrial age technology, religions based on Christianity and Judaism, and easily recognized European geography add an extra dimension to the story as the reader wonders if this is an alternate 18th century Earth, a future earth that has begun to recover after some major calamity, or something completely different. Not all of the "heros" are totally perfect or always heroic, not all the villians are completely despicable, and relationships get complicated. With any luck, this is the first of many books that Rydill will produce.

A Good Debut Novel

Funny thing. A couple weeks ago, I was talking with a friend and we both complained about how there are so few fantasy novels with good portraits of family life. Then I went to the library and found "Children of the Shaman". Thankfully, newcomer Jessica Rydill decided to focus on character-driven fantasy. The story involves two children, Annat and Malchik, who have been raised by their aunt but are now going to join their estanged father, who has just taken a new position in a town to the far north. The level of control and sophistication in the character development is quite impressive. Clearly Rydill understands that interesting people have to be at the heart of a good story. In "Children of the Shaman", it's easy to grow attached to all five of the main characters, because they all have believable strengths and flaws.The story is set in a remote frozen North. The level of technology seems to be about mid nineteenth century, as we see trains and other glimpses of industrial technology. Unlike many fantasy authors, Rydill actually has researched and understood the societies on which her world is modeled. Thus, we get solid world-building, with lots of attention to the details of daily life, such as medical practice. Indeed, after the first hundred pages or so, this was looking like a five-star book.Things change a bit once when one character is abducted and taken to a strange alternate universe and the others follow in an attempt to save him. To be sure, Rydill offers some inventive and intriguing possibilities for this new world. Bands of visitiors who have made a deal with evil forces, and mysterious group of people who walk on stilts, and so forth. The problem is that much of the behavior we see during these encounters just doesn't ring true the way that earlier scenes did. For instance, in one situation the heroes encounter a band of natives who mistakes them for a Goddess and her followers. However, the entire scenario, and most particularly the dialogue, feels somewhat forced and unrealistic.So in summary, "Children of the Shaman" is a good book that could have been even better. Since the ending seems to point towards a possible sequel, we can only hope that Rydill will return to this world, and possibly pay more attention towards capturing realistic behavior in odd situations. Also, the editor needs to be more careful, since this book has a number of errors in spelling and word choice. Finally, I should note that although there are only a few violent scenes here, Rydill does not flinch from intense descriptions, and she has graphic portraits of fight scenes and injuries.

Refreshingly original!

Not a big fan of the fantasy genre, I was looking for an interesting take on things. After an hour scouring the bookshelves, I came across Rydill's Shaman and was intrigued. I was not disappointed! She has created a world of heightened reality grounded in familiar spiritual and religious metaphors and given it all a refreshing spin. Her characters are very strong, particularly Yuda and Annat, and it is this strength that carries the story.

Very well done

As a jaundiced reader of science fiction and fantasy, it gets harder to impress me all the time. I may be tantalized by plot, but then disappointed by the execution in terms of world-building, writing and characterization.Children of the Shaman works on all those levels. While it is not clear whether the setting is a far future earth, gripped by a centuries-long winter, or some alternate world, it hardly matters, as a shaman of the Wanderers reunites with his long estranged children, and takes them to uncover a mysterious enemy killing or disappearing people at the edge of the great snow.Jessica Rydill has also done some research on shamanism, as her depiction of the shamans, and some of their common characteristics, is quite well done.