Justine Larbalestier, Magic or Madness (Razorbill, 2005)
You'd be better off not reading this review. Or the book jacket, for that matter. Close the window, step away from your computer, buy the book -- you'll like it, I promise -- and open it to the first page, and begin. Make sure you have a couple hours free, because you're not going to put it down till you're done.
It's not that Magic or Madness is full of jaw-dropping shockers, like George R. R. Martin's A Game of Thrones; it's a much quieter book than that. It's that you're never quite sure, through the entire book, what's going to happen next, or what the truth really is about any number of issues. Also, there's something that happens about a third of the way in that I am going to reveal, because the inside cover gives it away anyway, but it would be a wonderful surprise if you didn't know it was coming.
Now that you've either already read the book, or are still holding out for me to explain why you ought to, I'll begin. Reason Cansino is an Australian teenager who's been on the run with her mother, Sarafina, since she was born. They ran from Sarafina's mother, who was evil and crazy and believed in magic. Sarafina does not believe in magic, and has taught Reason all about numbers and science and logical explanations. But now Sarafina has gone crazy herself and is locked in a mental asylum in Sydney, and Reason is taken away by her grandmother: Esmeralda, the wicked witch.
Reason knows all about Esmeralda -- how she made Sarafina's life hell by demanding that she believe in magic, how she sacrificed cats in bloody ritual spells, how she eats nothing but frogs and snails and brains. But Sarafina taught Reason well, so even though Esmeralda seems nice -- and no brains or dead cats are in evidence -- Reason knows not to speak to her or eat any of her food, and is ready to make her escape.
Think you know where this is going? You're wrong. Sort of.
Oh, you think it's going the other way? Wrong too. Maybe.
The most obvious virtue of Magic or Madness is its simple, page-turning style. Like her husband, fantasy/sf/YA writer Scott Westerfeld, Justine Larbalestier writes books that stay in your hands like they were coated with Krazy Glue, until you've turned the very last page. Reason's unusual voice -- half scientist, half snarky Australian teenager -- is one of the best parts of the book, and though the other two narrators, who appear later, are interesting and likable, I'm always happy to see Reason's narrative return. Though Reason is my favorite, all the characters are distinct and intriguing: a teenage boy who designs clothing, the mysterious Esmeralda, the long shadow cast by the mostly offstage Sarafina, a vampiric sugar daddy, and a Chicana New Yorker who isn't quite as street-smart as she thinks she is. Which brings me to the next thing that's striking about the book, which are its settings.
Magic or Madness takes place in Sydney and New York City, and both are drawn with such vivid detail that, to a reviewer who knows New York (as Reason does not) but not Sydney (as Reason does) that both cities become equally alien, equally disconcerting, and equally enticing. Larbalestier captures the culture shock that an unwary traveler can fall victim to when even countries where English is spoken can seem impossibly different from each other, and where even that English can sound like a foreign tongue. This is the first fantasy I've ever read that gets the effect of having a character transported to Elfland without ever leaving the fields that we know.
This is the first book in a trilogy, and though there's some resolution, it ends on something of a cliffhanger. The second book, Magic Lessons, will be available this spring.
